I want to apologize for the lack of posts recently. There has been a lot going on (trying to design a 100+ page book, for one) and Blogger has been unusually..crappy lately.
I will try and update on the last few weeks as soon as possible.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Friday, June 13, 2008
Vienna!
I am posting this from Vienna, Austria – home of lederhosen and strudel.
David, Stewart, Susan, Ashley, Lynsey, Katie and I departed from Prague at 3 am (yes, 3 am – we had to catch the night tram to get to the train station) to catch our train to Vienna. Everything went super-smoothly, which was fantastic.
At the train station in Vienna we met Katie's uncle (she is actually staying with him this weekend), who works for the UN. He gave us his cell phone and the UN's number just in case. It's kind of nice to have a person to call, but seriously, I do not want to ever have to call him.
David, Susan, Stewart, Ashley, Lynsey and I caught the tram to our hostel, Wombat's. This place is crazy – they run a bar, etc., and all 6 of us are staying in one room. It feels like a big middle school sleepover.
The plans for the weekend are:
Today:
- Museum (not likely, as David and Lynsey are asleep and I am sitting here on my laptop)
- 6 pm – Dinner and drinks while we watch the soccer game in the bar here. there are people from all over the US here, so it's a great opportunity to meet them!
Saturday:
- Walking tour of Vienna, with stops at the Hapsburg Palace and Innere Stadt and a picnic lunch (thanks for all the peanut butter, my travel companions love you!)
- Some sort of music? and dinner?
Sunday:
- Bikes around Vienna, doing things we saw and didn't get to on Saturday
- Train back to Prague at 6:30.
I will update soon, the computer is dying.
David, Stewart, Susan, Ashley, Lynsey, Katie and I departed from Prague at 3 am (yes, 3 am – we had to catch the night tram to get to the train station) to catch our train to Vienna. Everything went super-smoothly, which was fantastic.
At the train station in Vienna we met Katie's uncle (she is actually staying with him this weekend), who works for the UN. He gave us his cell phone and the UN's number just in case. It's kind of nice to have a person to call, but seriously, I do not want to ever have to call him.
David, Susan, Stewart, Ashley, Lynsey and I caught the tram to our hostel, Wombat's. This place is crazy – they run a bar, etc., and all 6 of us are staying in one room. It feels like a big middle school sleepover.
The plans for the weekend are:
Today:
- Museum (not likely, as David and Lynsey are asleep and I am sitting here on my laptop)
- 6 pm – Dinner and drinks while we watch the soccer game in the bar here. there are people from all over the US here, so it's a great opportunity to meet them!
Saturday:
- Walking tour of Vienna, with stops at the Hapsburg Palace and Innere Stadt and a picnic lunch (thanks for all the peanut butter, my travel companions love you!)
- Some sort of music? and dinner?
Sunday:
- Bikes around Vienna, doing things we saw and didn't get to on Saturday
- Train back to Prague at 6:30.
I will update soon, the computer is dying.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Berlin vs. Prague
When we were in Berlin, I noticed several differences in the atmosphere/people.
I feel like Prague is all about history. By history I mean how the Czech people have been repressed and how proud they are of their buildings and their culture. They seem annoyed with the tourists (even though tourism is the main influx of money here). They want to remember their origins and past, even though (as Milan Kundera writes) they have been changed by so many other countries that it is almost impossible.
Berlin, on the other hand, is all about forgetting. Forgetting about World War II, forgetting about the concentration camps and forgetting about the giant scar that is still in the city. The modern buildings (which are still being built – there are cranes everywhere) have no history. Even the historical buildings (like the Reichstag) have been adapted and changed to fit in with the new modern look of the city.
It's like I'm trying to compare orchids and lilies; they are so similar but so different and I like them both. But parts of each city appeal to me more, like the Prague how much value tradition has, and how in Berlin they are more progressive and less hostile? to American tourists.
I think you really just need to experience it for yourself :)
I feel like Prague is all about history. By history I mean how the Czech people have been repressed and how proud they are of their buildings and their culture. They seem annoyed with the tourists (even though tourism is the main influx of money here). They want to remember their origins and past, even though (as Milan Kundera writes) they have been changed by so many other countries that it is almost impossible.
Berlin, on the other hand, is all about forgetting. Forgetting about World War II, forgetting about the concentration camps and forgetting about the giant scar that is still in the city. The modern buildings (which are still being built – there are cranes everywhere) have no history. Even the historical buildings (like the Reichstag) have been adapted and changed to fit in with the new modern look of the city.
It's like I'm trying to compare orchids and lilies; they are so similar but so different and I like them both. But parts of each city appeal to me more, like the Prague how much value tradition has, and how in Berlin they are more progressive and less hostile? to American tourists.
