Archive for the ‘Czech Course’ Category
Prague: can expats who don’t speak Czech find work easily? If so, where are the best places?
My partner has been offered a job in Prague but I would have to start from scratch. I have 6 years’ experience in recruitment advertising & online media and speak fluent English and Spanish.
Thanks!
being really good in PR, or advertising you will have no problem even when speaking English. Most of the personell involved in these branches are fluent in English.
You could probably offer the language courses, like the post above me wrote. Some sort of a verified refference would be handy – to prove your actual language level.
6 Confusing Things about TEFL
When you’re new to the TEFL world or even to the teaching world, everything can seem a little confusing and overwhelming. To help clear things up we’ve cleared up the topics that confuse people most!
1) Why all the acronyms?
There are lots of acronyms to describe teaching English abroad – TEFL, TESOL and TEFL. While we don’t know why there are so many, we can clear up what they stand for!
TEFL = Teaching English as a Foreign Language
TESOL = Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
TESL = Teaching English as a Second Language
There are all refer to the exact same thing… teaching English. But different acronyms are used in different places. For example, in the UK TEFL is used and in the US and Australia TESOL is used.
2) What can you do with a TEFL certificate?
You can teach English pretty much anywhere in the world!! There is a demand for English teachers anywhere in the world, where English isn’t the native language. With a TEFL certificate the world is your oyster!
3) Can you get your TEFL certificate and find TEFL jobs without a degree?
Anyone can get their TEFL certification, degree or no. As for jobs, you can get one without a degree, but it’s easier with one, and some countries require it. Some countries such as Japan, South Korea and Taiwan all require a degree in order to obtain a visa. Don’t worry though, there are loads of countries you can teach in without needing a degree, such as China, Ecuador and the Czech Republic.
4) Should I take the online or combined TEFL course? The 60 hour course? 100 hour course?
That all depends on you. What do you have time for? How flexible is your schedule? How much do you want to learn to prepare yourself to teach abroad? Remember, the more hours you complete, the more prepared you’ll be to teach, and the more employable you’ll be.
5) Who should TEFL? Is it for anyone and everyone?
TEFL is for many, but not everyone. If you’re considering teaching, you’ll need to:
- enjoy travel
- like children (if you want to teach children, not so crucial if you want to teach teens or adults)
- be able to exercise patience
- like to help others
And most importantly, the most essential quality of any budding TEFLer – an open mind. The good news is that you don’t need to speak another language or have any teaching experience.
What do you think the most confusing thing about TEFL is?
About the Author
Teaching English abroad is the perfect opportunity for any English speaker to explore the world. As long as you’re a fluent English speaker, a TEFL course is your ticket to the journey of your life.
Bike Touring in the Czech Republic
Bike Touring in the Czech Republic
By George F. Karioris
The air was alive with clanging bells from atop copper clad baroque church towers. Throughout the day their bronze voices sang resilient songs of victory and freedom. Now deep behind what had been the Soviet iron curtain until 1989 stirs the Czech Republic, formerly Czechoslovakia. Restless from decades of colorless oppression and anxious to appear hospitable, the Czechs have so much to offer visitors.
As presented in www.FirstLightSports.com
We began our foray into the deep and near past of central Europe in the historic city of Prague. Its castles, churches, and town squares bristle with life and a new world attitude. Our little group of six had three days to spend there, walking the seemingly endless cobblestone walkways and streets. Fantastically varied in their design and shape the mosaic patterns of the cobbles throughout Prague are a study in geometric art. Our elegant hotel, The Barceló, was just steps from Prague’s old town square and its eccentrically interesting shopping district. Our group consisted of Meg & Chuck, Maggie & Tim, my beautiful wife Amy, and me (George; cyclist, computer-programmer, writer, and editor for FirstLightSports.com). All of the major attractions in the city are well within walking distance from our fabulous lodgings. Foremost on any visitor list would certainly be the Prague Castle and St. Vitus cathedral high above the Vltava River. Ridiculously huge and imposing in their size and scale they can be seen from anywhere in town. Prague’s Old Town square adjacent to our hotel is the heart of the city with its medieval Astronomical clock keeping the city’s pulse alive since the year 1410. The Jewish quarter section of Prague is yet another key to understanding the deep roots of this historic city. Emotionally moving and poignant, this area adds complexity and depth to the patina of experiencing Prague. And then there were the bells… ringing, clanging, singing. They always brought me to a stop for just a moment each time I heard them. I tried to remember and associate the place, the emotion, and the moment, with those antique voices throughout the trip.
