Life has been pretty rough for me lately...two weekends ago I was in Munich, Germany for Oktoberfest, a festival dedicated to drinking beer. Then, last weekend I was in the wine region Moravia, Czech Republic where we stayed at a wine vineyard and had unlimited access to wine (sigh) I just do not know what to do with myself.
Well as you can tell, that paragraph is true only if you substitute rough for AWESOME. I can only pinch myself and feel truly lucky that I am able to have this amazing experience this semester....and things just keep getting better. While I miss my family and friends (and my dogs) back home, I am really loving my life here in Prague. Let me tell you about my past couple of weekends..
Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany - BEST TIME EVER!!! I was a little unsure what awaited us behind the pearly gates
that are Oktoberfest...I mean I've seen the movie 'Beer Fest' but one cannot describe its magic. I'll try....image 2000 of your best friends crammed like sardines into a huge beer hall...all awaiting beer. And when that first drop hits your lips you are suddenly transformed. Everyone is singing, dancing, cheerings, and having a good time. Australians, Canadians, Germans, Americans, French, Spanish you name it are all together and friends through our mutual love of beer. I cannot help but wonder if the whole world could be at Oktob
erfest, world peace would be possible. Its a giant fair as well...with rides and games. The picture was taken from the top of the ferris wheel looking over Oktoberfest at night. Also, the food was soooo good. I could eat there everyday. It was the best time of my young life and something I will never forget. If possible, I think I will make Oktoberfest my annual pilgrimage...sort of like my own personal Mecca. But other than just Oktoberfest I did see a good chunk of the city of Munich, which was beautiful. We went to the Olympic Park, where Munich hosted the Olympics in 1972, which was the games where my favorite American distance runner, Steve Prefountaine, ran in. The 1972 Olympics were also when the Munich Massacre happened when terrorists killed 11 Israel athletes. Another place we spent a lot of time at was the Marienplatz, which is the center square in Munich. There are a lot of cool things to see and do there, like St. Peter's Church and the New City Hall building. All in all Munich was a great time and a great city with lots of friendly people ( I accidentally stroked a German man's thigh on the metro but thats another whole story in itself) 
Just this last weekend we went on a school trip to the wine region of Moravia, Czech Republic. It was a lot of sightseeing and wine drinking crammed into two fun filled days. We started off in town of Moravsky to see the Slavic Epic by Mucha. These are enormous paintings done by the artist Mucha and are very important works of art for Czech history and culture. Next we went to the little town of Mikulov which is 
on the Austrian-Czech border for lunch. We climbed up this huge hill and got an amazing view of the city and the Czech country side. Then if was off to Lednice, CZ which is home to a UNESCO Heritage Site and one of the most beautiful gardens I have ever seen. It was sparling trees, flowers, shrubs, lakes, etc and is just stunning. There are also a palace which was designed by the guy, who get this...invited the pencil. It was nice to walk around and be in a place so naturally beautiful. Then we went to our final destination of the night, Velke Bilovice, a small villag
e where our wine vineyard was located, and where we stayed the night. We arrived to this tiny vineyard and of course wanted to freshen up after our long day. Well guess what. The guy gave our reservation away and there were only 10 beds left...for 24 of us. Not a problem though...we resourceful college kids. After a dinner of unlimited goulash and broucek, it was time for the wine tasting. We were thinking 15-20 wine samples wouldn't be that much wine...we were wrong. Everyone was feeling pretty happy after the wine tasting. Then, we got to pick our favorite wine to drink unlimited throughout the rest of the night. So take 2o some American college students and give them open wine bar...what was the guy thinking. We wrecked havoc on his vineyard. But in our defense, we did have not enough beds to our name. It was a lot of fun but I was glad to get back to Prague and back to my own bed.
I cannot believe I was already been here for over a month! Living in Prague is awesome and since I am graduating in May, living and working abroad is something I am highly considering doing. I can safely say my heart belongs to Prague. Tomorrow we are doing a 2.5K fun run uphill to celebrate all those who helped end Communism in the Czech Republic. Then this Friday is the start to our 5 day, 4 country field trip through Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Hungary. Can't wait!Nessie
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