Nattaproblem

Working in the middle east as an ex-pat comes with several benefits: an allergy-free desert climate, quality teaching experience which helped me to become a licensed teacher, saving money, and traveling. The ongoing pandemic has hindered the latter, but I have been fortunate enough to maintain a healthy immune system while obtaining the necessary vaccinations. I also wear my mask ALL THE TIME in crowded areas so my risk is lower than those who aren’t as aware and disciplined. After weighing all those factors, I decided that I am indeed someone who will be fine while traveling throughout the world…because I’m Batman. (I’m a teacher, forgive me).

An opportunity to visit the Czech Republic presented itself through a wonderful colleague and friend named Leslie Homolka Craigmyle. Her family (the Homolkas) purchased a one-thousand-year-old manor in Brezina during the early 1900’s. With the invitation on the table for myself and several other teachers, a group of 4 of us decided to go.

Prague, here we come!

The last trip I took was through Saudi Arabia to see Al Ula and the western coast with a vibrant South African who taught me some German during the road trip. Before that, I had gone to Spain and Portugal with a close Polish friend. Now, after all the obstacles COVID has thrown at me, I was finally embarking on another journey to a destination that wasn’t initially on my list: the Czech Republic. Serendipity reigns supreme.

We arrived safely on November 26th, 2021. Walking out of the Prague airport, the cold air hit my face and immediately reminded me of the Pacific Northwest in the USA. Leslie, Anne (another teacher who sacrifices her soul daily to help educate children), and I all rode out to Brezina castle in the lovely Skoda rental. The roadways were clear and as we headed towards the “castle,” it started snowing. We were all excited about the vision ahead of us; a castle covered in snow.

We arrived approximately one and a half hours later and as the Skoda passed through the brick light posts on either side of the driveway, Leslie honked in wild anticipation of seeing her brother. A figure quickly emerged out of the yellow-lit entrance. He was followed by another figure and I quickly realize that I’m witnessing a family reunion. The first man is David, Leslie’s brother and the second is Jamie, her cousin. Their contrasting characters were a lot for me to process, and as we headed inside I found out that Leslie knew people that might as well be characters from a Matt Damon or Gina Carano action thriller. When people have garnered that much militaristic life experience serving on behalf of the US military, it reminds you that there’s a lot to be thankful for. Past, present, and future, there will always be battles worth fighting.

The next morning, we all gathered around the kitchen fire and planned our duties for the Thanksgiving Feast. I was responsible for one version of the dressing, a vegetable soup, and cranberry sauce. The mansion was nicely renovated and the combination of medieval stone, marble, wood, and brick, provided a nice juxtaposition with the family portraits, modern bathrooms, and kitchen appliances. With over 20 rooms, there was a lot to explore and each family member seemed eager to provide the guests with their version of a tour. I think I took 3 tours.

We took a trip to the local Brezina store with David, gathered all the ingredients for the feast, and cooked for 6 to 7 hours straight with intermittent breaks for exploration, or skimming through a few of the amazing books in the manor’s library. As dinner was ready to be served, David’s family arrived and the table was set for 12. We had prepared two versions of dressing, a delicious turkey with meat peeling off its thighs, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, and pies for dessert. It was a feast fit for royalty and I was honored to be taking part.

After the carousing dinner, I head back to my room and pass a series of paintings on the walls that stare back at me. The library has a faded fresco painting that harkens back to the early Renaissance and Classic eras. The smell of burnt wood permeates through the air and as I pass through each room, one creaking door at a time, I imagine for a brief moment that I was part of the nobility; what would my daily responsibilities have been? My room is very cozy but cold with a painting of a child sitting on a rocking chair above my bed. The opposite wall has a painting of a mother cradling her son. Both paintings continue to look at each other from across the room as I pull the blanket up to my chin and drift off into a lucid dream that no doubt, will comprise of something related to the wonderful Thanksgiving day I just had.

That was my carousing experience in Brezina, where I danced among portraits, and cooked medieval recipes, and stumbled through ballrooms pretending to be a pirate. It was a grand old time. I was even told that I’m “the chosen one” while being nursed back to health by my wonderful comrades because I kept asking “why me? why me? Why am I the only one who’s in pain?” Yes, I was THAT person. God bless them.

Enter: Prague.

The panorama of Prague is plucked straight out of a storybook. The high, copper-stone steeples and spires contrast well to the natural greenery of the hillsides. Blocks of red tile roofing cluster around cathedrals and gothic towers to form an abstract view of a well-aged city. I kept blinking my eyes through the crisp air to make sure it wasn’t a painting and took in as many angles as I could, imagining horses and villagers bartering over rolls of bread 300 years ago. For the foodie, Czech had some of the softest bread that I had ever eaten in my life. The croissants melted like marshmallows with every bite and made the morning breakfast even more enjoyable.

