Praha

I am back from Prague and thus back to the normal life. Mom left this morning, which was sad for two reasons. One, it meant that mom would be gone, and two, it meant that I have to start doing things other than sip coffee and work on crossword puzzles.

The madre and I agree on Prague: it's a beautiful city that has been completely and totally hijacked by tourists. Shame, really, but I suppose that's what happens to precious things these days. With a little advertising, Prague has made itself a tourist haven (and I am sure quite a profit), which is good for the city but bad for its charm

Mom summed it up by saying, "Prague is sort of like a cold, rainy Florence." And although that's a bit simplistic (ya ya, different architure, different culture, different people...), there's some truth to it. The bridge is the main attraction. The buildings are cool. The place is swarming with tourits. And puppets are on sale everywhere.

I think Prague is worth a visit, but not a long one. We felt our two full days there were the perfect amount of time, although had the weather been a bit nicer I am sure we could have whiled away another day just sitting on a cafe terrace, guessing the nationalities of passersby. But I wouldn't go out of the 2-3 day range. There are only so many strangers' home videos you want to be a part of, you know?

Also, another tip: if you're going to Prague and you want to visit the Jewish neighborhood, don't save that little excursion for a Saturday.

The real deal of this story is that I enjoy hanging out with my mom, no matter where we are. I feel very lucky to be able to say that. And that's the great part about the trip, outside of discovering a new, beautiful city. We giggled a lot, and we bitched about the rain, too. We talked about some serious things, and some not-so-serious things, and we walked in silence, and we bitched about the rain again, and we did another crossword, and we rested our feet when needed, and we poked fun at one another, and we occasionally got on one another's nerves, and we miraculously avoided going on a massive shopping spree, and we ate good food, and we spent a fast and fabulous week together.

About Czech food: I like cabbage.

Anyway. Usually after a visitor goes, I feel a sort of relief, as in, "Oh that was fun but it's nice to be able to go back to my normal life." But you know what? I would really like it if my mom always lived down the street from me. And maybe my dad, as well, because I love him and how many times he called "just to say hi" a whole lot, too. It's great to be 25 years old and to want your parents to live a block away.

(Their solution to that would be to move back to Michigan. I suggested they buy a house in France. Obviously, we're in a bit of a bind here.)

And, finally, totally unrelated: my mom brought me lots of knitting stuff - well, enough for two projects anyway. It is going to be a knitting extravaganza here! Also, I have several books to read, some courtesy of mom, some from my recent trip to the English bookstore. And? My tortilla press came in mom's bag, too, so tortilla experimentation will be had in my kitchen.

In other words, I feel fully prepared to start working on my thesis now.