A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

On Saturday evening we were out of milk. I knew that there was a small local shop which would be open, so I went there. Milk seems to be sold here in 1 litre plastic bottles for the most part, but 500ml containers are available. The shop had lots of litre bottles, but I don't use much milk, so I prefer the smaller amount. I a 500ml carton, read the word mléko (milk) and took it home.

We decided to have some tea before bed, and we had finished the previous milk earlier when we had a friend round after a meal out, so I handed Sue the fresh carton. Luckily she sniffed it before adding it to the tea. It was sour! I dug out the dictionary and read the other words on the carton carefully. Translated it read sour milk product.

It is quite refreshing if you know that's what you're drinking. It would not taste good in tea, though.

The weekend

Sue came out for the weekend. For some reason flights on Friday afternoon and Monday morning were more expensive than usual, so she decided to fly out on Saturday morning and return on Monday evening. The flight was slightly delayed so it was almost 1pm by the time we reached the centre of town on Saturday. We decided to have lunch out, and went to the terrace bar I had visited the night before. The weather was excellent and it was nice to have lunch while enjoying a lovely view.

In the afternoon we left Sue's bags at the flat and walked through the local area (for about 5km) looking for interesting buildings before having a quiet meal.

On Sunday we took the tram to the old exhibition ground of Výstavište and walked through Stromovka Park to the river. From there we crossed two bridges to arrive on the north side of the river near Troja chateau. We explored the gardens and had lunch before we discovered that the Pragus Botanical Gardens are just up the hill from here. We spent the rest of the afternoon in the gardens before returning to Výstavište for the tram home.

I didn't have a lesson on Monday morning, so I was able to spend time with Sue until after lunch. After my class I just had time to dash to Vitkov hill wioth my camera to take some pictures of the sunset. I have now set up an account at Flickr, so my nicest pictures from the last week are now available here.

Payday!
The second Friday of the month is payday at the school. In some months there is also a teachers' meeting on this day, but since the new teachers had their induction and training this week there was nothing left to discuss in a meeting. The owners did host drinks in a local bar from 5pm, though. The bar chosen had a lovely terrace at the back which looks into a great bowl of a valley. This part of town is called Vinohrady and at one time was famous for its vineyards. Looking into the valley I could just imagine rows of vines clinging to the sides.

Since many of the new teachers are still progressing through the local bureaucracy, they do not yet have bank accounts. As a result the school paid cash to those teachers without an account. I haven't been paid in cash for work since I was 18! It was slightly unsettling going to the pub with all my money for the next month about my person. I did the sensible thing and had a few drinks before going home.

Connected!
As soon as I had a date to move into my flat I started making arrangements for an Internet connection. My landlord very kindly came with me to the Česky Telecom office to do the talking, while I signed the forms. The landline was connected this morning, eight days after placing the order.

I picked up a DLS modem from the Telecom office yesterday (over the last week they changed their name and branding from Česky Telecom to Telefonica O2 to make things more entertaining).

I had been told that I would get an e-mail with the account information for the DSL, but no such e-mail came. This afternoon I decided to plug everything in and then call the O2 help line to try and find someone who spoke English and could tell me the configuration information which I needed.

To my surprise as soon as the laptop booted it was on the Internet! The router was pre-configured with the DSL information and it was set up as a DHCP server, so everything just worked!

Maybe the fact that I am so surprised marks me down as an old-timer, but like Paul Humphreys I can remember the pain which we used to have to go through in the "good" old days to get a working network connection.

I really missed not having a net connection available to me. I'm really pleased to be back in contact with the world again, and now that I can use VOIP for phone calls, Sue and I should save a fortune.

A New Term
Today was the first Monday in September, and the schools here in the Czech Republic started back today. True to form the weather this morning was the best it has been for a few weeks.

Life will get busy from now on, the students have had their summer holidays and their English lessons will resume. We had an induction day at the school today, all of the new teachers were given a huge amount of information on how to deal with the Czech bureaucracy, and how to keep track of their schedules and timesheets at the school. I was able to help with this as I have now been here a month and have learned a bit about how things work here.

My new classes begin next week, and I will have a full teaching load by the end of this month.

A Golden Wedding
Sue's parents celebrated their Golden Wedding on Saturday, the actual anniversary was in August, but they scheduled the party after the holiday season. I flew from Prague to Newcastle on Friday afternoon, and Sue picked me up at the airport.

On Saturday afternoon we decorated the hall while the caterers set up the kitchen and the buffet. The party went well, Brian and Betty's relatives and friends from way back came along, and everyone enjoyed themselves. Sue had baked and decorated a cake for the occasion, and our nieces handed out drinks and canapes as people arrived.

