First full week of school, the zoo, and a dorm fire!

Hello all!

So, it has been a week since I last posted... and nothing too extraordinary has happened. This week was my first full week of school, and now I have a lot of work to do! I really like my classes and my professors, though. Doing the work will be worth it, I just have to find the motivation to do so! It's hard after not being in school for 3 months, and when most people are just having fun here. But all the students were talking today about how much work they have to do, so I think we are all feeling the same way.

In the next couple weeks I will have to give two presentations, but I think it will be ok. While I'm getting into my classes here, I can't help but think about going back to MSU in the fall. I'll have to register for classes at the beginning of April and I'm pretty nervous about doing it without speaking with my advisors. This next year should be my last at MSU, but I am unsure how I will fit everything in and complete it all. That has also made me start thinking about what to do after I graduate... I've gathered that for many of the students here - Czech and other - plan to go right into graduate school to get their masters after they have finished their bachelor degrees. For me, it's hard to say I will go right into graduate school because I still have no idea what I eventually want to do with my life. I have so many options... including coming back here to Palacky for my masters. My professer here told me if I do that, I could do an Erasmus semester at another university in Europe for free, and get some scholarship! So that is something to consider... but then again, I have no idea what I want to do! I think there is time... I just need to get through this semester and see where next year brings me.

Today was an interesting day, however. I had planned to do homework all day, but that of course didn't happen. My friends and I decided to go to the zoo in town because today was such a nice day, but before we left my roommate and I got very lucky! We were sitting and talking, and a 1,000 crown bill literally floated from the sky!! We have no idea where it came from, except for that it was windy and our window was open. It was really crazy! So we think we will use it for our trip to Krakow this weekend... it will be a big help for both of us! So, after that stroke of good luck, my friends and I had a great time at the zoo. It was actually really big, and really busy! There were all sorts of monkeys, birds, cats, snakes, fish, lions, tigers, and bears! Really :) So it was a great afternoon.

Then we did some shopping and I made some fish for dinner, and just as I sat down to eat the fire alarm went off. We first wondered if it was real, or just some smoke or a joke that made it go off. So the Polish guys that hang out with my neighbor went to check it out, and they came running down telling us it was real! So we went outside and called for the fire truck. By the time they got here they had put it out with a fire extinguisher... but it was a fire on the stove in the flat right above mine. I guess some oil spilled over in a pot and the fire started. There was melted plastic too from the vent above the stove. The power went out twice, once while I was Skyping with my step mom (sorry Jodi!). So now it is back, and they are cleaning up the mess upstairs. Now I know to be even more careful when I'm cooking in here! You never know what will happen!

So this week will be full of school, and maybe making real hamburgers for my friends! Friday we plan to go to Krakow, Poland which I am very excited about. I am also officially going to Croatia in April! We'll go from the 16th to the 22nd, and we're flying (which was a bit more expensive, but less travel time than a bus). So things are going well, I'm having fun, but now I must do homework!! Back to real life...