Summer transformed into fall overnight this past weekend. I went from feeling like a disgusting excuse of an overheated human to an ice cube. It’s safe to say I’ll be incessantly cold until April. It’s just how it is every year without fail.

This week has had its share of highs and lows. I had a good lesson on Tuesday and a horrific lesson earlier today. It happened to be my “freebie” lesson of the course (THANK GOD!) but I still feel awful. I did all the activities we’ve learned so far to evoke context and understanding…and NAH.

Nada. Nothing. Blank stares.Ugh. Sad.

But on the “high” side:

Last night two classmates and I headed for Beer Geek. Each time I posted anywhere about wanting good beer beyond pilsners, people recommended this place. It’s two places in actuality: a bottle shop and a bar. They’re both close to the metro, so obviously we hit both.

We stopped at the bottle shop first since it closed hours before the bar. I was instantly SO relieved upon walking in. Not only do they have an awesome selection of local brews, but they carry a shitton of international beauties, like Crooked Stave, Victory, Cantillon, Siren, etc. I couldn’t believe my eyes!

A “short” visit to the bottle shop turned into an hour+ as we chatted with the folks working and visiting the shop. It was such an open and welcoming spot. A couple dogs even passed through!

Olga was working and mentioned that she had been at the Craft Brewer’s Conference in Philly back in May. I was SO excited! She later showed me all around the shop pointing out cool breweries I had never even heard of.

You can even drink low-key at the shop, so we each had a couple and stayed until closing time.

….And then we headed over to the Beer Geek Bar!

When I walked in, I was instantly greeted by a big ole Victory sign. Per our new friend (who ate dinner with us!), the brewers at Victory were apparently at the bar at some point and have some sort of relationship with the owners. Pretty darn cool. I’m glad to know I could snag a Golden Monkey in Prague if I so desired.

Another high:

I met my friend-from-home’s friend and some of her friends Tuesday night. They were all fun people and many of them completed the same course I’m doing right now. I thought it was great to get perspective from folks who have lived in the city for a bit longer. It sealed the deal:

Yeah. I’m staying here at least until December. I’ll see how I feel by then and reevaluate, but for now, I think I’ll be happy in this pretty city. I even decided on a neighborhood to fix my renter’s eyes on: Žižkov (Prague 3).

The next couple weeks will be insane, and I can’t promise I’ll update often. A couple of us are headed to Munich tomorrow evening after class. I also still would really like to go to Berlin on Oct. 1 but I’m not sure that’s feasible. If I can’t go, I’ll be researching flights to Belgium.

Anyway. Time to try to sleep for a bit. Happy fall and goodnight!