Wow

Want to see how some people got booze down to the courtyard for the going away party on Tuesday? ;) It is reasons like this that I will miss Europe....

Welcome to the United States of America

So I just got into America!!! I got an immediate overwhelming sense of excitement as soon as we landed! I cannot believe what an emotional wreck I am today! Io have read my signature atlas book three times already, cover to cover. I cannot wait to cover it in pictures very soon.
I cannot wait to see Mark, my family, and my friends! I miss everyone so much! I have been privileged to talk to them online essentially this whole semester. It will be so nice to see them in person! ;)
I have two reactions upon arrival. No, three…..
1) HOLY ENGLISH! There is an overwhelming amount of English around me! I’m not sure how to react!
2) I met a girl in customs who had just come home from visiting her friend in Prague for a week! I talked and talked to her while we got our luggage and were czeched by customs. Then I talked and talked to the driver of the shuttle bus. Sat in the front seat across from him. There were others who sat in the back or alone in a corner silently. I am not sure that I would have ever done this before. I have much more confidence! Watch out! ;) haha
3) I need a payphone. I want to talk to Mark or my Dad or Mom and tell them I am here safely, but cannot because THERE ARE NO PAY PHONES HERE!!! What?!?!?! I guess in the days of the cell phone, they were completely erased from society. What a pity for me… Oh well… I will see them s00o0o0o0n!
It is 10:30 at night in the Czech Republic. I bet some of the students are gathering to go out. Or may be getting ready right now. Wonder if they are thinking about me…. Boo…..
See you so0o0o0o0n! XOXO
Tiff

Familiarity

So I am sitting on an airplane traveling from Amsterdam to Connecticut. Looking out the window at that big ocean that has separated me from all that is familiar for the last semester of my senior year of college. Listening to Michael Buble, “Home” brings tears to y eyes. I miss everyone so much.
What a rollercoaster. In this 24 hours, I will not only get the chance (finally) to return to the ones I love, but also say goodbye to those who I have grown to love. Reading my signature atlas, I cry over those friends. I read, “You always have a place to stay in ______.” Fill in the blank with whatever destination you wish… They are everywhere. In reality, how many will I ever see again? Only time will tell.
In the Amsterdam airport earlier, I got questioned about the contents of my luggage. (This is routine for a trip back to the States.) The poor woman had no idea what she was getting herself into. “Traveling alone?” She asked. “I am now,” I replied. I had just endured a tearful goodbye session with Rachel. Then I broke down. Sobbing. Gasping. Hysterics. I tried to answer her questions as best I could without dropping, falling to the floor and curling up in the fetal position. The poor woman was trying to find out if I had pot in my luggage and all I could think about was how a chapter in my life had just ENDED.
I wanted to outright let her know I didn’t have any space cakes in my bag just so I could get on the plane and get out of the situation. Didn’t she know that I had traveled to Amsterdam and wanted nothing to do with those then??!! Why would I have them now?!?! I was drawing (for the first time in my life) unwanted attention. She finally let me go.
I have experienced so many firsts since my study abroad decision. Many more will come. Another ‘first’ came just now, when the flight attendant gave me lunch. Upon receiving my three-cheese tortellini, I replied, “Dekuju.” That’s Czech for ‘Thank you.’
Maybe all that is familiar now is different than four months ago. Looking out the window at that water, my sunglasses are now on. Shielding not sun, but tears. As Michael Buble sings, “I’ve had my run but baby I’m done. Got to go home… They’ll be all right, I’ll be home tonight. I’m coming back home.”

ICE

I miss ice… a lot… On the plane I ordered an ice water. I got ICE! And no gas in it!! Wow, maybe America isn’t so bad after all! ;) But those Dutch Male flight attendants were super cute….. They liked the fact that I colored on the plane and held the bear that Mark bought for me while he was in Vegas. Haha* I looked like a tool and I DIDN’T CARE! I HAD ICE CUBES!!!

Travel

Rach and I took the 3:00 AM bus to Prague. Our flight to Amsterdam left at 9:30 AM. We split ways in Amsterdam… ;( That was terrible… Then I went to Connecticut at 1:00 PM. Then arrived in Indianapolis at 8:00 pm! Whew! What a journey!

Need to mention

Thank you to Hikmat, Nikki, Roxanne, Wadih, and Rachel W. for helping Rachel and I take our luggage to the bus station. Yep. I said it… It took SEVEN people to get our luggage to the bus station! Hey! Give us a break! We ARE MOVING home!! We are moving FOUR MONTHS WORTH of stuff! Sheesh! ;)

My last Remix......

