The Trump Factor

Well, it was bound to happen. Eventually I was going to have to take a short pause from my story-spinning and picture-posting of this idyllic place I am lucky enough to call home and momentarily address the elephant in the corner...literally. No doubt you all have your own opinions of what and who Donald Trump is and isn't, but you may be wondering what some of the international reaction is to this toupeed tyrant's run for the White House. I will briefly describe my opinion on the matter, and then I will share some of the general opinions I have heard here across the pond.

There's not too much for me to say, myself, as this whole situation has left me largely speechless. There are a few thoughts I think, however. I think that this is the most embarrassing U.S. presidential election yet. I think this was bound to happen eventually. I think, like Brexit, this is a wake-up call to a nation whose 'majority' assume they are their opinions are indeed the majority, and we are close to seeing the falsity of this idea proven. I think that fear and anger are huge talking points at the moment. I think we see the importance of cooperating and the result of mere emotionally-charged and unfounded divisions. I think that Donald Trump is the definition of populist, and unfortunately the U.S. has become a land where ignorance, ego, and un-educating entertainment has become popular, as can be seen in the vast majority of pop culture. I think that we can now see a few blaring issues with a two-party political system. I think that America will make history either way in this election, and hopefully it's for the better and not worse.

I largely have access to Czechs and Czech opinions when it comes to current issues, but being in Europe does result in overhearing some of the opinions held by the greater international crowd, whether it be a couple Brits on Charles Bridge, two Germans in the pub, catching an article in a foreign publication, or reading the Facebook statuses of international friends. Here are some of the most common themes and reactions:

• Amazement that the U.S. has allowed itself to get into this position and that Trump has made it this far (remember, I was also here speaking with many of these same students at the beginning of this whole campaign when it was still a 'joke')
• Fear of what the implications of a Trump election might mean for Europe, especially his recent comments about NATO and no longer honoring the mutual defense clause. (an article from The Atlantic can be found here) It is important to remember that the idea of Russia and Russian occupation is still very fresh in the minds of many Europeans. Any threat from Russia is taken much more seriously here than stateside, especially after Brexit.
• Amusement at the whole idea of the election. Many people consider it a lesser-of-two-evils situation with one 'evil' very clearly the lesser. They think it's quite comical and that Trump still has no chance
• Sympathizing with Trump when it comes to issues like immigration (even if they might not advocate the construction a wall, but simply stricter borders). Many Europeans, even ones that were previously so open to refugees and open immigration, are now beginning to have their doubts and second-guess the policy after increasing numbers of violent incidents and terrorist attacks
• Pleasant awareness of the fact that Trump's ex-wife was Czech and current wife is Slovenian (both Slavic nations) "We're famous." 
• Joking about how if Trump is elected president he and President Zeman (known for being a man with a fairly backward political agenda many times) would be best friends and the U.S.-Czech Republic relations would surely improve 

I am currently teaching the phrases "pick your poison," and "you've made your bed, now you must sleep in it," in many of my classes. 

Photo taken from malialitman.com

Film Frenzy

Well, two quick fun unrelated-to-this-post facts: I am currently sitting in Starbucks for the first time in close to six months (my last U.S. visit) and I am currently drinking a grande (couldn't bring myself to supersize) Frappuccino for the first time in over a year. Sometimes a man must remind himself he's American, and sometimes McDonald's is a tad too much.

Caloric intake aside, in this blog post I would like to share a little bit about my time at the 51st annual Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF). This festival is one of the more well-known film festivals in Europe and, though it certainly is not of the Cannes or maybe Venice caliber, it does boast a slew of A-grade films, meaning films that are considered top-tier, have big-name actors, or will be released later in international theaters.

Karlovy Vary, or Carlsbad, as may ring a bell to English readers, is situated in the northwest of the Czech Republic and is a spa town, known for its natural springs. It is also the site of Becherovka headquarters and museum. Becherovka is a classic Czech alcohol in the realm of herbal bitters, often drunk as a digestive. Becherovka, named after Jan Becher, founder of the company, is nicknamed "The Fourteenth Spring" of Karlovy Vary. The other thirteen more traditional springs are located throughout the town in various spas, public spaces, and small fountains from which one is allowed to collect some of the supposed healthy and undoubtedly mineral-rich liquid. One of the locations which makes use of the spa image is the enormous and iconic Hotel Thermal, which was actually built for KVIFF and is the central venue throughout the film festival, home to one 'conference hall'/theater room holding 2,000 seats.

The festival itself was an absolute blast! The energy and atmosphere was fantastic and the film-watching was a ton of fun. There were a total of close to a hundred different films in a variety of different 'genres' or 'categories' that the festival had created. For example: the Main Competition, East of the West and Critics' Variety Choice. I went with Vendula, a veteran KVIFF attender and film-watcher, with a quota of minimum five films a day. Due to a variety of complications and unforeseen obstacles, during the four days we spent at the festival, we were only able to see about 18 films...a result chalked up as an overwhelming success by the both of us in the end, all quotas aside! I will share two of my favorite films, in the event that any of you may have a chance to see either of them:
1. Paterson - set in Paterson, New Jersey, this film explores one week in the life of a poet and bus driver. Brilliant mix of simplicity, reflection, humor and the beauty of day-to-day life
2. Eagle Huntress - set in Mongolia, this film is a documentary about a 13-year-old girl who becomes the first female 'Eagle Hunter' ever. Eagle hunters are used during the Mongolian winter to catch game for food and clothes and train giant golden eagles, hunting in tandem with them

The front entrance to Hotel Thermal and the Big Theater. Also the site of the red carpet entrances of the VIPs

Everyday a KVIFF paper went out with information on all of the following
day's films and different special events, reviews, and trivia

Karlovy Vary has two faces: the first is of those interested in films trying to cram
as many in as possible during their time at the festival. The second is those who
go to the festival only for the party atmosphere that is very much present. This
poor fellow got stuck with the first crowd the night before...

