You'll find more than tourist on the King Charles Bridge

Cafe U Cerneho Beranaka (cafe oo-tser-neh-o bear-an-aka)
Prague, Czech Republic
Tuesday, 20 May 2008
9:00 AM (USA)/ 3:09 PM (CR)



my little cafe is at the base of the King Charles bridge-- as the prices suggest. the coffee is expensive but pleasant service-- that in itself is a treat, and the rooms are comfortably occupied...with Czech's and not tourist which is odd because the King Charles bridge has the largest concentration of tourist per day in Prague (that is a made-up statistic by Moi, but you get my point. also, they don't take credit cards which helps reduce the foreigners)

yayyyy! I picked a local spot...by myself!!

good choice.

As I'm alone, Faran went to english class, I went on a little excursion of my own, seeing Prague solo. I have so far traveled in a wonderfully round circle, then finally, with the help of a friendly Czech pointed in the right direction of the King Charles Bridge, the one I crossed this morning, but forgot my bread crumbs and couldn't retrace my steps, darn it.

This morning crossing the King Charles bridge was a wonderful experience as we got up early and took a tram to the other side of the Vltava, the river running through Prague, after a famous Jana Dmovo breakfast of cheese, jelly, a braided donut and chocolate pudding. Oh and not to forget the "tea, coffee, oran' juis', please?"

We got off at a stop that seemed right and began walking. It was crisp this morning and this side of the Vltava seemed more windy, however, it wasn't raining and anything was better than that constant gray drizzle. Which leads me to believe, my first few days here were the worst Prague can offer as it isn't suppose to rain all that much here. I hate that my first impressions were so severe in light of seeing this more fair weather; however, it has at least cultured me to enjoy more the Prague that people have told me about.

When we reached the King Charles Bridge it was heavy laden with tourists and artisans. As Faran and I were milling in the pack I looked over the edge that was still above ground and looking back up was a construction worker (the are fixing part of the bridge). Our eyes met for a brief moment and the surprise of finding a pair of my own staring back over the edge was enough to let a very genuine, friendly smile leave my lips.

Connection with the others, that's what I'm looking for, and there in that moment a zip line of instant communication was made. How magnificent that we as creatures can experience so much love for our own. This very part of human nature never fails to prove to me that we have souls.

And I realize that I may have read into that more than there was, but I'm okay with that :)

As we continued across the bridge I hear familiar sounds, as in words, that I could understand. Everyone was predominantly American, so now I know where to go, if I ever need a slice of home: the Kind Charles Bridge. Decorated with folk paintings, jewelry and a stunning view of the Vltava and Castle, I felt for the first time a happy sense of wonder and awe. There was the Castle, the people, the statues the green fields and trees just over the hill, waving to let you know they were there, and finally the Vltava and its ships. The Czech do not have access to the ocean, therefore, the Vltava must carry on its back all the expectations of the Czech people in what they wish of the water, which explains the many boat tours and scuba diving businesses I have seen ( I was for sure the scuba diving was strictly a joke or a rip off).

Going further down the bridge we came to stop in front of this group playing the blues, including a trumpet, a clarinet and a banjo! I think it's taking me a bit longer to get acclimated with this place because honestly, the people are sour and they make me uncomfortable and the weather is extremely inclement as of late. (this is written at a different time of day so the warm fuzzies I had in the cafe are gone, we watched movie on the Czech Republic's first president and I LOVED him, still am undecided on the people here)

First of all, my feet were drenched all day, second of all, I felt like I was starving constantly because we walk EVERYWHERE which is fine; however, WE ONLY GET ONE MEAL A DAY HERE AND THAT IS A MEASLY BREAKFAST. If I get hungry I have to either buy it or have premade and packed it in all the ziplock bags I do NOT have. They do NOT take debit cards as frequently as I was told and had to walk at least five minutes out of my way to find an ATM on the side of a stone in order to pay for some lunch. My back hurts from carrying my book bag and, and, I don't know, but I'll think of something else in a minute. Basically, the banjo made me homesick beyond what I ever would want to be. I miss my happy, celebratory family and homeland. I almost feel like the Czech Republic was a terrible choice for my first overseas adventure because they are quite the anomaly of a nation, very different from Great Britain, France, Italy, Greece, etc. This is such an oddball place filled with people with short, choppy dyed red, black, purple and green hair. Think of the outcast goth crowd and that is the Czech Republic.

Being here makes me realize with a pounding heart just how important our government is, or actually, lack of, in the sense that We The People govern, not a select few officials. Havel, the previous Czech president made a good point in his documentary that at the start of his term, people here were excited and energetic about politics (supposedly, I'm not sure I believe it), and he was able to make some major changes that with out such high willingness of the people he wouldn't have been able to accomplish. Likewise we in America are begging for different policies in the White House, which is why I believe my choice for President, Barack Obama, was the best choice because yes he may be less experienced but his ability to ralley the people and interject excitement into stale affairs is more important than a roll-a-dex of connections and shortcuts. His naiveness is our bliss and we should embrace that.

There's another thing that Havel said that was so perfect, he said, "A natural disability of democracy is that for the people who don't take it seriously, it allows them to do what ever they wish, and for those who do take it seriously, it allows them to do nothing to stop it." This is so true, and my thought is that perhaps the sign of a democracy well done is a crop of people taking advantage of the system, all the while an additional crop keeping close watch that things do not get too out of hand which would not even be democracy but anarchy.

Sorry to flat jack on you but I'm about to flip topics:

I saw two Czech boys greet each other today by a very acceptable fist pound and half hug. I saw camaraderie in person, live from the Czech.

The thing is we as humans constantly look for ways to understand and calibrate our world. We look for ways to relate it to us versus the other way around, so the advice that I give to myself is that: meet in the middle. And so you know, I AM trying, but I feel it's also necessary to go through stages of emotions when you first visit a place, so I am sure this weird, uncomfortable grossness that I feel toward the people here will fade into something much less intense and a more mellow emotion. I constantly try to imagine America through a foreigner's eyes and the things they would see and experience and I'm sure it would be the same as far as our ugly buildings, no side walked towns and obese population. America is not a sophisticated nation as far as craft goes, YET, but remember we are but the teenagers of the world. Prague and the rest of Europe have quite a few years on us. The thing is I realize I'm being extremely harsh; however, I'm taking in the full picture and it's just a stage of realization that I'm going through. I don't know what the next stage is, but I must exhaust this one and graduate, so if the next few posts are more like rants than not, don't be alarmed, I'm just getting adjusted :)

Overall, I'm supremely happy to be here with the people I'm with and the teachers, who are wonderful, and I believe in my heart that this trip to Prague is a prerequisite for something larger. I don't believe exactly that this trip to Prague is suppose to be amazing or thrilling, but rather an experience to ready me and help me find myself so that when the event this trip is preparing me for comes, my bags will be packed and ready. It is a building block in my foundation that with out would be poor and shaky which ultimately would lead to problems or a failure. I pray that He keeps my mind supple and flexible through out this trip that I may see things for what they really are. Like our great country that declares you are innocent until proven guilty I too give the Czech Republic the benefit of the doubt as I've not been here long enough to have even made a half way decent analysis of a culture dense with history and heritage.

ps. boats and water never fail to level my mind. I felt so at peace watching the boats on the Vltava River today.
pss. I ALSO realize that some of this can come off way too deep and philosophical. I'm a deep thinker but, hey, what can you do :)