I think you really just need to experience it for yourself :)
Berlin Day 3! (June 7th)
Day 3 in Berlin started off the best way possible – an All-You-Can-Eat Breakfast Buffet at the restaurant on the corner for only 4.90 Euros. We're talking chicken wings, fish, cheeses, fruit, eggs, bacon, ham, cereal, applesauce....the works. And every single thing that I tried was delicious. I ate 2 plates...I know. But it was so good.
The group went on a walk to a flea market near the hostel and then to the Berlin Wall. The flea market was pretty cool – there were more artists selling their goods than just tables full of junk. Two of the tables were really cool – Yackfou T-Shirts (they gave David 3 posters for free – I am totally stealing one!) and Mateo.
We walked down to the wall, which was pretty neat/sad/a wall. I know it means a lot, but seeing "Jenny Loves Bobby 4Eva" and other graffiti on it kind of dampened the historical-ness of it for me. And it was about 500 degrees in the shade (I could feel my skin writhing in pain), so I was ready to get out of the sun.
We made it to the train station and got on the train to go back to Prague. Scott didn't come with us (he is curating a project in Berlin and Maura is taking over our studio).
We got back into Prague at almost 10, where I thankfully jumped back into my bed and enjoyed the peace of only having 3 other people in my room.
It was a good trip, but we have crit now. So more on my thoughts later.
The group went on a walk to a flea market near the hostel and then to the Berlin Wall. The flea market was pretty cool – there were more artists selling their goods than just tables full of junk. Two of the tables were really cool – Yackfou T-Shirts (they gave David 3 posters for free – I am totally stealing one!) and Mateo.
We walked down to the wall, which was pretty neat/sad/a wall. I know it means a lot, but seeing "Jenny Loves Bobby 4Eva" and other graffiti on it kind of dampened the historical-ness of it for me. And it was about 500 degrees in the shade (I could feel my skin writhing in pain), so I was ready to get out of the sun.
We made it to the train station and got on the train to go back to Prague. Scott didn't come with us (he is curating a project in Berlin and Maura is taking over our studio).
We got back into Prague at almost 10, where I thankfully jumped back into my bed and enjoyed the peace of only having 3 other people in my room.
It was a good trip, but we have crit now. So more on my thoughts later.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Berlin - Now with 100% More Video! (June 7th)
I got up, grabbed a delicious breakfast from the cafe on the corner, and then our entire group headed out to NODE Design Studio in Berlin to meet with the designers. They (Anders Hofgaard and Serge Rompza) were pretty young guys - about 28 I think. They showed us their work, which was amazing.
It was like a MILLION degrees outside, so we headed off to find a Bier garden. But at the tram station, the group kind of fell apart. Some people wanted to go to museums, some people wanted to see the wall, and it was just really really frustrating. David, Stewart, Ashley, Susan and I ended up going with Scott out towards the museums, but we stopped at a restaurant first. During our lunch Scott started to come down with a migraine, so he decided to go back to the hostel and take a nap. David, Stewart, Ashley, Susan and I then went out towards Museum Island (yes, really an island).
Fountain
Detail
Palace?
Type on a sign
This is an example of why you have to zoom in on vector drawings. Especially when they are published on museum signs.
Even more so when a graphic design major is looking at your sign.
We went to the Pergamon Museum to see the Byzantine sculptures and artifacts that were there. It only cost 4 euros to get in ($6)....and it was so hot.
Susan enjoying the cool marble floor
So, so hot. Apparently Germans are tough enough not to need air conditioning. After about an hour, we were all just...exhausted. When we left the museum, we stumbled on this group singing:
It was like a MILLION degrees outside, so we headed off to find a Bier garden. But at the tram station, the group kind of fell apart. Some people wanted to go to museums, some people wanted to see the wall, and it was just really really frustrating. David, Stewart, Ashley, Susan and I ended up going with Scott out towards the museums, but we stopped at a restaurant first. During our lunch Scott started to come down with a migraine, so he decided to go back to the hostel and take a nap. David, Stewart, Ashley, Susan and I then went out towards Museum Island (yes, really an island).
Fountain
Detail
Palace?
Type on a sign
This is an example of why you have to zoom in on vector drawings. Especially when they are published on museum signs.Even more so when a graphic design major is looking at your sign.
We went to the Pergamon Museum to see the Byzantine sculptures and artifacts that were there. It only cost 4 euros to get in ($6)....and it was so hot.
