All I have to say is I'm so glad that I was able to have this adventure with my best friend and that some stories are best left untold. Amsterdam, Brussels, Munich, and Prague, until next time. (We've both already agreed there will definitely be a next time!!!)
XOXO -C
0 Comments
I've decided that farm trips will always be my favorite trips. This morning we visited a farm in Dublovice. The farm manager apologized because he spoke Czech, Russian, and Dutch, but not English. It's amazing to me how everyone seems to know multiple languages. The U.S. needs to step up. He started by taking us through the dairy barns. The cattle were all super friendly. I was back in my element. One of the babies tried to suck milk from my fingers and decided he was okay with no milk as long as I kept rubbing his head. After showing us all of the different steps to the dairy production, he showed us around their biodiesel plant. They use silage, animal waste, and a huge machine to turn their byproducts into diesel. The farm manager said that they used to have a smaller plant that served them a lot better and he was not a fan of the big production they were trying to do now. We had lunch at the cafe on the farm.
We traveled back towards Prague and stopped at the Livice Muzeum. Livice used to be a village back in the second war. One of Hitler's top men was killed and the little village caught the blame. The nazis completely flattened the entire village just to prove a point. They killed hundreds of innocent people just because they could. Visiting all of these WWII Memorials really puts into prospective the absolute horror and destruction that the war caused. Out of 90 children, 82 were gassed in trucks on their way to the concentration camp and the other 8 were sent to be Germanized. After the war, when the children tried to return to their village, most of the eight couldn't even communicate with their parents because they had been forced to speak German and lost their ability to speak Czech. The people of Livice that survived the concentration camps and other horrors of the war were devastated to find out what had happened to their village. The Muzeum has everyones picture on display and a short blurb about their fate. I'm not sure if it would have been worse to be murdered on the scene like they did with all of the men above 15 or to survive and come back to your entire home being nonexistent. The nazis made sure the village was as if it never existed. They even dug up the bodies in the cemetery to dispose of and plowed the cemetery and planted potatoes. We were able to walk the area that the village used to stand. All thats left is the foundation to the church and part of the concrete floor of the school. They have planted roses all around to symbolize all of the lives lost during the terrible, devastating years of the war. I can't begin to thank my parents for all of the wonderful learning opportunities they have provided me with. This trip is literally a once in a lifetime chance and I'm so thankful for all they have done to make it possible. You can read about things in books, but without actually experiencing the places in person, you don't understand exactly how impactful the history flowing through the land is. We just pulled back up to the campus and I can say Erin has officially arrived! I probably won't be blogging the next couple of days because who knows what kind of hoodrat things we will get into! ;) Until next time, -C Today we visited Moser glass company in Karlovy Vary. We were able to tour their museum and the glassworks shop. Glass blowing is probably the coolest thing I've ever watched someone create. The craftmanship that goes into each piece is mindblowing. More than eighty people can work on a single piece of glass. In the glass blowing shop, the workers are sorted into teams of three: a beginner, an assistant, and a master. The beginner starts by getting the motlen glass on the end of his pipe and blowing a small bulb. The assistant adds more molten glass and continues the shape of the glass. The master is the one that adds the stem and base to the product. You start the glass school at 15 and, depending on skill, work your way up to a master. Some people never reach the master level. Moser is the glass for kings. They have many of their pieces in kings castles, presidents palaces, and celebrity mansions all over the world. The work they do is beautiful.
After the glass tour, we made our way to the Becherovka liqueur company. We toured the museum and learned all about the history of Czech's favorite liqueur. The liqueur started out as a medicine created by the Becher family. They say that two capfuls a day will keep you healthy and heal any problems you may have. After touring the museum, they served us three samples of their product. A lemon liqueur, the original, and the cordial were a lot to stomach before lunch. My personal favorite was the cordial. We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around Karlovy Vary drinking water from different hot springs around town. Hanza told us all about the healing properties the water supposedly had. The town had a touristy vibe but was more about relaxing and enjoying yourself more than the hustle and bustle of Prague. It was a place where you wanted to find a small outdoor patio to sip on wine and recharge. The sidewalks had gold sections that made different musical dings depending on which one you stepped on. It was nice to hear the different sounds as our group walked over them. The other Karly and I tried to find a place we could get a massage because between the plane, dorm beds, and bus travel we've been doing, my back and neck are a wreck. I can't wait to get home and go to a chiropractor! We tried three different massage places and were unsuccessful at all. For dinner, we stopped at Restaurace Krusivice on our way back to Prague. They served us a delicious meal of fish and mashed potatoes topped with a type of gravy. I was so excited to have something besides pork. Haha. I have completely fallen in love with this country and can't wait to see what the rest of this trip has in store for me. XOXO -C Howdy all!
