Whirlwind

The past month has been such a whirlwind. So much has happened, I can barely remember it all. It has been a whirlwind of emotion, from being lonely and sad, to feeling fulfilled and the happiest I’ve felt in a long time. I guess I’ll start off from getting kicked out of the Caledonian school housing. I knew it was coming, we all did, but with being a slave to the TEFL course, we kind of all forgot we should have been looking for housing, not to mention the low the market is for flats right now. Shelley and Heather somehow were allowed to stay in their flat for the weekend. So Gina and I packed everything up and moved in with them for two nights, figuring we’d find something during those two days. Their apartment was further than it seemed. It took an entire afternoon of packing, cleaning, and rolling our (broken) suitcases to their flat. We also had so much more stuff…groceries, papers and books from the school. And one of my compression bags broke so I couldn’t fit everything back into my suitcase. Gina wore her blue fluffy robe under her big winter jacket with a pair of winter boots. We were rolling our luggage and had trash bags with food. You could hear the clanging of the bottles in the bags. Yes, we were a spectacle, and Gina really looked like a bag lady. By the time we moved in, it was past the deadline to hand in our keys so we were afraid we were going to get charged. Then the housing coordinator sent us an e-mail saying that if we were going to stay in our housing we had to pay. So basically, we could have just stayed in our apartment that weekend without wasting an entire Friday moving! (Also, we didn’t get charged, thank god.)

The only good thing about that day was getting a cell phone. It’s bright yellow, an old Nokia like I used in London, no T9 word, no camera. But it’s a phone! That evening I went to look at an apartment right across the street from the dancing building. How amazing would that have been? When I arrived at the apartment, my phone told me that I was out of credits, so I couldn’t call or text the girl to let her know that I was there. Luckily after about 15 minutes, she called me. Then my phone died. Hurray. She came downstairs to let me see the place. The bedroom was huge, but the apartment felt cold and dingy. I told her I would take it, even though I couldn’t move in until Wednesday. Then I realized that I didn’t have keys for Shelley and Heather’s apartment, and my phone had died. I felt so lost and lonely and didn’t know what to do. I went back to the school and luckily found a face book message from Kristen with her phone number. I used the school’s phone, got directions to Kristen’s place, and met up with everyone at her place because they were having a party.

The rest of the weekend consisted of me feeling as though my life was in shambles, finding out I didn’t get the apartment I had gone to see, looking at another very nice apartment but then finding out that my 30 year old would-be roommate holds bible studies in the apartment every week, to waking up at Shelley and Heather’s to the cleaning lady yelling in Czech to us to get out (she ended up being nice), to hailing a cab and moving all of my stuff to Kristen and Jo’s apartment because they’re the only ones who actually found a place. Heather moved into her friend’s place and slept on the couch. Gina found a place. David, Shelley, and I moved in with Kristen and Jo. We were all exhausted that Sunday night and feeling sorry for ourselves. Jo cooked us a nice dinner, and we watched a movie and drank tea. We were all nervous too because we started teaching the next day! David slept on the couch, I slept in Kristen’s bed, and Shelley slept in Jo’s bed. Brits verses the Americans haha.

The next morning I woke up at 5 am. Yep. I. Did. Everyone was still sleeping and I was trying to find my clothes packed away in my suitcase. I left their apartment when it was still dark, and took the subway to another Caledonian location. I was nervous, but relaxed in a numb way. I was reallyyy early for the class and had to sit outside the school for a while. The class started at 7:20 a.m. and only three students showed up. They were lovely and I just taught them straight from the book. It was so nice finally not being observed by a teacher! I was finally relaxed and not freaking out about doing everything that was in my lesson plan.The rest of this week consisted of minimal teaching (I was subbing, and subbing is difficult. You can’t really accomplish anything) and looking for apartments that didn’t work out. Either it was too expensive, I felt awkward with the roommates, or the location was ridiculous.

