The memories will come, but Jetlag likes to hang around too

Hey Gamecock Nation,

What a crazy three weeks it has been. From the start of our travels here to Budapest, sunny Prague, a modern Warsaw, a quaint beachside Gdansk (or Danzig if you're of German background), or Berlin, to hearing about the run-off results to that sweet College World Series Championship back in Carolina, it has been quite the adventure for the 14 of us.

Now, as weary travelers waiting for our normal lives to catch up with us back in Columbia, I just want to take a moment to look back on some of our exciting and not so exciting moments.

As we landed in Budapest none of us quite knew what to expect. We had all seen movies with a dark and dreary 1970s Eastern Europe, but as we landed it didn't appear so. There was hustle and bustle all over the city, and things looked fairly prosperous. As we began traveling between countries, we saw the steady increase in prosperity all the way t

o the Brandenburg Gate. Socialism as they knew it was history, and all of the countries were looking forward to brighter futures.

Some times were better than others. Everyone please make note of this: unless you are traveling on the Orient Express, always fly over training in Europe. It must be because we got blessed with "the best 2 weeks of weather for all of European summer" that we were cursed with trains with no windows and broken air conditioning. It's ok, don't worry. No student were harmed in the making of this class on trains; however, there were times that we all thought there was no end in sight on an 8 hour ride and were ready to get off at any stop along the way.

Now that I'm sitting comfortably in my air conditioned apartment, I'll move back to the finer things of Europe. Most of the meetings we had throughout our thre

e and half weeks were exceptional and really supplemented what we all learned in the classroom. The backgrounds of some of the people were complex, intruiging, and all around just what we needed. From former Communists, to journalists working in communist Germany, to students who only know their parents' stories, we've started to gather a sense of what life was really like during Socialist control and how life has changed for the overall betterment of this part of the world.

I also enjoyed meeting people outside of our meetings. If you go to the right place at the right time, its amazing who you will actually meet. For example, after getting a dinner recommendation from Dean Bierbauer in Warsaw, I met with the leader of the majority party in Polish government there dining with his family. He sat and talked with me and Ashley for quite some time about journalism and government and the complex relationship it can have. Then in Berlin, after a very disappointing loss to Spain in the World Cup semifinals, I ended up hanging out with interns from another major political party in Germany. We talked about everything from culture to how the party has reshaped its goals once Communism fell and Germany was reunited.

I guess I'll close now, and although there is more I would love to tell you, it is buried deep within my brain, processing right now, trying to find its way around my jet lag. Because like any three week, intensive hands-on class moving about Europe every 5 days, time catches up with you on that plane ride back. So until August and Carolina Football,

Eljen! Hura! Nasrovia! Probst! and Cheers!

Auf Weidersehen and Carolina love,

Zach

Starbursts for lunch, or maybe a Snickers?

Hey Gamecocks,

I hope everyone is celebrating safely back home in Columbia and all over Gamecock Nation. Hearing about our epic win over UCLA was a great way to wake up, even if it was a bit early for us at 8am Prague time. Hope everyone enjoys the short video I posted.

I just wanted to tell everyone that we have finally made it to Warsaw, city of sausages. It actually doesn't smell too bad of kielbasa and is seeming to be quite a hidden gem on our trip. But since I'm sitting here in my ice cold hotel room overlooking the old Soviet Culture Center, I wanted to memorialize our train ride from Prague to Warsaw for everyone.

It was awful.

But to elaborate some, it was extremely laboring on our bodies, our mental stability, and all five senses. The first pro we found when we got on the train was that our seats in our compartment all pulled out to create a giant cot that six people could lay flat in and get some decent sleep. Brilliant idea, right? Yes, but only if you have decent air flow.

About an hour into our 8 hour ride the AC on the entire train broke, decided to sleep, or just stayed in Prague without us knowing. So here we are, 6 very sleepy college kids, and all of the sudden we wake up slowly and there is no air movement whatsoever in our car. Stifling, smothering heat. It was so bad, we just couldn't get any more sleep. So instead of a decent 5 to 6 hour rest, we all ended up with about a 2 to 3 hour bout of nap time. And I'm sure as most know, college kids need their midday nap or else nothing productive can get done.

And to top it all off we didn't have a dining car. On an 8 hour ride. Really? The only thing they were selling were Snickers and other candies, along with cold drinks. Wow. Needless to say we were quite tired and hungry once we arrived in Warsaw.

But its all now in the past, we are all full of delicious Polish food, and I think we are all calling it an early night. Sort of. Can't wait to get back and celebrate with everyone again for our great Gamecock victory.

Carolina love,

Zach

Which way to the nearest Tesco?

Hey everyone,

I hope everyone in the states is enjoying a good Gamecock victory against Clemson in the College World Series and ready to cheer us on against UCLA in the finals.

We made it to Prague yesterday afternoon, and we were met with bright sunshine and a wonderful breeze. The drive around to the hotel showed us really cool parts of the city including the Old City, the Small City near Castle Prague, and the old National Gym Stadium. It can hold 250,000 spectators! Just try to imagine that at a Carolina football game!

Our hotel is in an excellent district in Prague 1, and we are near a ton of restaurants and cafes. One thing we've discovered are the two most important things a travelling student needs to find when in a new city: the closest ATM and the nearest Tesco. Tesco is similar to the European WalMart, and they also have Tesco Expresses, which are like grocery stores. It's very important to find one so we can buy large bottles of still water, which are life-savers considering we all feel so dehydrated from a higher altitude and all the walking we are doing.

Our hotel is near all of the embassies, and the Japanese embassy is a block away. We walked and trammed all day today, and saw loads of cool places, statues, and bridges thanks to our wonderful tour guide, Dean Bierbauer. He really has Prague down, and I'm fairly sure he speaks a little more Czech than he leads on. The Charles Bridge was really cool, and I truly felt like I was walking through a mideval Europe. The Castle district was also neat, and extremely touristy. They had a ton of shops with little knick knacks and some nicer crystals. Today has really been the best first day I've ever spent in any city around the world.

Well, I don't want to keep y'all longer, and we have to go find a laundromat so we can have some clean socks for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty tomorrow morning! I'll leave you with a video from a ragtime band playing on the Charles Bridge. As they say cheers in Czech, Probst!

Carolina love and Go Cocks,

Zach