Susan enjoying the cool marble floorSo, so hot. Apparently Germans are tough enough not to need air conditioning. After about an hour, we were all just...exhausted. When we left the museum, we stumbled on this group singing:
We decided to go on a boat tour in order to relax a little. Our boat left at 6:30 and it was great to just sit in the breeze and relax. I was so relaxed that I decided not to take any pictures.
After the boat tour we went in search of an American Apparel. David is out of socks, and I really wanted some more plain t-shirts so that I could avoid laundry. But we got there at 8:45, and they closed at 8. Oh well.
We headed back to the hostel and finally made it there at about 9:45, where we met up with the rest of the graphic group. They had already eaten dinner, and we hadn't, so David, Stewart, Susan, Ashley and I walked about 3 blocks away from the hostel to a chinese restaurant, appropriately named China Restaurant. The service was fantastic, the food was really great, and they even kept the restaurant open late so that we could finish our meal. I really appreciated the attentiveness and lack of judgement? I guess about us being Americans.
After dinner we headed back to the hostel (it was almost 11:30 by this time) and I decided to go ahead and crash. I really needed a bit of alone time, and thankfully I got it.
After the boat tour we went in search of an American Apparel. David is out of socks, and I really wanted some more plain t-shirts so that I could avoid laundry. But we got there at 8:45, and they closed at 8. Oh well.
We headed back to the hostel and finally made it there at about 9:45, where we met up with the rest of the graphic group. They had already eaten dinner, and we hadn't, so David, Stewart, Susan, Ashley and I walked about 3 blocks away from the hostel to a chinese restaurant, appropriately named China Restaurant. The service was fantastic, the food was really great, and they even kept the restaurant open late so that we could finish our meal. I really appreciated the attentiveness and lack of judgement? I guess about us being Americans.
After dinner we headed back to the hostel (it was almost 11:30 by this time) and I decided to go ahead and crash. I really needed a bit of alone time, and thankfully I got it.
Berlin Day 1! (June 6th)
We got up super early (okay, only like...6:45am) and our graphic design group got ready to meet our instructors (Scott, Maura and her friend Elaine). The previous night they had seriously stressed the fact that we needed to be ready to leave the Pension at 7:30 am or we would be left. So there we were, ready, at 7:30...but they weren't. We ended up waiting until almost 7:50 before they arrived.
We all headed to the Metro Station and took it to the main train station in Prague. The station really looked like an abandoned airport (I wish I had a picture of it for you). We power-walked to the platform and had about 5 minutes to spare before the train pulled up to the station.
The ride to Berlin was pretty uneventful - I slept for about 3 hours of it.
The train (L-R: Nancy and Scott)
Once I woke up, I was amazed at how much the countryside reminded me of home. The trees and fields and blue sky really could be in rural North Carolina. Except for the wind-farms, which pop up pretty regularly against the skyline. The windmills themselves are beautiful – tall, white and very sleek.
We passed through Dresden on the way into Berlin. It was the first big German city that we went through. I was surprised at the amount of modernist buildings that we saw - but then again, I wasn't. The firebombing of Dresden must have destroyed most of the 18th-century architecture that I'm so used to seeing in Prague.
Once we got to Berlin, we got lost. Not even kidding. We got off at the wrong stop (even though David and Stewart, who read a good bit of a Berlin guidebook before we arrived, kept mentioning that we really should get off). The place that we got off ended up being a giant mall, so a bunch of us went in to use the bathroom and get some Euros from the ATM. However, in the mall I had my first German dog sighting – a Westie! I definitely took it as a good sign.
Our tram stop in Berlin. A little scary.
It took a while to figure out how to get to the hostel that we were staying at, but once we did, it was worth it. The area that the hostel was in seriously could have been in Disneyworld. It was right beside a park, had a cobblestone street, and a bar on the corner with a red striped awning. BUT–
There always is a but, isn't there? All the girls in the program had to stay in one room together. 10 girls. In one room. A room about the size of, say, the kitchen in my apartment. Thankfully the beds were bunk-beds, but it was still pretty....intimate.
After we got settled (it was 4 pm by now) we went to the bar on the corner for dinner, which happened to be owned and run by the same people who ran our hostel. I decided on fish and chips, and pretty much everyone else ordered a cheeseburger. The food was AMAZING. And all the boys bought their first German beers, which were pretty great too :)
Once dinner settled, our group (minus two girls that decided to miss the group meeting to go shopping) went out to see the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag Building.
The Brandenburg Gate
The Reichstag Building
Walking up to the building (L-R: Rich, Ben, David, Ashley and Maura)
Needless to say, it was pretty cool. And I am SO happy with my pictures – I did all the settings myself (!) and think the results are pretty sweet. I think I actually got something out of the photography class!
