HAPPY EASTER!

HAPPY EASTER!

Happy Easter my dear readers! Time for new life and new beginnings!

It kind of fascinates me how the Czechs celebrate Easter. They have this tradition where boys whip girls with braided willow branches, in the belief that such gesture will make fertility and vitality flow through the woman. 

When I first learned about this, I found it pretty weird and maybe, even barbaric, but the whip really doesn't have to hurt.

A street vendor selling Easter whips :)

Again, Happy Easter, everyone!

Easter eggs illustration from Sally Illustration

♥Andz

Out and About - Day 9

March 30, 2013 - Black Saturday

Brno

I had quite a night with Selene yesterday. I couldn't believe how a very ordinary evening could become an awesome one! We felt like Sherlock Holmes solving a mystery - in our case, an online mystery.

We're from two very different countries (she's from Argentina and I'm currently in the Czech Republic), and the person we're trying to trace is from a different one as well, so it was really, really insane! In the end, we felt as though we we solved a super crime! In fact, after last night, I feel like we could pass as interns at an intelligence firm. Haha!

So... today... 

Today's a pretty lazy one for all of us. The weather has improved, but we were just glued to our beds the whole day! The past week has just been so tiring for all of us that all we wanted to do today was to lie down and sleep. 

I finally got the nerve to hop off my bed half past three in the afternoon to wash some clothes. 

As it's a holiday and also a weekend, there's no bloody chance that we could get our clothes dry-cleaned at the laundry shop, so, we washed our clothes by hand. BY HAND! I know it's typical for Filipinos to wash clothes by hand, but it's quite a task if you don't have the "palanggana" or "batsa" (basins) to place and soak your clothes in.

Being resourceful, we just cleaned the sink in our bathroom (we have two sinks anyway), fixed the stopper into the drain, and ta-da! Makeshift laundromat :))

We got to wash some pieces of clothing, but we decided to leave the "difficult ones" (such as pants and thick sweaters) out. We can have them cleaned at the shop on Tuesday morning anyway, so yeah, they can wait.

We also had to do some shopping runs at Billa, the nearest supermarket to our dorm, as we're pretty sure that shops will be closed over the Easter holidays.

♥Andz

Out and About - Day 8

March 29, 2013 - Good Friday

Brno

Yesterday, we had some presentation skills training with an AIESEC alumnus at AIESEC Brno's LC office. It was quite nice, as we got to practice and measure how good we actually are when it comes to public speaking. And, yeah, I'm not that good at all. I always start OK, but when I get to the middle part of my presentation, I just get... lost.

OK, so, today, it snowed again. The weather had been improving over the past two days, but when I woke up this morning, it was snowing again! The snow flakes that fell from the sky were pretty big, and there were a lot of them! 

And again, the hills are carpeted in white overnight.

It's a real task to walk with snow and ice-cold puddles in the streets. My shoes got wet as well as my socks, and every step I took just froze my feet! They felt so numb, that I was afraid I already had frost bite!

Anyway, we met with Paja, the team leader of SPEAK! Project Brno, at 10 am to discuss about the program, as we never really had been briefed enough about what we're gonna do yet.

We were given our schedules, the universities where we'll be holding our conversation classes, and we were just told about what Czech students like in interactive projects like this one.

♥Andz

Out and About - Day 7

March 28, 2013

Brno

Well, today's mommy's birthday, and I just miss home. I have just realised how crazy things could get when I'm alone and gazillion miles away from them. I miss eating rice, fighting with my cousin for the computer, the warm weather, and simply eating meals with my family.

I got to talk to everyone at home through Skype (thank God for technology), and I have to say, it's always nice getting to hear their voices, especially my mum's bipolar tone - haha, sorry, mama!

So, today, we had some presentation skills training - just, y'know, ways to get Czech students to be involved in the activities we'll be having the next few weeks, and to simply speak, which is the main objective of the program, anyway.