There is so much to see and do in this city a few short days to see it hardly seemed enough. Three short days after arriving in eastern Europe we had re-synched out jetlagged sleep cycles, eaten pork knuckle (more than once!), and seen the city’s major attractions. We were ready for a week of biking and itching for a chance to get onto two wheels. If our trip was a sandwich, Prague was the top piece of flavorful exotic bread. The center meat was a scheduled week of biking through the Czech, German, and Austrian countryside. Following the week on bikes, we had a three day visit to Vienna, Austria which would serve as the wonderful bottom-bread to our vacation sandwich. It was late June and we had been planning this trip since the previous Christmas. As the excursion approached we were bolstered by new excitement and anticipation. Our logistics and arrangements were made through the good folks at Vermont Bike Tours,VBT (www.VBT.com).
Following our third night at The Barceló we gathered in the lobby to start the biking phase of the trip. We met the rest of our VBT group, a total of 19 people as we boarded a tour bus headed for the picturesque village of Český Krumlov. In this amazingly preserved baroque town we met Andy and Zuzanna, our two VBT guides who would be with us throughout the week. Both young and athletic they were instantly warm and likable. Zuzanna is blue eyed ethnic Czech who grew up in Canada before returning to the Czech Republic. She has a ready smile and a propensity to laugh easily and often. She speaks unaccented English and (apparently) perfect Czech too. Andy is tall and willowy; a lilting Austrian accent combined with his soft spoken demeanor make him both personally disarming and confidently trustful. He grew up near Saltsburg speaking German and studied English in school. As the trip progressed we were continually impressed with their skills, caring attitude, and most of all their impressive (damn near) perfect ability to keep 19 one-time strangers entertained, engaged, and smiling.
We arrived in Český Krumlov and checked into The Rose hotel, formerly a Jesuit monastery. Certainly more eccentric than Prague’s Barceló, The Rose sits perched on a main street overlooking the Vltava River as it snakes sinuously through the center of the village. It was in the Rose’s courtyard that we first met our bikes. Based on our heights and bike types Andy and Zuzanna had done the initial setup for each of us. I prefer to bike with clip-in shoes and had brought my own pedals from home. When I got to my bike Andy or Zuzanna had already installed the pedals. For this trip most of the riders, including me, had chosen to ride hybrid bikes with only four riders on road bikes. The gearing on both styles was identical; a triple chain wheel configuration up front at the crank and a wide-ranging 7-gear cluster at the back hub. The hybrids were setup with lightly treaded 35mm tires and the road bikes were configured with slim 23mm semi-smooth units. Some of the bikes had seat shocks, but all were equipped with a comfortable seat, rear-looking mirror, a thumb actuated bell, a generous rear pack, and a handlebar mounted map compartment. The bikes have a custom configuration created and utilized by VBT for all their tours worldwide. Not nearly as light as the carbon-fiber Cannondale Six13 I ride back home, my VBT bike was solid and dependable. Prior to the trip I had purchased a couple inexpensive bike computers on EBay. I mounted one of the computers on my bike in a few minutes, and was glad to have it throughout the week. In an orientation meeting discussing cycle protocol in-and-around town, Zuzanna also introduced us to the daily route sheet. The route sheet contains turn-by-turn directions and mileage (in Kilometers, of course) for each day’s ride. So with a new understanding of VBT’s shorthand directions and a fresh route sheet, we headed out on our first ride.
