belated

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So my digital camera has died and I haven't been able to develop my disposable camera yet.

I spent friday through tuesday in London visiting Kati, Mark, and Oliver. Had a lovely dinner with Peter on sunday night. Then wednesday I flew to Prague. Well the city is beautiful, but I was sexually harassed by some Czech ticket inspectors which I am not a fan of. My friend was also speed groped in the train station while trying to get her ticket out. Some guy patted her butt and then made this weird snorting sound before running off. The Jewish quarter was very impressive, I wish I could have gone on the ghost tour, but that was the day of the harassment and I wasn't feeling it anymore. I also went to Kutná Hora to see the Ossary (spelling), which is the cathedral decorated in the bones of 40,000 people. it's really impressive, but hard to comprehend that they are actually real, I had to keep reminding me that this wasn't fake or plastic bones from Target. It's really impressive though and I recomend going there to everyone.

I've been thinking about it, and while I loved the city of prague, I am not a fan of its citizens. I know perhaps we were conforming to the stereotypical American tourists, too lazy to read the signs in English because a woman at information had helped us buy our tickets. However, the Czech were conforming to the stereotypical bitter, spiteful, former communist, Eastern Europeans. Sweden has really spoiled me, I'm taking for granted the compassion they show both women and Americans. I was saying how they would never treat the two of us so badly (calling us named and asking if we were "fucked in the head") in Sweden and the inspectors (who obviously weren't listening) kept saying we weren't in America. These four men were racially and sexually harassing the two of us (both young women); trying to intimidate us and get some vengence against Americans or Foreigners--I don't know.

Sunday, I had a 6 hour lay over in Amsterdam so I met up with my friends Peter and Marissa, we had some yummy Dutch Pancakes, walked along the canals and past the Anne Frank House (which had a HUGE line waiting to get in, so unfortunately I did not get to see it). I was also treated rather poorly by a couple at the train station there too. While waiting for my friends to arrive, I saw a couple putting post cards in a mailbox. I remembered I had three postcards to drop off for my friend who had forgotten to mail them when she was in Amsterdam. I walked up to them and asked if they spoke english. The man replied yes, so I then asked which mailbox i would put the postcards in to send it to the States. The guy glared at me and asked if I could read. I said yes, and he walked off while his wife laughed at me saying there was some English on the boxes. Now once again, I understand I could have just looked instead of asking, but after my experience here in Sweden (we are still unsure if you put foreign mail in the blue or yellow boxes), I just thought it would be easier to ask. Is it wrong for me to assume he could have been nicer. Even if he had rudely told me there was English on there would have been nicer than just walking off.

People always joke that you should say you are Canadian instead of American while in Europe, and I'm really starting to understand. I just wish I could have told that guy that I was asking because of the confusing I had been experiencing in Sweden, where I am studying till May. I'm not some stupid American tourist who is there to be all stupid American-y (we met some Jersey boys in Prague who were like that). And I am sorry, but if some one who was foreign came up to me and had asked me about the postal service I would have helped and shown them. As I told my friend, I give people directions in NYC even though I don't live there (that is if I know where it is) and I generally help people who ask me.

It's just very annoying that our government and some obnoxious rich tourists have ruined Europe for the rest of us.

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