By zelenkal
I do want to be careful and prevent myself from making statements about the weather here in Washington. After my last post that concerned the weather, I claimed that spring has finally sprung in DC. However, I woke the day after submitting the post and the first thing I saw from the window was snow. Now, just a few short weeks later, it is summer. Temperatures last week have been in excess of 90 degrees and it has caused me to notice many differences between the Czech Republic and the United States. First of all: we are not used to this heat. In the last few weeks back home, it has been less than 45 degrees and rainy every day. Something that isn't very nice, but also isn't atypical of Central Europe. Secondly: air conditioning. Here, it seems to be everywhere. In Prague, one can find it advertised in the windows of restaurants like it is a luxury, and it is almost nonexistent in homes, student housing, or public buildings. I can deal with the heat, but quite frankly, I'm not accustomed to this luxury and the dry air pumped out of the air conditioning units has been causing a bit of a sore throat. Of course I was not the only one, who encountered some difficulties – all the librarians must have been sweating buckets. As a result of the extreme and unexpectedly high temperature, all the students got a relieve from studying when Gelman Library closed down.
In other big news from Washington, the cherry blossoms are in full bloom. Taking advantage of a beautiful Friday afternoon without classes, my friend and I toured the familiar grounds around the tidal basin. Although, I had visited the monuments and gone on jogs through the area a number of times, it was like discovering something entirely new. We do not have trees like this, especially in this abundance, in Prague and the sight of hundreds all around the city was boarding on alien. The gorgeous weather and the addition of the sometimes pink and sometimes white flowers covering the trees amplified the beauty of the colossal monuments. The way the flowers had overtaken the trees that I had previously only seen bare and the way they flowed into the basin was incredible. Being able to see the Washington Monument framed by the pink, snowball-like clusters of flowers only made me long more than ever to be able to go to the top and see how pink the world was from a bird's eye view.
Thursday was a little bit windy so there were petals all over the ground, and this fairy-tale-like atmosphere with people on paddle boats on Tidal Basin changed the whole feeling in the city. The walks and the runs I have had since the trees blossomed have been amazing and it always helps you getting rid of the stress from all the papers and tests at school. It is just so easy to fall in love with Washington this time of the year.