Post by BigRay on Feb 20, 2003 0:48:14 GMT -5
First of all, I'd like to say thanks to Kim for asking me to do this. I'll try to report about as much as possible in making the transition to being an expat in Prague. I hope you find it interesting and/or worthwhile.
When I tell people I am moving, people always ask me, "Why Prague?" Well, I'm not sure. I have only been to Prague once before, during a summer backpacking trip in 1994 after college. I remember thinking Prague was a beautiful city, but primarily I remember good beer. At the time, I felt a sense of adventure being in a former communist country. Back then, it was one of the harder places we travelled in terms of being able to communicate with others, but it was also one of the cheapest which more than made up for it. But that's really about all I remember, but I remember it fondly, if you know what I mean.
So back in July, I found myself unemployed and unhappy. San Francisco is a pretty depressing place right now. What was once the hub of Internet-mania is now a city of unemployed people and broken dreams. Even people with stable jobs are worried that their jobs maybe aren't that stable and no one seems very happy professionally. Needless to say, I wasn't very eager to jump back into this ratrace.
But that left me with a dilemma. I had big mortgage payments and living in San Francisco without a job is just not very realistic. The one positive about this situation is it allowed me to start over and ask myself, "If I could be doing anything right now, what would it be?"
The answer to that question was living abroad. I've always wanted to live in Europe, but never really knew how to make it happen. I've travelled a bunch, but getting a working visa just seemed impossible, especially now with the EU laws. Then someone told me about teaching english and I took a look at some websites to learn more about it and saw that it was feasible to teach and get a visa in the Czech Republic.
One big positive for the Czech Republic is that it currently isn't part of the EU, but will be joining in March 2004. Hopefully, I can get my visa squared away there and then maybe be able to go elsehwere in the EU legitimately a few years down the road. That's the long term plan.
So for now I am waiting. I leave for Prague on Saturday, March 1, a week and a half from now. Funny, I made the decision to go in July, and am just now finally going. During that time, I had to sell my house, get rid of most of my stuff, and convince my family that moving to Prague isn't the same as dying. I had almost given up on Prague, but it looks like it is finally coming together. No doubt, I will miss my family, friends, and San Francisco but I am excited to be embarking on a dream quest and getting to know my new home town.
So why Prague? Why not?
Ray
When I tell people I am moving, people always ask me, "Why Prague?" Well, I'm not sure. I have only been to Prague once before, during a summer backpacking trip in 1994 after college. I remember thinking Prague was a beautiful city, but primarily I remember good beer. At the time, I felt a sense of adventure being in a former communist country. Back then, it was one of the harder places we travelled in terms of being able to communicate with others, but it was also one of the cheapest which more than made up for it. But that's really about all I remember, but I remember it fondly, if you know what I mean.
So back in July, I found myself unemployed and unhappy. San Francisco is a pretty depressing place right now. What was once the hub of Internet-mania is now a city of unemployed people and broken dreams. Even people with stable jobs are worried that their jobs maybe aren't that stable and no one seems very happy professionally. Needless to say, I wasn't very eager to jump back into this ratrace.
But that left me with a dilemma. I had big mortgage payments and living in San Francisco without a job is just not very realistic. The one positive about this situation is it allowed me to start over and ask myself, "If I could be doing anything right now, what would it be?"
The answer to that question was living abroad. I've always wanted to live in Europe, but never really knew how to make it happen. I've travelled a bunch, but getting a working visa just seemed impossible, especially now with the EU laws. Then someone told me about teaching english and I took a look at some websites to learn more about it and saw that it was feasible to teach and get a visa in the Czech Republic.
One big positive for the Czech Republic is that it currently isn't part of the EU, but will be joining in March 2004. Hopefully, I can get my visa squared away there and then maybe be able to go elsehwere in the EU legitimately a few years down the road. That's the long term plan.
So for now I am waiting. I leave for Prague on Saturday, March 1, a week and a half from now. Funny, I made the decision to go in July, and am just now finally going. During that time, I had to sell my house, get rid of most of my stuff, and convince my family that moving to Prague isn't the same as dying. I had almost given up on Prague, but it looks like it is finally coming together. No doubt, I will miss my family, friends, and San Francisco but I am excited to be embarking on a dream quest and getting to know my new home town.
So why Prague? Why not?
Ray