Our first day’s outing was a warm-up and tuning ride of only 10 or 12 miles. I was unsure of how the newly formed overall group would proceed. Would we all ride together in a pack, or string out individually? Would the quicker riders slow for the more moderate ones? In the end, as the week progressed the ride patterns changes somewhat, but the daily riding pack had fast riders out front, followed by a varied string of more restrained riders, and always Zuzanna or Andy riding the clean-up slot at the end. Our warm-up ride took us directly through the heart of Český Krumlov’s cobbled streets and walkways quickly out to the Czech countryside. For many miles of this ride we were, I thought at first, on a wonderfully smooth and paved cycle/recreation pathway. I was caught off guard and surprised several times to encounter cars and light trucks driving on the same pavement. Generally Tim and Maggie were out front on their road bikes for most rides. Along with them were the near-speedy group of George and Amy along with Jerry (who, due to some name confusion was often referred to as “Larry-Jerry”) and Fireman Mike, both from New York. Following the route sheet’s directions was a bit uncomfortable at first. Clearly we were not accustomed to the area, and executing the often rapid-fire turns took some mental adjustments.
As the warm-up ride concluded our route circled us back to The Rose hotel. When we returned Zuzanna took notes on each of our bikes for any fine-tuning adjustments. I needed the headset lowered so that the handlebars would be at a more natural position, and I had a dud for a bell that needed to be replaced. VBT had arranged a wonderful tour of the castle and Baroque theater which are the key tourist attractions in Český Krumlov. Stanislaus, our guide, gave us a wonderful walking tour and pointed out how gray everything (the buildings, the clothing, and even the people) was while living under the soviet communists. 1989 saw the reborn Czech Republic sloughing off the shackles of oppression and re-colorizing their lives. Stanislaus apologized for his heavily accented English and informed us it would have been much better if only Eisenhower had listened to General Patton and pushed the Russians back to their original borders in 1945. The man certainly has insight into world history and politics.
After a good night’s sleep in some former Jesuit’s room we were all ready for a day of biking. This was June 30th and it was my birthday. 75 degrees, sunshine, clear skies, and a day on two wheels… what a great way to spend a birthday! This day’s route was much longer (31 miles or so), and we started out route meeting at 8:30 following a substantial breakfast. We biked out of town with along climb into the peaceful Czech farm country. Along the roadway and then onto another pseudo-bike path it seemed like we were only going up and up and up. At about the 8 miles mark we met up with Zuzanna who was the van-driver for the day. She had parked under a tree in the small village of Zlatá Koruna and set out petite tables of snacks (candy bars, granola, wafers, etc), fresh fruit and water. There is a historic monastery in that town available for viewing by paid admission, but in truth we only used the restroom. We all made a stop in the restroom, checked in with Zuzanna, had a snack, and a very short respite.
Following the route laid out for us we traversed a high ridge of houses and farms with wonderfully scenic vistas, then turning downhill after the monastery leveled off to ride next to a river and campground. Shortly after that point on the route sheet are the words in bold capitol letters: WARNING: VERY STEEP INCLINE AND NARROW ROAD. WATCH OUT FOR DOWNCOMING CYCLISTS AND CARS. Andy had warned us at the morning meeting to get to a lower gear as we approached this point, but I was not convinced. Since VBT rates this trip in the easy/moderate category I strongly suspected that their version of “steep” was going to be pretty wimpy. I was wrong again, not for the last time either. As we turned to the right, away from the river, the pathway jumped suddenly from virtually flat to an intensely steep 12% grade. Luckily I managed to stay on my pedals and get by a few people who had come to a complete stop stalling out at the skirt of the hill. The path snaked upward at that severe grade for over half a mile. I worked hard to get into lower and lower gear combinations until I was finally on the smallest chain-ring in the front and the largest gear in the back. I climbed slowly and had some trouble keeping my front wheel on the ground; I was in such a low gear that the bike wanted to go into “wheelie” mode. When I cleared the rise, the pathway was cutting through a wheat field and under a lone tree in that sea of wheat was a bench to rest at. Only Tim was there, and now me too. Sucking air, but proud to have reached the summit without walking, we were joined a bit later by Fireman Mike. We were the only three to beat the grade. We thought that we got there due to our strength, endurance, and stamina. Our wives are convinced that we reached the top on 100% stubbornness alone.
