Counting Down

Yea, yea, yea. I haven't posted in over a month. Well, I'm leaving in less than 3 weeks and life is crazy busy. So, bear with me. I plan to update my life post-Prague...if I have time then! :)
Stay tuned.

American sense in a Czech world

So, when my parents visited, my mom commented that the Czech women seem to like tight clothing. This comment touches on some thoughts that I've been trying to articulate to myself, which is why it has taken this long for me to write about it. It appears to me that Czech woman have a sense that the clothes are the outfit and whatever it is supposed to look like it does. For example, a woman might wear a tank top, belly shirt and low-riding tight jeans - a common site on the streets of Prague for woman of any age...well, let's say below 50. On many women, it looks fine, even great. On some, though the clothes are too small and their bodies are spilling out of the outfit, in what most Americans would say is very unflattering. It's like if the outfit is supposed to be sexy than it is, regardless of how the body inside the clothes make it look. Now, I'm not sure if women buy the clothes this tight or if they are old or borrowed or what. I was discussing this with my friend Hanka and she said that Czech women are confident in their bodies. Okay. I'll accept that. I'm not saying that there is no pressure for women to be beautiful and skinny like in the US. The documentary Ženy pro měny (Beauty Exchange) does an excellent job of showing that. But women do seem more confident in their bodies here, in general. Which leads me to my next commentary - the human body and nudity.

So, I live near žluté lázně, a beach area on the banks of the Vltava. I go sometimes in the afternoon to sit in the sun and work, usually with a nice cold beer. Now, it is Europe so there are plenty of men in speedos. And you can tell you spend a lot of time out there. Men and women who are brown, I mean really brown, the kind of brown that you only get with long-term, intensive exposure to the sun. But the first time I was there, I noticed one young women sit up from her spot on the grass and take her bikini top off. Okay. I was a little surprised. The next time, though, it was like I had walked into a nudist beach...almost. Women were topless everywhere. All ages. All sizes. Just sitting there on their towels, talking to their friends, playing cards. One woman looked like she had just taken her clothes off and was wearing ther underwear thong and nothing else. And weighed probably 200 pounds, not a small woman. I guess that is confidence. :) I will say that they clothed themselves when going to the concession stand but only a few feet away were the shower spouts to rinse off and there people were rinsing off, wearing bottoms only in many cases. And I can't just talk about the women. Across the street from the beach is one of the biggest pools in Prague, open all year round. Next door is a building with a flat roof. The tram goes right past this and one day I was riding in to the center and happened to look up and see an older man (white haired) standing on the roof, rubbing lotion on his butt. I thought, he can't be...then he turned around and yep, he was nude. Just standing there in full view of the street, etc. On the way back a few hours later, he was standing up again and a woman was there, too, also in the buff.

So, what am I trying to say here. Well, first, I feel that I have exhibited the classic American prudishness that Europeans accuse us of so often. Nudity is such a negative thing in the US. We are so body conscious - too fat, too skinny (which you can be both, I am not saying that these do not exist but I think that we are too critical), too naked. And I'm not saying that we should all walk around naked but that we need to loosen up our views on what nudity means. In the Victorian era, men were turned on by the sight of an ankle or the chance to touch a woman's skin (and the woman would be tittilated by that touch, too) because it was so restricted and skin and limbs were so sensationalized. An old professor tells that story how Malians think that bikinis are so silly because they cover up the breasts, which are no big deal, they are for nursing babies, but show off the thighs, which are the really sexy part of a woman. So by restricting the human body in American public life, we sensationalize and highlight the sexual meanings that our culture places on these body parts.

Now, I'm probably contradicting myself with my fashion critique followed by my desire to see more bodies but they are linked. I'm just trying to figure it all out for myself :) However, I have been wondering about all of this for some time. Specifically, since I read that Hooters is supposed to be opening a Prague location later this year. I have never been to Hooters for the obvious reasons, despite the fact that I love wings and theirs are supposed to be really good. However, I am wondering if Hooters will have the same meaning or reaction in Prague that it does in the US. If ideas about clothing and nudity are different here, how does the Hooters uniform of super-short shorts and tight shirts worn by skinny, tanned, beautiful women fit into the Czech schemata of sexuality? Unfortunately, I don't think it will be opening before I leave because I would have to visit it here (both for research and for the fact that I am craving good wings!) I mean, Czech beer gardens are family places, with kids and strollers, half of the kids at the beach are running around naked, will this be a family restaurant in Prague? To be continued...

