Picture Motion: September 2010

My final project for digital photography will be a collection of photos that tell the story of how Jewish people lived pre, during, and post World War II in Europe. The differences of sites and or towns where Jewish people lived their daily lives and how they differ from present day. i.e. the Jewish Quarter in Prague housed the isolated Jews for centuries which later became a slum and now it houses a museum with other historical sites dealing with Jewish tradition and upscale shops. The irony of that change within the last century is intriguing. The connection of the photos will tell a story of the changes within Jewish culture throughout the years in Europe.

Dear blog readers. I am using this blog for my digital photography class as well as for my own use. Pardon the homework assignments that will be posted weekly because they will seem random and irrelevant to you.

Dobry den!

I have arrived in Prague and have become acquainted with the city. I absolutely in love with this city and after being here for only 2 weeks, I feel as if I have been here for much longer. It almost feels as if this could be home. I arrived on the 25th of August with my mother and became really sick unfortunately. I stayed in for two days and didn’t get to really explore the city with my mom before she left but if anyone came now I could easily show you a good time. I did the touristy areas like Old Town Square, Jewish Quarter, and areas around my hotel for a bit before I moved into my amazing apartment. My apartment is old and gorgeous with high ceilings, white walls, and wooden floors. The room I chose reminded me a lot of a typical San Francisco apartment with a lot more space. There are 6 of us living together, 2 to each room along with a living room, kitchen/dining room, 1 ½ bathrooms, and a balcony. We got really lucky with our apartment minus the fact that the water heater broke a few times and left us without hot water for over a week and half, the sink leaks water, one of our toilets spits out metal parts and is unusable, but besides the minor things it was a great pick. We even have a washer in our apartment! I really can’t complain about anything. Our apartment is a block away from The Dancing House, which is an office building that has glass shaped as a curvy body. It is apparently one of the prettiest and ugliest buildings in Prague because of the modern look it has that doesn’t really hit in with the surrounding old buildings. It is a really good reference for us because it is hard to get lost knowing that if you ask anyone where that is they will know and steer you in the right direction, along with being on the water. We live 30 seconds walk from the Vltava River.

Thankfully my apartment is walking distance to school, Anglo-American University and I have walked to and from school almost everyday. The walk is about 30 minutes give or take and it is all done on cobble stone streets, passing of the National Theater, Dancing building, bridges, through a park with baby statues and graffiti wall, and over the Charles Bridge and through side streets to arrive at school, while Prague Castle is seen in the distance. The city is drop dead gorgeous and filled with so much history. I could get used to this life.

My university is pretty and is well situated among the city. I have chosen to only take four classes this semester: Popular Culture & Media Theory, Prague Art & Architecture, digital photo, and East Central European Post-War history. Each class meets once a week for 3 hours, meaning missing a class would screw you over. I got lucky and do not have classes on Friday nor Monday. 4 days weeks allows me to travel a lot easier and for longer. I am enjoying my classes so far and glad I chose them but there is definitely more reading than I have ever done before. I ready for the challenge.

I have mastered the center area of Prague and seem to know my way around. I went to Kutna Hora yesterday with my CEA program and saw the town, Cathedral, silver mining museum, and Church decorated with human bones. The town was a typical European town with cobble stone streets, like shops and gorgeous buildings with red roofs. I think I would have enjoyed it a little more if we weren’t on a time schedule and had more time to explore but it was enjoyable and nice to get out of the city and explore the countryside. For dinner they brought us to a Medieval Restaurant that was legitimate. The place was huge and really dark inside, only lit by candles, and had “people” hanging from the ceiling, staff dressed down in costumes, barbequed food that was served on a plate without the use of utensils. It wasn’t my favorite food but it was a really cool experience.

I have made a trip to the Vyšehrad Castle that is only a few metro stops away from my apartment. The Castle was built in the 10th century and over looks the river and town. The Cathedral, cemetery, and gardens were a beauty. The cemetery is only for the famous deceased and is well decorated with beautiful statues and paintings. I also visited Prague Castle a few times and once with my art & architecture professor. It was the first evidence of architecture in Prague and was fortified in the 9th century. The views from there are spectacular as well and the whole city can be seen basically hence why they started building there first for security purposes.

I am off to Vienna next weekend with my roommates. We have nothing planned as of right now but I know that there is a lot of to see there. I am excited to take advantage of my central European location and easy transportation amongst countries. Upcoming events: Vienna for the weekend, Prague Sparta soccer game, Poland trip to Krakow and Auschwitz, Munich for Oktoberfest/bday weekend, Pilsen, Cesky Krumlov, Berlin, Amsterdam, maybe Croatia and Spain for fall break, and working on Budapest. I am going to be an experienced traveler by the end of this! Europe is treating me well.

P.S. Lettme know if you have any recommendations for places in surrounding areas. Enjoy.

-Gaby aka Gabba or Gabs here because there are 2 Gaby’s in the house.