Biking the rest of the morning brought us to the tiny Bohemian town of Plav where we would gather for lunch at a local farmhouse. Yaakov (Jacob) the owner and his family had prepared a great lunch for us and had picnic style tables set in a shady courtyard between his home and barn. Goulash soup, sliced meats, and salad made a delicious and filling lunch. Following the more savory part of the meal he brought out fresh baked apple strudel. Apparently his mother in the kitchen was the real culinary artist of the family, and kicked out some seriously amazing strudel. I unapologetically devoured several sweet, warm, and scrumptious pieces. When Yaakov heard that it was my birthday he brought out a bottle of home-made slivovitz, pear/plum brandy. In reality Yaakov’s slivovitz was Czech moon-shine or white-lightning, clear with extraordinarily high alcohol content. Like the strudel, I had more than one shot of slivovitz also; hey, it was my birthday! In the courtyard Yaakov’s family had a setup for a game that he called Russian-Bowling. Nine extra-large bowling pins setup in a pattern on dots are to be knocked down by a 10-pound concrete ball suspended by an 8-foot chain mounted to a steel pole-and-arm gizmo. The idea is to swing the ball outward, and knock the pins over on the ball’s return trip. The winner is the one who takes the fewest swings to knock all the pins down. It turns out that Amy is some kind of Russian-Bowling savant genius, taking only three turns to clear the pins. I’ve got to look more closely into her family background some day, that’s just not normal! Full of goulash, strudel, and liquor my birthday lunch in Plav had been a howling success. We spent the afternoon biking again through quiet Bohemian towns and villages under sunny skies and perfect weather. At the end of our ride as we entered picturesque Český Krumlov I once again heard bells. There were bells ringing slowly and melodically from church towers. The same bronze voices that sang to the kings, priests, and peasants for centuries were singing to me. Wow, I am truly lucky and blessed.
This little article only talks about a day or two of a truly wonderful experience. The rest of the week biking and touring with Zuzanna and Andy from VBT was equally amazing. From the Czech Republic we biked through the corner of Germany and stayed in the lovely town of Passau. On one sunny day we rode our bikes across the old Czech/German border, now simply marked by a few innocuous signs. A creek runs through a green and peaceful valley where for over four decades stood what the locals refer to as “the Iron Wall”. It was a surprisingly moving experience for me, having lived through much of the cold war years. We left Germany and enjoyed a few days riding along the Danube River through Austria’s Wachau Valley. The valley, lush with vineyards and apricot orchards, had a very approachable and welcoming feeling. We sampled a variety of wines and spirits from the area and even managed to bring home a small bottle of sweet apricot liqueur. Seemingly too soon, we said auf Wiedersehen to our new friends, our bikes, and the pastoral countryside as we boarded a bus for Vienna, Austria. We toured the lively city that was home to composers, kings, and scientists for three glorious days before heading home. On that last day as we waited for our bus outside on the cobbled sidewalk I could hear several of Vienna’s church bells tolling the morning hour. The only message that I could glean from their wordless song was that they would be here long after I departed, and would be waiting for me when I return.
Read more at www.FirstLightSports.com
About the Author
George Karioris is the Editor and Senior Feature Writer for www.FirstLightSports.com
email: george@firstligtsports.com
Meet Gorgeous Czech & Slovak Prospective Brides to Discover Paradise on Earth
Beautiful Czech and Slovak ladies are the cynosure of all eyes. They possess all the essential qualities that men desire to have in their life partners. It is a dream of every man on this planet to meet gorgeous Czech & Slovak prospective brides and make them their soul mates. Now, your long desired dream of meeting stunning Czech and Slovak women can see the face of success, thanks to the yeoman’s service of Destiny Woman Introduction Agency, the famous international mail order bride agency located at Prague.
The beauty of Czech and Slovak ladies lies not only in their sensual look, but they are at the same time adventurous, highly literate, well-acquainted with modern gadgets and courteous with deep respect for family values and traditions. They are also grown up in an ambiance conducive for healthy lifestyle as you know, Czech and Slovak Republic boasts world-class infrastructure comparable to any western country. Health and educational services are free of cost there and equipped with great facilities. Prague, the capital of Czech Republic, has many romantic locations to attract a lot of foreign tourists. The atmosphere is quite energetic with friendly people. A lower crime rate is another reason for flocking of tourists in large numbers. Above all, Czech and Slovak women speak fluent English which is quite appealing for many men.