Talking about talking

So, a main theme of this blog has been my love/hate relationship with the Czech language. After 3 weeks of intensive language school I can say that I did make some progress but not as much as I had hoped. For example, yesterday was recruitment day. During the recruitment firms monthly informational meeting, I get a few minutes to introduce my project and recruit participants. I have been doing it in English but last time said some in Czech. This time, I had hoped to do it all in Czech. I had it planned in my head. It was perfect...in my head. Then I opened my mouth and it came out all smushed. At the end, I said (in English): now you know how bad I speak Czech so don't be afraid to speak English with me. I got a laugh. Afterwards, my Czech friends gave me the following comments: "Skvele" (brilliant), "Very sympaticky (likable)," "It's a shame that you can't use it in communication" - so mixed reviews. The good news is that while I was sitting in on a one-on-one interview between recruiter and candidate, I was able to understand about 80% which is a high number for me. I mean, I did know the context but I felt good about it. I apparently do better when I'm just observing.

However, the issue of English language has been a huge theme of my research. Primarily, without very good English skills, and confidence, a healthcare worker can't get a job abroad (at least not in the Middle East where English is the lingua franca). So, English is a requirement for employment in this phenomena. However, many of the nurses that I talk to want to go abroad to improve their English, so it's also an incentive to go abroad. More on that in the analysis.

But this has been both good and bad for me. Good because even though my Czech isn't very strong, I can still do my work. Practicing English with me is a benefit to people who do interviews with me. However, I am not forced to do my research in Czech so it's been bad for my motivation. I've been taking classes in Prague since January, trying to improve. I watch Czech tv, I study vocab on the tram, I've even gone to non-subtitled Czech movies. However, living in Prague it's a little difficult to learn Czech. I am not forced to use it. I don't even hear it on the streets as much - I work in the center so I head German, Russian, English, Italian, French, Chinese, Japanese, etc spoken around me on an almost daily basis. And still, people want to practice their English OR just use it because their English is better than my Czech so it's just easier to use English. Besides, it's sexy!


So, I guess what I'm gettin at is the role of the native language in Anthropology. Using the native language is a cornerstone to anthroplogical research. I know things are changing, we are problem-focused researchers now but where does that leave native language versus English in a world where English is becoming a form of universal language? I know that I am not getting everything. I may only be getting half if that much with some interviews. And I know that I have missed out on a lot of contextual aspects. During interviews, I offer the interviewee the chance to speak Czech when they feel they don't have the adequate English and at times I have asked the questions in Czech. So, does not being able to speak the language fluently make me a bad anthropologist? Does it exclude me from certain research projects? I've been studying this language for 4 years, done 3 summer intensive programs, tried a number of resources, only to be told that Czech is the most difficult Slavic language to learn and, from many Czechs, that if they hadn't learned it as a child they never would. Now, I know it is possible to learn. I know plenty of Americans who have done their research here and now speak Czech brilliantly. But I am also not very good in languages. But back to my question - where does the lingua franca of English fit into anthropological fieldwork?

Zlín - home of Bat´a

So, a few weeks ago, I went to Zlín to do an interview. A nurse invited me to visit her and to tour her maternity ward. Although it was a 4-hour bus ride, I went and wasn't sure how things would go. So, she met me at the bus station and we went for lunch at a lovely little cafe that specialized in crepes. I ordered one with ham, cheese and asparagus. It was nice...except for the ketchup artistically splooshed on it. I am the odd American who does not like ketchup on everything. Afterwards, we went to visit her hospital.
She was very happy to explain to me that their ward is very baby and mother friendly, including this sign outside that said so...in English!
Afterwards, we went for a small tour of the town and then to the hotel. Now, this was a surprise for me in a few ways. First, though a miscommunication of mine, I thought I would be staying with my host. No problem, though, because I was a little nervous about staying with someone I barely know anyway! But the Hotel Moskva (Hotel Moscow for you non-slavic speakers) was in a word, amazing! I felt like I was in a cliché. Now, I've been in a few Czech, Slovak, Polish-owned hotels and hostel so it shouldn't be a surprise to me how things have not been remodeled much, but I felt like I wanted to look for listening devices! Maybe I was biased by the name.
My room was very spare.
but it did have internet, which is good because I had to communicate with my family about a crisis so that was good. And the tv had CNN World News so I was able to get some English-language television. I've recently realized that's something I miss - being able to understand what's being said on the news.
The exterior is just as fabulous...complete with socialist-worker statue out front.


