Cultural Experience!

Pivovar is the Czech word for brewery, and this is Zatec's very own! I found the experience VERY interesting. I was fascinated by the whole process, and I wondered, as I often do, who first thought of doing all these things to plants and water. How did they know what it would become? It's really amazing.


My little darlings!!!

Aren't they adorable???


I am posting this especially because Vit purposely closed his eyes during my photo!! And also pictured here is Tomas, our fearless leader, who took it upon himself to organize this trip after I merely mentioned wanting to do it one day in class. None of the kids had ever been, so... Way to go, Tomas!




This is Radek. I don't know his last name, but he is the Director of Sales and Marketing at Pivovar Zatec, and he conducted the tour of the brewery--in English! Bravo.


Hot beer in the boiling room!


Empty fermentation bed. This was a fascinating part of the tour, which was, in its entirety, pretty fascinating itself.


Fermenting beer. If you lean in close enough, you can get a burning nostril full of the CO2 that is being created by the yeast. I did! Whew!!


Assembly line--Sooooo Laverne and Shirley!!


The workers at the Pivovar gave gifts of beer to a few of my students. Did they say no, thank you, it's only 9 am?? Noooooo.


Tasting room- two fisted drinker


Her too!


Yes, I am drinking beer with my students again. I really didn't think we would do the tasting part because of the early hour, but I guess it's never to early for beer in Zatec.


We tasted TWO kinds of beer!! It's ok, we were all sharing the two mugs, so no one overdid it. =)

My Birthday =)

So, last Tuesday was my birthday. I didn't have to work until almost 1 o'clock. That was nice. I had a quiet morning at home in which I read birthday emails from home, and I really missed my friends in LA. My mom sent me about five birthday cards (paper and electronic), and I finally had to call her and say it was enough. But it was nice...Grandmother and Annie also sent me very loving emails. I was glad to hear from them.

I went to work and the lessons were fine. Then the evening came...


I knew that some of the teachers were taking me to a birthday dinner, but they really made it special for me. Beautiful flowers and a really lovely silver bracelet! (Alena knows how I like silver.) A surprise!! Really, I was only expecting dinner--and I was happy about that. So, I was really honored that they made such an effort. We had a private room in a pub I hadn't patronized before. Good food! Several teachers showed up--even some who didn't speak English!! We had a wonderful time. Lots of laughing...


Me and Alena (a super lady)


Me and Irena (Ms. Personality) with our beloved cell phones


Sitting around the table...



Dasa and Majda having a serious chat--not! =)


Irena, Lenka, and me.


Alena (Assistant Principal), Majda, Me, Halina, and Mila.


The three M's--Majda, Mila, and Martin, a very friendly and funny guy. I just met him that night.



By the end of the night, I was reminded of a little song...

Make new friends
But keep the old
One is silver
And the other is gold

I was very happy for the opportunity to have met these new friends, even though I had been missing people in LA. This is a part of the experience, and one of the reasons I love to travel. I will have a special feeling for Zatec forever. I am at home here too. The people are fantastic, and they have been extraordinarily good to me. I am grateful and happy.

I AM IN LOVE!!!!!!!

On Saturday, Mr. and Mrs. Harajda took me on a trip to Karlovy Vary. Wow, oh wooooowwwwwww. It was GORgeous! If I'd had the money (and the permission from the Czech Government) I would have bought an apartment there on the spot! We walked around there for hours, and I was continually amazed at the spectacle of beauty. It is very well kept. The buildings are in immaculate condition, everything is manicured--neat and trim! I had seen some postcards of Karlovy Vary before I went, and they were nice, but they did NOT do the place justice. I had wanted to come to Karlovy Vary because I am VERY interested in spa towns, but I really had no idea what I was going to find here. Nice to know the reality now. It reminded me a little of Sorrento, Italy; they have the same kind of energy, similar vibe. However, I didn't want to LIVE in Sorrento! I am SURE I will be back here again. Maybe some massage and mud??

In the beginning...

I took a bath in the morning, so I was really warm before we left Zatec. I dressed as if I were still in California: jeans, two tank tops, and--what was I THINKING??-- Sandals!! The sun was shining, or threatening to, so when I walked outside, I was really fine. Mrs. Harajda thought I was crazy, and she was right. I did carry my sweater and coat with me though. By the time we got to Karlovy Vary, I was starting to feel the actual temperature outside. YIKES! So...the first thing we had to do was go find me some socks with the toes in them so I could wear them with the sandals. We did! They saved my life, and the rest of the day was wonderful.


