By Ricky, on November 8th, 2012
Prague on the Vltava River © Ricky Yates
For better or worse, I am part of social media. I write this blog and I am on Facebook. Yesterday via Facebook, I received a barrage of posts from my American ‘friends’ regarding the outcome of their Presidential and Congressional elections held on Tuesday 6th November 2012. One person, (you know who you are 🙂 ), posted over fifty times between my going to bed late in the evening of Tuesday 6th November and logging on again mid-morning the next day!
The vast majority of these ‘friends’ were expressing a mixture of joy, relief or satisfaction at the election result – often a mixture of all three. But a small minority, mostly ‘friends’ of American ‘friends’ of mine now living here in Prague, were in utter despair at the result and were threatening to leave the USA . . . → Read More: Two days after President Obama’s re-election
By Ricky, on November 5th, 2012
Liberec Town Hall © Ricky Yates
The city of Liberec is situated 110 km north-east of Prague, quite close to the border of the Czech Republic with both Germany and Poland. Known in German as Reichenberg, it lies within the former Sudetenland and had a majority German-speaking population until the vast majority were expelled in 1945-6, at the end of the Second World War.
We paid our first visit to Liberec on my day-off four weeks ago, Monday 8th October. The chief reason for our trip was to visit Liberec Zoo, which is home to a pair of rare White Bengal Tigers, who earlier this year, successfully produced three tiger cubs.
Liberec Zoo is located in a leafy suburb east of the city centre. It has the distinction of being the oldest zoo in the Czech Republic, having been founded in 1919, well . . . → Read More: Liberec
By Ricky, on October 31st, 2012
The Stadtkirche St Marien from the town square in Wittenberg © Ricky Yates
Today is Reformation Day / Reformationstag, marking the occasion on 31st October 1517, when Martin Luther sent a letter to the Archbishop of Mainz and Magdeberg, protesting about the sale of indulgences and enclosing a document setting out his disputation with Roman Catholic teaching and practice of that time, which has become known as ‘The 95 Theses’. According to tradition – though now disputed by some scholars, he also pinned these ’95 Theses’ to the door of the Schlosskirche /Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany.
Today is a public holiday in several of the German Länder / States, celebrating this event which is seen as the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. Many Churches of the Lutheran tradition hold special services though sometimes these are transferred back to the previous Sunday, known as ‘Reformation . . . → Read More: Reformation Day – 31st October
By Ricky, on October 28th, 2012
The sun rising over the Aegean Sea at Attica © Ricky Yates
Once a year, the clergy of the Anglican Chaplaincies scattered across Central & Eastern Europe, together with elected lay representatives of their congregations, meet together as the Eastern Archdeaconry Synod. This year’s synod meeting took place at the Cabo Verde Hotel in Attica, just outside of Athens, between Thursday 27th – Sunday 30th September.
This was the fifth Eastern Archdeaconry Synod meeting that I have attended. In the week prior to moving to Prague in September 2008, Sybille and I attended as observers, the Synod meeting held that year in Corfu. You can read about all the subsequent Synod meetings here on my blog. They were in Izmir in 2009, Vienna in 2010, and Bucharest in 2011.
Because of the very scattered nature of our . . . → Read More: The 2012 Eastern Archdeaconry Synod at Attica, near Athens
By Ricky, on October 19th, 2012
Enjoying Czech beer in Letna Beer Garden, Prague © Ricky Yates
Just over four years ago, on 19th September 2008, Sybille and I arrived in Prague to begin a new chapter in our life together – a Brit and a German living as an expatriate married couple in the Czech Republic. This blog, which I started writing and publishing just over four months later, is as I state in, About me – including two photos, ‘….my attempt to reflect on ministering to English-speakers from a variety of backgrounds and countries, and living as an expat myself in this fascinating city and country’.
As this fourth anniversary of our expatriate existence recently approached, I started reflecting on what makes for living successfully in another country that is not your own. This post is the result of those reflections, written out of our own personal . . . → Read More: How to be a successful expat
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