Our destination this morning led us to the Skoda Car Manufacturing Plant and Museum. Before I get into that, I need to take a second and talk about our lovely transportation. Until today, we have been on really nice, white, Mercedes-Benz buses. They have comfortable seats and air conditioning. This morning we walked out and I had a flashback to 1980. Our big, ugly, purple chariot awaited. It made me think of the Robin Williams movie RV. His kids hate on the big rolling turd. The only thing our Big Rolling Turd was missing was Irv on the side. It was complete with fading fuchsia paint, "Frank Bus" written in red and turquoise on the side, paint splatter inspired interior fabric, 1980s coffee maker, huge chunky "TVs", and a bathroom that I'm pretty sure hasn't been working in this decade. So, anyway, we loaded the big rolling turd, adjusted to the smell, and were on our way to Skoda. At the Skoda plant, we were able to walk through their assembly line. They can make a car from metal to driveable in 24 hours. The workers change tasks every two hours during shifts to make things interesting. They have about two minutes to get their task done before moving to the next car. It was amazing watching the many workers move like ants around the production. The museum was interesting but I'm not really into cars so it wasn't really my cup of tea. At Czech Paradise this afternoon, our group hiked around the sandstone of the park. It was absolutely breathtaking. Katie and I decided we were over the whole hiking thing so we went up one side and right back down instead of following the trail all the way around. We had a blastyblast taking stupid pictures on the way down though. Tonight I managed to lock myself out of my dorm while doing laundry. I sat in the hallway and twiddled my thumbs for two hours. I had to wait for my roommate to get back from the pubs downtown to let me back in. So, that's how my nights going. It's past my bedtime. XOXO -C Yesterday, I had a lazy Sunday and it was glorious to catch up on sleep. I ran a few errands around Prague and just enjoyed not having a schedule to keep. :)
This morning Martin Hlavacek, Senior Agricultural Consultant & Analyst, spoke to us about Farm Business in the Czech Republic and EU Countries. Having his insight into how the EU's agricultural economics work was a blessing. I'm very thankful for the people who have taken time out of their very busy schedules to speak to a room of American young adults. This afternoon we toured the brewery on campus. We were able to speak to the brew master that built and maintains the university brewery and has designed and worked in over 26 breweries across the world. After the tour, all of the American colleges doing study programs at the university were invited to a cook-out in the area outside the brewery. College students from Ohio State, Mizzou, Tarleton, Oklahoma State, and Texas A&M were all represented. We were served all the pork and beer we could ingest. (I can't wait to get to Scotland and have a change of meat. All this pork is starting to get to me.) Of course, getting close to 100 American college students together called for some drinking games. (Sorry to all my snapchat friends for the overload.) We played the Czech version of beer pong and a new game I had never seen before. They set up a beer pong bracket and the games and food began! We all had a little too much fun... some more than others. Haha. It was a really nice break from all the learning I've been doing. ;) XOXO -C We departed on the bus for Poland at 2 am. After a six and a half hour bus ride, we arrived at Auschwitz. I really don't know how to put into words what we saw. I have seen many documentaries and read books over the Holocaust, but seeing it in person is a totally different ballgame. To walk on the same roads that many people lost their lives on and to see the living conditions that people had to endure is incomprehensible. You can know the stories, but to actually see where the cruelty and hatred happened is indescribable. I took pictures, but that doesn't do the place justice. It was a very powerful, emotional day.
After our tour, we drove to Krakow, Poland and were able to walk around and get dinner. It was really just a solemn day overall, but we still saw incredible sights. We started this morning in a classroom at the University. Our first lecturer was Dr. Vlastimil Cerny, our tour guide from the first day. He talked to us about the economics of the Czech Republic.
