Not far away from Brno, in the south of Moravia, lies Lednice castle. It is an unforgettable romantic manor in the middle of a breathtaking park, where geese encounter rabbits and deer. Lednice was my first trip outside Brno, along with my Erasmus pals. It was only on the bus home that I realized I had lost my phone.
The first thing one would do is buy a new phone. However, my Erasmus at Masaryk University followed the motto “welcome the unexpected”, and I was determined to stick to it. I decided to look on the bright side and seize this opportunity to make my experience even more unique.
Obviously, life without a phone requires many adjustments. You have to connect with people offline and create new connections. All the time I could spent on Instagram, I spent meeting Czechs, walking around Brno, being curious about the world surrounding me.
Because I couldn't translate things on Google, I had to make an effort to understand people around me, like my roommates from Ukraine. We tried to find words that we could all understand, in Czech, Russian, English, anything else. Each time, we ended up bursting into laughter. I couldn't contact people on social networks so I had to plan things in advance and arrange to meet with people at a particular time and place. And as I didn’t have Google Maps, I had to learn where everything was. I memorized the city centre and the other neighbourhoods better than I ever would have if I had my nose glued to the map the whole time.
Since I couldn’t connect to my bank account, I had to take my guitar, Jumbo, to the streets to play. That’s how I earned extra cash and met people whose lives were so different from mine: kids, high-school students, construction workers and many others.
As I couldn’t text people, I had fun writing and illustrating letters. I created my own letterbox in a shoebox, which is still in my accommodation in Brno, probably filled with paper commercials by now.
And because I couldn’t take any photos, I took my sketchbook everywhere (I love drawing). That’s how Anna came to me. We started talking about art schools, drawing, painting, traveling and she showed me around some of the best places in Brno. I made so many drawings and paintings during this Erasmus, and they bring so many different memories when I look at them!
As I couldn’t work on online projects, I had to work in-person with Anna, who also gave me the best suggestions for daytrips, like to Znojmo, where snowy winter in the valley is such a wonderful experience, or to Kutná Hora, with its beautiful baroque buildings on the eastern edge of Bohemia.
And being from Prague, Anna also recommended places to see in the capital, like walking all the way up to Vyšehrad or Strahov – both offer such amazing views of the city!
In the end, I’m just like everyone else. And though I loved this period, I had to get a new phone, mainly for administrative reasons. I needed to connect to my bank account, I had to download my Covid-jab certificate, etc. Fortunately, my new roommate offered me his old phone for a few euros. And so, after a few months, I went back to having a cell phone.
I still look back on that time and what it brought me: I never get lost in cities anymore, I’m more curious about my surroundings and most of all, I know it’s not about how many people follow your Erasmus adventures on Instagram, but about people who will always be there for you, no matter how hard things get. And you never know how things will turn out on Erasmus.
*This article includes hand-drawn illustrations by Hilaire Guinamard