I had a few food options at the hotel - and Irish Bar or a Mexican Restaurant. Since I had eaten at that Mexican-food chain in Olomouc, I opted for the Irish Bar. It was nice.





The next day, we toured the Bat´a Shoe Museum. Now anybody that knows me probably knows about my love for Bat´a shoes. It's my own special way of helping the Czech economy. So, a little background for everyone - in 1894, Tomáš Bat´a founded his now-famous shoe factory. At the time, Zlín had about 3 000 people. By 1930, he had 42 000 employees. So, Zlín, although having an old history like most Czech towns, has a very young history as a city. With this growth, Bat´a had to build factories and living quarters for his workers and the city reflects the architecture of that age. It was very functionalist but with an emphasis on maintaining gardens so today the city has an interesting look to it. You can see a neighborhood of Bat´a worker homes nestled in the trees here.


Well, kind of...they're in there, I promise! Anyway, the original Bat´a died in 1932 but his son, also Tomáš fled to Canada in 1938 where the company continued to flourish. In 1945, the company was nationalized and the named changed to Svit, which remains today since Tomáš didn't get anything back from the state due to allegations that his uncle collaborated with the Nazis. However, in almost every Czech town, or at least city of any decent size, you can find at least one Bat´a shoe store. The shoe museum that I mentioned actually has a really nice collection of preserved and replicated shoes from around the world and throughout history. My internal anthropologist was fascinated by thinking about how much we can learn about a culture just by studying their shoes!

Back to the grind

So, today started my fourth round of summer intensive language school. I haven't done one since 2007 and this year I decided to try a new one. I'm using SF Servis, which is the program that I have been studying with for my evening courses since January. Overall, I think it will be good. We're right in the middle of Old Town. The teacher is good. The class has 5 people and we are all at a similar level, or at least no one will hold the group back. So, I've got (high?) hopes of progress!

Search for pizza: an update

So, I have found a solution to my pizza dilemma. A frozen pizza that is actually better than a lot of frozen pizzas in the US AND reasonably-priced. Now, I had been buying frozen pizza from the foodhall at Marks & Spencer for about $8, then dropped to $6. These are really good, "gourmet" if you will, pizzas but a bit expensive. But when I was at my friend's flat one night she fixed a few of Dr. Oetker's Casa di Mama. I had already eaten so I only ingested the visual. It looked really good. So, then I gave it a shot, buying 2 at one time - knowing that I was going out of town and didn't have any food in the fridge. Two cost just a bit more than 1 from M&S. The result: a great tasting pizza that looks like the box. I've had two kinds: a veggie with pesto and the diablo meat one pictured here. Now, I still say that Pizzerie Kmotra (translates to godfather) is the best in Prague, but when I need a quick meal after a long day, Dr. Oetker is the man.

Who would've thunk?

So, apparently English is Sexy! So says this billboard at the Prague bus station, Florenc. I've been noting the large number of English language schools advertising around the city but this one really caught my eye. Don't worry, I'll have a nice scholarly analysis of it at some point :)

A most brilliant afternoon

Yesterday I had one of my regular meetings with my friend, Romana. We are language partners, meeting regularly to speak English and Czech. Yesterday, she suggested that we go to the Vrtbovská zahrada (garden) in Malá Strana. I hadn't been yet and the day was beautiful so I was happy with her suggestion. We wandered through the baroque gardens - and of course, I didn't have my camera with me - and enjoyed the day. Then, she said that she wanted to take me to her friend Jindřich to see his very special and interesting well. Okay. Sure. I was a bit confused but what the heck. We walked a few blocks to the Pállfyho Palác.

There was a cafe there but more importantly a gathering. The Nonstop čtení 2009 (Nonstop Reading 2009) was taking place. From June 2 to 5, they will read nonstop literature written between 1969 and 1989, or literature of the normalization. It's the 12th year that they do it. The small courtyard in front of the building was strung with rope and plastic-coated articles and other pieces of literature. And there was a small party going on, people milling around, chatting, drinking wine, etc. So, when we arrived we met Jindřich and Romana took me to see the well. I had no idea what to expect. She took me through the building to a little apartment, then down and farther into the building finally to a well. It has been covered over and is dry but it's definitely a well, maybe 20-30 meters deep. She said that there is a legend about the well, that long ago (during the Middle Ages possibly?) 7 nuns were drowned there for having relations with a monk. He was not drowned; his punishment was to watch them being drowned. Typical.

