The Last Thoughts
I think I have grown up so much in the past month. I learned to be more independent and to tolerate people better. Do not get me wrong, I loved all the people on the trip with me, but I think we can all safely say that after a month in such close quarters, nerves get rattled. I also feel that seeing a completely different culture has taught me to appreciate what we have in America. It also taught me that there may be a few things in my life that I would like to change. I saw in that brief month how lazy we can be, and I rather enjoyed getting off my butt. I think that as much as I love my car, walking can be an extremely relaxing way to get around.
I think that seeing a culture that has just recently escaped communism allowed me to see a completely different life. I thought that Europe was a gorgeous place where everyone walks tall, enjoys life, and the arts are the main attraction, something you might see in a Hugh Grant movie, but when I got there I saw the reality. It’s still an amazing sight and the arts are very much a large part of their culture, but they are all still trying very hard to recover from communism. The velvet revolution has taken its toll and especially in the older crowds, you can still see the pain. I think that, in many ways, Europe has a great idea about how to live life. They have work schedules completely different than our own, and trams and feet to get around. Though it was not what I was expecting, it was still amazing.
I feel that even with all tips we were given in class, we did not blend very well. People notice the language, and people see the cameras. They are not stupid. They knew just who we were, but most of them seemed to find it fun and wonderful to have us around.
One major difference that we became aware of is smiling. Of course, everyone smiles, but you know when you pass someone on the street and you make eye contact so you smile? It’s not like that over there. If you make eye contact, that does not mean you smile. It means you have seen each other. That’s all you need. People do not smile at strangers over there. The streets are really different there as well. Cars have to stay out of the way of the trams so they drive and park up on the sidewalks a lot. It was so scary the first week, but you get used to it.
My views of Central Europe and the U.S. both changed. I know that I really finally realize how lazy and spoiled we can be in America. I loved how in Europe walking was an everyday major part of life. I talked about my new European views earlier. I also really appreciate the smells here. To be honest, Central Europe smelt mostly of B.O., pee, and dog poop. Welcome back exhaust!
As far as fashion, over there they have so many different tastes that I do not think you could really stand out too much. You look around and you see baggy pants, cowboy boots, short skirts, high heels, flats, sweaters, polos, t-shirts, and just about anything you could think of. I think that in the younger crowds you see a lot more color than in the older people. They wear a lot more subtle colors. I thought there would be a huge difference in shoes because the cobblestone can be so difficult to walk on, but I saw women taking those hills like champs. I think it is unfair to claim that Czech people are unfriendly. To generalize would be very wrong. I found that there are people in the Czech republic that do not smile when you make eye contact or say rude things because you are “American Pigs”, but I also found people who would come up and talk for hours to you and ask you questions and wanted to get to know you. I found people very polite. Many men offer their seats up to women and they try very hard to communicate with us. In Poland, people were more likely to crack a smile, but we also saw a few people there that send off that unhappy vibe. It happens. Maybe they were just having a bad day.
In the hotel we were staying in, we ran into some very interesting groups. First, we had one group from Germany. They were extremely loud and rowdy. I do not think it would be fair to characterize Germany by their behavior because they were mostly teenage boys. They do the same thing here. One night, Liz and I ran into some drunk, teenage, Czech boys and they were pretty difficult to deal with, but once again, teenage boys.
The tram was a very difficult thing to get used to. It was easy to point out who was new and who was not because newbies would fall over or squeal every time. Let’s not lie, we did the same. We also saw so many people standing there trying to figure out maps. We did not have that problem very often; we decided that getting lost and trying to find our way back was an adventure on its own. Who needs maps? Running into obese people was extremely rare in the Czech Republic and Poland. It was a little more common in Poland, but still very rare. This is caused by all of the walking done there and the hilly terrain.
I think that the United States is more advanced than Poland or the Czech Republic. Although, I also think we have more pollution. We drive around, each of us in our individual cars. Over there, they take the tram or metro almost everywhere. They still have a bunch of cars there, but I think it is safe to say that most people just tram and walk. They also seem to take a lot more pride in what they have. We take a lot of things for granted over here. I do not think we are that advanced in years, I just think that after the Velvet Revolution, it’s going to take them more time to have money for advancements. Give them some time and they will easily catch up.
