Forward, MARCH!

*I know I promised my controversial topic for this post, but I'm feeling way too chill right now for that. I apologize, I know that my eager audience may never forgive me, but heck, relax people, I'll get to it ;-) Enjoy the read:

Yep, it's March now, and (for me, at least), the first day of this month is already almost over. I think the weather read my last blog post, because it's been beautiful outside ever since I wrote that last post. I won't complain at all, I'm loving it! But I'm ready to start a new month here in Prague, and, in fact, I was eagerly looking forward to a fresh start. I had started to really feel pretty down by the end of the month, which was largely due to feeling sick, but also to feeling restless. February was something of a blur, in many respects, although there are many individual moments and emotions that I can distinctly remember from that month, and I doubt that I will soon forget them. I am so glad that I started this blog, because I will treasure the opportunity to look back over my posts and remember everything all over again.

I remember my first jet-lagged days here being so tough, and my sleep schedule was completely screwed up for the entire first two weeks. Now, I am obviously fully accustomed to my new schedule; my weekdays are packed full with school and internship activities, and now that March has started, my weekends will be all about traveling. I'm headed to Paris for four days this weekend, and I can't wait! But I love that I can navigate the grocery store now (although now I shop at Billa, there's no Tesco close by my new apartment), hop on the trams and metro with no problem, and make my way around. I remember how strange it felt my first day here, walking through Wenceslas Square, dragging my two suitcases over the cobblestone streets. When I had read in my travel book that Prague had cobblestone streets and sidewalks, I did not realize that the author meant that ALL the streets and sidewalks are cobblestone. Yikes. Needles to say, I've tried wearing heels around here once, and I don't think I'll be trying again anytime soon. It's a wobbly mess to navigate cobblestones with heels on. Anyways, the shuttle bus driver that dropped me off that first day made it seem as though where he dropped me off was only a few minutes from my apartment. Yeah right, buddy. You try dragging all that luggage around a new city for blocks and blocks with only a faint idea of where you were going. Thank God for the two sweet girls who gave me directions and helped me with my bags! Sometimes I think it's a miracle that I survived those first several days here. No, it was definitely a miracle. So many things fell perfectly into place time after time, and things continue to flow so smoothly. I can't believe that I'll be home in 3 short months.

I got all moved into my new apartment with no problem, and I like it here. I haven't shared a room with somebody like I am now since I was 13 years old, when I was sharing a room with my younger brother Joe. It's definitely an adjustment, because I have gotten so used to my own schedule, but my roommate, Anna, is very sweet, and she's excited to have somebody to practice her English with. It's been interesting so far with us trying to communicate, because her English is fair, and I have to remember to slow down when I'm speaking so that I can be understood :-)

I still am not back into "school" mode, so to speak. Back home, I study and do homework constantly, but here, my classes are largely focused on the midterm and final exam, with a paper or presentation maybe scattered into the semester somewhere. I had a presentation tonight, which went well. I think it's safe to say it went well, because my professor walked over to me at the end of class while everyone was still packing up and told me, "Hey, you got an A. Good job." Pretty relaxed, but I'll take it! It just feels unnatural to be doing my readings and such, because I feel as though I should be on break, since I'm not at UWM. Anyways, I've been attending every class, and participating, so when those exams arrive, I'm sure that I will study hard and be fine. It's just a completely different feel for me.

I miss you all back home and love you very much! I'll be seeing you before you know it =)