“We’re like… halfway, right?” River breathes heavily next to me.
The other four look behind us and then in front, and we all shake our heads in unison, breathing heavy as we ascend the 280 stairs leading to the Prague Castle.
Reluctantly, we drop our heads and keep climbing. The only motive being the idea that the rest of the group will be awaiting our arrival at the summit.
Moments before, the five of us were led astray by Google Maps, leaving us lost in a city whose language we don’t speak. With each of our phones leading us to various locations, even though we put in the same location, the tension of the group was high.
I, personally, had led us the wrong way at least three times before handing off the responsibility to Jasmine.
Somehow, we ended up on this trek up steep stone stairs, aspiring to reach the spires that tower above us.
As the summit comes into view and we can see the crowd gathered on the street, we look for our group.
With no luck and no other IU students in sight, we begin to feel utterly distressed.
The goal is to stand at the lookout and watch the sunset over the Charles Bridge. Soon after, fireworks are scheduled to go off for the Navalis Festival.
The panic begins to set in, and suddenly, we are racing against the sun. We are very far from our apartment, and the sun is setting quickly.
With anxiety filling all of us, we text the group chat for help. I open my phone in frustration and type in the address one last time.
“It’s leading us to them now! It’s fine. Tell them we’re fine,” I yell as I start to walk away, following the map.
Little do I know, the map is leading us into the castle walls. We enter the vast abyss that is the castle and end up at a dead end after walking for far too long.
Alex tries to calm me down as I begin to panic more; the guilt of getting us even more lost is setting in.
Jasmine and Alex trudge behind us, and Jasmine makes the executive decision to call Susan, our professor.
Susan tells us she is coming to get us at the top of the stairs. At the same time, the other students join the phone call and tell us they are entering the castle walls to come get us.
“Stay where you are! We are exiting the castle right now! Don’t come inside!” We all yell, simultaneously.
They don’t listen.
Chaos ensues, and communication is seriously lacking.
Finally, as we finally exit the castle gates, we see Susan standing at the lookout point. All of us begin sprinting towards her, fighting back tears that threatened to fall.
We run into her arms that are held out wide and she holds us for almost a minute.
At the moment, we all need a mom who knows how to give us comfort after the world feels like it is collapsing around us.
Safe in each other’s arms, I realized everything was going to be okay. No matter how lost you get, you always find your way back home. Even if we spend the next three weeks utterly lost in the streets of Prague, we will survive. And who knows… maybe we will end up in a cooler place than the intended destination. After all, what’s better than getting lost in Prague?
Speaking of…the other group is still in the castle walls…
