BestEd

Dobrý den,

I’m one of the 20 Malaysian students who joined 24 others in the first year of Palacky University’s 6 Year English Program for Medicine last year in September. In this letter, I’ll be talking about the life in this University, the town Olomouc and what is to expect when you arrive. However, no matter how much I can write, I doubt I could ever get everything mentioned. Still I hope this letter would answer most of your questions about this place.

One of the few things we could notice in Czech Republic is that it’s a typical Eastern European country with its beautiful cities and its rich history behind every building, wall and squares.

Before I left Malaysia for here, I’ve tried reading some stuffs about this place just so that I wouldn’t be overwhelmed by this thing called ‘Cultural Shock’ but such efforts seem so futile for a person who had never set foot on Europe in his 20 year old life. But don’t be taken back when I say such, as given time, you would most probably feel like it’s your second home.

I think when you ask people who had been to Olomouc, they would always tell you that it’s a beautiful place. All I can say is to take their word for it. It was the same feeling when I walked into the Holni Namesti (Square of Heroes) when we were brought around town for the first time. Everything looked just as it was from the pictures. It’s as though you’ve just walked into a travel brochure you received from Matta Fair.

Olomouc’s public transport (runs by DPMO) is rather convenient as you would find yourself taking the trams most of the time. There are also a good number of busses running punctually according to schedule. As students, you can apply for a pass that would cost you about 280 Kč for three months and enables you to travel on both the town’s busses and trams.

And as for your student’s hostel in Neředin it very near to a tram station of the same name. A trip to the town center from Neředin in a regular tram is less than 10 minutes. You can even walk for 30 minutes from the town to the hostel if you would like to enjoy the fresh air and the good weather.

Being somewhat like a student town, you can spot a high number of students in Olomouc. Aside from international students from the Medical Faculty, there would also be exchange students from other European countries as Palacky University is also part of the Erasmus Program. But most of the Erasmus students would be from other faculties like Philosophy and Law.

You can get your daily necessities from grocery stores or smaller versions of supermarkets located on the way to the Medical faculties. Popular branches of Alberts and Delvita can be found all over town. Most of the time, you can find a small shelf containing Asian condiments or sauces which are imported mainly from Thailand and Vietnam. Products from Brahim’s seem to have found its way to the shelves as well.

There are also hypermarts where you can get almost everything you need. There’s one called Globus which is near Neředin and a Tesco which is a little further away. There’s also Olympia, which is the most popular place in town aside from strolling around the Upper Square.

Halal food is quite limited. But, I guess there are places selling halal meat. As far as I know there are places like Billa and Alberts that sells frozen halal chicken. You can always ask the Muslim students when you get here. Last I heard, there is also a small surau in town.

You shouldn’t worry too much on the food department as you can find most of the stuffs we eat I Malaysia available here like rice, spices, oyster sauce and soy sauce. One thing’s for sure, you wouldn’t starve when you’re in town. Food can be bought from almost anywhere. At most of the time, you can always buy some quick snacks over the counter. There would also be Chinese restaurants that sell inexpensive food in a very generous portion.

But bear in mind that unlike Malaysia, shops in most of the places closes at 5pm on weekdays and 12.30pm on Saturdays. Most of the shops are closed on Sundays except for those big hypermarts that are open till 8-9 pm.

Palacky University is the only university in town and its faculties are all across town. The theoretical building of the Medical Faculty, where you will be attending all of your classes in the first six semesters, is situated right beside the teaching hospital.

There is no direct tram route from Neředin to the faculy. But you can always take busses like No. 26 which heads from Neředin to a bus stop 50 meters away from the Faculty. It is the fastest way to get to the faculty. But the bus doesn’t run often, so it is advisable to plan your trips every morning. There are also a few other routes such as taking a tram three stops from Neředin and then a bus from there or you can just walk for 15 minutes from the tram stop to the faculty.

There is another option where you can take two different trams and then walk for as far as 200m before reaching the building. Some students even got themselves a bicycle as it is much more convenient for them in terms of timing and flexibility. However you would have to change your plans during winter and when it starts to snow as you can’t really cycle on such slippery terrains.

Facilities in the faculty are rather convenient. There are lockers which are subject to availability at that time. You would have to sign in every morning to get a locker.

There are also computers with both intra and internet access which are all over the place. The Faculty recently upgraded the computers in the faculty and we now have something like 40 brand new computers all over the place. There are also printers and photocopying machines which charges 1 Kč for every page copied and 1.20 Kč for every page printed.

Living in Neředin can be rather convenient as mentioned before, the tram is right in front of the hostels and there’s also a food court which serves hot meals at a rather cheap price. But it operates only until 5 in the evening. Washing your clothes is also possible at a price.

Keep in mind that it isn’t possible for first years to get single rooms which was the case that happened to us. I don’t know how it would be for you when you arrive on September 2007. If you have to share a room, then you should just be patient and wait till you are in the second year. Besides, you can always make new friends by sharing rooms with another. A few of us are sharing rooms with international students. You can learn a lot more than you think.

Communication in the Czech Republic can sometimes be a problem when you first arrive here. People don’t really speak much English especially among the elderly. But most of the younger Czechs do speak good English. So, if you are having some problems in communication, you can always ask for help. Most of the people who speak Czech and English would gladly offer their assistance.

But don’t worry too much about it. You can always pick up a phrasebook when you’re here and you will be taught the language in your first 6 semesters. I don’t know how your first semester’s textbooks would be arranged but for other textbooks, you can also get them at a local bookstore in Olomouc. The choices are limited but all the necessary books are there. There is another option of getting books from Amazon.com.

Personally, I would think that some of the books sold here are rather expensive than what I can get from Malaysia. But when it comes to medical books, they can be big and heavy. So, I would suggest students to decide of what to bring over as your luggage limit doesn’t really let you bring too many things.

Also, one more thing for any of you who are thinking of bringing electrical goods over to Czech Republic. Remember to also carry along an adaptor. The usual two pin plugs wouldn’t have much difficulty but the three pins might face some problems. I would suggest you to get your adaptors from Malaysia before coming over as it is much cheaper. Unlike the three pin plugs in Malaysia, the plugs here have two rounded pins and a hole on top.

Life in the university can sometimes be tough but I guess you shouldn’t worry too much as there are a good number of Malaysian students who would be in their second years when you come in for the Winter Semester in 2007. There would be also this society called PEPA which is a body formed for the English Program Medical students in Palacky University.

I hope I have everything covered and most, if not some, of your questions answered. One more piece of advice is that you should just come here with an open mind as you are coming to a new place where some things are very different and you can’t really expect everything to be like Malaysia.

I hope you are looking forward to coming here as much as all of us here are looking forward to welcoming you. And by the way, eat as much Roti Canais, Char Kuey Teows and Nasi Lemak before you come over, those are the things you would actually miss second to family and friends (and pets, of course).

I shall end here for now and hope to see you in Olomouc in September 2007.

Regards,
LW