Day 5: Transfer to Prague and some Happy Birthdays

It's 9:30pm.  We've checked into the Iris Hotel Arena in Prague.  This hotel is our second "soccer stadium" hotel.  This time, however, a match was going on.  We didn't have access to the stadium, but we could hear the cheers and the jeers.  It is kind of neat to hear the beautiful game being played in the background after such a long day.

We awoke in Vienna at 7am, it has been our typical wake up call so far, and had breakfast.  We made sure we had our passports, our suitcases, and all of our charging cables and we hit the road.  The drive was about 5.5 hours long.  Every single one of us was able to catch some Zzzs.  It had been a long night for me, and a couple of the kids, because someone else in the hotel was up late making noise.  I went to the front desk and reported it at about 1:30am.  The desk clerk was helpful and things quieted down shortly thereafter.  Most of us couldn't hear the noise, which was good, but for a few of us...it was quite distracting.  I am not a good sleeper, without noise from a few floors above me, and so, that really threw me for a loop.  I was able to get about 1 hour of extra sleep on the bus.

This picture was taken about 45 minutes after I woke up, but everyone else was still asleep (I think).  It is always funny how you can gauge a successful trip by the amount of sleep needed on the buses during a transfer.  I have been try to keep everyone abreast of the weather here...both the readers of this blog and the kids...and it has always been on our side.  That trend started to fade away today.  We made two stops on the road.  It was dry for both of those stops, but the time in between was filled with precipitation.  Our first stop was for a quick snack and to use the bathroom.  The rest stop had a McDonalds.  I haven't really eaten at McDonalds for a long time, but gave it a try.  The Big Mac still tastes great!  The fries haven't changed.  My Coca-Light was served without ice...that's my bad, I know to ask, but forgot.  They also had grilled cheese sticks (Think Mozzarella sticks that taste like grilled cheese sandwiches).  I don't think I will be trying McDonalds again for a while, lol.  In between our two stops, the weather shifted again.

It is hard to see, but this photo shows snow falling in the Czech Republic.  The amount of rain/snow/sleet intensified throughout the day and it is fair to say some of us got soaked.  Regardless, we had a great day.

When we arrived in Prague, Gina took us directly into the Old Town. The was more than a drizzle, but we did okay.  Prague's Old Town, which is among my favorite places, was alive in spite of the weather. The Easter Market is awesome!!!

The blacksmith making craft goods.

Kacey inside a Giant Egg. 

The strangest band in Prague. I swear the little kid was scared, lol

The Easter Tower.  You can also see a sign for Trdelnik.  I bought some in Budapest, but here, they add ice cream.

Steve, Melanue, Felicia, Maddy, and Annabelle atop the Easter Tower.

Adriana in front of a traditional Easter Tree.

We have a lot more time in Prague tomorrow and I am sure I will have a ton of pictures to add, but I wanted to give you all a glimpse of what we are seeing. Europe is so different than the US in so many ways.  You can see it in the Easter Market, but you can also see it in the buildings.  I think where we find common ground is in us.  The people here are so friendly.  I think most Americans are too.  We always remember the bad experiences we have with others, like loud teenagers a few floors up, but we often forget the helpful folks who make your day better.  These community gatherings are so special because it puts those people in the foreground.  

We left Old Town for dinner around 5pm.  We headed to a local hotel/restaurant that had a buffet.  I apologize for not shooting the buffet, but I wasn't feeling so great...and it slipped my mind.  It had quite a few options and the kids all looked like the had had enough.  

