Daunting "Free Time"

Ah yes, the predicament of free time. It was (and is) honestly one of the scariest parts about this whole moving to another country thing. Yes I have work, that I should be focused on majority of the time, since that's after all what I'm here to do. But with some class days ending at 12pm for me, free time becomes a pretty daunting challenge when you really don't know your space or your people quite yet. I've talked to some other ETAs who are experiencing the same thing, because it's something I really have never faced before. Free time and no responsibilities are bringing me a bit of anxiety, and while I'm hopeful the school year will bring more activities and more of a routine, it's a very real feeling right now of being a little scared of alone time.

Now if you know anything about me, this might sound weird. I love my alone time haha. I get overstimulated by people pretty often and would honestly choose to not go out just to have the apartment or room to myself for the night. I need it to recharge and soak in the quiet. But it's so different when you're not being exhausted in the same exact ways, when you don't feel super secure in your environment, and especially when there's this looming pressure to get acclimated and familiar with everything around you. There's a really overwhelming feeling of "I have to utilize all my free time to the max and make friends now because otherwise I'll be alone and sad for the rest of the year" lol. I've definitely had good and bad days dealing with this free time since I've been here, and will share both sides of that, but I think what's gotten me through most of it so far is setting goals for myself no matter the size. And actually writing them down. So some days my one goal may be to go to that one cafe I always see and just go in and sit. Enjoy a coffee and call that a success. Maybe I'll meet an English speaking waiter/waitress and we'll become familiar faces. Even though it only may take an hour, it's progress and hopefully now a new

place I'll feel comfortable with. Another goal I've set is to figure out the washing machine haha, just baby steps. Or watch 4 hours of Bachelor in Paradise - also an incredibly important goal and part of my weekly routine lol. That sets me up nicely for a long walk on Tuesday or Wednesday listening to Bachelor recap podcasts while wandering new paths or trails I see. But sometimes my goal is to simply get food I enjoy and cook dinner. Or drink 2L of water because Czechs don't drink water...

I've been really really lucky to have colleagues and friends of friends in the area who have made me feel so welcomed and at home, so most of my days after work recently have been bike rides with them, or visits to their homes and gardens, or pubs in the afternoon. And from the students too!! It's only been a short time getting to know them but I've been invited ice skating, to their coffee shop they work at, and more! I know this hasn't really been the case for all ETAs so I'm definitely feeling grateful for the generosity around me to make me feel okay. I already feel such a difference with this and what I've experienced in the US. The people here genuinely care so much about making me feel comfortable and extend help at any time. I think at home you'd be lucky to find one or two people to do that for you when you enter a brand new environment, and the rest is kind of on your own. I'm feeling extra grateful for a literal community of people at my school who act that way and are genuine about it too.

I've found myself busier than expected in these past weeks, but also have this looming thought over my head that in a couple more weeks I won't really be this exciting new person anymore who needs to meet all these friends. I'll become more of a colleague, a regular, and maybe these really generous activities won't be as frequent? I'm trying not to worry about that too much and literally take it day by day with a little goal here or there, and hope for the best. I have no real reason to believe things will turn to that, but of course Michaela loves to overthink :)

I also have felt EXTRA lucky because my town Tábor is a pretty central point to a lot of other ETAs in the area, and since we're all kind of feeling this weird "What do I do with my free time", I've already gotten to see some of them! Not to flex but Tábor is like the best little city and especially end of summer there's a TON of live music, festivals, events, etc. So a lot of ETAs visited me for Tabook festival which was all about small local publishers and artists promoting their works (mostly in Czech of course), which was quite the experience and so great to see everyone. We saw so many beautiful books, listened to some choirs, and supported some local artists and bought our first souvenirs. There conveniently was also a wine festival in the town square so we paid <$2 for a glass of wine from 17 different small wineries haha. They called it a "tasting" but that was 100% a full glass of wine. No question about that. It was such a lovely weekend already getting to show off my town a little, drink some good wine and experience authentic Czech culture haha. All I'll say with that, is definitely go to any Czech choir performance because in between every song they'll run out a tray of free drinks for anyone who wants it. So there were about 12 different rounds of drinks offered to us within 45 minutes haha beer, wine, shots, obscure liquor, champagne, you name it. Also. A goat on a leash inside was not a concerning or obscure thing. Its horn stabbed me in the back a little but all is good haha.

The next weekend I got to experience Táborská Setkáni which was a massive festival in my town to commemorate it's history and founding. So think medieval Busch Gardens but like, a bit more authentic haha. There were SO many people in the town, a massive stage and full-on orchestras and choirs constantly performing. Down the streets there were little reenactments and tons of food and drink. It was so much to experience and some ETAs came in from close by towns to see it as well, which was really great to be able to walk around not by myself lol.

So as you can see, end of summer in Tábor is pretty hectic, but I've already been warned the winter is the exact opposite. So crossing my fingers I'll find a fulfilling routine that doesn't rely on massive festivals haha.

I guess the other thing that has been saving me during my free time is all my close friends who haven't failed to answer all of my FaceTimes and hear me rant about life. Sometimes people might think I'm super busy or the time difference changes everything, and I'm living this super busy and exciting life. And I guess if you look at it a certain way yes I'm living a different life, but it's not really THAT different, and I'm still the same me haha. Like time difference and opposite schedules sound daunting but with people that really care it isn't a game changer. And my friends have really proven that to me. Whether we miss each other's ft and leave voice memos instead, or even text each other when the other is asleep - it's the effort that really matters and is 100% keeping me afloat and not feeling alone. Most days my work day is over before my friends even wake up, and then I can finish my night catching up with people and hearing about their lives. It's made me feel normal again to hear about life back home and how work/school is going for everyone. People have been so kind and interested in my experiences but I've talked about myself for the past 3 weeks and it's really getting exhausting haha. I feel like every conversation I have is "How's school, how's Czech, how are you adjusting?" And I am so appreciative of those people who constantly check in and show they really care about how I'm doing. But there's also something so refreshing about hearing about my friends boy drama or issues at work. It puts me back into the real world at home for a second haha. And it's honestly one of the biggest things keeping me alive. (And the conversations about them visiting. also keeping me alive haha)

So yeah. Free time in complicated. And I shouldn't be taking it for granted because who gets to say they have too much free time in the Czech Republic haha. But I'm being realistic with myself and being okay with the fact that it's not always rainbows. Free time is allowed to be scary but that's why you make little goals and consider random things accomplishments. Because they are. You're probably doing something so brand new and there's no handbook for how to go about life, so be patient with yourself and ride the waves.

Just make sure you have a bachelor episode or podcast downloaded in case you desperately need to escape reality haha.