Welcome to Prague, Czech Republic

Prague, the capital of Czech Republic and home to 1.3 million people, is a prominent and beautiful historic city in the European Union, nicknamed the Golden City. Prague was founded in the Romanesque period and greatly flourished during both the Gothic and Renaissance eras. Not only was Prague the capital of the Czech state, but also of the Holy Roman Empire as it was seat to two Emperors in history. Before Czechoslovakia was split into Czech Republic and Slovakia, Prague was also its capital. Prague is the sixth most visited city in Europe, behind Paris, Rome, Madrid, Berlin and London. Prague has many amazing sites to visit such as the Prague Castle, the Charles Bridge, Old Town Square, the Jewish Quarter, the Lennon Wall, and Petrin Hill. 

Lennon Wall

Gothic Church of Our Lady Before Tyn

First night in Prague!

We arrived in Prague after a 30 hours bus ride from Kiev! So long, so tiring, so worth it. Were in Prauge for about 2 days in total, and it was not enough. There was so much to do and see and experience, I definitely wish we could have had more time there. One night we went on a boat tour of Prague and got to see the city all lit up which was beautiful. From the boat we could see the numerous churches, castles and buildings from all eras contained in the history of Prague, and it was amazing! 

Another day we had a tour of Prague where Nonika and I visited a monastery which was filled with amazing architecture. Then we walked down to Charles Bridge where they say if you walk across the bridge from Old Town Square towards Prague Castle and touch the falling priest on the statue of ST. John of Nepomuk (the 8th statue on the right), you will have good luck, ensure your return to Prague, and your wish will come true! They love making wishes here in Prague! Later that night we went to a Medieval Castle which has been around for 100s of years, and the family still lives on its third floor! After the tour of the castle we wen to a Medieval dinner and show. It was one of the funnest things we did! The people who work there were dressed in traditional medieval clothing and were in character all night. There were pretty much no rules, as they said that's how it was in medieval times. They put on numerous shows, such as sword fights, and had dancing and music all night. One guy carried around a HUGE python with him all night and was letting people hold it... I was terrified, but I did it. 

Medieval show, best guy there!

Good old Medieval fight.

Priceless ;)

Scariest moment of my life.

He took out my hair and stole my elastics, how dare he!

Boat tour of Prague :)

Getting ready to make a wish on Charles Bridge!

This guy asked Nonika if he could keep me.... we said no haha

Welcome to Vienna, Austria

Vienna is truly a beautiful city! Unfortunately we only got about 6 hours to spend there which is not nearly enough!! But in that short time we were able to see a lot of amazing buildings, cool architecture and met a wonderful professor who showed us many sites and taught us a lot about Vienna. 

The remarkably beautiful, Vienna 

Vienna is the capital of Austria, located near the borders of Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia, and home to about 1.7 million people. Vienna is known around the world as the City of Music, because of its world renowned opera and musical heritage, as well as the City of Dreams, as it is home to the world's first psycho-analyst Sigmund Freud. When translated from its roots, Vienna means bright or fair. In 2005 it tied for first place with Vancouver, Canada as the world's most livable city, and in 2012 it ranked second. During the Quality of Living survey taken from 2009-2012 Vienna ranked first place, again. After visiting the city it is easy to understand why. Vienna is captivating. The prices are fair, the people are friendly, the history is remarkable, and the innovations taking place continue to grow. 

The BEST part of the day was when we were standing by a fountain taking pictures, striking poses, when an older man walked up and asked us if we knew what the fountain was called. We all shook our heads and he told us it was called Providentia Fountain and that Mother Teresa had wanted it destroyed because it was too expressive, but it was instead buried for over 100 years until an excavation crew dug it up where it now sits in central Vienna. One of the women on the fountain has her breast exposed and he told us it is considered the perfect size and medical doctors use it today still when women get implants. He was a very funny, intelligent man, and he told us that he was a medical doctor and a professor at the Vienna University, and that he loves his students and thinks of them as his children. He said our parents must be very proud to have such beautiful, well-mannered daughters who had a passion for learning because it was so important. 

