In theory Erasmus is supposed
to be an exchange directed at widening students’ academic perspectives via
exploring a new country. Having this in mind I thought it would be a good idea
to pretend that this is indeed the case and write a post about the peculiarities
of the University I occasionally attend in Prague.
A
few weeks ago I wrote about a few aspects of the Czech nation that point
towards a conclusion that the Czechs are a silly nation. Well, Charles
University is another solid argument for this thesis.
Firstly,
the University is an institution established in the fourteenth century in the
centre of Prague. This, logically would lead to the conclusion that there must
be a campus located somewhere in the centre of the city, right? Wrong. The only
buildings that I am aware of in the centre owned by my Stronghold of Education
serve as a tourist shop and administrative offices with maybe two or three
lecture halls. Otherwise the bulk of classes are taught all around the city
except for the aforementioned centre and the area around the student dorms
offered for Erasmus students. For example, all of my Politics modules are
taught 15 minutes metro journey away from old town in buildings that look as academic
as the southern suburbs of Warsaw (not very academic).
Secondly,
lectures. Last week a Czech PhD candidate attempted to lecture us about Polish
current affairs. Her English was as clear and pure as the Bulgarian bureaucracy
and her knowledge about Poland as deep as the storyline of the “Hangover”
trilogy. Furthermore, yesterday I was standing in front of one of the
University buildings giving my lungs a favour when another teacher of mine came
around. He greeted me with: “’Sup, you got fire, mate?”. I must admit I was
left in shock for a second or two, which I managed to get out of immediately
and present him with a lighter. Oh Prague…
Finally it is worth noticing
that my timetable is not the most overwhelming asking me to attend 9 hours per
week spread across two days (three on every other week).
Oh
yes, I almost forgot. The Czechs are not very fond of their new President. This
is quite understandable, as he apparently likes to have a shot of vodka here
and there during diplomatic missions. The nation decided to express its
discontent through the means of art. To be precise a huge, violet hand was
installed in the middle of the Vltava River pointing its middle finger in the
direction of the President’s residence. It looks like this:
Many
things can be said about this country but one is certain: You will never be
bored here!
Jan
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