So, after the well, we went back out to join the party and when asked where I'm from I answered, "US" and "Texas." Texas was the right answers. I had my hand kissed and people, okay older men, kept coming up or bringing others over, introducing themselves to me, speaking a little English but primarily Czech, making sure my wine glass was always full... It was also made known that I am trying to speak/undersand Czech so they enjoyed watching me perform. A common request when someone hears that I can "speak Czech" is to "say something, what can you say?" So, I say how I'm a student, doing research and impress them. Oh, and being an anthropologist was of interest also :).

Then, the afternoon turned a bit more surreal. The "boss" of the place - remember, I'm getting my information from my bad Czech and Romana's weak English so - I think his name was Karel - there wasn't a lot of names given just information about when someone was in the US. On that note, another man and I had an interesting conversation about the Czechs in Texas being forced to fight in the Civil War. When he was in the US, he became interested in the Civil War. Anyway, "Karel" asked if we had seen the special place, which I hadn't (????), so he led us inside to a different room and it was the quintessential scholar's living room. Slightly-crooked bookshelves everywhere, full of books, photos fillling any available wall space, oriental carpets on the floor, velvet-covered settee and chairs, piano stuck in the corner...it was a amazing. He told us to sit and then started to chuckle telling me that at one point, in the exact spot where I was sitting, sat Salman Rushdie. Oh, and Prince Charles sat in the spot next to me, apparently not at the same time. On the wall next to me was a photo of the Dalai Lama. Then he pointed out that behind me were pictures of Kurt Vonnegut and John Updike planting trees. Alan Ginsberg. Václav Havel. As my jaw dropped, my eyes got bigger. I was in the most amazing place I had ever been. And Karel so enjoyed showing it all to this young American. After staying at the event for about an hour, I had to leave; I had my Czech lesson. I didn't want to go! So, when I said my farewells, I had a valid excuse, although they said that I was having a Czech lesson with them already! But I'll return. Jindřich is a friend of Romana and her boyfriend and we have promised that I will return to talk with him....about anthropology, culture, society, drugs? It's probably a good thing that I went to my Czech class, I've got a lot to learn!

PS. Czech class was good. At least with Dana my understanding is improving and I was getting the gist of conversations at the reading...I can see the corner and am hurrying to turn it!

Jak se mám? (How's it going with me?)

So, I haven't talked much about how things are going for me. In a word, life is a bowl of cherries. Okay, cheesy. But, it's cherry season and my friend Hanka gave me a very large bag full. They are yummy! I believe the first time that I was introduced to cherries as a fresh fruit, I spent the afternoon drinking with a Slovakian woman in her backyard, back when I lived in DC. Anyway, things are going well. The only downside right now is that all of my American friends are leaving. Chris and Gail left last week. Kari leaves in a few weeks. Laura leaves in early July. But then I start Czech summer school...again. Yep, I putting myself not only into an intensive Czech language course in July, I am putting myself into a self-imposed boot camp. I plan to only speak english, listen to english, etc when necessary. Like communicating with people back home, english with my language partners, research when necessary. You'd think that is what I have been doing but no, I've been relying on english in a lot of places, especially socially. So, we'll see how it will go.

The research is going well, I think. I had a bit of a dry spell, not really getting much interest in response to my recruitment efforts in March and April but May was awesome! And I'm making some good connections. I did 3 interviews last week, when I had gone 3 weeks with no interviews so I'm really happy. In the meantime, I worked and helped with the trainings like Basic Life Support pictured here. I still have some serious gaps in my data but I can focus on trying to get that now. I'm concentrating on the idea of freedom of mobility as a key theme. Regardless what I find, I'll have some good stuff to write up :)

One thing that keeps coming up though is how I find Prague - most of the Czechs I meet ask me. I have a pretty standard answer: It's good. I think of Prague as another city that I know and have lived in, much like Houston (okay, never technically lived there but...) or Washington, DC. But it's the Czech people that I have more fun describing. So many people come here and complain about the Czech people, how rude they are. Well, first, Czechs are well-known for having impolite if not surly waitstaff, postal workers and other service people, which are the people that most tourists interact with. But, in their defense, this city of 1.7 million sees over 1 million tourists every year and the tourists that come here are, in my opinion, really annoying. They come because Prague is one of the cities that you must see while on a European tour. Check it off the list of places. And, not being on the euro, it's still cheaper than more Western parts of Europe...I mean Western geographically, not culturally, so please don't throw eggs at me ;) But in my view, Czechs are really friendly people. For example, these guys, we met at a music festival near Olomouc a few years ago...they were more than happy to share their homemade gin...of course, the next day I went partially blind in one eye....Granted, there are plenty of people that just can't be bothered with strangers or people that aren't part of their group - well, there is still a sense of privacy and some would even argue a socialist legacy of protection. Or, they are just busy people. But, when someone does open up, it's great! I have people inviting me to their homes, visits to the cities where they live or come from, taking a 2-hour train to Prague just for an interview...I think that Czechs just want to be cautious sometimes about their relationships, who they want to let into their lives, how much they want to let an outsider in, really, no real difference than most people. So, by generalizing, I'm trying to breakdown the bad stereotype, prove it wrong by my own experiences. And, I have to admit, I hate the tourists, too, and get irritated that I have to wade through crowds of people just live my daily life. That said, I need to finish this and head to the grocery store to possibly get yelled at by some disgruntled cashier.