And of course….Remix… Wednesday nights.. ;) I HAD to go to see everyone one last time before I left Brno. We took the 1047 bus to town. I was at Remix until a little before one. Meg, Rachel W. and I all took a cab back to the doors to get our stuff and leave for the bus station. We were silent when we got in the cab. Then Meg and I started sniffling. Then we just went into hysterics. Needless to say, I felt bad for Rach, who was in between us… ;)
Remix was great and I got to say goodbye to almost everyone! I wore my sunglasses to shield the tears. ;) We all drank and prepared for our departures. Wow I will miss everyone s0o0o0o much! Have I said that? ;)

My Final Presentation

After the ISC final presentation, I got our group together for a final presentation I had been preparing for about a month. It was a montage of our pics and videos from the semester. It was funny. It was great to be with everyone and reminisce on our four month adventure.

Final Presentation

Wednesday we had our last presentation as the International Student Club. It was essentially a montage of our pictures and some funny videos. The people who created it put the first part of it on youtube. I make an appearance... See if you notice it... ;) Click the link to Czech it out!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mFIVAJK0hs

Wednesday

Wednesday I went with Brandon to close our bank accounts. I had about $400 left in my bank account. Not too shabby! I have spent $2000 of my money while abroad. Tuition was $5400. So four months in Europe COUNTING EVERYTHING added up to $7400… Wow… This is just one more reason I encourage people to study abroad! Wow!
Afterwards, we walked around Brno one last time. There were some crazy things going on in my favorite part of the city, Freedom Square. Czech out the video! Walking around Brno was bittersweet. I will miss that city! I will definitely be back though!

Tuesday

Tuesday I hosted a going away shin-dig in the courtyard of our dormitory. I also must add that ‘hosting’ the party meant that I was the one who set up the event on facebook. There were a lot of people who were leaving Brno this week and next week and we needed to get something together. It was a HUGE SUCCESS!!! There were so many people outside! It was so great to get everyone together one last time! After the cops were called because we stayed out in the courtyard too late, Bartek and I cleaned up EVERYTHING and then we all went to Livingstone. It was a great night!

Taking things for granted....

When I was Athens, I met Hamish. He had been vacationing in Athens for a month and told our group one day that he sometimes found himself taking the Parthenon and all its amazingness for granted. From that point on, I vowed never to take things in my life for granted. I want to savor every moment.
Until Rachel’s friend, Steph, came to Brno to visit. We took her around our beautiful city. Steph is studying abroad in Northern Ireland this semester. She was very impressed with the architecture and the beauty that I was surrounded by from February to May. She totally went into tourist-mode. She was taking pictures of EVERYTHING!
Rach and I found ourselves asking her what she was taking pictures of. There were some instances where we tried to convince her to not even take the photos. Then we realized that we had become HAMISH! We were taking things in Brno for granted! Wow! I really suck! Lesson learned….

Back home again in INDIANA!

So I am h0o0o0oo0me! I flew for about 24 hours yesterday... and I am up at 6 in the morning... Hey, it is noon in Brno! Wow! Mark, Mom, and Dad picked me up from the airport yesterday....I had a polar pop from Circle K and a an Arby's toasted sub.... HATED THE POLAR POP and COULDN'T FINISH the sub! Uh oh.... I had waited for those two things for MONTHS! And wasn't impressed...... I'm scared......

Leaving

Leaving on a Jet Plane.... Through tears... talk to you when I get back to America! *tears*

Self Discovery Vacation

This four months has meant so much to the rest of my life. I already am acknowledging it. I have referred to this as a 'self-discovery vacation.' It is so true! I have found out so much about myself! Czech it out!

I AM:

RELIGIOUS
CONFIDENT
INDEPENDENT
ABLE
LOVING
RESPECTFL
HONEST
OPTIMISTIC
INSPIRED
EMOTIONAL
EMPATHETIC
DRAMATIC
CARING
ENTHUSIASTIC
FUNNY
ENTERTAINING
ALWAYS LEARNING AND EVOLVING
A COOKIE MONSTER
KNOWLEDGEABLE
RESPONSIBLE
OPEN
HELPFUL
AWARE
TALKATIVE
BEAUTIFUL
UNPREPARED
PREPARED
LOUD
ACCEPTED
ADAPTIVE
KIND
SELFISH
CULTURED
UNDERSSTANDING
NEUTRAL
OPINIONATED
DEMANDING
SOCIAL
NARCISISTIC
CALM
ENERGETIC
SHARP
PROUD
RELIABLE
A PROCRASTINATOR
WEIRD
UNSATISFIED
SATISFIED
A GREAT LISTENER
PASSIONATE
CLEVER
FLIRTY
LOYAL
INSANE
KLUTZY
SHY
BOLD
WELCOMING
SURE
UNSURE
DETERMIND
ANALYTICAL
GRATEFUL
STRONG
CURIOUS
IDEALISTIC
BUT MOST OF ALL, HAPPY

