Almost Nashledanou

A friend that I haven’t spoken to in some time emailed me the other day. Why he demanded Why have you not written your blog for months?

Crikey I thought – I’d better get on it…

There are a number of explanations for my blogging lapse: that lovely alliterative syndrome “bloggers’ block” has a fair amount to do with it. Particularly since boosting the number of café reviews I’ve been writing, my brain seems to have shrunk to a size that only accommodates adjectives for green tea and shabby-chic decor.

The pause in regular output is also partly due to habit, or being out of habit. Blogging is slightly like writing a letter or telephoning an old friend – the longer you leave it the harder it becomes. It’s hard to abandon my online audience for months and come back with a blog about how lovely the plants on my balcony are looking (I had a whole blog planned about how green fingered I’ve become, but you’ll just have to imagine it) – it just doesn’t seem substantial enough.

Mainly however, my online silence is due to the fact that I have been busy making a number of rather large changes to my life. You see, the time is coming for hubby and I to wave nashledanou to Prague and return to London. We’re in the middle of planning our third house move in two years (painful), our second international relocation, a house purchase, a career change (me), as well as trying to see as many Prague friends as possible before we leave. Apparently this combination of tasks takes a considerable amount of time and energy.

Two years have passed so much more quickly than I’d expected. Whereas so many posts on CzechingIn have been about ‘firsts’ (first pivo, first Czech words, first Czech shopping experience), I am now faced with a number of ‘lasts’: last run along the river, last wander over the Charles Bridge, last day at work. It’s a strange sensation and whilst there are some things I won’t miss about Prague (the shopping, the food, the grammar) there are several things I will: the summer weather and the joy of living in a small city are certainly two high points. Living overseas is also a remarkably liberating experience.  Becoming more of a ‘joiner’ and saying ‘yes’ more often are traits I will try to harness when I move home.

In the spirit of saying ‘yes’ and seizing the moment, I am putting together a bucket list of things to do during my final few weeks – I would love your suggestions (and, if you are in Prague, your company!).

1. Go inside the Castle rather than just around the outside (I know, for a historian, this is a shocking omission)

2. Enjoy sun and champagne from the comfort of the swan-shaped pedalo available for hire on the Vltava

3. Go up Zizkov TV tower

4. Listen to Don Giovanni at the Prague Estates Theatre

5. Spend several more hours at Miliemme – the wonderful French café at the end of our street and my favourite place in Prague.

What else would you do with only one month left in Prague?

This is not goodbye quite yet – watch this space over the coming weeks for a nostalgic look down my Prague memory lane.