He then asked us if we had some more time and when we said yes he proceeded to give us a tour of many magnificent 'sensations' in Vienna for the next 45 minutes. He was enthusiastic and loved that we were so interested. He even got a security guard in St. Stephen's Cathedral to let us into an enclosed area for 5 minutes where he showed us an old banister that had frogs carved on its railing. He told us that the legend says if women cannot get pregnant they would come here and walk down the staircase with their hand on the frogs, and they would become pregnant! He also took us to visit an old church with an imperial crypt where the Austrian Royal Habsburg Family was buried. Outside the church there was an old Brachent Linen Store where Marie Antoinette would buy a new dress everyday, imported from Milan, Spain. 

Frogs carved onto the staircase - Austrian sign of Fertility

St. Stephen's Cathedral

Meeting this man, Pablo Niccole, was the best experience while in Vienna, maybe the whole Europe trip! He was such a kind man and loved teaching us about the history of Vienna. We definitely had luck on our side that afternoon! Vienna is beautiful, interesting, and a city where you could spend days without getting tired of it. I can't wait to go back one day!

Professor Pablo Niccole :)

So happy Miss Kyla joined our tour group again!

I don't see why Mother Teresa would destroy him.

We love each other.

Welcome to Dresden, Germany

After being in Dresden I definitely saw the draw of the city to tourists. It is a beautiful city with a lot of history. Dresden is the capital of the Saxony state of Germany, hosting residence to approximately 550 000 people. Near the end of WWII Dresden was bombed by the Royal Air Force and The United States Army Air Forces, one of the most controversial bombings during WWII. The beautiful city was completely flattened and later rebuilt and repaired based on pictures and drawings of the original city. There are said to be two theories as to why Dresden was so heavily bombed. One was because it was considered one of the most beautiful European cities, but after Hitler came to power and WWII broke out, the rest of the world did not want Germany to have that recognition. Another theory is that it was bombed because it contained much industrial and military infrastructure and the world wanted Germany to fall behind and suffer because of Hitler's reign during the atrocities of WWII. Whatever the reason, Dresden is a wonderful city with historical sites such as Zwinger Palace and the Semper Opera house which are a must see!

Zwinger Palace

Though I only had one day in Dresden, it was still so amazing, but there is so much to do! After visiting the sites on the old side of the city, Nonika and I headed across the bridge over the Elbe River to the new side of the city. We found a cute little chocolate shop with a lady who owns it and makes all her own chocolate, now I see why Germany is famous for chocolate! German food in general is amazing. We also had some amazing bratwurst and braktkartoffein (fried potatoes with vegetables). Later on before we left we had to sample a durom, so good! 

Bratwurst and braktkartoffein

Durom - yummm!

Owner of the chocolate shop!

While Nonika and I were wandering around Dresden we ran into the one and only Kyla who had been there visiting a friend for a couple of days! We were so excited. So we hung out with Kyla and her friend Kenna for the rest of the afternoon. We went to this little back street that had a building for every earth element, and a lot of little shops. It was very cool! 

We love Kyla :)

Earth element water!

Dresden is full of so many little shops, bakeries, beautiful buildings, amazing views, and very friendly people! It was so amazing to be able to visit this historic city and take in some of the culture there. It was so much fun, we loved it! Definitely go to Dresden if you ever have the chance!

Love this girl so much, best travel buddy ever!

Welcome to Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic

Karlovy Vary, pronounced Carlsbad in English, and translated as meaning "Charles' Bath", is a city of about 35 000 situated in western Bohemia, Czech Republic, about 130km west of the capital, Prague. It is named after The King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV, who founded Karlovy Vara in 1370. Karlovy Vara is famous for its hot springs and mineral water which is said to give life to 100 years of age if drunk everyday. All around the city are spouts containing this holy mineral water where people fill up mugs to drink it while walking. This mineral water is the basis of many famous Czech legends, said to have healing powers and life adding abilities. 

