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what i love about “home”
české budějovice isn’t what i consider HOME home, but it certainly is my home for now and it’s important to think about and remember why i chose to live here and what makes it great. i’ve thought of plenty reasons, but here’s my ten favorite things about good ol’ CB. 1. i LOVE my flat i could easily spend days holed up here in this haven of english speaking, great cooking, and ornate early twentieth century architectural detail, but force myself to get out once and awhile. we really got lucky! the flat next door is vacant as it’s being remodeled, so we don’t have to worry about being too quiet…
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february noms
it must be winter because food is largely on the mind again. and guys, i’ve been creating some gooooood stuff lately. my week of good cooking has been capped off by a sunday excursion to tesco to exchange my twenty-five stickers for a $46 grundig blender. THIS THING IS A BEAST! it’s got this gigantic 1.5 liter glass jug and the base is the size of kilimanjaro. i have been wavering back and forth on this purchase for literally months, as it is really hard to justify buying stuff during my time living abroad– plus, i’ve already lived here over a year without it and got by okay. but…. eh,…
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football & tea time
hands down, the best part of winter is drinking mugs upon mugs of tea. bonus points if you’re drinking tea and it’s snowing. last weekend we had a proper british tea time (hosted by our new english friend) with a bakewell tart (did not know what that was until a couple days ago) and yorkshire tea– apparently the best brand. hey, as long as it’s a good black tea with milk, i’m happy. i’m hoping tea time will become a regular fixture through the rest of winter and spring! (picture via) i’ve been a tea aficionado since college, where the other girls in my house would giggle at me for loading a…
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czech eats + winter lately
south bohemia, a region of central europe that used to be part of germany but now remains in south-east czech republic has a very rich history and traditions. and of course, food is a large part of people keeping their traditions and culture alive. after over a year in the czech republic, i’m not a huge fan of traditional czech meals like goulash, bread dumplings, and pork everything… in fact i’ve vowed to eat very little to no pork in 2014 ‘cause, well, i’m just bloody tired of it! and i’d rather eat other things. but there are many other south bohemian food items i have taken an interest in….…
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What I Do Now
in my opinion, what one does for a living certainly shouldn’t define their worth as a person in any way. no, i’m not really a fan of the question, “so, what do you do?” {referring to their occupation} when meeting someone new, although it does provide you with more insight into their daily lives (for ever-curious people like me) and perhaps what their skills and interests are, i have to admit. and these days, i am much happier answering this question than i used to be. but before wasn’t terrible or anything; i have so many fond memories of being downtown seattle barista extraordinaire chick. a video of me “on…
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There’s Coffee.
today’s the sort of day where i had to talk to everyone although i was ready to have a social interaction with no one. received a lesson cancellation one hour before the lesson, but after i am out of bed and dressed. first decided not to go back to bed. then ended up napping and feeling groggy for an unexpected meeting with my boss. and i run into every colleague there ever was. now it’s noon and i’m still not ready to continue being awake. at least it’s sunny…. and there’s COFFEE.
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Dark/Light
day two of unexplained power outage continues. arg. yesterday evening, i made swedish meatballs to celebrate leif erickson day (instead of columbus day) in the waning daylight on our gas stove lit with matches. it was funny to sit in the measly light of candles like the vikings must of done. today i took the plunge and had a cold shower. it wasn’t quite as bad as i thought. sort of reinvigorating in the middle of the day, to be honest! not a huge fan of the heat not working, but eh, we have blankets and tea. we will survive. besides the cold showers and no heat, i’ve actually been really…
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Misty Morning
walked to my favorite corner store this morning and was pleased of how serene the morning was. slightly misty, not cold, sweet smell of leaves in the air……. so fresh and invigorating. i felt instantly better. one of my favorite kinds of fall mornings that remind me that i live in europe. pretty cool. cooking risotto and pho (dear everyone, alex ate a dish of primarily onions and mushrooms and LIKED IT), drinking coconut juice, staropramen light, new decaf coffee and kusmi boost tea. watched the conclusion of breaking bad season four, reading this book, meeting new locals/friends, listening to church bells and deerhunter’s halcyon digest album. enjoying the serenity…
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“Figuratively” Speaking (Making Fig Jam)
an unexpectedly lovely weekend here in ceske budejovice! yesterday we sat for hours in the sun at a cafe along the river with a new friend (outdoor cafe season still going! wooooo) and today, it was all about relaxation. ie… cooking. because making life easier for yourself the rest of the week is awesome. i’ve never had a fig before! maybe in a fig newton, but i’ve always hated those. so, i’ve recently noticed their existence– all over the place lately with big sales at the supermarkets and at farmers markets as well. it must be fig season! so i stocked up and decided to have a go at fig…
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any day now
this past week has been a good one– one that pushed my comfort zone and made me nervous (as i had my first classes) but i think the more i teach the better i’ll feel about it! i’ve been patiently awaiting a ton of things it seems: my visa notification and a couple of packages from the U.S. that have not arrived for whatever reason. arghhhhh. a great week for alex though, as he got his visa notification and had an excellent first full week of teaching kids. he says “it went as expected”, which i think means it went well. above are some photos of budejovice from this week.…
