Kiss Me Now, Chisinau (and Transnistria)

After finishing up my time in Romania, I flew Moldovan airline HiSky from Bucharest to Chișinău, the capital and largest city of Moldova. Moldovan airline FlyOne returned me to Prague. Who would have thought that Moldova would have multiple low-cost airlines?! A tour guide told us that flight traffic to/from Moldova has increased markedly since […]

Dan Brown in Town

Coincidentally, Dan Brown’s latest book, The Secret of Secrets, just released this month, is based in Prague. I bought an English language copy (surprisingly, it was less expensive than the Czech language version) and read it in five days, in time to finish it before a big book tour event held in Prague. I didn’t […]

Gjirokastër and Corfu

Two of the most interesting destinations on this two-week trip were definitely Gjirokastër, in Albania, and Corfu, in Greece. I loved it in Gjirokastër, and wish I had stayed for a night or two, instead of just visiting for a few hours. It has tons of good ingredients, like a giant castle, an old Ottoman […]

Shqipëria (Albania) Intro

I’m celebrating the conclusion of the Czech language course with a vacation to the southern Balkans, visiting three countries new to me: Albania, North Macedonia, and Kosovo. First up: the land of the eagles, as the Albanians themselves call it, Shqipëria! Albania is admittedly a country I formerly knew very little about, and I still […]

Intensive Czech Course, Week 7 (Finished!)

I’m done with the 30 days of intensive and immersive Czech language learning!! Yay! Phew, what a relief. The photo above is of me smiling while overlooking the city. Pleased to have done it, happy to be finished. I’m still getting used to not having to go to class or do homework, though the sound […]

Intensive Czech Course, Week 6

Because of multiple Czech holidays during my stay in Prague, the six-week course (30 days) actually takes seven weeks to complete. So my final four days are next week, finishing on Thursday, May 15. At this point, I’m very ready for it to end, but I can certainly see it through. At the same time, […]

Intensive Czech Course, Week 5

Above is a bonfire, not a dumpster fire, though sometimes my brain feels like a dumpster fire during the course. But I’m definitely on the home stretch now. I’ve been vacillating between considering signing up for the next course, and then wishing it could all please just be over with. My leaning often changes daily, […]

Intensive Czech Course, Week 4

60% done now – 18 out of 30 sessions completed! It continues to amaze me how much we learn each day, and how the more I learn, the more complex Czech seems. In class on Friday I just had to chuckle aloud when the teacher showed us all the various word ending changes and rules […]

Intensive Czech Course, Week 3

Happy Easter! Or Hezké Velikonoce! I hope you have a great holiday weekend. I’m quite pleased to have both Friday and Monday off from class – I really feel like I need a break! On the other hand it means that I’m not yet halfway through the course, not until Tuesday afternoon. Another student and […]