I HATE PIGEONS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Morgen

Oh my dear god...there are freakin' pigeons everywhere in this city. It's disgusting. They are seriously the biggest, fattest birds I have ever seen in my entire life. They're so fat that can't fly too high, and if you don't pay attention, they will seriously fly right into your head. They're not afraid of people either, so if you're sitting on a bench they will come and peck at your shoes. They also wake me up at the crack of dawn, because they like to walk across the skylights and flutter their wings and coo and coo and coo and...well you get the picture. I told Courtney the bright side was if we were desperately starving, we could take comfort in knowing we could always eat like kings on meals of pigeon. She wasn't particularly thrilled about the thought (it grossed me out too).

Okay, enough about the birds. Class has been really interesting. It's weird to learn how your own language works. I feel like a first time student again. I didn't know half of the stuff we've learned this week. Our teachers are really great. Mila (a guy) is actually Czech, and he speaks English with a Czech/British accent. I have a hard time not copying the way he says things. Our other teacher, Keith, is a sarcastic smart ass, and he's really funny. We also get Czech lessons, which I'm pretty happy about. It's a difficult language, but it really helps to learn the basic phrases. We've found that people are a lot more receptive if you at least try to speak Czech. Even if they don't speak English, they're a little nicer.

I've already had a one-on-one tutoring session with my student Josef. Our first meeting went really well. He's very proficient in English; he just needs a little help with tenses and some grammar. We just sat and talked about politics, religion, the present state of the economy, different laws in our countries, travelling, sports, etc. I felt like I was on a first date (and to be completely honest, I really wish we were. He's very attractive...wink wink...and single!). I definitely don't mind that I have to meet with him every week!

Yesterday (Thursday), I taught my first class. My class was a little larger than Courtney's, with 5 students. My fellow classmates and Keith observed; surprisingly I wasn't nervous at all, which is something new for me. I created my lesson plan, kept things organized so I knew what I was doing, and away I went. I think it went pretty well. I wasn't actually nervous until it came time for feedback from my fellow teachers. Everyone said I did a good job, but gave my little things to work on like remembering not to speak so fast and to make sure I don't mumble. I was glad when it was over. After class, Ashleigh, Sheila, Courtney and I went to the pub and had a "Hooray! Our first lesson is over with!" beer. My fellow classmates are pretty cool people. Courtney and I hang out a lot with Ashleigh and her boyfriend, Jiri. The four of us have a lot fun.

Let's see, what else...oh yeah! Sunday, we're all going to see President Obama give his only public speech on his European tour. We're really excited about that. I think it's going to be fantastic to be a part of something like that. I've never had the opportunity to see a president speak before. EXCITING!!!!

I don't know what my problem is around here, but I have seriously walked into the men's bathroom five different times at five different places. The worst part is, I even pay attention to the signs on the door--men's bathroom, figure of a man. Women's bathroom, figure of a woman in a dress. Not hard, right? How the hell am I going to be able to teach English, when I can't even understand a universally recognizable sign. I guess we'll find out soon enough.

Well, I think that's about all I have for now. I don't know what else to say, except perhaps
I HATE PIGEONS!!!