Back in the USA
So I wasn't trampled to death watching the World Cup match, although part of me wanted to keep the previous entry as the final one in the Prague Blog. Had a good time, even though the US team played like crap and got deservedly smacked around by the Czechs. There was a contingency of USA fans there, and it was great hearing the "U! S! A! U! S! A!" chants over the "Češi do toho!" chants. Good times. And for those of you who asked, of course I rooted for the US. And then of course I wore my Petr Čech (CZ's keeper) jersey on the flight home.
After a wonderful night with Pavlina, I got 2 hours sleep and was up at 4:30 to pack the last couple things (I just realized I left my saline solution there... d'oh) and hit the ol' dusty trail.
Checked in at the airport and promptly headed to the airport bar for one more pivo. Shared a laugh with the bartender as I was the only one in the bar at 6:30.
After a long, but uneventful, trip home, the culture shock which has hit me in the first 12 hours hasn't been too bad. What struck me first was that I've been in about a dozen airports in the last 10 months, and in each one, every sign was printed in at least 2, usually 3 or 4, languages. Walking around JFK, it was strange seeing signs in only English. Especially at such a large, international airport. I did feel a little better, though, when the overhead speaker announcements at baggage claim were repeated in Spanish.
So I'm back in the land of the almighty dollar. Nothing like getting a luggage cart for free in Prague and in Dusseldorf only to have to pay $3 (THREE DOLLARS! THAT'S THREE BEERS! OR A BEER AND A GYRO!!!) for one in New York.
I am very not used to hearing English. I find myself unintentionally eavesdropping on others' conversations simply because I can't tune them out. And it turns out that the conversations I haven't been able to understand because they were in Czech really weren't worth listening to anyway.
Went to my favorite Chinese food restaurant last night and felt odd speaking English to people for whom English is not their native language, even though their English was fine. I'm also having a hard time getting "dobrý den," "děkuji," "jo," and "prosím" off my tongue. Saying "thank you" is harder than it sounds.
And the size of the portions! Holy crap! Can't believe how big an order of lo mein is. At least I'm back in the land of the take-away box, so the size of the portions is offset, at least a little. I certainly will miss knowing the size of the meal before ordering.
Although, it was wonderful gaining access to clothes I haven't seen in months (and had completely forgotten about!), taking a high-pressure, high-heat shower while standing up. Got a bagel the way I'm used to (toasted everything, with cream cheese, lox, lettuce, tomato and onion), came home and watched some World Cup. Maybe this won't be so bad...
Before I sign off, I'd like to share some photos I took the other morning. I stayed up all night and took some pictures of the sunrise. Enjoy.
Unless something very important comes up, I plan on leaving this as the last post in the Prague Blog. It's been great sharing the stories and images of the past year with you, and I hope you have enjoyed reading them as I did writing them.
I do plan on starting a blog for my time in Japan (which starts in about a month). Stay tuned for more information.
Be well, velice děkuji and na schledanou.
After a wonderful night with Pavlina, I got 2 hours sleep and was up at 4:30 to pack the last couple things (I just realized I left my saline solution there... d'oh) and hit the ol' dusty trail.
Checked in at the airport and promptly headed to the airport bar for one more pivo. Shared a laugh with the bartender as I was the only one in the bar at 6:30.
After a long, but uneventful, trip home, the culture shock which has hit me in the first 12 hours hasn't been too bad. What struck me first was that I've been in about a dozen airports in the last 10 months, and in each one, every sign was printed in at least 2, usually 3 or 4, languages. Walking around JFK, it was strange seeing signs in only English. Especially at such a large, international airport. I did feel a little better, though, when the overhead speaker announcements at baggage claim were repeated in Spanish.
So I'm back in the land of the almighty dollar. Nothing like getting a luggage cart for free in Prague and in Dusseldorf only to have to pay $3 (THREE DOLLARS! THAT'S THREE BEERS! OR A BEER AND A GYRO!!!) for one in New York.
I am very not used to hearing English. I find myself unintentionally eavesdropping on others' conversations simply because I can't tune them out. And it turns out that the conversations I haven't been able to understand because they were in Czech really weren't worth listening to anyway.
Went to my favorite Chinese food restaurant last night and felt odd speaking English to people for whom English is not their native language, even though their English was fine. I'm also having a hard time getting "dobrý den," "děkuji," "jo," and "prosím" off my tongue. Saying "thank you" is harder than it sounds.
And the size of the portions! Holy crap! Can't believe how big an order of lo mein is. At least I'm back in the land of the take-away box, so the size of the portions is offset, at least a little. I certainly will miss knowing the size of the meal before ordering.
Although, it was wonderful gaining access to clothes I haven't seen in months (and had completely forgotten about!), taking a high-pressure, high-heat shower while standing up. Got a bagel the way I'm used to (toasted everything, with cream cheese, lox, lettuce, tomato and onion), came home and watched some World Cup. Maybe this won't be so bad...
Before I sign off, I'd like to share some photos I took the other morning. I stayed up all night and took some pictures of the sunrise. Enjoy.
Unless something very important comes up, I plan on leaving this as the last post in the Prague Blog. It's been great sharing the stories and images of the past year with you, and I hope you have enjoyed reading them as I did writing them.
I do plan on starting a blog for my time in Japan (which starts in about a month). Stay tuned for more information.
Be well, velice děkuji and na schledanou.
posted by David at 11:14 AM
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