I once heard a paradox.  It stated that in a group of 25 people, randomly selected, you would have a better than 50% chance of a repeating birthday.  Since there are 365 days in a year, most people don't buy it, but it's true.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_problem.  Our group of 26 consists of overachievers.  We have two sets of repeating birthdays...but one of those birthdays is today.  It is my pleasure to be a part of these kids lives for such a great experience, but I hope I am part of their long term memories when it comes to celebrating Easter, and/or their birthdays, abroad.  Today, Adriana and Nicole both celebrated their 18th birthdays.  Gina had arranged with the kitchen to make each of them a chocolate cake.  The staff lit the candles and brought the cakes out to the girls.  We all sang "Happy Birthday" and many enjoyed a piece of cake too.  I don't have pictures of the actual cake presentation, because I went live on Facebook with it.  I hope the video came out well for home and helped their families and friends share in the special occasion. Norbert even got in on the party.  He made each of the girls a present in the form of origami....a crane for Nicole and a butterfly for Adriana.

Adriana enjoying a piece of her birthday cake.

Nicole cutting her cake!!!

After dinner, Norbert and Gina escorted us to our bus and we began the drive home.  It was an early night back to the hotel for us, but we have a long day tomorrow.  Still, it was too early to just send the kids to bed.  The soccer match ended shortly after check in and the stadium area quickly emptied out.  We told the kids that they could visit another McDonalds (it was right around the corner) for an ice cream.  They had a blast (mostly because of the WiFi speed).  Mr. Jones and I went with them...Mr. Jones tried the Grilled Cheese sticks, I sadly remembered my earlier visit, lol.

I know a lot of teachers who lead tours.  I've met many Tour Directors (Like Gina).  Most of these people scoff at the idea of visiting McDonalds...and I get it.  I disagree, slightly, however.  We are halfway through the trip today.  More time lies behind us than in front of us (it goes quickly).  Some of the kids are probably missing the comforts of home.  There is a sense of familiarity that comes with a happy meal or a McFlurry.  I don't think our kids should be eating American fast food for lunch, but I think they should see something similar presented differently.  An ice cream at McDonalds is a perfect example of this.  I try, when possible, to show them this because it is something I look for too.

It was funny for me, today, on that long bus ride when everyone was sleeping. I hopped online, made a post about the possibility of a new high/middle school, and checked my TimeHop.  You know the chance of two people sharing a birthday out of a random sample, but what are the odds that today was the anniversary of another Euro-McDonalds excursion.  Well, it turns out, the chance was 100%.

Eurotrip12 - At a McDonalds in Paris

Turns out, five years ago, I visited a McDonalds in Paris with most of the kids on that tour.  It seems so long ago, but that trip had a huge impact on me and student travel.  Like this group, they were wonderful.  Like Eurotrip17, those kids didn't the greatest weather, but they made the most out of it.  It was that trip that led me to start this blog.  I only posted a few Facebook pictures back then, lol.

Tomorrow, will be a tough day for us.  In the past, it has been a 13 mile day.  We will be doing it in the rain, or the snow, as temperatures are dropping.  We've told the kids to pack, and dress, in layers.  We've asked them to go out and look for things that will make them more comfortable (ponchos, gloves, knit hats, etc).  We've reminded them that we can prepare for the elements and that elements can sometimes make things more memorable.  I shared with them a quick story tonight at our evening recap.  I told them about a trip to Madrid, Spain that I was on...even before Eurotrip12.  It snowed...lol.  Even Gina was shocked...it just doesn't snow in Madrid.  Well, during that storm (squalls really), I went and bought a pair of gloves.  Those gloves are here with me in Prague.  Every time I put them on, I am reminded of Madrid.  They don't say "Spain" or anything like that, but I know.  It is my hope that the weather forecasters get it wrong and that tomorrow is much more mild than we are hearing.  If at anytime it gets too bad, of course, we will scrap what needs to be scrapped and make sure the kids are okay.  We will be teaching them a valuable lesson about European cafes and people watching...how you can sit for over an hour with a cup of coffee and conversation.  We've asked them to try and engage the people they meet in stores, shops, and restaurants...to try speaking in Czech. It is always out goal that they learn on these trips.  Learn about the history of a place, learn about its culture, experience its food, and meet its people.  Tomorrow, we will also learn a little bit about ourselves.

Thanks for reading...and Happy Birthday to Nicole and Adriana!!!

Mr. Lavoie, reminiscing about frostys while hoping to not be too frosty tomorrow.