There is only one flight a day from Newcastle to Prague and on Sunday it left at 9 am. I didn't get a lot of sleep after the party so I was feeling very droopy by the time I got back to Prague.

Moving Day
My move from the shared flat into my own flat on Tuesday evening went smoothly. Everything I had fitted into a few bags and the whole process of packing, moving and unpacking was over very quickly. My landlord went with me to the Czech Telecom office to sort out the paperwork involved in getting a telephone line, and I should be set up with a line and broadband Internet within the next couple of weeks.

I'm really looking forward to getting broadband, I feel as though I have lost a limb, or one of my senses, over the last few weeks. I have been able to get access to computers to check e-mail or update this blog from time to time, but it isn't the same as having full Internet access from my own computer at home.

I had no classes on Thursday, so I went to Tesco to buy a few household essentials, and now I feel quite at home. I took the Metro to the far western edge of the city where there are two big shopping centres, one of which has an IKEA. I was sidetracked by a big electronics shop (like Curry's and PC World combined in one) so I decided to leave IKEA for another day.

In the evening I went out for a drink with some fellow teachers and added to my knowledge of which local bars and restaurants are good value. By the time I get some visitors I should have a good choice of places to take them.

Where have I been?
I finished my week-long intensive course on the Friday afternoon (August 25th) and my student went home to Prague. I stayed at the hotel an extra night to recharge my batteries after a week of intensive conversation, and spent Saturday morning taking a short walk through the forest near the hotel and visiting an historic church above the town. The walks were pleasant but it isn't possible to cover much ground in a morning. The ideal tool for exploring countryside is a bicycle, so I should try to have a bike with me on future trips.

Owing to some confusion over the rail timetable I had a two hour wait at the railway station. Since I had two large bags and there was a severe rainstorm I decided to sit tight and read rather than go back into town to explore further. On Sunday I contacted my landlord and he told me that my flat would be ready for me to move in on Tuesday evening.

Old Habits Die Hard
Today was a lovely sunny day so this afternoon my student and I decided we would have lessons outdoors. We drove to Pernstein Castle which is about 30 km from where we are staying. We spent an hour or so in an informal conversational class, and then decided that we should have a drink. I asked for mineral water, but he persuaded me to have a beer. He asked why I had wanted water and I told him that I should at least try to look like we were at work.
He smiled and said "This is hard work, but it could be worse."

As we were getting in to his car earlier I had noticed that he had a CD case with a Java logo. I commented on this and explained that my former employers had invented Java. We then had a chat about the computer industry and I described Sun's products and philosophy. Although I left Sun I still have a huge admiration for what they produce, and wish them well, especially following this week's encouraging news.

Healthy Eating
I was skinny when I was young, but now I am among the unfortunate majority who enjoy their food, but have to watch what they eat. I was interested in a report in today's Guardian about the efforts of the fast-food companies to try to provide healthier options for their customers. I was particularly amused by this quote:

The American burger restaurant Wendy's added a fresh-fruit bowl to its menu; at the end of last year, the company quietly killed it, blaming a lack of demand. "We listened to consumers who said they wanted to eat fresh fruit," a disarmingly honest spokesman told the New York Times, "but apparently they lied."

I wouldn't call it a lie, but I do have a gap between my intentions and my actions. In a country where meat and dumplings make up much of the national cuisine I may struggle.

My first week teaching in Prague went well, all of my students are friendly and keen.

Sue came out for the weekend and on Saturday morning we explored my nearest major landmark, Vitkov Hill, just a few minutes from my flat. The hill is home to the Czech National Memorial and the world's largest equestrian statue, of Jan Žižka who gives his name to the Žižkov district where I live.
The hill is popular with joggers and people out strolling, and there are excellent views from here to the north and west. On descending the hill we passed the Military Museum, which I will save for a damp day in the winter, before taking the tram out of the city to the Divoká Šárka country park. We spent a few hours walking in the park before returning to the city for afternoon tea at the Cafe Slavia.

The Slavia used to one of the places to go in Prague, and after some uncertain times has been restored to its Art Deco grandeur.

On Sunday we took the tram to the old fortress of Vysehrad, which gaves us further views of the city from another perspective. I must go up the Žižkov TV tower sometime. This was built in the 1980s, allegedly to jam western TV transmissions as much as to transmit Czech TV, and is regarded by some as an eyesore. There are those who say that the TV tower has the best view in Prague, as it is the only place from which you can't see the TV tower.