Destiny Woman Introduction Agency offers a great deal professionalism and dedication to all its clients and takes care of their requirements and desires through customized services and individual approach. Wherever you’re in this world, you can fly down to Prague to enjoy its great hospitality and at the same time, meet your dream date in captivating locations of Czech cities. Both of you can then take one step ahead and bind yourselves in lifelong relationship.
If you want to join the mounting list of males who are mad to meet gorgeous Czech & Slovak prospective brides, you can register yourself at the website of Destiny Woman Introduction Agency – Beautiful-Czech-Women.com, to open the doors of eternal love and happiness. Keeping materialism at bay, these attractive ladies as prospective brides believe in serious relationship full of love and commitment.
Go ahead and fulfill your dream of meeting the most beautiful woman of the world and making her your soul mate by visiting
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About the Author
Biswajeet Shroff is a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree holder from ICFAI University, Hyderabad, India. He is currently working as Senior Content Developer in an Indian SEO company. He also does freelancing during pastime and writes on wide array of topics ranging
from blogging, finance and fashion to dating and other human
relationship aspects.
Medical Degree Courses
The lack of medical degree graduates is not due to the number of students capable or willing to gain relevant qualifications but a bottleneck in the academic system prevents students from taking degrees because of a lack of places or because the academic requirements are set too high.For many students who decide to study abroad, it’s seen as an adventure if anything, to go and learn and live in another country, embracing new cultures and meeting new people. For some the reasons are financial and for others, it’s because they were unable to get a place in a UK university with the grades they achieved at A Level and fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to gain a place in the Czech Republic.
Online medical degrees in the field of occupational therapy are open to practicing therapists with either a Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy, and lead to an Advanced Master of Science in Occupational Therapy. This 42-credit program includes studies in the area of professional practice, critical inquiry studies, electives and a capstone experience.Well, I guess that is why you have to toil for quite a while in school. Once you’ve completed all the necessary training you can start looking forward to making a good living. Of course a practice in a large city would probably give you a higher income. For those who have medical degrees finding a good location is certainly vital in relation to income.You must have talent in sketching, designing and sewing. Most up-and-coming designers will do all three and probably do them well. Once you become a fashion designer who is well known and famous you will only design and someone else will do the sewing for you but until then be prepared to do it all. It is best that you know how to do all three as you may have to step in and get a garment ready on short notice.
Set realistic expectations as only a small amount of designers get to work for big name fashion houses. There are however just as important designers working for smaller companies. The fashion industry is glamorous and very competitive so keep your options open. Another benefit of getting a degree from a fashion college is the larger fashion houses prefer to work with designers with a fashion degree.The first step to becoming a fashion designer is to assess your abilities. You must be able to sketch and sew, and you must have an eye for colors, patterns, designs and details. You’ll also need an inner drive and a strong will to succeed even when things look bleak and people are critical of your work, because the competition is fierce in this industry.
About the Author
Read about <a href=”http://www.studydiscussions.com/”>Study Abroad</a> and also read about <a href=”http://www.studydiscussions.com/post-graduate-qualifications-in-computing-science-in-canada/”>Computer Science Degree</a> and <a href=”http://www.studydiscussions.com/courses-on-public-health-in-canadian-universities/”>masters in public health programs</a>
How do you pronounce Czech words?
I am learning Czech online, but the problem is, the pronouncation is not at all like english, and i am so, so, so confused. I need to know how to pronounce words, before I can do grammar and vocabulary! Please help. is this pronouciation online where I can hear a native Czech speak it? is this patterns in pronouncation? “kdy” sounds like a “g” sound….? Why? Also, how do the weird hat characters are pronounce?
Ok… Your first problem here is that you are thinking of Czech as if it were English… Czech is a phonetic language, which means that every letter has an individual sound, it only makes THAT sound and it ALWAYS makes that sound. There MAY be exceptions, but there are none that I’m aware of. It took me 2 years of living in Prague to FINALLY understand this! lol
While you may think, or you may have been told (which ever the case may be) kdy sounds just like that. It does NOT sound like a g and if it does, it is being mispronounced. Remember this: The Czech “K” is softer than the English. They don’t “spit” as much when they pronounce it as we do. The “D” is also a bit softer and the “Y” sounds like the “I” in igloo does in English.
