1. Packing / What kind of linens did you need?
All the basic linens are provided for you upon your arrival to Olomouc. With that being said, I brought a pillowcase, blanket, and towel from home. I used my pillowcase for a little bit but ended up stopping just because the pillows in Europe are so much bigger then in America so it was difficult to stuff it into my little pillowcase! I am super glad that I brought both my towel and blanket though! You are provided with a small towel upon arrival, but I personally need a full size one to comfortably shower!
2. Packing / What are you glad you brought from home?
Like I said above, I am super thankful that I brought both my own towel and blanket. Additionally, I am glad that I brought a heavy coat as the season was quite cold for the duration of our visit. I am also so glad that I brought a good portable charger, the worst thing while traveling in a foreign country is having your phone go dead and then you have no way of getting directions to get around! I purchased two bags specifically for this trip, a small travel backpack for everyday use and then a large travel backpack for my weekend trips! I could not be more happy with my selections for these bags! My small travel bag I got off of Amazon for like $35 and have literally used it every day of my trip! The second bag I bought was the Nomadic Travel Pack. This bag is more expensive at about $260, but I will tell you it was worth every penny! You might think it will be fine to carry a suitcase around with you but just wait until you walk a mile across the island of Venice, up and down the stairs of countless bridges and across cobblestone ground. Get a good travel backpack for this trip, and you can thank me later!
3. Packing / What do you wish you had left at home?
- While I really am happy with most of the items that I brought with me, I wish I would not have brought so many dress clothes. I personally shopped quite a bit so I bought clothes that could have gotten me through the times when we needed to dress up! I also brought a pair of tall boots, and I just didn’t use them enough for them to be worth bringing.
4. Packing / Travel Tips?
I ordered travel space bags before I left, however, I tried not to use any on the way over to Europe in order to hopefully have more space in my bag on the way home when I did suction down my clothes! Bring one or two pairs of shoes that are going to be great for traveling, but also are at the end of their life so that you can leave them at the end. I personally just tried to think of ways to create space in my bag for when I came home because I knew that I would be making several purchases that would fill my bag! Huge travel tip is to always travel in shoes that are good for running! You never know when you’re gonna have to run to catch a bus, train, or plane! I made this mistake too many times!
5. Social Life / How did you meet other students?
I met most of my friends just right in the dorms. Be social during your time here! My roommate and I lived with 3 boys and 1 girl from Spain! We tried to leave the door of our room open as often as possible to encourage interaction and conversation between us all! I would say it definitely worked as I made amazing friendships with my roommates as well as my other classmate’s roommates! You all will start to hang out together at the dorms and at the numerous clubs that you will be encouraged to attend!
6. Social Life / How did you like to spend your free time and why?
I personally loved spending my time at a different cafe every day with my friends that turned into family! Trying all the new food over here and immersing yourself in the culture is truly the best thing you can do! Planning activities are always fun too! As a class, we went paintballing, bowling, and would go on walks and runs together! It really is the simple everyday things that help to form these bonds!
7. Social Life / Is there anything you regret not doing more of in your free time?
The only thing on my list of things to do that I did not accomplish was going to a movie in Olomouc! Other than that, I am completely satisfied with my experience and how I spent my free time!
8. Social Life / What social, recreational and cultural events did you like best?
As a group, we planned a formal, we all dressed up and went out to our favorite Vietnamese restaurant. We invited other ERASMUS students and we all had a great time eating dinner together before we went out for the night!
9. Social Life / Any advice for future students regarding their non-academic life while abroad?
My only advice would be to just put yourself out there! You will make your really close friends, but it is okay to branch out and still hang out with others on the trip that you might not be as close to! It’s so much fun to learn about other people's experiences and trips. Listen to their experiences and maybe you can learn how to better plan your trip to that particular location.
10. Academics / How do academics differ between UNK and the host institution?
When I talk to family members and friends from back in America, I often get the question, “So do you really go to school there?”, or “What are you learning/ studying”. Well let me just set the record straight, you will attend classes while studying abroad haha, things are just structured a little bit differently. One of the main goals of the study abroad program is for us as students to have the opportunity to travel and gain experience interacting with people from different cultures. For this reason, our classes are scheduled to allow us to interact with our home community of Olomouc Czech Republic and to also do personal traveling around Europe.
We go to classes from 15:00-18:00 Monday- Thursday and 9:45-13:00 on Friday. Our early classes on Friday allow us to catch a train, plane, or bus in the afternoon to begin our weekend travels. Our classes during the week are scheduled as such to allow us to explore and experience Olomouc by eating at local restaurants and sitting at adorable coffee shops planning trips and doing homework/blogging.
