The Perils and Challenges of Learning a Language Whilst Living Abroad

"The best way to learn a language is to just go live there. You know, really immerse yourself". 

This is something every language learner hears along that difficult road to speaking another tongue. Living abroad, these people claim, is the easiest and most sure fire way to learn a language.

Is it really that simple? From personal experience, I would say definitely not.

Escape to the Country- Kokořínsko

After two months (!!) of living in the tourist filled, busy streets of Prague, Lydia and I jumped at the chance to leave the city for a weekend and stay with my friend Johanka in her Mum's cottage in the beautiful nature reserve of Kokořínsko.

Day Trip to Jihlava & Telč

Since arriving in Prague three weeks ago we have mainly been occupying ourselves with the inevitable admin of moving to a new country, along with (in my case) desperately trying to avoid this European heatwave that is lingering longer here than at home.

However, two Sundays ago (a bank holiday weekend in the Czech Republic) we decided to take a trip to see some friends in Jihlava. For those who don't know, Jihlava is situated in the middle of the country, straddling the border between Moravia and Bohemia.

Moving to Prague

Two years ago I was faced with a tough choice: Up sticks and go live in Prague, taking the fun option and fulfilling a personal dream OR stay in the UK and take a job offer in my home town of Lincoln.

Strossmayerovo náměstí

Me, being me, I took the sensible choice, reasoning that with graduate unemployment so high and no tangible work experience to my name, it would be foolhardy to pass up a decent job so soon after leaving uni. I would go to Prague later, I told myself. I'd go next year, or the year after.

Prague '68- A Brief (ish) Summary

The Prague Spring is one of the defining moments in modern Czech history, consistently evoked in film and literature as the most powerful example of the struggle of ordinary people - particularly young people - to find cultural and social liberation in the face of harsh Soviet oppression.

In 1945, Czechoslovakia went from one dictatorship to another when Russian troops liberated the country from Nazi control. From 1948 onwards, Czechoslovakia existed as a communist state suffocated by censorship and oppression of the Soviet regime. However, a period of liberalisation and reform in the 1960s gave hope that things might be about to change, until one terrible night in August 1968 when Soviet tanks rolled through the streets of Prague, crushing any hope of further progress.

Krtek The Little Mole

For as long as I've been discovering Czech culture it seems like Krtek has been there, in the background, on mugs, t shirts or DVDs. It's not difficult to realise that this little mole is a huge part of Czech culture since it's creation in the 1950's Czechoslovakia.

So who is this little mole?

Krtek (or Krteček 'little mole') is an animated series for children following the adventures of the eponymous mole and his friends Králík (Rabbit), Myška (Mouse), Ježek (Hedgehog) and Žabka (Frog). Communicating only in squeaks, Krtek and his friends solves various problems with teamwork and a healthy sense of mischief.