(no subject)

[threeplusfire]

With the number of travel agent offices one sees here, one would think this is a nation permanently looking for a vacation.

I suppose I should be reading the paper more often, but sometimes I want to get away from the endless series of disasters. If I had been reading the paper, I would have noticed that the massive amounts of rain we have had are wreaking havoc on the country. A state of emergency has been declared in the south, cities are underwater, and my trip to Prague has been cancelled because they aren't allowing anyone to move in or out at the moment. They are evacuating parts of the city, and the Vltava is practically at the tops of the bridges. The German border has been closed. I hope it opens back up next week, otherwise I might be going through Poland or Austria. The pictures are bizarre.

We have a new lektorka. I think she must be on speed, or incredibly nervous because she talks fast and is constantly waving her hands. I half-slept through class today, because it is material I already know (jak často? jak dlouho? kdy?). I spent my breaks smoking with the French goth boy and talking about music. He has quite pointy teeth, which I find amusing. Seems to be a French thing.

Have found a wonderful place, čajovna. Lots of tea, in a basement with quiet music and such. It seems to be where all the cool Czech kids hang out, from what I have seen of the other customers. I had something minty and happy today, to take my mind off the grey skies. I am in a different net cafe, because my usual one is closed for "technical reasons." This one is more like the place from Prague, IKEA-esque.

Comments

[razorart.livejournal.com]

I was thinking of you yesterday when I saw Prague on TV :( (even though I know you're in Brno). Are parts of the city destroyed?

Ježísmarja

[genetic.livejournal.com]

While the floods are obviously a huge disaster, you have to realize that the major historical monuments, as well as most of the buildings in the older section of town (which is the part that's really flooded currently) have been through this before, at least once, probably several times. Prague flooded to the same extent in 1890, when two of the pillars of Charles Bridge were taken out. Most (no pun intended, for you Czech speakers) of that bridge isn't the original 14. century construction, no matter what the tour guides tell you. The statues (which are a couple of centuries newer than the bridge, anyway) are mostly reproductions. A couple of them were lost in the 1890 flood. Several of the originals are in the Vinohrady casements.

Even still, seeing the pictures of Prague flooded are, to me, a lot more painful to me than pictures of anything in America flooded. Even the huge flood in Houston last summer (I'm from Houston) doesn't seem nearly as bad as this does. I've seen landmarks I'm familiar with completely underwater in both cases. The picture that affected me the most so far has been the Malostranska Metro station, which I commuted through every morning last summer. www.praguepost.com has this picture as well as lots more. Recognizing the little details of that under 3 metres of water is a very odd feeling. I wish I was there with a camera.

Anyway, for those unfamiliar with the geography of the region, Prague is on the other side fo the country from Brno. The major flooding has been on the Vltava (Moldau) and Labe (Elbe) rivers, which don't run close to that region. I'm sure that the Morava river is definately higher than normal, but so far I haven't seen anything about abnormally high levels. While I could be wrong, I don't think that Brno or any of the Moravian towns are in any danger at this time. Though I have read that Plzen, Ceske Budejovice, Cesky Krumlov, and most of the larger towns nearer Prague have suffered damage to some extent. However, it does seem, from reading foreign press, that parts of Russia have been much harder hit than anything in Central Europe. The Black Sea regions have had fatalities in the hundreds from this flooding. It's just that there aren't any major historical monuments in that region, so no one seems to care.

Anyway, if I said something really stupid above, correct me. And if you know of any U.S.-based charities that are accepting donations for flood victims in the Czech Republic or any other affected areas, please let me know. I know there are several Czech charities that are accepting donations for flood victims, but I can't afford to donate enough to offset the fees for a wire transfer (I'm a poor college student). Much of the affected region are countries that can barely afford to maintain their historical sites through good times, much less catastrophic periods such as this.

Looking around, here's a link to an article describing the damage caused by the 1890 flood.

Re: Ježísmarja

[genetic.livejournal.com]

I guess there's no way to edit my above comment to change "I wish I was there . . . " to the proper subjunctive form "I wish I were there . . . ". I'd like to keep my elevated status as a grammar Nazi. Sakra.

Re: Ježísmarja

[tsarina.livejournal.com]

Mwuhahahaha.
Thanks for making me laugh for the first time today.

Myslím na tebe, gramatika nazi.

Re: Ježísmarja

[tsarina.livejournal.com]

Moct? I am going to thwap you for that atrocious pun when I get back.

Re:

[tsarina.livejournal.com]

They are not sure yet how much damage there will be to the buildings. There are a couple large libraries and galleries right there on the Vltava, and they spent hours hauling collections out of basements to protect them from the water. There is concern for the bridges, and several of the subway stations have been flooded. They closed Line B for most of yesterday. They had to evacuate the zoo, and a gorilla drowned and they had to put down the elephant because it was drowning.

[deatonjr.livejournal.com]

How terrible! I glanced at the television - 'hey I've been in that city. what city is that? Hey, it's underwater! Hey, that's Prague! Whoa!'

Re:

[tsarina.livejournal.com]

It is quite strange to see. I hope the water goes down by next weekend.