This is a 50/50 situation. It is common for festival-goers
to camp out and wait for tickets in the morning. However,
this guy isn't near any ticket line, so it's really a
tossup when it comes to grouping him

The Becherovka museum. This is what the original iconic green bottle looks
like. They now distill 4 varieties, plus an Ice and Fire limited edition which
they suckered the New Mexican in me into buying. It starts with a mint taste
before ending in a spicy chile bite

What we can only imagine Mr. Becher and the boys looked like while solving
life problems back in the day

The colonnade of the spa building downtown that
is home to many of the springs from which you can
fill your water bottle or other container

Sandman plus typical Karlovy Vary architecture in the background

Edited image Two children with their festival booty playing by Karlovy Vary's
version of Old Faithful

Actor Willem Dafoe was one of the VIPs at this year's festival. Each year the
festival tries to bring one really big-name international actor/actress, and have
been impressively successful if you look at a list of past attendees 

The theme of this year's festival, hinting at how cameras and technology affect
us. It was meant to have an 'anti-selfie' theme somehow. If you look at the official
art and photos (such as the one in the photo further up on the side of the wall) you
will see that they consist of people hiding their faces from the camera

Just playing with the new camera. This is a fountain downtown with an anonymous couple walking behind it. 

Dying to Run

Well a lot has been happening these last couple weeks, as I have been taking advantage of the summer weather to do a little traveling and holidaying. So expect a few posts in the next stint!

I'll start with the good news: I 'ran' a half marathon two weekends ago. The bad news: my body was in a constant state of rebellion, bordering outright strike, the entire time and I ended up with a hugely disappointing performance, so the 'running' component of the marathon was highly debatable at times. By kilometer 3 survival was already the sole goal. However, it was a great experience and forced me to get into the habit of running while I was training for it, something I am very grateful for now. 

On a different note, I will say that the touring of Olomouc (the city in which the run took place) was an unequivocal success. Olomouc is in the eastern part of the Czech Republic and is situated a little north of the country's second largest city, Brno. Similar to Prague, Olomouc is also a very ancient city and was the seat of church and politics for Moravia up until Swedish invasion in the 1640's, after which power was shifted to Brno. Olomouc is an absolutely gorgeous city and certainly rivals Prague in many ways. One element in which Olomouc wins hands down, however, is in the level of crowdedness. Many sites will refer to Olomouc as one of the "hidden gems" of the Czech Republic, or even Europe. One of my favorite aspects of the city is the open feel it gives. There are many different squares with ornate fountains and statues and it's often hard to tell whether or not you are in the main one or simply one of the splendid other ones.  

Perhaps one of the most amazing tourism tools offered is the Olomouc Region Card. This brilliant little card can be purchased for either two or five day periods and grants the cardholder access to over a hundred different sites and attractions in not only the city of Olomouc, but the entire Olomouc region, which includes an extensive list of chateaus and castles sprinkled throughout the Moravian countryside. Within Olomouc the card provides access to museums, towers, churches, and tours virtually free of charge. It can be shown for a discount at many shops and restaurants as well. 

Perhaps the sign that the day's race was going to go
horribly wrong, when Daniel's donuts was spotted
on the scene 

Before and after photo taken by Vendula

St. Wenceslaus Cathedral, the oldest part of Olomouc and the site of a
museum containing historic artifacts belonging to the city

Those Catholics among the readers might find this
'tabernacle candle' interesting...

Old archbishops' chapel in the St. Wenceslaus complex

Archbishop's carriage

Original statues taken from St. Maurice Gothic church in Olomouc town center

Example of the Gothic architecture in the windows

A Hapsburg ruler taking a quick selfie 

Olomouc also boasts an astronomical clock. This
one, however has seen many changes with the times.
Its theme/design has gone from Gothic to Renaissance, to
Baroque, and most recently to its current Socialist Realism 
style during the Communist period after being damaged
 in the second world war

The Upper Square of Olomouc as seen from the tower of the city hall. The
column you can see is called Trinity Column and was built to Mary
in thanks for saving the town (at least some of it) from the plague that swept
through Europe. The column holds a small chapel within it and is on the
UNESCO list of cultural and historic sites

Like moths to a porch lamp, tourist swarm the small metal map of Olomouc
searching for enlightenment

St. Maurice church claims to own the biggest organ in Central Europe

Climbing the St. Maurice tower

Street art

On Monday we went to Bouzov Castle, an amazing castle that has never gone
to ruin and was the headquarters of the Teutonic Knights for some time. Now it
is famous for the films and Czech fairy tales that have been shot there

We arrived just a little too late for dinner...

The castle courtyard

Impressive chandelier in the chapter house room of the castle