Besides the scheduling of our classes, the structure is much different than my classes back at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. All Nebraska students that are on this study abroad trip attend the same classes. The classes are taught by professors from Palacký University Olomouc history department and other guest lecturers who are experts in their fields. Our program focuses on European History and the Czech Language. The hardest part about the structure of the classes is that the professors are basically guest lecturers that we see anywhere from 1-5 times throughout the semester. So some lessons are done in one class period of 90 minutes and some professors will continue a common theme throughout their several lectures that are spread out throughout the semester. Basically, these professors are condensing a semester-long class into a 90-minute lecture. So sometimes it can be a little bit challenging to switch back and forth between so many different professors and topics, but flexibility is the name of the game. The positive side of the set up of our classes is that we as a group get to learn from experts in the field that have an intense passion for subjects such as economics, religion, politics, history, and education.
We have two professors that are sponsors for the program, so our group gets to learn from them during class but then also on our class field trips! Jan and Martin are our sponsors and they are just amazing. We have so much fun with our group while also connecting what we learn in class to the historical landmarks that we visit while on field trips. Equally as much, it is amazing and so much fun to have the ability to learn about historical sights in class but then also be able to visit the place where the history took place. To put my fingers into the divots that the bullets left in the buildings and to feel the ominous feeling surrounding me when entering places were massacre occurred. To walk the streets of cities and stumble upon stolpersteine stones still gives me chills as it puts into perspective the magnitude of the impact that the Holocaust made in Europe.
The classes are very lecture based and in most lectures, there is minimal interaction between the professor and students, which I think is one large difference from my classes back home in Kearney compared to here in Olomouc. However, my favorite part about our classes in the Czech Republic, as I mentioned just a second ago, is the opportunities that our group gets to actually visit the places that we learn about during class. Not to mention that we also get to learn from professors who have lived during the time of the historic moments we discuss and have participated in the revolutions that evoked change in the Czech Republic. Hearing stories of their personal experiences versus reading about an event from a textbook makes the history feel so recent and vibrant in emotion.
One class that is structured a little differently is our Czech Language class! Our professor, Pavla Poláchová, does an amazing job of keeping us on our toes during class by popping out random questions or phrases in Czech that we must then respond to. The Czech language is very difficult and frustrating at times (most of the time) but Pavla does such a great job of encouraging us and laughing with us when someone really butchers a word or phrase. We have learned basic conversations such as asking someone how they are, where they are from, and what they do for an occupation. We also have learned how to order at a restaurant as well as the proper pronunciations of traditional Czech dishes. We know general foods, numbers, how to give our email and telephone number to someone, and several other things.
11. Academics / Was grading different?
We are graded in an untraditional way as we do not have any quizzes or test throughout the semester. Instead, we are required to keep blogs recording our experiences and how the culture of different countries affect our thoughts and feelings. We will take a final exam on our Czech Language course, which the whole group is a little scared for! Haha Lastly, we will have to write two separate essay papers discussing either religion, politics. economics, history, or social/educational. These papers are used to see the connections that we as students have made between all the lectures that we have had over the semester!
12. Academics / Were your study habits different?
I would say that my study habits were very different compared to in the US, your education while abroad is more focused on the experiences that you are making while traveling. Your professors want to see you start to apply what you have learned in the classroom and make connections throughout history! For this reason, my time was largely occupied by planning trips, creating travel itineraries, and traveling!! Don’t get me wrong, in order to pass your classes you for sure will have to study the Czech language and take notes in class over the lectures, BUT, that is not all your grade depends on!
13. Academics / Was the library different?
I honestly don’t think any of us ever went to the library here. Like I said above, the study load is very low and when we were writing blogs or studying for a test we would go to our favorite Cafes!
14. Academics / Was computer access the same?
I brought my own laptop, so computer access was not a problem for me! A laptop on this trip is an absolute MUST!! I really don’t think there is any way you could do without. (But I feel like that is pretty common sense)
15. Academics / What enabled/hindered your success?
I took notes in every class and paid attention. I also felt that it was very beneficial for me to take notes on my phone during our field trips. The information that I wrote down on our fields tours really helped me to be able to share accurate information in my blogs.
16. Money / How much money would you advise students to bring?
The amount of money you need to bring is really a question that depends on your spending habits and where and how often you plan to travel. I personally traveled every weekend and I am a heavier shopper. For the duration of the 3 months, if you are like me, I would recommend being ready to spend between $7,000-$8,000.
17. Money / How much host country currency did you take with you from the U.S.?
I personally did not know this was something you could do so I did not bring any! But for futures classes, I would advise you to bring at least 10,000 Czech Crowns, and if you plan to travel to many countries that take Euros I would personally bring 1,000 €.