The rides to and from the capital city were equally as entertaining as the nightly strolls through the bustling streets. A friend of ours, Melissa (a former Grand Theft Auto finalist from Miami ) weaved all five of us in and out of the snow-covered streets with aplomb. Even the local retirees were staring open-mouthed at the way she barrelled over sidewalks and darted into parking spaces like a Formula One driver. The streets were covered in snow and made it difficult to identify the curbs, but that never stopped us from paving a path of our own through the suburbs of Prague. Her Skoda (both she and Leslie rented one) definitely got some mileage with her!

As the adventure continued, we stayed in separate hotels as Leslie spent time with her family. The hotel I stayed in was named Don Giovanni, honoring the opera by Ponte and Mozart that first appeared on the Estates Theater in Prague, Czechia circa 1787. The opera was also remade into a Hollywood hit that apparently has a 100% rating on rotten tomatoes so feel free to check that out. My hotel was a brisk 45-minute walk from the major plazas such as Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square where you can do some serious damage shopping. Náměstí means “square” in Czech and any name of a major gathering spot will be followed by that word; perhaps suggesting that it will bring you some Yoga-esque peace as well.

Prague is rich in history, spanning over one thousand years. From the early settlement of Bohemia to the Golden Age with the preeminent King Charles the IV (honored as a historical figure on the 200 Czech crown banknote) and the rebellious Jan Hus right before Habsburg rule, every block and cobblestone tells a story. I took a tour through the Astronomy Tower and the underground that gave me tremendous insight into the nobility and reverence the people of Prague had for their religious and political leaders. To this day, Olympians and politicians hold meetings in rooms that date back to the days where the Habsburg King would step out into the square and address crowds of people who honored the House of Habsburg and their royal crest. Walking through the Oldtown, Medieval Underground and hearing the tour guide inform us of the prisoners that were held here, along with the mercantile activities existing two floors beneath the current street level created a sense of astonishment in the fact that I was a multicultural teacher, living hundreds of civilizations later, but walking through an underground tunnel that existed so many years ago. This tour, in combination with the self-guided tour of Prague Castle, made me realize that there isn’t a “mansion” or “luxury lifestyle” in the modern-day that could ever hold a candle to the immensity of a well-seasoned, state of the art architectural masterpiece like the ones lining every corner of this beautiful city. Even after a hundred years, would a modern-day celebrity mansion be honored and toured through like these structures? It makes one wonder about significance and objectivism. Ayn Rand helped define objectivism as “the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute.” The more I travel, the more I realize how ephemeral one’s existence is and how important it is to truly appreciate each and every moment, especially while traveling to a significant if not monumental locale like Prague.

Continuing on, I decided to reconvene with the group and join in on an absinthe tasting. Absinthe is an anise-flavored spirit derived from several plants including wormwood, fennel, tarragon, and sage. With a vast menu, customers can choose from over 100 different absinthes from around the world, and the server prepares the drinks in front of you with a fiery, magical display. This was a great decision that Anne and Heather made and I would not have experienced it otherwise. Screaming our way out of the Green Devil Absinthe Bar we caught the attention of several European men that approved of our indulgence (suffice it to say, Anne was doing most of the dramatics). All of us were surprised that the best tasting drink was made from beetle juice…well, in the sense that a beetle was inside the bottle that was used to pour the drink; if you’re thinking Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice, the exact thought crossed my mind as well.

Another notable experience included the Hemingway Bar, the Ice Bar and several other bars along the Vltava River. Each unique in their own right.

The most memorable experiences were walking around the city and experiencing the food. Large, touristy destinations such as Prague always have some of the best food, and from Italian, to Vietnamese to Czech cuisine, my palate was in heaven. The last day was spent across the Charles Bridge exploring the other side of Prague until around 5:30pm, by which time I booked it to my hotel, grabbed my luggage from the storage room, and headed to the airport. Every time I reach the end of a traveling experience, I feel both enriched and imbued with new life and vitality. Traveling isn’t a luxury that everyone can afford, and I always count my blessings for having the chance to explore another region of the world. In more ways than one, it’s similar to going back in time and retracing the footsteps of past lives that also breathed life into this earth.

I remember looking out of the plane window thinking: the world relies heavily on tourism. Every country I’ve visited to date produces goods and services that are centered around tourism. With the threat of health continuing to loom over our heads, travel itself has become somewhat of a scarce commodity. Flying through the air, I was traveling through time at a much faster rate than anybody could dream of doing in the middle ages, yet I also caught a glimpse of that very past 700 years later. Somewhere therein lies a math question for my students.