Rich
Stewart on his 21st Birthday
German Sunset
Susan
Ben
Jessica
Nida
Statue on top of the Reichstag
Scott
This is actually a ventilation system for the building, but I prefer to call it the Laser Beam
Photo of what the Reichstag Building looked like after World War II
After we got tired of walking around, we hopped on the Tram and headed back to the neighborhood that our hostel was in. We decided to grab some dinner (for the people who didn't eat earlier) and drinks, because it was Stewart's 21st Birthday!!!!!
Buying a round of German Beer
Guys (L-R: Ben, Mark, David and Scott)
It was a lot of fun....obviously.
We got soo lost on the way back to the hostel – mainly because the people leading the group didn't really listen to everyone who was telling them that we really should turn here. We ended up getting back at around 2 in the morning.
We all headed to the Metro Station and took it to the main train station in Prague. The station really looked like an abandoned airport (I wish I had a picture of it for you). We power-walked to the platform and had about 5 minutes to spare before the train pulled up to the station.
The ride to Berlin was pretty uneventful - I slept for about 3 hours of it.
The train (L-R: Nancy and Scott)Once I woke up, I was amazed at how much the countryside reminded me of home. The trees and fields and blue sky really could be in rural North Carolina. Except for the wind-farms, which pop up pretty regularly against the skyline. The windmills themselves are beautiful – tall, white and very sleek.
We passed through Dresden on the way into Berlin. It was the first big German city that we went through. I was surprised at the amount of modernist buildings that we saw - but then again, I wasn't. The firebombing of Dresden must have destroyed most of the 18th-century architecture that I'm so used to seeing in Prague.
Once we got to Berlin, we got lost. Not even kidding. We got off at the wrong stop (even though David and Stewart, who read a good bit of a Berlin guidebook before we arrived, kept mentioning that we really should get off). The place that we got off ended up being a giant mall, so a bunch of us went in to use the bathroom and get some Euros from the ATM. However, in the mall I had my first German dog sighting – a Westie! I definitely took it as a good sign.
Our tram stop in Berlin. A little scary.It took a while to figure out how to get to the hostel that we were staying at, but once we did, it was worth it. The area that the hostel was in seriously could have been in Disneyworld. It was right beside a park, had a cobblestone street, and a bar on the corner with a red striped awning. BUT–
There always is a but, isn't there? All the girls in the program had to stay in one room together. 10 girls. In one room. A room about the size of, say, the kitchen in my apartment. Thankfully the beds were bunk-beds, but it was still pretty....intimate.
After we got settled (it was 4 pm by now) we went to the bar on the corner for dinner, which happened to be owned and run by the same people who ran our hostel. I decided on fish and chips, and pretty much everyone else ordered a cheeseburger. The food was AMAZING. And all the boys bought their first German beers, which were pretty great too :)
Once dinner settled, our group (minus two girls that decided to miss the group meeting to go shopping) went out to see the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag Building.
The Brandenburg Gate
The Reichstag Building
Walking up to the building (L-R: Rich, Ben, David, Ashley and Maura)Needless to say, it was pretty cool. And I am SO happy with my pictures – I did all the settings myself (!) and think the results are pretty sweet. I think I actually got something out of the photography class!
Rich
Stewart on his 21st Birthday
German Sunset
Susan
Ben
Jessica
Nida
Statue on top of the Reichstag
Scott
This is actually a ventilation system for the building, but I prefer to call it the Laser Beam
Photo of what the Reichstag Building looked like after World War IIAfter we got tired of walking around, we hopped on the Tram and headed back to the neighborhood that our hostel was in. We decided to grab some dinner (for the people who didn't eat earlier) and drinks, because it was Stewart's 21st Birthday!!!!!
Buying a round of German Beer
Guys (L-R: Ben, Mark, David and Scott)It was a lot of fun....obviously.
We got soo lost on the way back to the hostel – mainly because the people leading the group didn't really listen to everyone who was telling them that we really should turn here. We ended up getting back at around 2 in the morning.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Thursday, June 5th
Tomorrow my studio is going to Berlin!!!
7:30 am Friday: Depart for Berlin
Arrive at Ostbahnhoff at 1:13 pm
Schlafmeile Hostel
Weichselstrasse 25
10247 friedrichshain
(49) (30) 96514676
I'm pretty excited (if you couldn't tell)!
7:30 am Friday: Depart for Berlin
Arrive at Ostbahnhoff at 1:13 pm
Schlafmeile Hostel
Weichselstrasse 25
10247 friedrichshain
(49) (30) 96514676
I'm pretty excited (if you couldn't tell)!
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