Next week I will be teaching in a small town in Moravia. One of the school's students is taking an intensive off-site course, and I will be teaching the first week. My fellow teachers have been giving me great assistance in preparing for this amount of work. I am looking forward to it, but am feeling slightly nervous and a bit daunted at the prospect.

First day at school
As mentioned in the previous post, Sue and I went to the airport on Monday for her to check in at 6:30. I made my way back to the flat for a second breakfast before going into the school. I arrived just before 10 and spent the morning learning about the school's procedures for lesson scheduling and time tracking as well as finding out about the students from the school's records and other teachers. My fellow teachers are very helpful and can offer advice on life in Prague and the Czech Republic as well as helping with tips on teaching and lesson planning.

I spent Monday afternoon planning for my first lesson, and yesterday morning I met my first students. This was a small group, most of my lessons will be to small groups or individuals, and I think things went well. My teaching load is quite light at the moment, which gives me plenty of time for planning, but I'm sure it will be harder to manage my time once I have a full teaching load.

Settling in
Sue flew out with me to Prague, and we arrived in the flat on Saturday evening. On Sunday the weather was showery, which was a change from the weather there a few weeks ago. We went out to look for breakfast and discovered that virtually nothing was open until eleven, we ended up having muffins and coffee at McDonalds at the Flora Palac shopping centre.

We took the Metro into the centra and strolled to the river, crossing over to Smychov and Mala Strana. As we crossed the street from Smychov to Mala Strana we suddenly found loads of tourists - obviously Smychov isn't recommended in any of the guides. By the time we got to the Charles Bridge it was lunchtime and the tourists were now out in strength. We managed to find a reasonably-priced lunch at the foot of the Charles Bridge (to my surprise).

After lunch we walked up to Hradcany (the castle area) and then took a tram back through the town. I showed Sue where the language school is located, then we got the Metro back to the shopping centre to buy groceries before returning to the flat.

Sunday night was wet, so after a quick pizza we headed back to the flat for an early night. We had to be up early for Sue's flight on Monday morning.

Malcolm Wotton - Celebration Of A Life

I wrote last month about Malcolm's cycling accident. He never regained full consciousness, and he died two weeks ago while I was in Prague. The funeral was yesterday. It was a very emotional occasion for everyone involved, but we all took a lead from his partner, Janice.

She wanted the day to be a celebration of Malcolm's life, rather than a mourning of his death. We were all encouraged to wear bright clothes rather than sombre ones, and the tributes and readings were a celebration of life, too.

I knew Malcolm for about ten years, and he was a remarkable man. He was intelligent, sporty, witty, caring, popular and interested in almost every subject one could think of. Malcolm gave all that he could in everything that he did. He lived life on his own terms to a greater degree than anyone else I know.

Malcolm managed to structure his career to give him what I regard as the ideal balance between work and life. He would take on IT work in intensive bursts which he would complete at full effort, then he would take some time to pursue other things. He lived fairly modestly from day to day, but was always able to enjoy himself when travelling, and always managed to keep adding to his collection of cool gadgets.

Sue and I didn't see Malcolm and Janice on a daily basis since we moved away from the North-West London area over ten years ago, but we did see them for weekends and short holidays. These trips usually involved cycling, and always involved nice meals, good beer and wine, and the occasional single-malt whisky. I will cherish all of the times the four of us spent together. The week we spent in a cottage in Bowmore visiting the Islay Whisky Festival is one I will particularly cherish.

I feel Malcolm's loss most keenly now that I too have given up the daily office routine for a less-structured career. I always imagined that in my new life Malcolm and I would have times when we weren't busy working and could do interesting things together. I also hoped that I would be able to get his guidance on making the freelance life work.

On Tuesday night, after we had returned from the funeral, Sue and I poured ourselves a dram of Ardbeg and toasted his memory.

There's no-one else like Malcolm, I'll never forget him, and I want to get as much out of my life has he did from his.

Frustrations of being a teacher?
Saturday's Telegraph had the following piece:

How can I convey to parents and others how frustrating teaching can be?

The following, which is anonymous, comes from Classroom Behaviour, an illuminating guide to good teaching by Bill Rogers, published by Paul Chapman: "Then Jesus took his disciples up the mountain and, gathering them around him, he taught them saying: blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven; blessed are the meek; blessed are they that mourn; blessed are the merciful; blessed are they that thirst for justice; blessed are you when persecuted; blessed are you when you suffer; be glad and rejoice for your reward is great in heaven.

Then Simon Peter said, 'Are we supposed to know this?' And Andrew said, "Do we have to write this down?' And James said, 'Will we have a test on this?' And Phillip said, 'I don't have any paper.'