That weekend Jessica and Kendra came to visit! Well, they didn’t really come to visit ME, they were on Spring Break and Prague was a stop on their trip. We had a fabulous weekend together. The weather was absolutely beautiful and really lifted my spirits. I took them all around Prague and to a Czech restaurant so they could get some goulash and dumpings and Gambrinus beer. On Saturday we had a photo shoot at the John Lennon wall, which is the most amazing thing of my life. We did the mirror maze, walked down Petrin Hill and saw the fabulous views, walked around the Castle, got excited for Obama, and I even got interviewed by an Iranian Channel asking how I felt about Obama speaking in Prague. We went to a Beer Garden to enjoy the weather and listen to some live music. Kristen and Glenn met us then we went to the Sex Machine’s Museum, which was pretty hysterical. We went to another Czech restaurant then headed to Chapeau La Rouge so that they could get the full Prague going out experience. I think they got it. I was really sad to see them go, but in such a happier mood after the weekend. Next step: finding an apartment!

I went to look at a place in a great location, and loved the attic apartment as soon as I saw it. The bedroom is really small, but there’s a big bed and enough storage space for all my things. Hardwood floors, exposed beams, connecting kitchen and living room, two sinks, a washer and DRYER COMBINED!!!!!!! Hurray for not having to pin my clothes to the clothes line and having stretched out clothing. The girl who showed me the apartment was super nice and I felt really comfortable around her. She’s from New Jersey and was a film student at American University. I told her I would take it. On Wednesday she said it was mine and that I could move in on Monday. Hallelujah!!! David moved out the week before, and Shelley moved back to England that same day, so Kristen and Jo were fine with having me stay with them for an extra week. They were so sweet and gracious, I really have no idea what I would have done without them. I feel really really lucky to have met so many great people here.

That Saturday night the three of us girls went to a club called Lucerna and had a fabulous evening. Kristen didn’t want to go at all, but from the moment we walked in and heard them playing Backstreet Boys and Spice Girls, we knew it was going to be a great night. Apparently every Friday and Saturday is 80s and 90s night. They have a huge stage people can dance on if they want and a giant screen which plays the music videos of the songs. We were still there trying to dance when the lights came on and we realized the club was basically empty haha.

The next day we had an Easter Sunday Dinner! I made macaroni salad, yes I sure did folks. Everyone brought a little dish, Gina brought flowers and colored eggs, and we had a great dinner. The only bad thing was that their toilet flooded so no one could use the bathroom and the plumbers had to come. It was pretty stressful because their landlord had just left for Amsterdam and it was difficult getting a plumber to come when they can’t speak English! That night I skyped with the family and got my little cousin fix :)

That Monday is the Czech Republic’s Easter, so there is no work for everyone. This worked out perfectly because I spent the entire day moving in to my new apartment, organizing, and just relaxing in MY room. I have a door, a dresser, and keys so I can come and go as I please. It’s amazing all of those little things you really start to appreciate when you’re stressed out and homeless in a foreign country.

Sidenote: An Easter Tradition-Men hits women with willow branches and the women are supposed to give the man an egg they colored the day before. It’s supposed to show how fertile you are. I think it’s sick. And I got beat by a 10-year-old. Ridiculous.

The following day, I started my job at Danone…yes like the yogurt! I was extremely nervous going there, but the HR lady, Martina, is absolutely fabulous. She brought me water and yogurt and made me feel really comfortable. It’s actually kind of amazing how they were catering to ME. I met all of the students I was going to be teaching, talked to them a bit about what they’re looking for in the class, and gave a few placement tests which I then had to grade. It was a long day, but a great start to working there.
The next day I was to take a bus to the outside of Prague location in Benesov. This is where the Danone factory is. This day was a nightmare. I missed my bus by 5 minutes (and by bus I mean, Greyhound-esque bus because Benesov is 30-40 minutes away). I couldn’t hear on my phone anymore so I could only text Martina and she told me which bus to get on next and what stop to get off of. I went to buy a ticket and the lady said, “Bus comes now, buy ticket on bus.” So I ran, made it on the bus, paid, and sat down feeling very proud of myself and thinking how it was all going to work out. The man said Benesov, so I got off the bus and texted Martina to come get me. 20 minutes went by and I get a text from her saying “Allyson, which bus stop are you at?” My stomach dropped. I told her. Here, I had gotten on the wrong bus, which made me get off the wrong stop in Benesov. 40 minutes went by. I started to panic and felt like I was going to throw up. I was on the side of a huge highway, a big wall in front of me, with nothing but fields and a long road behind me. It felt like a movie. I was stuck in the middle of nowhere in the Czech Republic wearing work clothes and carrying a book bag and a half ass phone. Finally, I got a text saying to walk across the street and through the wall and that the receptionist would come pick me up. I did so, and a man who reminded me of a very kind Wormtail from Harry Potter came to rescue me. When I finally got to the company I was about to lose it. I just felt so stupid and unprofessional. Martina brought me water and more yogurt and told me that it was okay and calmed me down. I met more students and gave more tests. Afterwards, Martina drove me to the subway in Prague so that I wouldn’t have to take the bus. It was pretty awesome riding on the highway in the Czech Republic with a Czech girl. I would like to hang out with her outside of work!

