More facts about life here

I forgot some stuff about Prague...

Old Town square is even more beautiful when it is overcast. Its been overcast lately, so walking around has been quite nice. I think Im losing the farmers tan I got and could never quite lose after driving to Los Angeles without air conditioning.

The Irish have apparently won some big game. There was a lot of cheering coming from "Irish Pub." I tried to go inside to see what it was all about. There was a "football" game on, and people were watching it. It was too crowded, so I had to leave. Plus, I dont look at all Irish so I felt endangered.

I wear my glasses a lot more here. Not because my vision is worse or anything. I just want to get my moneys worth from this place.

There is a play version of The Brothers Karamazov here somewhere. I desperately want to see it. Nicole refuses because its in Czech, and says it would be depressing to not understand the words. But Mel Gibson wanted to put out The Passion without subtitles for some reason or another, and I feel like Brothers K is dramatic enough, like the Bible, to get the gist from the action on stage. It being in Czech is definitely a minus, and the amusement of seeing it in another language probably wears thin after a while, but this is my favorite book. Plus, I watch low quality Czech TV here, and dont feel alienated or bored by it. "One of the best ways to avoid homesickness is to engage yourself in the culture." Actually thats a quote from Nicole. Im not trying to use that to convince her to come to Brothers K. I just think it was a good point that applied here.

I have a radio in my room. So far the Czech music Ive listened to has been very good. Its kind of like Magnetic Fields (the albums, not them live) mixed with In Flight Movie and Sgt. and Nurse. Not really, but sometimes I catch a famous american guitar riff amongst all the Czech strumming. Nicole made the point that the Czech language doesnt lend itself too well to balads. Its hard to sing about love when you just sound like "ýřšáěýřáé tčáééřz spatyz!"

Did you know Prague was bombed by the allies during WWII?? They thought it was Dresden and bombed it for three minutes before they realized. Maybe it was advanced punishment for getting taken over by the Soviets later. But still. Bombing the Faust house was NOT NECESSARY, guys. Everyone talks about how fantastic WWII was, and how holy the allies were, but not me man. If Id accidentally come here in a time machine instead of a plane and ended up in Prague in 1945, I could be dead right now, and the US airforce would be to blame. But seriously, good we got Hitler and all that. Need I go on a rant talking about how evil Hitler is? I will if I need to. Its definitely worth repeating. I only have 5 minutes left at the library, though, four actually, and I dont know how many original things I can say about Hitler. Ill just leave it at this. Goes without saying how evil Hitler is. I wish hed never existed.

Im using the internet at the library. Its a dollar a month, and you can sign up for one hour sessions. Im confused about the rules. They have signed me up for three sessions today, but later told me you can only sign up for one "per book." Also, a lot of people stay in place after the hour is up, so they must know something we dont. I have a feeling the hours pass faster for us internet users, than the people who assign us to the internet. Another thing... this is not just a typical library. Its an ancient building. Walking around the deserted second floor seemed like going back in time. There are old faded religious murals on the walls, and cracks and decay. Look out the windows and you see statues of saints with spikes on their heads, not because they were martyrs, but to keep away the birds and the Slovaks. Theres also a bathroom upstairs. You have to turn in your coat and bag just to come into the library, and for that purpose are the grizzly looking coat and hat ladies. They get pissed if you throw a monkeywrench into the system. Once, I gave them my coat but then realized that my notebook was in it and I needed it. So I asked for my coat back, took out the notebook, and then gave my coat and bag back to them. Oh my god. You should have been there. They said some pretty awful things to me in that language of theirs. The guy next to me was Czech and he laughed. Too afraid to look me in the eyes when he laughed, but he laughed nonetheless. They took my bag and coat back very reluctantly. And then today, when I left earlier, the especially mean looking one (who actually is the slightly nicer one) pointed to my bag and asked me something in Czech. I nodded, because she seemed to be talking about my bag, but then she gave me an umbrella with all of my stuff. I tried to leave without the umbrella, but then she yelled after me. I kept saying "ne" and shaking my head, but she kept yelling until I left. Again someone laughed at me. People are always laughing at us here. But its cool. Im happy, guys.