I’m going to be honest, I did not learn very much Czech and especially not Polish. Thankfully, almost everyone there speaks English, but that’s no excuse. I did learn how to say “thank you, hello, check, yes, no, and five” in Czech though. Most people seemed to just laugh at you if you tried to speak Czech to them. It was so much easier to just speak English and use a little bit of universal body language to understand each other. The hardest part of not learning the language was ordering. You would think it would be easy because you just point to what you want, and usually that works, but not always. I had a run-in with a woman at a dessert place and when I tried to order something, she just started yelling at me. At the time, I did not know why. Later, another Czech woman came up and explained to me that that was only a portion of the meal. To get the whole thing it cost a lot more money. I wish she would just realize that I wanted that meal and she could charge me the cost as long as I got my dessert.
In the Czech Republic, at least, as far as I could tell, people work longer hours. At our hotel, the shifts would last, I believe, 24 hours most of the time. They would come into work and stay at the front desk until morning. Not even receiving a real meal break. They could eat, but they were not allowed to go out. They had to order in or bring something of their own.
They are also quite a bit more open about sex there. PDA is not uncommon. In the hotel, in front of coworkers and guests, workers would kiss and feel all over each other. This happened on multiple occasions, from more than one worker. At the tram stops, preteens, and teens would be seen doing the same thing. Personally, I would not want to work that way. It would be too hard to work 24 hours straight without being able to have a break. I also feel that there is a strong line between work life and personal life. How can you get any work done when you are kissing a loved one? Now do not get me wrong, I enjoy the visit at work, but making out behind the desk will not get anything accomplished.
I thought that Europe was so beautiful and I enjoyed every second there! I would go back again any time. In fact, I already miss it. I am really glad to be home and with the people I love, but I will never be able to forget the feeling of Europe. The walking, the food, the language, the trams, the people, the crystal, and the feeling of adventure and independence.
I think I have grown up so much in the past month. I learned to be more independent and to tolerate people better. Do not get me wrong, I loved all the people on the trip with me, but I think we can all safely say that after a month in such close quarters, nerves get rattled. I also feel that seeing a completely different culture has taught me to appreciate what we have in America. It also taught me that there may be a few things in my life that I would like to change. I saw in that brief month how lazy we can be, and I rather enjoyed getting off my butt. I think that as much as I love my car, walking can be an extremely relaxing way to get around.
I think that seeing a culture that has just recently escaped communism allowed me to see a completely different life. I thought that Europe was a gorgeous place where everyone walks tall, enjoys life, and the arts are the main attraction, something you might see in a Hugh Grant movie, but when I got there I saw the reality. It’s still an amazing sight and the arts are very much a large part of their culture, but they are all still trying very hard to recover from communism. The velvet revolution has taken its toll and especially in the older crowds, you can still see the pain. I think that, in many ways, Europe has a great idea about how to live life. They have work schedules completely different than our own, and trams and feet to get around. Though it was not what I was expecting, it was still amazing.
I feel that even with all tips we were given in class, we did not blend very well. People notice the language, and people see the cameras. They are not stupid. They knew just who we were, but most of them seemed to find it fun and wonderful to have us around.
One major difference that we became aware of is smiling. Of course, everyone smiles, but you know when you pass someone on the street and you make eye contact so you smile? It’s not like that over there. If you make eye contact, that does not mean you smile. It means you have seen each other. That’s all you need. People do not smile at strangers over there. The streets are really different there as well. Cars have to stay out of the way of the trams so they drive and park up on the sidewalks a lot. It was so scary the first week, but you get used to it.
My views of Central Europe and the U.S. both changed. I know that I really finally realize how lazy and spoiled we can be in America. I loved how in Europe walking was an everyday major part of life. I talked about my new European views earlier. I also really appreciate the smells here. To be honest, Central Europe smelt mostly of B.O., pee, and dog poop. Welcome back exhaust!
