Written by Taylor Heinicke (University of Wisconsin-Madison) Student Correspondent for CET Prague, Spring 2022
All of the stars aligned this week to make it (yet again) the best week ever.
Fortunately (for me, definitely not for my professors), the beautifully-forecasted week was meant to be enjoyed. Due to a little ~covid issue~ my afternoon classes on Monday and Tuesday were canceled, meaning days normally spent exclusively being a member of academia were replaced with activities! Lots of them!
This week feels like a dream sequence, but I can assure you, it’s not. Life is just really this good.
Monday afternoon was spent soaking up the sun in the park, not a care in the world. As the sun began to set, we celebrated my friend’s 21st birthday lounging on outdoor couches with a bottle of Moravian wine at the wine bar we’ve been dying to try near our apartment.
The birthday girl
But TUESDAY, Tuesday was a dream come true. Originally set to give a presentation I was not nearly prepared for, I awoke in distress. Although I may not deserve it, the universe rewarded me. At noon I got the best text ever: class canceled. No class, no presentation, and an entire day to enjoy my beautiful, sun-bathed city. So many possibilities.
To honor the Art & Architecture class we were missing, we headed to the park our professor had taken us through on an excursion the previous week. After what felt like a lengthy hike, we arrived on sprawling fields of green. The vast lawns were perfectly manicured to a picnic and there was even a water feature (I know- a water feature!!! This place was so nice I felt like I was on a five-star golf course. Exquisite). After a couple hours at the park, I walked a few minutes to the food truck in the park and got takeaway Aperol Spritzes. So I was reading in the park with an Aperol Spritz, instead of anxiously waiting to give a presentation in class; the world works in mysterious ways.
On Wednesday we were gifted a field trip to a nearby park for Czech class. And an online film class which was done (if you haven’t guessed yet) in the park. The green bloom that has spread throughout Prague has also created ample opportunities to enjoy the beer gardens. After class we walked to Riegrovy Sady and grabbed a couple beers overlooking the city. The park was littered with people enjoying the day: a picnic perfect moment. We sat by a firepit for another couple of hours, talking to locals and trying to learn words in Czech that our professor won’t teach us… All on a SCHOOL night (I’m definitely not envying my friends back at school stuck in the library).
As if the week couldn’t have gotten any better, my only Thursday class was also a walking tour (I’m not kidding, my ideal week materialized before my eyes). Not to mention that after class, I finally had my acting debut as the STAR of a film in the heart of Prague (in all reality, I was an extra on my friends in FAMU’s set, but still). We then assembled a group and headed down to the river. Since the boats are out now, we spent the afternoon paddling away down the Vltava, later laughing riverside over cards and more pivo (pivo= Czech for beer. Essential vocabulary here).
And when I woke up Friday morning, it was officially Spring Break. Like hello?? Nobody pinch me.