Eva Holtanová is a climate 
scientist at the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics at Charles University in Prague. In 2024/2025, she spent six transformative months at Colorado State University in Fort Collins as a Fulbright Scholar. Her research focused on understanding how extreme temperature events might change under global warming, but her stay was far more than just academic. With her family of five in tow, Eva made the most of the Fulbright “grace period,” which allows grantees and their families up to 30 extra days in the U.S. beyond the official grant. Together, they embarked on an unforgettable road trip from Colorado to Utah, northern Arizona, Nevada, California, Oregon, and Washington, exploring the breathtaking national parks and making memories that went far beyond the lab.
Traveling as a family with three kids is
always an adventure. Moving to an unknown place in a foreign country on the
other side of the Atlantic for six months is a big adventure. Indeed, spending
six months in Colorado and then traveling for four weeks around the western US
turned out to be a truly great adventure!
The days after arrival in Fort Collins were difficult; all the shopping (you cannot bring bedding and kitchenware with you), getting a car, fighting jetlag and viruses, while missing good Czech bread… On the other hand, some things we had feared most turned out to be quite easy: schooling for the children, and my beginning at the university. Both elementary and middle school were well-prepared for incoming non-native English speakers and were incredibly supportive. Our kids were provided with good guidance, language development classes, and their classmates were friendly. The communication between the school and parents was effective and useful. My host, Maria Rugenstein, and her team have been the most welcoming and supportive. The start of my work went really smoothly.
My stay at the university was filled with
meeting interesting people, advancing my knowledge and skills, and getting
inspired for both future research and teaching. Besides that, thanks to the
fact that my husband was able to manage all the household responsibilities and
oversee our children, and thanks to my great colleagues at my home department, who
took over my lecturing duties, I was able to work long hours focusing on
science, reading papers, and learning new skills. This sabbatical-style time
enabled me to delve into the latest literature on internal climate variability,
gain a deeper insight into the topic, and also discuss possible ways forward
with colleagues at my host department. I am now back, but the collaboration
goes on; I have managed to maintain regular meetings with members of „my“ CSU
research group, and the cooperation is still going on. Overall, my
self-confidence received a significant boost, as I realized that I was able to
overcome the differences between the academic environment back home and in the
US, discuss my work with top-class scientists, and acquire a great deal of new
skills and knowledge.
After the six months in Colorado, during which
we explored „nearby“ natural sites (nearby in the US context meaning anything
within a 10-hour drive), we used our „grace period“, staying for another 29
days in the USA, undertaking a big road trip around western US national parks.
We drove from Fort Collins through Utah, northern Arizona, Nevada, California,
Oregon, and Washington. We will never forget the fascinating and diverse
landscapes: empty areas of hot desert in Arches and Canyonlands, beautiful Zion
and Bryce Canyon, fresh and green California, wild Pacific coasts, giant and
fairy Sequoia trees, huge and wild Yosemite, crystal clear and deep blue Crater
Lake, magnificent and blossoming Mt. Rainier, and astonishing Olympic. During
our whole stay we had chance to see and observe countless, diverse, and
captivating wildlife: various lizards, rattlesnakes, banana slugs, a badger,
several bears, an owl, different kinds of deer, including elk, moose, and
pronghorn, mountain goats and bighorn sheep, many kinds of birds, e.g., eagles,
hummingbirds, and pelicans, and also amazing ocean creatures dolphins, seals
and whales. And of course, the most common squirrels and geese.
We spent exactly 222 days in the USA, and we
will never forget this time! Huge thanks to the Fulbright program for this
life-changing experience!