THINGS I MISS

PEOPLE
FOOD
FAMILIARITY
CHURCH
FOOTBALL
SKYLINE OF INDIANAPOLIS
WATCHING FOR DEER WHEN DRIVING
DRIVING IN GENERAL
THAT GOOD OLD TERRE HAUTE STINK
PEOPLE... ;)

Things I will miss

PEOPLE
ARCHITECTURE
AWKWARD SITUATIONS
NEW EXPERIENCES BEING A FOREIGNER
ACCENTS
CLUBS
CHEAP EVERYTHING
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
SELF DISCOVERY VACATION (SEE LATER)
TRAVELING
DORM LIFE
NO RESPONSIBILITY
FOOD
FOOTBALL
WALKING EVERYWHERE
PEOPLE..... ;)

And

So czech out what I woke up to last Saturday!??!!? I have the best roomie in the world! Thanks so much, Rach!! ((The long note is "Oh the Places You'll Go")) HOW CUTE!!!! ((*PS- She didn't realize how long it was... haha**)) Love ya, Rach!

Oh yeah

I graduated college.... ;)

Today

Today I have my one and only final exam for the semester... I know I said I graduated, but I still have to take my final for my Ethnic Relations Class... Wish me luck... Eek!

Did I mention

How much I am going to miss everyone!??!?!! AGGGGHHHHH!!!!!

Cookouts!!

So I think I mentioned something about the cookouts that we have had essentially every night this week. Everyone is rapidly attempting to get rid of all thier food.. What better way than to share it with everyone?!?!! I have had a great time at the cookouts this past week. The weather has been perfect! Liesbeth [Belgium] and Sanne [Netherlands] both tried Velveeta Mac and Cheese that Nikki made! They couldn't get enough of it! It was s0o0o0 cute!

Not my Scene.....

One would think that I would have learned my lesson from Friday and “layed low” on Saturday night. Nope.. Think again. This is Europe. No mercy. Last week. No mercy. So we went to a club in town, Pangea. There was a huge party that night that was promoted all over the city through posters that week. So we went. I walked in an immediately recognized that this was not my crowd. There were crazy people everywhere. Okay, okay, I didn’t present that well.. Crazy people are my crowd… People on drugs though? Not so much…. There was one crazy cat who was dancing with his flash on his camera and a speaker... And was perfectly content with life... I couldn't pass up the opportunity to dance with that guy.. and the speaker, of course.. haha*

After the club, we went to the bus station. We had a while to wait (like twenty minutes) so we ate a fried cheese sandwich. If you ever have the opportunity to eat one of these... pass.... Even if you are intoxicated... I was stone sober and thought that thing was all types of garbage. Overall, it was a fine Saturday night in Brno....

Eek

Friday was sloppy. I will outright say it. A group of us went to Livingstone, another club in town. At the club, I was in line to get a pivo from the bar. Theresa, one of my friends from Austria, was behind me. I asked her what she was going to order. When she said Tequila, I should have walked away and went home. Nope. If she was going to do one, so was I! She ordered us Tequila Gold. There are two types of Tequila shots here: Gold and Silver. The Silver ones are the ones Nikki and I took at the Salsa Club on Tuesday. You get salt and lime with them. The Gold ones are a whole other story… and are dangerous… Gold Tequila shots come with an orange and cinnamon. They are all kinds of delicious. I ended up having about six shots of “Gold” Friday night. That is excluding the Jack and Coke, the three pivos, the shot of some crazy vodka, and some Sangria. Needless to say, I deserved the terrible, self-imposed feeling that I had all of Saturday. It was a fun night.. I think… I realize that it might be a good thing that I am going home soon, though… I don’t know if I can resist Tequila Gold shots and I know my body will shut down if I continue Friday nights partying ways.

Thursday

Thursday a group of us went to yet another pub in town: Glass Bar. Apparently the bar got its name because there is a glass elevator that you must ride in order to enter. Rachel Wolfe had a friend in town, Emily. It was nto talk to her. She is studying in Austria this semester. She prefers the Czech Koruna to the Euro.. ;) Don’t we all….
Afterwards, some of the party animals went to Charlies… Charlies always proves to be a good time. The bar is pretty big, so it is nice for large groups. We have gone to Charlies a lot this semester.

