Fin

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And just like that, the summer ends, as wonderfully, rapidly and breathtakingly as it began three months ago. I’m headed home after a whirlwind 12 weeks, 9 countries, 29 cities, 11 friends and 8,517 pictures. I am ready to be home, to see my parents and friends again, to settle back into my own routine, to be in one place for more than a week at a time. But I will miss Europe dearly, especially all the friends I leave behind. I will miss the simplicity of a purposeful life, a life lived independently of all expectations or routines but my own. It sounds cliché, but backpacking through Europe for three months–seeing how different cultures live their daily lives–was a life-changing experience. After conquering the anxiety of navigating foreign public transportation systems, menus, hostels, grocery and drug stores, all in foreign languages, I feel like I can conquer anything. Talk about a confidence booster.

Till next time, Europe!

Fitness in Munich

A cyclist flips through fitness magazines and books in a bookstore in central Munich.

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A Day at the Vatican

A couple strolls along the boulevard in front of the Vatican as evening descends on Rome.

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I Finally Met David!

Tourists look up at David as he stare regally above them in the Gallerie dell’Accademia in Florence.

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Four Days in Vernazza

 

A Girl and Her Horse

A girl stands with her horse at the top of Petrin Hill.

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I’m not sure I can accurately describe how much this girl did not want her picture taken. She didn’t even want me to take a picture of her horse. She glared at me for several minutes and would lead herself and her horse away from the camera. The funny thing was, she would immediately smile for tourists and their squirming children who wanted to ride the pretty ponies. I guess if I wasn’t paying for her services, she wanted nothing to do with me. I only got this one shot of her because I didn’t want her to open her mouth and start yelling at me for taking her picture, but I think it shows better than words can tell how much she disliked me and my camera.

When I encountered this Czech girl, I was on my way up to the Petrin Hill Observation Tower, which is shaped like a mini-Eiffel Tower. While the actual Observation Tower is shorter than the Eiffel Tower, the Observation Tower plus the hill upon which it stands is taller than the Eiffel Tower. The views from the top are stunning, with Prague Castle and St. Vitus’ Cathedral rising up on the left and the Vltava River snaking like a silver python through the whole town laid out below. It was a perfect last glimpse from up above before I say goodbye to Prague in three days.

Fairytale Weekend in Český Krumlov

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For the past three days, I’ve been holed up in a fairytale, also known as Český Krumlov, an enchanting little village on the Czech border about two hours south of Prague. Český Krumlov is lovely, with perfectly preserved Renaissance buildings rising up at every turn, a brightly colored castle watching peacefully over the village and a slowly flowing river sewing the town together. The town has remained largely untouched since its first building was constructed in the 1100s, managing to avoid major wars and any bombings or plundering. Because of its pristine history, Český Krumlov is an idyllic little Czech getaway.

Most of the town depends on tourism, and so during the summer, all the shop and cafe doors are open wide to welcome the hordes of tourists. I heard several different languages, including Korean, Chinese, English, German and French, but I actually did not hear a lot of Czech, except from waitstaff or shopkeepers. Because it depends on tourists, the village has made itself into an entertaining, charming, relaxing little escape, with plenty to see and do in three days, including shopping, hiking, eating and wandering.

The cobblestoned streets, twisting throughout the village, were lined with ice cream parlors or windows from which to order trdelník (pronounced “terr-DELL-nik,” almost like “turtleneck”), a sweet, cinnamon-y bread treat. Several restaurants also offered authentic Czech cuisine, including goulash, bread dumplings, pork roast, sauerkraut and the national pride, Pilsner beer.

Český Krumlov offers more than just good eats, however. While the town is small, there is still adventure to be had. My classmates and I took a tour of the Rosenberg Castle that overlooks the entire village and is still in stunningly perfect condition. The last family to live in the castle deserted it as they fled World War II, leaving most of their valuables behind. One of the best parts of the castle is the tower, which, while it’s a steep hike to the top, offers breathtaking panoramic views of the technicolor village below. We also rafted on the river for an hour and hiked up around the top of the village for some beautiful sunset views.

Nightlife in Český Krumlov is also fantastic. When the sun goes down, the street musicians come out to play, serenading tourists as they wander over bridges and between the twinkle lights from restaurants and cafes that light their paths. The weather cools, the sun lights the sky on fire and the village comes alive. We stayed on the major street in the center of town, so we could hear life all around us–shouts of laughter, bursts of song and quietly chiming church bells ringing throughout the night. It was the perfect soundtrack to a lively three days.

This little village can do no wrong. At every corner, Český Krumlov served us well, whether it was in ease of navigation, surprising us with fireworks the first night, offering up delicious crepes and croissants, providing breathtaking views or greeting us with smiling faces.

I’m already planning my return visit to this colorful and charming Czech gem.

The Village Hitler Razed to the Ground

A visitor looks at the pictures of the five parachutists who hid in the crypt at the Church of St. Cyril and Methodius in central Prague after two of them assassinated Hitler’s third-in-command, Reinhard Heydrich. The picture to the right of each portrait shows the dead soldier after the Nazis found them in the crypt. The first picture is that of Jan Kubis, who threw the grenade that ultimately killed Heydrich.

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Half an hour northwest of Prague lies what remains of Lidice (pronounced “Li-DITZ-uh”), a small village Adolf Hitler ordered razed to the ground in June 1942. Hitler dealt out such an extreme punishment in response to the Czech assassination of his third-in-command, Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia Reinhard Heydrich.

Two British-trained Czech soldiers, Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš, opened fire on Heydrich’s car on the morning of May 27, 1942 as Heydrich’s chauffeur drove him to his office at Prague Castle. After a successful assassination attempt, the two soldiers joined their support team of parachutists in hiding at the Church of St. Cyril and Methodius in central Prague.

Punishment for such an act of treason was swift and severe. The Third Reich ordered a massive manhunt for the assassins: 21,000 men checked 36,000 houses. More than 13,000 men and women were tortured and killed for information on the soldier’s whereabouts.

One of the parachutists, who had fled the group to hide with his mother, betrayed the other soldiers’ location in the crypt to the Nazis. They all refused to surrender, so, with the exception of Kubiš, who was knocked unconscious during the six-hour gun battle with the Nazis, they all committed suicide.

While the assassins had been caught and killed, the Fuhrer was not satisfied. Based on its residents’ fabricated ties to the soldiers, Hitler ordered the small village of Lidice to be destroyed as punishment for the Czechs’ insubordination, though really, Lidice’s tragic death was mere retaliation for Heydrich’s assassination. Hitler wanted to make an example out of the village, and so his “justice” for Heydrich’s death was absolute: All men in the village were to be exterminated, all women transported to concentration camps, and all children, except those identified as suitable for Germanisation, were to be re-educated by different means. The entire village, including the trees, pets and the dead bodies in the cemetery, was to be burned down, leveled completely and wiped off the map. All the rubble was removed, the bodies buried in shallow graves off-site. Lidice existed no more.

Only 153 women and 17 children returned to what used to be Lidice after the war. Today, nothing but half a foundation of one house and the front door step of another remains of the once quiet and charming Lidice. There is a new Lidice just up the hill from the old Lidice. They rebuilt, but they have not forgotten.