Missing Already

Even though this blog is due today, there is still a part of me that is debating whether or not I should put it off an hour.

I am leaving on a plane for Paris tomorrow at 4am and need to pack/confirm my flights, I have to contact(aka continue to stalk their mobile phones) four people for my final international reporting feature, I have another class paper  to finish, a Czech final and presentation to prepare, a radio package to record, write, and edit, finish my internship’s final project,  not to mention attend the presentation by a speaker that NYU in prague is hosting tonight, research cheap tickets to dublin for next weekend, grab a bite to eat, and call my grandma to wish her happy birthday…and maybe try to email my sister back.

That pretty much defines my semester.

A whirlwind.

I can’t believe its been four months since I arrived confused in this city where I didn’t even know how to say “Thank you”. Now I “mluvim trucho cesky” (speak a little czech), have a busy academic and social life. I actively juggle staying in touch with those back home, having an internship, traveling and having fun with my “new” friends here.  As much as I think of my current “To do” list as daunting and I can’t wait for it to be completed, there is a part of my brain telling me to stop, take a deep breath, and both enjoy and relish every moment of these next impossibly busy two weeks. Because as much as I complain, I will miss this place more than I can possibly think.

Prague.

Who knows when I will be back? Or if I even will? I will never see my dorm room again. I will never be inside my classrooms of the NYU center, nor will I see my professors ever again. Will I live with my roommates in the future? Will I ever find myself just blocks from where I need to be in  Prague, but with absolutely no idea of how to get there? Probably not.

I didn’t visit Prague. I, instead, studied and lived in the Czech republic for four months. Something I will always be able to say, but am still just believing myself. I have begun to understand the effects of Communism on a former Soviet Union country. I have coped, and remained, being a vegetarian in a country known for meat. And, I have lived miles away from all those I love.

And while it was both harder and easier than I imagined, its an experience I will miss. Physically or emotionally, I know I will miss being in Prague. I  will miss people not speaking english, I will miss my constant fear of pickpockets. And I will also miss walking down the cobble-stoned streets of Prague and going to  my favorite local shops. 

And in truth, upon my return to the U.S, a country I actually do miss, I believe I will my miss my (even tiresome at times) position as the constant “foreigner”.