{"id":9108,"date":"2016-02-02T18:05:40","date_gmt":"2016-02-02T23:05:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/?p=9108"},"modified":"2016-02-02T18:05:40","modified_gmt":"2016-02-02T23:05:40","slug":"everything-is-really-old","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/?p=9108","title":{"rendered":"Everything Is Really Old"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ahoj, Friends!<\/p>\n

This is my first blog post! It would\u2019ve come earlier, but as always, I have an unfortunate internet connection. Also, I\u2019ve been rather busy in the beautiful city of Prague!<\/p>\n

I have been here a little over two weeks now and have already fallen in love. There\u2019s always something to do, whether it\u2019s grabbing one of the many delicious pastries from a vendor or walking around Old Town. I think my favorite part of Prague, thus far, is Vysehrad (which I\u2019m still not a hundred percent on how to pronounce). It is a little further outside the realm of \u201ctourism,\u201d although I did find out about it through my guide book (thanks, Rick Steves). Vsyehrad is a fortress that has been around since before Prague was Prague. It contains the infamous Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul, which\u2014with its ornate wall paintings, devotion to Mary, and saint relics\u2014was everything a theology nerd like myself could want. Even the cemetery that runs alongside the church was extravagant, acting more like a secret garden than a place for mourning. I managed to make it out of the church just after sunset, and had an excellent view of Prague lighting up, and the Vltava River.<\/p>\n

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View of the Vltava River from Vysehrad<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I\u2019ve also managed to spend some time outside of Prague. The past couple weekends, USAC has coordinated several hikes in the surrounding towns. Our first one led us to a 1000 year old town which contained a cave that housed the hermit, St. Ivan. As the legend goes, St. Ivan lived in the caves with the physical representation of Satan, and battled him with a cross. We got to see the blood-stained wall from the fight, along with the town\u2019s original church. We then proceeded to hike up a snowy mountain and essentially skied our way back down it.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve definitely noticed that the Czech\u2019s version of \u201csafety\u201d is not the same as American\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\"12646957_10156504183345287_2100283986680085288_n\"
The original church, set into the cave where St. Ivan lived<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This past weekend, we also went up near the German border and hiked up to the ruins of a 14th<\/sup> century castle, which for some reason, they allowed us to climb on. It amazes me, first that anyone can walk all over ruins, but also how incredibly old everything is here. Just the other day, we visited the \u201cNew\u201d Jerusalem Cemetery for class, which is older than my country. One day, we ate dinner at a restaurant that is housed in a building that has been around for several centuries. I go to church in a Cathedral that is over 600 years old (FYI, St. Vitus Cathedral does NOT have heating). Everything here has a long past; it is so different from home, where new buildings pop up everyday and old buildings are constantly being torn down. I have to say, I kind of like knowing that generations have looked upon the same sights that I have, and we\u2019ve all been amazed by it.<\/p>\n

However, it hasn\u2019t all been fun and games and there have already been several mishaps, ranging from me\u2026misplacing\u2026my coat for a day (don\u2019t worry, Mom and Dad, I have it back) to us accidently leaving a student at a train station while he was in the bathroom. But, everything has managed to turn out all right in the end. It\u2019s hard to let the bad stuff get us down when we have bellies full of goulash and are watching the sunset from the Charles Bridge.<\/p>\n

I think, for the moment, that will be all. All I can really say is, I\u2019ve been in Prague for two weeks and I don\u2019t really ever want to leave.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ahoj, Friends! This is my first blog post! It would\u2019ve come earlier, but as always, I have an unfortunate internet connection. Also, I\u2019ve been rather busy in the beautiful city of Prague! I have been here a little over two weeks now and have already fallen in love. There\u2019s always something to do, whether it\u2019s … <\/p>\n

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