Friends

Wednesday I went to the final country presentation. It went really well. Italy presented and cracked me up! The presentation really made me want to go to Italy! Oh wait…. I am….. September… ;)
Afterwards a group of us went to Sherlock Holmes, a little pub in town. We talked about all the good times we have had here and how much stuff we are going to miss. I am even going to miss being able to go to a new little random pub with my new friends whenver I want.

Let's Dance

Tuesday Nikki and I (and some others) went to a Salsa Club in town. The club holds Salsa Lessons every Tuesday and Thursday. We were really excited to go. When we got there, we paid the expensive three dollar cover and headed to the dance floor…. Only to discover that no boys were going to be provided for us. Like, what did we expect? Professional Male Salsa Dancers anxiously awaiting our arrival? I have no idea. Needless to say, Nikki and I were a lesbian couple for the night (She was the boy). We salsa’ed our little hearts out!
I also must acknowledge that the Salsa lessons were in Czech… ((Because we are in the Czech Republic))…. This proved difficult in our ability to be taught. The instructor would tell us what to do, show us what to do, then we would watch everyone else and try to figure out the move. It was so much fun!
After the Salsa lessons, we also celebrate Cinco De Mayo. Nikki and I celebrated with a few shots of Tequilla an some pivos. Then we realized that we looked like alcoholic lesbians, hanging out and drinking alone. So we went home.

Thankful

I am so happy that I studied abroad in Brno! This is reinforced almost daily to me! It was really reiterated when I was in Prahaha last weekend. Prague is the largest city in the Czech Republic. It is also a very ‘touristy’ place. Things are more expensive and everyone speaks English. Let me let it be known that, when I say things were expensive, I mean they were expensive in comparison to the prices I have been paying.
I spoke Czech to the cashiers and shopkeepers whenever I could. I got the WEIRDEST looks whenever I did that! I continued to do it, because I WAS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC!
I am s0o0o0o glad that I studied abroad in a place that was completely unfamiliar to me. A place that my credit union (not yours, Mrs. R.) doesn’t even TRUST enough to allow me to use their card over here. Let me let it be known that I would love to punch them right in the throat for that whole fiasco. What an ignorant move.
Anyhoo, I am so glad that I was THROWN INTO THE POOL instead of dipping my toes in. What I mean by this is that EVERYTHING was completely foreign to me! I have become so comfortable in an awkward situation that I have gained probably too much confidence in my traveling abilities. I love Brno and I will miss it very much.

Huh?

Okay, I'm going to put this out there....WHAT DOES THIS QUOTE MEAN!??!?! I'm not embarassed by my ignorance at all..... HELP!!

"It is the first law of friendship that it has to be cultivated. The second is to be indulgent when the first law is neglected."-- Voltaire

OKAY

I just realized that was a gross post..... Thanks for being one of the GREATEST people in my life, Mom! I love you and look up to you s0o0o0o much! Thank you for supporting me even though I do weird things like call you on Mother's Day to thank you for housing me in your uterus for nine months.... and leaving for Europe for four months even though I have s0o0oo0 much back home... Or .... okay.. I'll stop there.. but I'm sure there are a 'few' more.. ;) I love you, Momma! Can't wait to see you on Thursday!!!

HEY

CALL YOUR MOM AND TELL HER THANKS FOR HOUSING YOU IN HER UTERUS FOR NINE MONTHS... I DID.... THANKS MOMMA! LOVE YOU!

I AM AWARE

That I SUCK SUCK SUCK when it comes to blogging the last couple of days.. Let me just say I have been enjoying my last few days of my study-abroad experience.. We have had cookouts the last three nights and plan to continue them until we leave.. ((For me it is Thursday at 3:00 AM)) .. I have been sucking at blogging not only because I have been 'enjoying my last few days' but also because I am going into hardcore depression mode about leaving all the great people I have met here. I cannot believe how many GREAT FRIENDS I have from ALL OVER THE WORLD!!! I have cried the last three days at random times just thinking about those last few moments of me being here..... They are counting down.... And I cannot believe it.... Denial stage first.... Depression second.... Excited-ness third.... Don't get me wrong... I am STOKED to see everyone from home.... But right now I'm thinking about leaving all these great people that I have grown to know and love before I focus on returning to all those that I love back in the States..... I will blog some within the next few days... Through tears.... I will see you in three days! XOXO from Europe