By Camille Trawick, Bus 5 Participant
When I think agriculture, I think Nebraska or Kansas. The Czech Republic had never come to mind. It’s the bread basket of Europe. It reminded me of home and the wheat fields of Texas. However, many things in Prague were very different. Learning that tax was included in prices (why don’t Americans do that?) and that smoking was much more common was a wild ride. Once I got used to very basic Czech and the currency, we were moving to Poland. The fields and obnoxiously large pigeons and Japanese people taking pictures of Americans continued into Poland. In such a different place, it was comforting. I knew the rest of the trip in Poland would not be so easy. Getting mentally prepared to move from the beautiful city of Prague with all of its wonders to the Ghettos of Terezin and Krakow, and then later Auschwitz, seemed impossible. On the bus we watched Schindler’s List, which definitely helped me change me and the other participants mindset about the visit. From the heaven of castle hill in Prague to the closest thing to hell on this earth, it will be a big change. Having this amazing group of friends, new and old, around me will make this move much easier. I am so excited to spend the next 4 weeks with this group.