As far as fashion, over there they have so many different tastes that I do not think you could really stand out too much. You look around and you see baggy pants, cowboy boots, short skirts, high heels, flats, sweaters, polos, t-shirts, and just about anything you could think of. I think that in the younger crowds you see a lot more color than in the older people. They wear a lot more subtle colors. I thought there would be a huge difference in shoes because the cobblestone can be so difficult to walk on, but I saw women taking those hills like champs. I think it is unfair to claim that Czech people are unfriendly. To generalize would be very wrong. I found that there are people in the Czech republic that do not smile when you make eye contact or say rude things because you are “American Pigs”, but I also found people who would come up and talk for hours to you and ask you questions and wanted to get to know you. I found people very polite. Many men offer their seats up to women and they try very hard to communicate with us. In Poland, people were more likely to crack a smile, but we also saw a few people there that send off that unhappy vibe. It happens. Maybe they were just having a bad day.
In the hotel we were staying in, we ran into some very interesting groups. First, we had one group from Germany. They were extremely loud and rowdy. I do not think it would be fair to characterize Germany by their behavior because they were mostly teenage boys. They do the same thing here. One night, Liz and I ran into some drunk, teenage, Czech boys and they were pretty difficult to deal with, but once again, teenage boys.
The tram was a very difficult thing to get used to. It was easy to point out who was new and who was not because newbies would fall over or squeal every time. Let’s not lie, we did the same. We also saw so many people standing there trying to figure out maps. We did not have that problem very often; we decided that getting lost and trying to find our way back was an adventure on its own. Who needs maps? Running into obese people was extremely rare in the Czech Republic and Poland. It was a little more common in Poland, but still very rare. This is caused by all of the walking done there and the hilly terrain.
I think that the United States is more advanced than Poland or the Czech Republic. Although, I also think we have more pollution. We drive around, each of us in our individual cars. Over there, they take the tram or metro almost everywhere. They still have a bunch of cars there, but I think it is safe to say that most people just tram and walk. They also seem to take a lot more pride in what they have. We take a lot of things for granted over here. I do not think we are that advanced in years, I just think that after the Velvet Revolution, it’s going to take them more time to have money for advancements. Give them some time and they will easily catch up.
I’m going to be honest, I did not learn very much Czech and especially not Polish. Thankfully, almost everyone there speaks English, but that’s no excuse. I did learn how to say “thank you, hello, check, yes, no, and five” in Czech though. Most people seemed to just laugh at you if you tried to speak Czech to them. It was so much easier to just speak English and use a little bit of universal body language to understand each other. The hardest part of not learning the language was ordering. You would think it would be easy because you just point to what you want, and usually that works, but not always. I had a run-in with a woman at a dessert place and when I tried to order something, she just started yelling at me. At the time, I did not know why. Later, another Czech woman came up and explained to me that that was only a portion of the meal. To get the whole thing it cost a lot more money. I wish she would just realize that I wanted that meal and she could charge me the cost as long as I got my dessert.
In the Czech Republic, at least, as far as I could tell, people work longer hours. At our hotel, the shifts would last, I believe, 24 hours most of the time. They would come into work and stay at the front desk until morning. Not even receiving a real meal break. They could eat, but they were not allowed to go out. They had to order in or bring something of their own.
They are also quite a bit more open about sex there. PDA is not uncommon. In the hotel, in front of coworkers and guests, workers would kiss and feel all over each other. This happened on multiple occasions, from more than one worker. At the tram stops, preteens, and teens would be seen doing the same thing. Personally, I would not want to work that way. It would be too hard to work 24 hours straight without being able to have a break. I also feel that there is a strong line between work life and personal life. How can you get any work done when you are kissing a loved one? Now do not get me wrong, I enjoy the visit at work, but making out behind the desk will not get anything accomplished.
I thought that Europe was so beautiful and I enjoyed every second there! I would go back again any time. In fact, I already miss it. I am really glad to be home and with the people I love, but I will never be able to forget the feeling of Europe. The walking, the food, the language, the trams, the people, the crystal, and the feeling of adventure and independence.
Tammy
