013 - Praha (and updates..)

Prague, or it's natively named 'Praha' as I have now come to know it, was simply amazing. I've been to places I've not wanted to leave before, and seen and done things that I never thought I would do; including flying a plane (albeit not solo), experiencing a 6.8 earthquake in Zakynthos in 2006, played some amazingly fun gigs, learnt languages, grauated twice.. but I'm not being overdramatic when I say Prague is up there with the best. I'd recommend it to anyone, and it's somewhere I'll be re-visiting in the hopefully not too distant future..

Also, the day before we flew to Prague I got the calls I'd been waiting for regarding where I'm going to be in September. I am now officially a Tutor in Psychology at a local college, and have passed my PGCE in Post Compulsory Education and Training with Masters Credits towards a Masters in Education. I don't plan to study for a Masters in Education, but that should go down a treat when I'm applying for my Masters in Psychology course as proof that I'm capable of achieving at that level. You can forgive me then, as I stood overlooking the river in Praha on the first night of our holiday, one step closer to my ultimate target of one day living abroad, for thinking I was on the verge of waking up from what seemed like a very good dream.

Next stop: Save some money, and when my girlfriend has a job, find a house.

Still dreaming?
Sandlefish

-- Weiterkämpfen durch alles --

012 - Prague

- Finally I have gotten around to booking a holiday for the first time since Düsseldorf in 2006, and will be visiting the Czech Republic capital Prague next month. If anyone has been before, lives there, knows anything about Prague please message me your experiences or suggestions on the sights and what we can do.. -

- Schließlich buchte ich mein ersten Urlaub als ich letztes mal in Düsseldorf in 2006 war, und werde ich die Hauptstadt des Tscheche Republik nächstes Monat besuchen. Wenn jemand da besucht hat, da wohnt, oder etwas über Prag wüsst bitte schickt mir Ihren Erfahrungen oder Anregungen über die Sehenswürdigkeiten und was los ist.. -


-Musím dostat instrukce poněkud Čech -


- Again I'm not too sure why the pictures are not very clear, but click on them and they look better -
- Wie letztes mal, ich bin mir nicht so sicher warum diese Bilder nicht so klar sind, aber wann man Sie klicht sehen Sie besser aus -

008 - Slæmur Hlutur og Öldrun Draumur..

A crossroads isn't a pretty place to be. Two roads either side and an inevitable change of direction. It feels lately like I've been grappling with little more than a shadow of my own reflection. I guess this 'blog' entry comes out of a lull period just after finishing my PGCE, where the arduous task of finding secure employment has long since begun and where the frantic rush of the last few months has left a huge void in my daily routine. Even booking a simple holiday has become a minefield of potential disasters (don't ever let LastMinute.com convince you their services are anything other than long-winded, though that's probably in the majority my own fault. It will always be made difficult when you can't decide where to go..). Still, hanging about in one place never got anyone anywhere did it. I've lost count now of the number of websites I've browsed, hotels I've checked out, and cheap flights I've investigated and interrogated only to find that at some point down the line things just don't quite seem to add up. Back to the drawing board on the holiday front has been approached so many times I'm beginning to wonder whether the aforementioned crossroads is tying itself in ever repeating knots and circles like an elaborately mirroed figure of eight. No matter which direction you take you always end up back at the start point eventually, and at no point can you trust entirely in what you are seeing.

As anyone reading this with even a slight knowledge of me will know, I've been itching desperately for a few years now (hold your jokes) to travel to Iceland. This has only been magnified intensely by the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull this year, and the apparent impending eruption of big sister volcano Katla. It seems almost nonsensical for me to find this a perfect holiday destination when most people dream of peace and relaxation, and the beach and perfect tide. For me though Iceland still holds that sort of tranquil beauty, but is once again awake with the sort of vibrance and natural splender that only such an extraordinary land could dream to offer. Such is my interest for this incredible place, it took me a good 15 minutes to decide on a photo to go with this section, because everything for me to choose from couldn't sum up everything that Iceland has to offer. Volcanoes, the northern lights, glaciers, geysers, culture, an entire country where everyone is on first name terms, incredible scenery.. I'll end this section before my anger at my bank balance ends up scrawled into this post irreparably. So then, holidays. Any suggestions?

Another thing that has crossed my attention lately (possibly due to me having more free time to think and ponder now I have finished for summer) is my interest in Psychology, and particularly the Psychology of the people around us day to day. The distinct differences and also amazing similarities between people never ceases to surprise and interest me, so much that people watching when walking through town has become an ever-amusing game to play. In particular, the complex systems for reasoning for beliefs that people use also perplex and intrigue me. There's been a few points over this last year when during any sort of minor or heated debate the opposing party has presented their logic and argument with an interesting sense of reasoning. Sometimes this reasoning has made me take stock of other perspectives and arguments, and has completely taken me aback with surprise, yet at other times has seemed to me so obviously flawed and constrained by 'faith-beliefs' that I have found it hard to accept. We care too much about books written by our fellow man, yet I also continue to admire those people who can find blind faith in any sort of pursuit or ideal even in defiance of the evidence that may be stacking against them. They have at least, found their path through the crossroads..

'Dazed and Confused'
Sandlefish