So, in closing, things are going well. I have people to visit this summer, some short traveling to do, and then preparing for the parental visit in August. I think the next 5 months are going to fly.

Prague Gardens

The gardens in Prague are part of its glory, in my humble opinion. Additionally, in the past few weeks, I've heard more than one non-Czech, East European say that the gardens in Prague are wonderful. So, since spring sprung about 2 months ago, I've been enjoying the variety of gardens we have here.
Formal gardens
I have always liked the Prague Castle gardens, enjoying the views of the city.

I've always loved this tree, which reminds me of the wisteria we have at home.

More recently I've discovered the Wallenstein or Wallenštejn gardens in Malá Strana. I had seen it from the Castle for years but never knew how to get there, until Kari showed me on Easter :)

There are peacocks!

I'm still finding other formal gardens hidden around the city.

Other gardens
Then there are those that are not formal so much but definite green space, like Petřín hill, where we went for a picnic on Easter Monday. I've spent hours walking around that hill finding surprises around corners like this door that leads to another garden...


...or wandering around on a snowy day...One of my favorite places is Vyšehrad. I don't consider this a formal garden because it's not sculptured, etc but it's peaceful greenspace...

Beer gardens
However, my favorite type of garden is of the beer variety. Once the weather gets warm, and you see the cafes and restaurants putting out their outside tables you know that the beer gardens will open soon. For years, I had heard of the beer garden at Letná park. I finally went there a few weeks ago and was kind of let down. While it does have the promised view, the atmosphere is a little quiet...

...other than when my friends are there that is :)

Another good one is at Vyšehrad, but I don't seem to have a picture of that. When I had been before, they had a big grill going that had some amazing grilled goodies and we talked with some really nice people who wanted to try out their english :)

My favorite, so far, is Riegrovy Sady. I've been there a few times and really enjoyed the atmosphere.
Lots of people, food, beer, a big screen tv that shows sporting events...basically, an outside bar. And, as in other pubs around here, people will bring their children...
So, it wasn't so surprising that I had a good time one Sunday afternoon, sitting in the shade, drinking good beer, having good conversation with this group:

I think I might have finally found a type of gardening that I'm actually good at!

Sv. Jan Nepomucký - St. John of Nepomuk

One of my favorite Czech saints is Sv. Jan Nepomucký. Probably because he's one of the most famous but also because like all good saints, has some great legend built up around him. That, and you can ask him for favors if you visit his statue on Charles' Bridge. When my sister, Jill, and I were in Prague together a few years ago, I told her to ask Sv. Jan for a wish. Just put your left hand on his statue - I have recently heard that you must touch the five stars, one with each finger - and ask. She mentioned that it was a bit superstitious to which I replied, he's a saint, it's like an intercession...score one for me ;)





So, Sv. Jan lived in the latter half of the 14th century. From vitejte.cz:

"St John Nepomuk, a Czech patron saint, was one of the most devoutly worshipped saints in the Czech Lands in the Baroque period. Appointed vicar general under the archbishop Jan of Jenštejn, John Nepomuk became involved in a dispute with King Wenceslas IV concerning Kladruby Abbey. Legend has it, however, that he refused to disclose the confession secrets of the Queen. Nepomuk was tortured to death and his body thrown down into the River Vltava. Reportedly five stars appeared on the site where the body was found. These five stars were later adopted to serve as St John Nepomuk's symbol. Statues depicting John Nepomuk can be found practically in every village. More often than not they are situated on bridges as they are believed to protect against floods."

Legend also has it that the Queen was young and beautiful and supposedly cheating on the king there. But more realistic sources will say that he was dumped in the river more because of his political disagreements with the king. A month later, his body was buried. A few hundred years later, when he was exhumed, he was not fully decayed. What is now thought to be his brain, was believed to be his uncorrupted tongue, solidifying his place as a martyr for this refusal to break the confessional seal. Ironically, as one of my friends pointed out, he is the patron saint of sailors and bridges - yes, a guy who was thrown off a bridge and drowned.