Sanatorium. Can be prescribed by a doctor for convalescence. Amazing.


Beautiful top of building. I starting imagining, as I often do. What if I...


I think I was about here when I first thought...If I could walk these streets every day, I would live my life as a happy camper. OK, maybe not every day; I still would have to travel, but this certainly wouldn't be the worst place to live.


Horse and buggy. How cute!! Takes the imagination back to what it must have been like back in the day when this was a major source of transportation. (And no Jiri, no Ondra, I was NOT born back then!!)


Lattice building. Nice old wooden building. Not quite sure what it was...some kind of spa house?


Charlie Chaplin. This was a surprise!


River and bridge-- another beautiful shot of the town.


My first taste! It is part of the Karlovy Vary experience to taste the water from the many springs that flow around town. It is mineral water and is supposed to be good for the digestive tract. They even sell special mugs? jugs? jars? cups? for the tasting. Mr. and Mrs. Harajda bought me the one I am drinking from here. A present! There is a definite mineral taste to the water...kind of salty, but not really salt. It's...interesting, and definitely worth the try. As I said, a part of the experience! I will do it again next time, every time.


At the spring with Mrs. Harajda. Here is one of the springs where you can fill a cup (jar? jug?). Many are in this same style, but each has a different temperature (and perhaps a different concentration of minerals??). Some fountains are in a completely different design too.


Look at the columns! Nice area.


With the geyser! This is a natural geyser, but enclosed in glass building. It's pretty awesome. The water is hot, and the room is warm. Mrs. Harajda and I were taking off and putting on our coats all day! Sunny area, shady area. Warm room, cool street...


The tower at the top. We took a funicular up the mountain and had a lovely lunch at the restaurant up there. Afterward, Mr. Harajda waited outside while Mrs. Harajda (Harajdova, I know) and I climbed to the top of this tower to see a view of the area.


View from the top. I am impressed by the wooded area around the town. There is SO much!! The nature blends nicely with the purpose and atmosphere of Karlovy Vary. I want to walk through the forest...amid the trees...


Hot water flow. Some of the natural hot water flows into the river here, leaving mineral deposits in its wake. Lovely! It's like something from prehistoric times (and no, boys, I wasn't born then either!).


Lovely old hotel. Hotel Romance?? haha


BGWYWH (Beautiful! Gorgeous! Wish you were here.)


There's something about a gazebo...


Mirrored Obelisk. THIS one wasn't stolen from Egypt! Niiiiice.

Saturday continues...

After I returned to Zatec, I went out to see a soccer match with Irena, another colleague from Gymnazium. She was more fun than a barrel of monkeys! We tried some local specialties and the pub...a little beer, a little Becherovka, a little tlacenka--Boy did I LOVE it!! Becherovka is a liquor made in Karlovy Vary; Tlacenka is some kind of pork meat with onions and vinegar. A big hit with me!

I met Irena's father and husband. They were jolly people. Great to be with. Her father liked me very much, and was very dapper.

Irena was fun to talk to. She is very spirited and says what she thinks! It was the first time I had spent more than a few minutes talking with her, and I enjoyed it immensely. In fact, I will see her later today!

KM

Oh yeah, there WAS a soccer match going on too. I think the proper team won. I know the score was 4-1, and most people seemed happy, so...


I stopped paying attention for a minute, and when I looked up, the field was like this...


But I did notice this pretty tree. (I am such a girl sometimes!) We do have trees that change colors in LA, but not in the number they are in here. Practically a whole forest of them on the way to (and right around) Krivoklat.

Another brilliant Saturday

On Saturday, Alena, Tomas, and I went to visit another castle. On the way, we stopped in a little town--Rakovik, I think--where we stumbled upon the makings of two Czech weddings! No photos, sorry. Anyway, the castle we visited was called Krivoklat. There was a festival going on there for the weekend. It, and it's surrounding area, was absolutely beautiful. I think this time I WILL let the pictures speak for themselves. I don't feel like explaining, or saying a lot, and besides, nothing I could say would add to the photos anyway. There was a tower tour, but it was in Czech, so...





























Peace...out! Thank you, Alena. Thank you, Tomas.