We also went out, cos Justine and Aor had to get new jackets and coats, and to get some grub at the supermarket. 

We'll be going to the AIESEC office tonight, and I really have no idea about what we're gonna do. 

♥Andz

Out and About - Day 6

March 27, 2013

Brno

Here's the thing: We've been eating with our bare hands for the past few days, so we finally decided to take a trip to IKEA after having basic Czech lessons with Ivana.

We got ourselves utensils, bowls, glassware, cups, plates, and just about anything we are in dire need of. We were supposed to buy an electric cooker as well (we miss eating real food), but we didn't find any, so we're sticking to salads and sandwiches at the moment, which are far better than microwaved fast food take-outs.

We also had lunch at IKEA, which I really missed! I was kind of disappointed that they didn't have chicken wings in the menu that day, but I enjoyed the meatballs too, so I was pretty happy.

Anyway, after our IKEA shopping runs, we had dinner at Martina's place. Yes, the dreaded drinking happened. They gave us these - pardon me - awful-tasting shots. I had one only (for respect), and honestly, I even had to cheat on it, and leave some in the shot glass. 

But the food was really great. We had some pasta, bread, and some yummy pancakes for dessert.

Our school grades have been released, too, and I'm kind of surprised with what I got, cos seriously speaking, I don't know if I really did enough to get such grades. They're really, really unexpected.

♥Andz

Out and About - Day 5

March 26, 2013 - Tuesday

Brno

It was freezing cold that day, but that didn't stop us from seeing more of Brno. 

Our team was finally completed, and for this spring, AIESEC-Brno's SPEAK! Project will be composed of 2 Filipinos (me and Justine), a Thai girl named Aor, and finally, a Ukrainian girl named Сніжана. OK, I have yet to perfect the pronunciation of the names of the latter two, but I'll get them soon enough.

So, we went to Česká... 

God, it was so beautiful! Just wow. Everything seemed so laid-back - far from the hustles and the bustles of the capital city, which made it easier for us to really feel and appreciate the beauty of the place.

We climbed a hill to reach Špilberk castle, and to get a good view of Brno's landscape. It was quite climb because of the cold and the slippery ground, but we managed, and our efforts paid off with that magnificent view of Brno.

We toured the city a bit more, bought really huge strawberries, and had some lunch at McDonald's. I hate the fact that all I've ever eaten since I arrived here is fast food. You see, the kitchenette in our dorm only has a microwave. A MICROWAVE!!! I can't eat fast food and radiated food all the time! Even my dorm mates don't like the idea of it, so we went shopping later that day after reporting at the police station about our arrival.

We bought some stuff to make sandwiches, bottled water, detergent, and some other things that we really need. I wish we get to go to IKEA soon, as we've been eating with our hands for two days now. We don't even have decent plates and glassware, so we really have to work on that.

Today, the 27th, we'll be having Czech lessons with Ivana then tonight, we'll be going out to meet the other AIESECers at Martina's house, which means, we'll be drinking, then they say we'll go to a disco club.

Ever since we arrived here, all people ever talk about is drinking. And beer. And alcohol. Sure this is a beer country, and I understand that, but the thing is, I don't drink. Well, I've tasted beer and I do like wine, but I only drink them occasionally, and I don't really finish the whole thing. 

Honestly, I feel scared that they might force us to drink. I don't want to get drunk here for God's sake! And it's Holy Week! "Penitensya Time"! I don't think drinking or merry-making is a good idea during this time of the year. I know most people here don't pray, but I am a Filipino Catholic and I solidly stand up to my religious views. 

I'll just see how things'll go tonight...

♥Andz

Out and About - Days 2,3, and 4

March 23, 24, 25, 2013 - Saturday-Monday

Utrecht > Amsterdam > Utrecht > Amsterdam > Prague > Brno

Day 2 - March 23

It was a cold grey day, but fair enough to take a stroll around town.