So, why am I writing about him? Well, his feast day was a few weeks ago and the night before there was a Baroque festival to celebrate. Pontoons on the river held a platform for a baroque concert. Fireworks were promised, even gondolas...being patron saint of sailors also ties him closely to Venice. Plus, supposedly, the gondola is the only remaining baroque-era boat to still be in use...yes, I hang out with nerds...we're grad students...sue us.





So, naturally, we went to see what was happening. My friends and I gathered at the Ruldofinum and were highly disappointed. We saw the gondolas. Meh. We saw the stage set for the concert, which had no concert but did have a couple of giant evil-looking fish. We were hungry. So, we opted for dinner first. After finally finding space for 6 people on a Friday night, we ate, we were merry, we were tired...so after dinner only a few of us headed back toward the "festivities."







Not much to see. There was a small Medieval-themed market. But the night was nice and a lot of boats were out on the river. So, it was a nice evening. As I was heading towards my tram stop, I heard the faint strains of a Baroque concert.











Sunday morning, as I was walking across Charles Bridge, I saw the garland they laid where tradition has it that Jan went over the side. When showing the bridge to my friend Kasia who just visited, we figured that the 5 stars are on this memorial, not the statue. So, if that's how you make a wish come true, it's no wonder mine hasn't yet. We'll see if I got it right this time.

Beer Today, Wine Tomorrow

Last weekend was a 3-day weekend, in honor of Liberation Day, May 8. For sometime, we - as in a bunch of the Fulbrighters - had been talking about going to the Moravian wine country so this was a perfect time. We ended up in Znojmo, mainly because that's where we found the hotel space. Regardless, it turned out to be quite serendipitous and we had a great time.

We started on the bus which was standing room only. I wasn't aware that they did this so was very happy that we had seat reservations. I usually get a mistenka (seat reservation) when I buy my train ticket but didn't even think about it for the bus. Luckily, Laura was buying the tickets and had experience with this.

Laura and I on the bus - Amanda behind the camera.

When we got to Znojmo, we headed for the hotel and then found lunch! We were lucky to find a restaurant on the square that served great food. Then we started to explore a bit while waiting for our 4th member, Joanna, to arrive.Znojmo is really a lovely town with a number of churches














and a castle with a World Heritage Rotunda,

set along a river and hills with a number of small valleys.

We found a great little restaurant for dinner that served 13 different kinds of fried cheese! The other 3 were happy for the halušky. When Amanda was deciding what to drink, I suggested beer today and wine tomorrow, knowing that we'd be spending the evening in a wine cellar :)





Saturday dawned beautiful. After breakfast at the hotel, we headed toward the square to the weekly farmer's market and spring wine festival! I had read something about a festival in Znojmo but wasn't sure of the date. We got lucky!






Thinking it a bit early for wine, we decided to check out the Podzemi, or underground caves.
Built centuries ago, these caves have served as storage and hiding places during wartime. I especially enjoyed the variety of additions to the caves to give them more atmosphere including skeletons dressed in a variety of rotting costumes - monks, Templars, soldiers - and ghouls and the gnomes below.
Time for wine! We bought our tickets and tasted a variety of very nice local wines and enjoyed a variety of folk and other local bands.

This little boy was a joy to watch as he danced to the soundcheck for the next band :)
At some point we climbed the town hall tower.



It was a great afternoon topped off by a fabulous night! Amanda had contact with a small, family-owned winery and arranged for us to go for a tasting. In a word, adorable!





Around 30 years ago, the Adámek family began making wine. Recently, their son Petr bought his own cellar and began making his own. Petr was our guide for the evening.










We tried a variety of whites, roses and reds and learned about wine and a bit about the history of the area.










For example, during communism, a lot of the tunnels (like the one pictured here) were closed off due to the proximity of the area to the Austrian border.









We also got to pick some of the bottles we sampled, with the excuse that if it's bad, we are to blame. There was no blame on Laura for this bottle!






While most of our samples were from the large casks or barrels, at the end we ended up in the "treasury" tasting the same varietals from different years. Joined by Bora, the dog.

Afterwards, we sat outside and enjoyed some of our favorites.

On Sunday we headed back to our respective corners of the Czech Republic. It was a great weekend and I had a lot of fun! Thanks, ladies!