The second lecturer was Professor Jaroslav Voracek. His lecture was over the agricultural history of the area. He was hysterical and my favorite lecture of the day. Our last lecture was after lunch presented by Dr. Peter Prochazka titled "Green or Blue Planet: Vaclav Klaus vs. Al Gore". That evening, we headed into Prague for a small adventure before having a group dinner at a local pizza place. The pizza was the best I've ever had in my entire life. They brought out tray upon tray of pizza and we grabbed a couple pieces and passed it around. We were able to try like seven different types of pizza. The pizza is definitely my favorite food from the trip so far! :) XOXO -C This morning we boarded the bus at the ass crack of dawn and headed to RABBIT Farm. After my much needed nap on the bus ride there, we arrived at our destination. We entered the farm's main office building and headed to a meeting room and were greeted with snackie-snacks produced from the company. They had real coffee! (Probably the best part of the morning...) All the University cafe has is instant coffee and I'm not a fan. Anyway, our group of Tarleton and OSU students was joined by the group from Ohio State and Mizzou also doing a study abroad to speak with the CEO and Manager of RABBIT Farm. They showed us a video over all of the products and services they offer.
They got their name from the start of their company when they raised and slaughtered rabbits for their meat for sale and export to other countries. They have now moved into producing dairy milk, pigs, chicken, an array of different crops, and services. After the videos and Q&A, a small group of us were able to tour their chicken processing plant. We were able to take pictures of any step of the process, which was surprising to me. We had to put on protective covers on our shoes, plastic overcoats, and hairnets. Washing our hands was simply not enough. We had to place our hands in a little device and it sprayed both sides with alcohol. (Rubbing not drinking) After the full inspection to make sure we wouldn't contaminate the products, we walked into the section where the birds had already been slaughtered and plucked. They ran the birds through a machine that separated different parts of the bird for packaging. As they deconstructed the bird, the parts moved to different rooms to be broken into smaller pieces. We were able to tour the freezers where they store the meat and the rooms where they package the meat for shipping. The entire process was really interesting. We loaded the buses and moved to another part of the farm where they have their dairy cattle. *insert fangirl moment* I noticed that you don't see any livestock when driving though the countryside. All of the fields have crops. I didn't realize how much I missed seeing cows until we arrived at the dairy section. We walked through their barns and toured the milking facility. I was amazed and horrified to learn that their AI efficiency is only 40%. The efficiency average for the Czech Republic is only 31%! That is mind blowing to me. I'm still not sure how that is profitable. The view from the farms was amazing. Actually, every view so far has been amazing. Tarleton and OSU both agreed we were glad we were grouped together because we got along a lot better than we did with the other group. We followed up the morning by eating at Hotel RABBIT, which was just up the road from the main office. We had a delicious lunch. The Ag Comm in me found a hysterical advertisement and after getting the translation of it laughed harder. There's a picture of it on the photos page. The words translate to: If you love it, nothing else matters. Trust me, it makes more sense when you see the picture. Haha. After lunch we made our way to Kutna Hora. We arrived at the Bone Church in the old mining town and learned the meaning behind the nickname. When the plague came through the Czech Republic, thousands of people were killed and buried in a mass grave outside of this church. Kutna Hora is a mining town and they had many deaths related to the effects of being underground and working in the mining business. The church cemetery had become too full, so they dug up all of the bones and stored them in the basement of the church while renovating the entire area. A few years later, a blind monk was cleaning the church and found the bones. He created amazing decorations with the bones throughout the main area of the church. The pictures I took do not do the place justice. It was humbling to see all of the human bones used as a celebration of life even after death. We moved into the center of town and toured the area. We visited the Italian Court and St. Barbara's Cathedral. Both were beautiful. We had dinner in Kutna Hora. That night, we made our way into downtown Prague and went to a club called the Ice Bar. It was an experience all it's own. It was the coolest bar I've ever been to. We left before midnight so we could catch the bus back to the University. We made a pitstop at Charles Bridge so we could get some amazing pictures of the castle at night. XOXO -C This morning we started our trip to South Bohemia in the Czech Republic. The countryside here is more beautiful than I know how to put into words. With the rolling hills, twenty shades of green, fields of yellow canola plants, and gorgeous trees, the view is hard to beat. We were able to stop in Milin at the memorial for the last battle of WWII. It's hard to fathom how much history this country holds. We stopped in a sleepy little village that seems to be untouched by modern technology and visited the site where the last grenade was thrown during WWII. The white church was surrounded with quite a few graves. Two workers were cleaning up the area and cutting the grass. It all seemed so peaceful that it's hard to imagine how much damage was done to the original structure.