That weekend, Julien, my Frenchman, came to visit! It had been a year and a half since I’ve seen him. He was the same ole’ Julien, but a lot more mature. He is working as the cabin crew for Easy Jet which he loves. He gets blocks of days off of work during the month so he uses his discount to go travel around Europe. Sounds pretty good to me! His English has improved A LOT since the last time I saw him, so it was really nice being able to sit down and have a real conversation with him without having to explain things to him. No more “veggie-tables.” haha. He loves learning American phrases though so I taught him some new things and got work on my error correction as a teacher which was good before I started teaching for Danone. The weather was really horrible while he was visiting which was really sad, but we went out to eat a lot at delicious restaurants, and I do love good food :)

The next week I began teaching at Danone. I used the first 20 minutes of class getting to know them, then went into the worksheets I had copied for them. The lessons went really well and I was really pleased. On Tuesday I had my advanced classes. For the first class, no one showed up! Most people like this because it’s free money, but it was actually kind of annoying because I had to teach in the afternoon anyway so it wasn’t like I could go anywhere. So I played spider solitaire on my laptop for 90 minutes. Holla. The second class, 3 people showed up and it went pretty well.

The second week of teaching was the best by far. Everyone showed up and the lessons went well. I love the advanced classes because I can have actual conversations with them. I get to learn about the Czech Republic and have girl talk all while “teaching” because they’re using English. It’s a pretty sweet deal. I couldn’t teach in Bensov though because I had to leave Prague at 5 in the morning to go to Berlin to hand in papers for my Visa. What a long day! We were only in Berlin for 2 hours and couldn’t find a place that would take credit cards and we didn’t have Euros, so we ended up eating in Starbucks. And it was raining in Berlin as usual. Then another 4 hours back. I was beat by the end of the day and spent the evening drinking tea and watching Dexter online. But at least my Visa is in the process and I have the stamp in my passport to prove it!

That weekend I went on a Prague scavenger hunt which was pretty fun! I had to run all around and find answers to the clues and take pictures to prove it. The only thing that sucked was that it was an hour and a half long so we couldn’t get to all the clues. But it was still a good time. And of course the weekend consisted of starting out at the beer garden then going to another club or bar.

Last week was almost a full week of teaching finally and the lessons went really well yay! On Friday there was no work because of a Czech holiday. There is a tradition on the first of May that lovers must trek up Petrin Hill to a statue of a poet and kiss under a cherry blossom tree so that the women will have good health and not be “dry.” You can interpret this how you want. Petrin was packed and there was a little party at the top with a hilarious Czech band playing. That night we all ended up at Lucerna again. I think this should be a weekly thing because it’s just so much fun and we all enjoy dancing. It was a fabulous, beautiful weekend.

However, yesterday was dreary and was the most difficult day of teaching. No one showed for the first class, but the second class went well with two students. After their class I got kicked out of the conference room and put into another room. I had a lot of trouble with the next student’s lesson. He’s supposed to be an intermediate student, but he had so much trouble with the material I had for him. It was soo awkward and like pulling teeth. And he’ll just stare at me like he’s confused even if he understands what I’m saying, so I never know what’s going on with him. Then after his class the next student didn’t show up. I mean, I still get paid for the lessons even if they don’t show, but it’s frustrating waiting around for people and considering all the lesson planning I do. It’s also difficult because some of the lessons are geared for a big group, but then one person shows and you fly through the material. I know it will still take a few weeks for me to get the hang of everything and I guess I’m doing pretty well for having just started.

This week, of course there are big plans ahead, which I promise I will be better writing about :)