My fiancee and I met online, and while we were still just chatting she decided to try to help me learn Czech. Unfortunately, it turned out to be rather hopeless for me as I just suck at languages, but here is some of the help she gave me. Hopefully the charactes will show up here… I’m going to retype some of what she said because she doesn’t think like a native English speaker, even though she speaks it as well as one… Which means that things sound differently to her than they do to us. In places in which that is more prominent, I’m going to replace what she told me with the perspective of my ear after having lived here for 3 years.
a – pronounced like the “u” in “luck”
á – “a” in “card”
b – “b” in “big”
c – “ts” in “rats”
? – “ch” in “check”
d – “d” in “dog”
? – sounds similar to “dy” in English, where the “y” sounds like it does in “you”
e – “e” in “bed”
é – “a” in “fad”
? – Sounds similar to “ye” where the “y” sound like it does in “you” and the “e” sounds like it does in “egg”.
f – “f” in “flame”
g – “g” in “gorilla” lol
h – “h” in “horrible”
ch – This one is tricky… Pretend you are trying to “hock a loogie” (I’m hoping you know that term) but you are in class so you have to do it quietly… You place the back of the tongue close to the roof of the mouth and make a sound similar to “h” in “hello” but it will be slightly strangled… I can’t think of any good example in English at the moment…
i – “i” in “sit”
í – “ea” in “leave”
j – “y” in “yellow”
k – “c” in “clone”
l – “l” in “lime”
m – “m” in “monkey”
n – “n” in “never”
? – Similar to the “ñ” in “jalapeño” but a bit softer…
o – “o” in “fog”
ó – “aw” in “law”
p – “p” in “pork”
q – ?????????????????
r – The Czech “r” is slightly trilled as it is in the Scot or Irish accent, though not quite as sharp. Just don’t forget that there is always a slight “d” sound in the Czech “r” and you’ll be ok…
? – This one actually hurts to say. This character is so difficult that some Czechs can’t pronounce it and your tongue has to be a bit acrobatic to pull it off… It is something like this: “rdzhrd”. That is how it may look in English. If you remember that the “r” is trilled, then it looks more like this: “rzhre”. This one is NOT easy to explain in type and there is NOTHING like it in English… There have been MANY Czechs that have tried to help me with this one, but if they don’t think like a native English speaker, then they just have a hard time understanding how it sounds to us…
s – “s” in “stem”
š – “sh” in “shack”
t – Just like with the “k” the “t” is quieter and softer than it is in English…
? – Just like the “?” and the “?”, just add a soft “y” as in you to the end of the already softened t sound.
u – “u” in “bush” or “butcher”
ú and ? – “oo” in “fool” The difference in these two is basically their placement within the word, but for this purpose, I’m not going to go into that at the moment…
v – “v” in “venom”
w – This may actually be the trickiest one, only because it depends on the individual speaking it. Usually, it is pronounced just like “v” but there are some who have adapted the more English way of speaking and choose to pronounce it the way we do.
x – “x” in “sex”
y – “i” in “live”
ý – “ee” in “keep”
z – “z” in “zero”
ž – Sounds close to the “z” in “Azure”.
Just remember… Czech is not English. There are no silent characters. Even when it sounds like there are to us, if you listen to them the way they do, you can hear it… For example… In order to make the long “I” sound, as in “Ice” you have to combine the Czech characters “A” and “J”. If “ice” were a Czech word, it would be spelled “Ajs”. The long “o” sound is made by combining “o” and “u”. If “toast” were a Czech word, it would be spelled “Toust”. The long “a” sound is made by combining “E” and “J”. If “hate” were a Czech word, it would be spelled “hejt”.
I know some of this is confusing, but I hope it has been some help.
I would also suggest downloading Skype, getting a headset and looking for Czechs on Skype to talk to. You will often find Czechs that are willing to help you with Czech if you will help them with English.