October 17, 2021: It’s the end of week five, and we can’t believe that the program is already halfway through! We didn’t have any excursions this week, so it was a chill week in Prague (literally and figuratively). The temperatures are definitely dropping, but we’re still spending a lot of time exploring the city and finding warm things to eat and drink!
On Thursday morning, we visited Bohnice Psychiatric Hospital to meet with Dr. Jan Koznar and sexual offender patients receiving treatment for paraphilic disorders. The patients ranged in age from 21 to 55 years old and were all in various stages of court-ordered psychotherapeutic treatment for pedophilia or pathological sexual aggression. With translation assistance from Dr. Koznar, we were able to ask a variety of questions about the specifics of their treatment program and their personal experiences with stigma and rehabilitation, as well as their plans for the future. It was incredibly interesting to hear the patients’ perspective on their diagnosis and their remorse for their past crimes. In addition, it was fascinating to compare the treatment-oriented Czech approach to sexual offenders to the more punishment-focused perspective of the United States.
Even the psychiatric complex itself provided a stark contrast to the U.S.; the hospital grounds included a garden, farms, and a soccer field despite also restricting movement to and from the facility. In general, this clinic visit provided us with the unique opportunity to speak with a population that is heavily stigmatized and criminalized in the United States and introduced us to a key cultural difference of the Czech Republic.
On Friday night, Rebecca, Maddy, and Laurie went on a ghost tour of Prague in Old Town Square. The tour guide carried a lantern, which fit the spooky ambience very well. Rebecca mentioned that one of the ghost stories involved flying goats! According to legend, Rudolph II of Hapsburg had alchemy labs that were underground in the tunnels connecting to Town Hall, and the fumes from the labs caused people to see flying goats on a chariot!
On Sunday night, Minneh, Rebecca, and I went to Signal Festival, which featured light projections and audiovisual art exhibits about climate change in a walking tour around Old Town. We had a great time seeing the exhibits and enjoyed the beautiful view of Prague at night.
After walking around for a while, we gave in to temptation and finally tried trdelník, the infamously touristy rolled cinnamon sugar pastry filled with ice cream or whipped cream. Overall, it was really fun to explore the city and see it from a different perspective at night!
We leave for Poland on Tuesday, so stay tuned for some exciting adventures in a brand new country! Photo credit to Rebecca and Minneh (and Ken for the group pic), for taking better pictures than my phone is physically capable of.