My day started good enough. I woke up at around 8 - I think - and had some Dutch breakfast with Tita Laline and Tito Anne, (yummy cheese and poffertjes!), while Noah and Isabel hid from me. Haha!

They're really cute! I was scared that they might be hiding from me forever, but no. With a little origami lesson (I taught Isabel how to fold a paper crane) and some sweets, we got along pretty well, and that made me really glad. I just love playing with kids!

Then just before lunch, we headed to the train station to go visit Utrecht's Old Town. God, I easily fell in love with the place! The structures that stood, the shops, and just about everything! Old Town's simply beautiful. 

While taking a (freezingly-cold) walk around, I got to see a coffee shop (coffee shops in the Netherlands have a different meaning, OK? They may serve coffee, but the specialty of the house really is marijuana), and I was also able to sample some really good Dutch cheese. Oh, gosh! This place is a cheese wonderland for me! They were unlike anything I've ever tasted! I could say that they're the best kinds of cheese I've tasted so far.

After Tito Anne and Noah headed home, Tita Laline and I had some kroketten for lunch, while Isabel had some waffles in one of those church-turned-restaurants in Utrecht. It was a really busy day, so it took us a while to get a seat, but the kroketten sure was worth the wait! It was crunchy and yummy and well, really yummy :)

Longing to finally see that music box museum my pa visited during his first trip in the Netherlands, our next itinerary was Museum Speelklok - where the biggest and most out-of-this-world clocks and music boxes are. As Isabel found the place too loud, I took the tour alone while she and Tita Laline waited outside.

The music boxes are simply bad-ass. From classical to modern tunes (like Michael Jackson's Thriller), no music box is too old to play some good tunes. I also bought music boxes. One for Isabel (it's a pink one with a ballerina that spins to the music when opened), one that plays "Memory" from the musical "Cats" for EK, another that plays the Swan Lake for me, and a fourth one that plays the Beatles' "Let It Be", which I later gave to Justine.

At the end of the day, we drove off to see an old fairy tale-ish castle around town and have some pancakes for dinner. But as the pancake house was very busy at the moment, we decided to eat at home instead, and Tito Anne's salmon was lovely.

Day 2 ended really nicely for me.

Day 3 - March 24

I woke up really early for my 7:40 am flight to Prague, only to have it cancelled after we've already boarded!

Well, the plane had been having big time technical difficulties, and they eventually had to cancel the flight for the safety of the passengers. A lot were pissed, and I wouldn't lie - I was one of them. After that 15-hour delay in Manila, I was just so messed up! And I missed my bus in Prague too, so it was a really bad start for the day.

I got to re-book my flight, one that would make me reach Prague at 10 pm, which means I'll be staying at Prague's Vaclav Havel airport overnight. After learning about my new flight plan, Tita Laline told Papa that staying in Schiphol and Vaclav Havel Airport that long isn't a good idea. 

Soon enough, Tita Laline, Tito Anne, and the kids fetched me, and we re-booked my flight for the second time. I'll fly out of the Netherlands the next day at 9:25 with Czech Airlines, which is a breath of fresh air after the many mishaps with KLM.

And so, I was back in Utrecht for the night, which was really nice, cos I got to play with the kids again, and I got to read Isabel two bedtime stories - something I haven't done before.

Day 4 - March 25

I took the train to Schiphol Airport, which was a bit exciting, because it's my first time to hop on a train in a foreign country alone.

Anyway, I was really happy that I finally reached Prague, and I was quite surprised to see a lot of Asians around! I really didn't expect that. The temperature was also a bit unexpectedly colder - even way colder than the Netherlands', and I was literally freezing whenever I had to check the bus stops to check if my bus has already arrived.

I really had a hard time looking for my bus, but thank God for Justine who gave me nice directions, and the nice old lady who served as an interpreter for me. Haha!

I was able to hop on my bus just in time, and I arrived in Brno at around 5:40. I was fetched by Justine, Aor, and Paja, and then I got myself a transport card, and we got some take-out at KFC for dinner :)

♥Andz