And John said, 'The other disciples didn't have to learn this.' And Matthew said, 'May I go to the lavatory?' "Then one of the Pharisees who was present asked to see Jesus's lesson plan and inquired of Jesus, 'Where is your statement of objectives?' "And Jesus wept."

I'm sure that teaching adults won't be quite as frustrating, let's see what I think in three months or a year, though. In the meantime, I'll try to get hold of a copy of Classroom Behaviour to see what I can learn from it.

Prague
My trip to Prague last week went well. I met several people from the school I will be working for, and managed to organise my accommodation for the coming year. A kindly American called Johnson was my host for the trip, and I will be living in the same apartment building as him.
The apartment is in an area called Žižkov, which is a few kilometres from the centre. This area has lots of cafes and bars frequented both by locals and expats. I'm sure I will settle there happily.

I had more time than I expected for tourism while I was in Prague. One of the letting agencies failed to arrange appointments for me to view apartments, so I used the time to familiarise myself once more with the city. Prague has changed immensely since my first visit fifteen years ago, most of the buildings have been renovated where many were dilapidated before. There are many more restaurants, and they are much more welcoming. Most of the international chain stores are represented there now, too.

Exam time
I was working at Farnborough College again on Monday. The Speaking and Listening exams were being held for the Summer Course students, and I was acting as a facilitator for the afternoon session. Each student took part in an individual session with the external examiner, followed by a group discussion.

My duties were to ensure that each student was given a record card for their marks, which they had to hand to the external examiner, and that they were present when the examiner called for them. In the case of the group discussion I had to read out the topic for the group to discuss, warn them if they were straying from the topic of discussion, prevent any one student from monopolising the discussion, and ensure that everyone took part in the discussion.

The one thing which Farnborough is famous for is the Farnborough International Air Show, and this year's show began on the same day as the exam. The flying display began in the afternoon, and the college is directly under the approach path of the runway. This meant that the poor students had to cope with aircraft noise during their speaking and listening exam.

I had warned them beforehand that this might be a problem, and they coped with it sensibly, but maybe next time we should ask the air show to hold their display on a day which doesn't conflict with the exams...

Flat hunting in Prague
I have now agreed a start date for my work in Prague. I will fly out on August 5th to start on the 7th. I'm sure the time will rush by between now and then.

I need to find somewhere to live. I have been checking out property ads on the Internet and the language school has an arrangement with some local landlords, but there is no substitute for checking out a place in person. I will take a short trip out there next week to view a few places and choose one.

The trip will also give me an opportunity to visit the school and meet at least some of the people. Many of the teachers won't be there until the beginning of September. I won't have a full teaching load in August, so I will have a chance to settle in and get up to speed without being overwhelmed.

Cycling again
Since Malcolm's accident Sue and I haven't been out cycling much. We decided last weekend to get out and take a trip to get back into the groove again. Sue took Friday off work and we spent the day riding down to Portsmouth for a late-afternoon ferry to Fishbourne on the Isle of Wight.

Once over the water we followed the small lanes from Fishbourne to Sandown taking in a scenic road across Brading Down. The views were good, although there was a lot of fast traffic for such a minor road. I think the culprits were people anxious to get away for the weekend, along with a couple of motorcyclists out for an after-work burn-up.

We were booked into the Youth Hostel at Sandown. We haven't been hostelling for some years, but decided to re-join this summer. The hostel was nice and less formal than they used to be. It was a fine evening, so dinner consisted of fish and chips from Fat Harry's taken on a bench near the pier, followed by an evening stroll.

On Saturday we left Sandown via an off-road cycle route to Newport, and then made our way to Yarmouth for lunch. We left Yarmouth on the ferry to Lymington, and from Lymington we rode through the New Forest to Burley. Burlet hostel was very busy, not just inside, but also with families and groups camping in the hostel grounds in tents and teepees.

On Sunday morning we set off to ride through the New Forest to Mottisfont Abbey which is a National Trust property. We are members of the National Trust so we are able to make use of their properties for informal tea-shop stops. At Mottisfont they served some excellent cheese and watercress scones which set us up for the next part of the ride.

We rode through King's Somborne and skirted the north of Winchester, pausing for a cream tea at the garden centre in Headbourne Worthy. From there we skirted the south of Basingstoke to arrive home in the early evening.

It was a lovely weekend. We had some damp spells, but each day ended with sunshine Some of the roads were busy, but many were quiet, and the whole experience reminded us why we love cycletouring.

Alec Muffett
One of my ex-Sun colleagues mailed on Friday to say that Alec Muffett is in hospital in France following a motorbike accident. Alec's friend Chris Samuel is keeping his blog updated with news of Alec as it comes in. I hope he makes a speedy recovery.