The opportunity to undertake an Erasmus in Prague cannot be justified by any amount of words. Situated in the heart of central Europe, the Czech Republic is the ultimate portal to the rest of Europe, that boasts cost and time effective means of travel, and is host to the distinguished Charles University.

In summer 2016 a new permanent exhibition, “Enchanted by Antiquity”, was opened in Duchcov Chateau in North Bohemia. After a short interruption, the public once again gained access to the collection of historical plaster casts of ancient plastics from the collections of the Faculty of Arts of Charles University.

I visited the Náprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures at Betlémské náměstí, Prague, with a charming group of Czech school children who were completing a interesting programme called Searching for Sophie, created and supported by the Faculty of Arts at Charles University in Prague.

Over the years, there have been many remarkable students who have visited the Charles University in Prague as part of the Erasmus programme. One of the bravest ones has undoubtedly been the first wheelchair-using Erasmus student whom we were able to host, Concetta Giansiracusa from the Universit? degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", who came to the Faculty of Arts for the summer semester of 2010/2011.

You can place it somewhere between handball, volleyball and basketball and the main goal is not to win but to properly stretch your bones and have fun with friends. The game is called tchoukball and Adam Šťastný, a student of the Faculty of Physical Education and Sport of the Charles University, is now scouting for a faculty team and promotes the relatively unknown sport among his schoolmates.

In preparation for his upcoming book Professor Dennis Smith, currently residing at the University of Loughborough, has been giving a series of lectures on various political concepts in the context of their socio-political roots.

The Erasmus programme was named after the Dutch philosopher Desiderius Erasmus, who, in his quest for knowledge, lived and worked around Europe to gain new insights. It was founded in 1987 by the European Union with the intention of allowing students throughout the continent to study abroad with relative ease.

Mathematic models help us to understand the flow of blood through capillaries, behaviour of molten glass, flow patterns of asphalt and the movement of icebergs or the Earth’s crust. New theoretical questions associated with fluid dynamics and the deformation of various materials constantly crop up in practise, and the most interesting of these are addressed by the internationally recognised Nečas Centre for Mathematic Modelling.

Throughout the first International Staff Training Week held at Charles University from March 7 until March 11, 2016, sharing ideas and practices was a key theme. On Thursday morning representatives had the opportunity to share strategies which they use in their universities to improve the experience of both incoming and outgoing exchange students. 

At the end of October, the International CUNI Club offered students the opportunity to venture outside the city of Prague to rural South Bohemia and experience a different aspect of Czech culture on a three day excursion.

On the 4th of March, 2014, Charles University of Prague and a number of other academic and personal supporters gathered in a farewell to former rector, Prof. RNDr. Václav Hampl, DrSc. and in celebration of our new Rector, Prof. MUDr. Tomáš Zima, DrSc., MBA. Steeped in historical tradition and ceremony, the inauguration was highly successful in celebrating these two men and the institution they devote themselves to. I personally walked away with a proud sense of our flourishing institution’s academic integrity and commitment, even as a temporary member of this inspiring community.

Henri, the Grand Duke of Luxembourg, was awarded the international Charles IV Prize in Karolinum - the historical seat of Charles University - on Friday 13th May 2016. This prize is awarded to personalities of importance who have achieved significant recognition in Europe through their cultural, scientific or political work, and have contributed to the positive direction of the current civilisation.

Current research in cognitive science has demonstrated the importance and value of metacognition and reflection in formal learning; fortunately for us, our colleagues in the field of education have developed and tested numerous specific techniques that we can use to teach students how to effectively reflect on the learning process and understanding.

From April 10th to April 13th, Týden Diverzity, or DiverCity Week, will be taking place in a recently renovated building at 4 Hybernská Street, Prague 1. This free four-day festival, run by Charles University’s Faculty of Arts, is themed on ‘City and Emotions’, connecting Prague with exhibitions, lectures, discussions and workshops.

We are looking for volunteers to help out at the faculty boathouse, which was inundated during the recent floods. As this work involves cleaning out mud, volunteers will require working clothes and, ideally, wellington boots (a limited number of which will be available to borrow on-site), as well as rubber gloves (limited amount also available at the boathouse, but probably not enough to cover all volunteers).

As the shortest month of the year was drawing to a close, I had the pleasure of attending the seminar “Your Successful International Career” in the Faculty of Law on February 26th, held by Stephen Denyer, Global Markets partner at the illustrious international law firm Allen and Overy and senior officer with the IBA and ABA. The Englishman, who joined the firm over 35 years ago, outlined that his talk would concern his own experience as well as how budding lawyers could establish and develop a career in legal services.

Since its foundation in 1987, over 200,000 British students have studied or worked in Europe under the Erasmus exchange programme. The United Kingdom has also proven to be one of the most popular destinations for Erasmus students, receiving 31,727 students and trainees in 2016/17.

It’s the end of the winter semester at Charles University in Prague and whether you’re heading home or pitching up for another semester, I’m sure you’ve all achieved something: a love for Prague, a slight photography and cheap beer obsession, and dumpling-induced weight gain (this includes myself, as I arrived the biggest beer hater walking the Earth and have left a serial chugger).

One of Prague’s not so well known gems, NaFilM – short for the National Film Museum – is a project set up and run by Film Studies students of the Faculty of Arts of Charles University. Olly Sullivan spoke to co-founder Terezie Křížkovská to find out more.

On December 15, 2017, the Faculty of Arts of Charles University hosted a lecture “Confucian Humanism and Religion“ by Professor Ming-huei Lee from the Institute of Chinese Literature and Philosophy of the Academia Sinica in Taipei, the national academy in Taiwan. In the popular lecture series organized by the National Central Library of Taiwan and the Taiwanese Center on Chinese studies, this is the third event held at Charles University‘s Faculty of Arts since its start in 2015.