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embracing czech holidays in tábor
december weekends in europe are one of my (new) favorite things. there’s always something going on somewhere that accomplishes my usual goal of doing something festive. so when i heard about a killer one-day-only vanoční trh (christmas market) in tábor, a smaller south bohemian town situated on the rail line between české budějovice and prague, it was decided. i had no prior reason to go to tábor as i just assumed it was another small bohemian town. it’s actually got an important load of history behind it. the name of the town translates to ‘camp’ and is famous as the medieval hussite stronghold of bohemia, lead by jan žižka. if you…
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wherever you go, there you are
friends, this month has gone wonderfully festive so far- just how i like it! but in the midst of punch-stand hopping in the square and listening to unique czech interpretations of popular christmas carols, a tiny sneaky little bout of homesickness snuck up on me about a week ago. now, i don’t usually ever get homesick (unless SIFF is going on, of course) but all the stars aligned for this one. i was feeling anti-social and at the same time generally confined to the house for a weekend instead of day-trippin’ due to nursing alex back to health from his terrible cold. and in this time, thoughts start brewing like…
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Going to Hel (Poland) and Back
well, reporting back about my polish backpacking odyssey this summer has almost come to a close. but definitely not before i talk about the single place in poland i was most excited about: the beach town of hel, located on a sandbar peninsula of the same name on the northern coast of poland which extends thirty-five km out into the baltic, and varies from only 100m to 3 km wide. i thought it would be something special to behold, for sure. anything this interesting geographically really gets my vote! we took a ferry ride from gdansk on this boat. i think the name of our boat was a good sign of things…
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homey for the holidays
it’s incredible how a couple of songs, like smells, can transport you to a different state of mind. music carries so many memories and it’s always around the holidays that i’m digging out all of my favorite christmas albums from years past, some from genres i would never normally listen to and others from genres i wish i could listen to more! and isn’t it funny that all of the memories attached to our favorite songs were from times that just sort of slipped by? times that you didn’t actually know would later become a cherished memory? i sometimes wonder this as i listen to my new lucie bílá christmas album…
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five places to revisit
who doesn’t have places they want to see again? for an american, living abroad in europe is often about seeing new cities and countries, but i’ve found that revisiting a place can be it’s own separate story with new activities and adventures. that said, i’ve been tagged by jessi & sara to take place in this prompt these five destinations are always rolling around the old noggin’ whenever the next foreseeable chance might be. these are all places i’ve spent time in and loved quite a bit, and of course, they all have their own special story. so without further ado, the top five places i would jump at the chance to make it…
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Glimpse of Malbork Castle, Poland
one does not travel to northern poland and miss malbork castle, an absolutely beautiful red brick (very characteristic of the area) castle built by the teutonic knights in the middle ages. i am happy to report that i am currently feeling quite cured of being castled out like i was last spring, so a visit to the giant fortress on the vistula river seemed like a fantastic day trip out of gdansk at just over an hour by train. (photo via) besides all of these beautiful ornate interiors and ballrooms, i really found this unfinished chapel quite fascinating. damaged in WWII, the chapel still does not have a roof and the…
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my czech expat christmas: guest-posted
today is the first weekend of advent, friends. to me, this means that the christmas markets are open and the tree lighting ceremony happens to be tonight: a wonderful evening of drinking vanočni punč, eating trdelnik, and listening to live music in the old town square. better than a birthday. join me as i gush more about my excitement for this season and explain some czech christmas traditions over on a guest post over on my buddy van’s blog, snow in tromso. she is doing this fabulous “christmas around the world” series featuring a different holiday guest-post every saturday… something i can really get in to! a little change from…
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a {real talk} look back on thanksgiving
i’m sure you’re a bit tired of me announcing all of my first this and second that, but today it is the good ol’ fashioned thanksgiving holiday. that means that this is the third thanksgiving i’ve celebrated abroad since leaving in mid-2012. i can’t believe that for three holidays in a row i am away from home. and furthermore, STILL HERE. the holiday has got to the point where i really can barely remember what a normal american family thanksgiving dinner is supposed to feel like. but then again, i never had a holiday dinner celebration like the ones they portray in movies or on commercials. not even before this…
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favorite czech & slovak cuisine
instead of write about my all-time favorite food while traveling, i chose to narrow the focus a little: czech & slovak cuisine (and no, that’s not czechoslovakian cusine because although the two countries were intertwined for decades, they’ve been doing their own thang for over twenty years). and i have to say: czech food is so much more than just pork and dumplings. in fact, i’ve been doing a “no pork” thing for almost a year now and there are still so many dishes to try that would please carnivore and vegetarian alike. some of my favorites include… česnečka (garlic soup). a garlic lover’s dream! the czechs don’t skimp on the…
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lately, november
hi friends! we’re almost at the end of the month now and i’ve seen the mild weather go from pleasant and sunny to cold in almost an instant… funny as i was just bragging about our warm weather as recently as last weekend. no longer! this month has so far seen golden autumn countryside walks, celebrating our second “czechaversary”, and the first weeks of hosting travel tuesday! here’s what else has been up… … eating: the past few weeks haven’t been too kitchen friendly. it’s honestly felt more like a chore a lot of times and i kept buying only ingredients for one certain kind of food. for example, one week we…