Our next stop was at the Budweiser Budvar Brewery. We were able to see all stages of production from plant to bottle. It was a really cool adventure. They served us a beef and dumpling lunch which was basically beef tips in gravy with bread. It was simple but delicious. After lunch, we made our way to another little town called Cesky Krumlov to tour the town and see the castle. The castle was absolutely breathtaking. I don't even have words for how beautiful the view from the castle was. We we're able to have a private tour of the castle and saw decor from the 15th to the 18th centuries. There were gold-plated, hand carved chairs, tables with precious stone inlays, gorgeous venetian mirrors, and beautiful tapestries and textiles. We learned about the three main families that owned and lived in the castle. The main family was represented by a five petal, red rose. You found the roses everywhere from the designs carved into the wood to the custom crafted ceilings. The last family to live there were represented by bears, so they have three live bears living on the castle grounds. We were able to get quick looks at the view from the windows of the castle, but it had nothing on the view from outside. You can see the main part of the castle, the old tower, the circle river that shaped the town, the sleepy little town of Cesky Krumlov, and the rolling hills and greenery forming a back drop to the storybook worthy view. We walked the town before dinner. The town square is made up of different colored stacked building fronts found all around the Czech Republic. The fact that some of these buildings have been around since before the United States was formed is mind boggling. The history that seeps through the countryside is almost incomprehensible. After exploring part of the city, we had dinner at a hidden pub just off the square called Krcma V Satlavske. It reminded me of a medieval dungeon. Everything was dark and dreary, the decor was more on the rough side, and there were no windows. The candlelight cast harsh shadows as we all ate and the thick cement walls made our voices echo as we enjoyed a steak dinner. The steak was small and cooked until almost burnt. It was not what I was expecting when they said we we're going to have steak for dinner. After dinner we made our way back to Prague and I found my way to bed shortly after. Another unbelievable day in the Czech Republic. XOXO -C After getting about two solid hours of sleep on the plane, I was exhausted when we finally landed in Prague. The flight wasn't bad, just long. They kept us well fed even if the cabin of the plane was kept at arctic temperatures. When we landed, it was 10 am here but 3 am U.S. time. Hailey, Lauren and I struggled to find the baggage claim. We finally figured out we had to go through and get our passports checked and stamped before finding our luggage. Getting my passport checked was pretty intimidating, but after we all made it through, we found our luggage fairly quickly. Unfortunately, my suitcase didn't survive the trip. One wheel was broken and the other one was missing completely. So I half dragged, half carried it outside to meet the people picking us up from the university.
Hanza and Julius we're right outside of baggage claim waiting for us. They were both really friendly and super sweet. Hanza walked us out to the car while Julius stayed behind to wait on more students arriving. Hanza loaded Hailey, Lauren, Johnny and I up in the car and we were on our way to the university. The countryside was absolutely beautiful. We had a short trip back to the university but the driving was a little frightening. They have tiny roads with no shoulder and drive quick in their little cars. Haha. Thankfully we made it to the university without any issues. We arrived in time to check in, drop our bags, and head to lunch with the rest of the group. The group is comprised of Tarleton and Oklahoma State students. Hailey and I have stuck together because she is an online student working on her masters and I don't even go to Tarleton so neither of us really know anyone. The lunch they served in the little cafe on campus was delicious. It was some mix of meat, corn, and onions in a red sauce served with two mounds of white rice. After lunch, we rode the bus to the subway and caught a ride down to the old part of town. We started our tour of Old Town at the Opera House and made our way up to the castle. The sights were absolutely to die for. Prague is such a beautiful city! We walked from the castle to the square and had a quick tour through the city. Dr. Frazier was logging his steps and we walked about ten miles around the city just taking in the sights. Prague is definitely a place I would love to get lost in. We finished our tour and a group of us wanted to get converters for the weird European plugs. Dr. Frazier led us back to the subway and instead of taking a bus back to campus, we walked a couple of blocks to this electronic store. Naturally, the store was closed by the time we got there so we made our way another couple of blocks to a grocery store to stock up on water. Czech money reminds me of monopoly money. 3,000 Czech koruna is roughly 130 U.S. dollars. Our group loaded up with water and caught a bus back to campus. We didn't have much time to shower and get ready for the opening dinner. At dinner, the director of the university welcomed us to Prague and a couple of the faculty spoke about what we will be doing on our trip. We toasted with a shot of Becherovka. We ate pork on rice with gravy and it was pretty tasty. After dinner, a few of us went to the pub in the dorm. Yes, you read that correctly. There is a pub in the dorm we are living in. After having a beer or two, I made my way to bed. It was a long, exhausting, wonderful, amazing day. XOXO -C |
AuthorCarlee loves doing hoodrat things with her friends and trying to act like an adult. Archives |