One of my most surprising discoveries in Prague came from today’s dinner. In our cooking class, we prepared a traditional potato and mushroom soup, and through it, we learned just how central mushrooms are to Czech culture. Our guide Yana explained that Czech forests are filled with a wide and vast variety of mushrooms, and children are taught from an early age to distinguish safe varieties from dangerous ones. Mushroom hunting is also practically a sport, with almost all families keeping a stock of their own dried, hunted mushrooms in their pantries.
Equally eye opening was our walking tour of the city itself. Prague’s history isn’t hidden but layered right beneath our feet. We learned how medieval floors were built over to combat flooding, how underground spaces sheltered revolutions and meetings, and how the city rebuilt itself after the iconic clocktower was set on fire. Prague doesn’t erase its past but instead works to adapt around it.
Swanson School of Engineering 