Holy mineral water of Karlovy Vara

Mineral water, looks safe right?

In the 19th century, Karlovy Vary became a popular tourist destination, especially for international celebrities. The city is known for the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, attracting celebrities such as Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp every year. Karlovy Vary has been used as the main location for a number of films including Last Holiday filmed in 2006 and the James Bond hit Casino Royale, both of which films used the city's Grandhotel Pupp. 

Karlovy Vara is such a beautiful city with so much amazing architecture, history, beauty, and class. The rows of old, unique buildings stretch up and down the winding streets of the city, and around every turn is something new. Hidden away are delicious cafes, one of which Nonika and I visited and fell in love with, so so good! We tried the traditional garlic and potato soup along with a few other things. Thermal baths are everywhere and are a must do if you are here at the right time of the year to get the real Czech experience! Also, you cannot go here without trying spa wafers, sold at various street stands throughout the city. They come in so many different flavours including lemon, coconut, vanilla, white chocolate, etc. They are delicious, especially when served warm!

We love spa wafers!!


After our walking tour of the history of the city, Nonika and I spent the rest of the afternoon together wandering through the cobblestone streets through small shops and bakeries that line the roads. There is so much to see in Karlovy Vary and just wandering around the city can captivate you. It so beautiful and has so much character. It is a must see place if you are ever in Czech Republic!

Melted My Heart

Anyone that knows me knows I absolutely adore kids. They just make everything better. They make you slow down, and realize that there are way more important things to worry about, especially when these kids are in an orphanage. I'm continually astounded by the extraordinary people in the world. Here in Kiev there is a family, mom, dad and daughter, who take in children from various orphanages and raise them until they are 18. They just got 5 new, what we would call foster kids, and there are a few other children who have been there for 5+ years. These kids love their 'mama' and I'm amazed and these people and their willingness to help these orphaned children, out of love and no other motive. They get no money, they get no compensation from the government. The family lives in an apartment building where they have had 2 apartments converted into one so they can house more children. The children are Valera who is 5, Maxim who is 6, Alona who is 7, Lusha who is 10, Artoom who is 11, Alina who is 13, and Dasha who is 15. Valera, Maxim, and Alona absolutely love the attention and hang off of you every chance they get! It is so sweet, and I am beyond excited to go back every week and play with these children and help teach them English. 

Alona! Most energetic little diva in the world.

'Mama'

Valera and Maxim :) 

The hospital this week was an adventure! The equipment they use surprises me to no end. It is all at least 20 years old and doesn't work 3/4 of the time making it nearly impossible for the students to do research or for tests to be carried out. They only have an x-ray machine 2 days a week, so if you come in on a Friday, you're out of luck until Monday! The doctor I am shadowing was showing me how their electromyogram worked and then let me test it out. She is such an amazing person to work with and is so willing to teach, show, and get me involved with everything that she can. A pharmaceutical rep was at the hospital today. Apparently he thought he was quite the charmer kissing my hand and telling me he was going to call me at 3am... like that's going to happen! These guys just think they can charm you into loving them... where I come from he just comes off as creepy plain and simply haha! 

Room for starting IV's and giving intramuscular injections 

ENT doctor who is available only once a week and sets up right in the middle of the hall

Ice Age equipment!

Electromyogram.. I'm healthy! 

One night this week Nonika, Kyla and I went out for dinner to a Ukrainian restaurant. As we were leaving the waiter, who spoke a little bit of English, says to us, "are you coming back tomorrow?". We kind of looked at each other and Nonika asked if he was working. He said yes and so we promised to go back! But we didn't... hope we didn't break his heart too much! Then we went to institute where we got to meet some other girls who are here in Kiev. It was a great way to end our day, and we got free pizza, what could be better! 

Traditional Ukranian Holubtzi

Loved being at the orphanage with these fun girls!