18. Money / How did you manage your money (credit cards, bank accounts, cash)?
I tried to keep a daily budget for myself depending on what I was doing that day! I broke it up into basically 3 categories: a normal day in Olomouc, weekend travel day, and school travel day. I budgeted the most money for my personal travel days because I accounted for food, travel, and housing! The least amount of money for my days in Olomouc, and then a little bit more for class trips!
19. How much money did you spend on:
Books?
I ordered all of the required texts off of eBay and Amazon so I spent under $15 for books!
School supplies?
I bought pens and a pencil bag when I got to Olomouc which cost me $12 for the nicer pens that I wanted!
Food?
My roommate, Sara, and I ate out for almost every meal other than Breakfast so our cost of food is higher than those who bought groceries to cook at home! Food really does vary in cost depending on what city and country you are in. I am averaging each meal at like $13. So I would guess I spent between $2,300-2,500 on food. ….I also got a lot of desserts hahaha
Entertainment?
I honestly don't have a good estimate of what I have paid in total for activities, tours, and entertainment. I would guess between $300-400.
Local transportation?
Take the 89 czk taxis in Olomouc! It’s the cheapest way to get around when the tram isn’t running! But for other cities for sure try to figure out public transportation instead of just using Ubers and Taxis! Its gonna save you a lot of money and it makes you feel less like a tourist! I probably spent $200 in total on tickets and uber/taxis!
Travel?
Depending on the size of the group I was traveling with we would check to see if an Airbnb or a hostel would be cheaper all together I would estimate I spent $300 on lodging.
Personal items (toiletries)?
I bought big bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and fabric softener at the beginning that lasted me the whole trip. I bought only a couple of other little things throughout the trip like little travel hairspray and things like that so in total it probably totaled to less than $40.
Postage?
At the beginning of the trip I bought a pack of 6 stamps for like $11, and that's all I used.
Airfare?
I would roughly estimate that I spent $1,100 on all of my flights. That is including my roundtrip flight to and from Europe. I also took quite a few Flix buses which all together I probably spent $300-400 on.
Laundry?
In total, I probably spent around $60 on laundry. A load of wash costs approximately $5.17. I did a load of wash almost every week, but hardly ever dried my clothes because it was free to just hang them up and let them dry! Haha!
20. Communication / How did you communicate with the U.S.?
I got an international phone plan through Verizon, and that worked very well for me! However, many of my classmates had pretty good success with a service called Vodafone which they will inform you about upon your arrival! Some people had issues with it not working depending on what country they were in which is why I choose to stick with my international plan even though it was more expensive.
20. “Top 10 Must-Do Activities” in Olomouc!
1. Make sure you go to Nase Cafe for breakfast! They have delicious blueberry pancakes, the best muesli and yogurt, and a bomb iced chai tea! (You have to ask for the chai because it is not on their menu!) Make sure you have cash here because they don't take card!
2. Just around the corner from Nase is a restaurant called Buns, go in and get the spicy burger and an orange vanilla soda! Go out and sit by one of the fountains in the square and enjoy the amazing food! This place is also cash only.
3. Cafe Opera is a place you will fall in love with right away! They have amazing food and great desserts as well! My personal favorite is the steak risotto with almonds! Ugh, my mouth is watering just thinking about it! And for dessert, there are so many great options! My two favorite choices were the chocolate ice cream sundae (which mind you is huge!) and the banana Nutella crepe!
4. If you are a girl and like to get your nails done (our a guy too) go to TiTa! The prices are so cheap compared to the U.S! A full acrylic set is only 350 czk which is equivalent to $15.
5. I know you probably want to stay away from American food restaurants as I did. BUT you have to try McDonald's out in a couple of different countries while abroad! The quality is 1000% better than in the U.S. Additionally, the menu is slightly different in each location! Crazy, but you just have to check it out!
6. Go for a run or walk on the path that goes through the field of yellow rapeseed flowers! The view is absolutely gorgeous and the exercise won't be bad for you either! haha
7. If you are a shopper, make sure to take the #7 tram to the big mall! You have to check out all the different shops and the difference in fashion! My personal favorite was a store called Tally Weijl.
8. When you go grocery shopping at Globus, you must try the cheesy cheddar popcorn! No questions asked it is the best microwave popcorn out there!
9. If you are ever craving avocado, stop by Cafe Lusk where you can get a bomb avocado toast! They also have a fantastic caij latte!
10. Down the hill from the academic building where you will be attending classes, there is a french fry place called Fancy Fries! THIS IS A MUST DO! Ask for cheese on your fries and original sauce! Sometimes they even have a special where they will have ranch! (Ranch in Europe is almost nonexistent so take it when you can get it!)
OVERALL, JUST EXPLORE AND DON’T EVER SAY NO TO AN OPPORTUNITY TO TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT OR GO SOMEWHERE NEW!
Best of Luck!
Annalise