Prague quietly reframed how I think about engineering. The best innovations I saw here weren’t chasing perfection, but they were solving problems in the context of the city. The city’s geography, its history, and its people all shaped what got built and how. The most important thing I learned was that good engineering isn’t just technically impressive, it’s appropriate to its moment and place.
If you’re headed to Prague, my advice is to slow down. The city hides its best details in the carved facades of buildings you’d walk past without looking up, or in the floors of museums. Everything is in the small things. The history and ingenuity are everywhere, but only if you’re actually looking.
What I’m most grateful for has nothing to do with any landmark. It’s the people. The connections made on a trip like this, with our inside jokes, shared reactions, and late conversations, are the part that actually lasts. Prague was beautiful. But the group made it unforgettable.
Here’s to carrying both home. ❤
Swanson School of Engineering 