If I Were a Boy

Thank you, Czech Republic, for your explicit yet tolerable sexism...
On Wednesdays we meet in the nearby Faculty of Economics building for Country Presentations. Each week, students present their home country's culture, food, and idiosyncrasies. The first presentation was, of course, the Czech Republic. Between fast facts and history they showed us commercials that I doubt would have even been on cable in the US - well, Spike TV maybe - and a whole series called something like "Czech Beauties". One photo after another of highly sexual women who share both a nation of origin and a similar dress size. We cheered when they finally showed "Czech Men" but then covered our eyes in horror at the beer bellies and hair....

It was good fun - but as always there's something more beneath the surface. As a Feminist and a Women Studies minor I just naturally see all sides of this "Gender Play"....the entertaining stage, behind the curtain, and from the gaze of the audience. For now, as a student abroad I prefer to take a tourist stance - just trying to understand what's going on here without judging. I'm also still very much in the Western World with our KFC and McDonald's and American music everywhere, so I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that the most traditional women I've met actually come from the Midwestern United States...

I have to force myself to pause before reaching a door so I'm not running into my guy-friends who will inevitably reach to open it for me. It's sweet. It's part of the culture. It's a simple sign of respect. When I open it for them, they don't seem upset or anything. That's how it's meant, and it's how I will take it. It's the same sort of culture difference as waiting until everyone has food before you eat, or wishing someone a good meal. My friend B from Turkey even educated me on the custom of always saying "get well soon" or "feel better" if someone tells you they're sick. In America, we don't seem to have social policies that apply to every situation - beyond maybe saying "bless you" when someone sneezes - and even then you just do it when you feel like it and nobody is going to be too insulted if you don't. For me, being nice is more about making someone feel good than fulfilling an expectation.

Unlike some other countries I've heard of (Ireland) nobody looks twice when I order a beer. I've only been here two weeks, but I haven't once heard a negative remark or a "that's not a woman's place" kind of comment. The closest I've come to the Parks & Recreation-esque "women can't make decisions because they need the blood for their baby centers" comment was actually in response to my being Vegetarian - without "meat protein" your brain deteriorates and you get weak - not about being a woman.

Maybe it's a sign of changing times. Maybe it's just the college atmosphere. It's hard to know for sure. I think if I lived here it might be a very different story. I haven't been in business buildings and I don't know much about their politics or technology - the most I've seen is of the insides of pubs and shopping centers and classrooms - each with a good mix of women and men but who knows about what it's like to find work past that. Is there a difference in pay like in the US? In competitive professions, it's still 70 cents or so for every dollar a man makes for the same job. Any insight from my local friends would be much appreciated.

Blinking and Breathing
Mostly my experience here has been about learning to notice things. It's disconcerting. I've always been an "observer" but now it's like reminding myself to breathe - you're getting down to an almost cellular level of culture, of language, of human nature.

On an academic level, it's about learning how you learned your own language. I have hundreds of topics to review in order to be a good English language teacher. Foreign speakers seem to know more about my language than I do, having had to learn it from an outside perspective. They talk daily about grammar and prepositions and adverb phrases...things that make my head spin. I can go on forever about metaphors and allegories, but absolute phrases...I've got some studying to do...

Good Friends (Aren't) Hard To Find
No matter what country people are coming from or what their mother tongue is, we're all in the same boat in Vinarska. We're only here for about four months, and we all want to have the best experience possible. For some people, that seems to mean being as intoxicated as their body will allow, for others it is seeing everything they can. A few seem to be focused on their actual education. For me, it's a bit of a mix.

I'm really enjoying the city of Brno, with its serpentine streets full of shops, food and gorgeous, old, colorful buildings. My classes are the best I've ever had - I haven't felt myself learning since middle school. Teaching is becoming a really wonderful challenge for me, and I'm enjoying it. Our class is 11 or 12 adults between about 23 and 35 years old. Three are working toward a Ph.D. The beginner level class has a younger dynamic, but we won't teach them until April. My first lesson was good, and on Monday I have a Listening and Speaking lesson. So far, I really love it - and I love my increasingly positive job outlook as well.

"I'm the king of the elevator!"
Some of the most fun I've had has been while exploring the bookstores, cafes, and brick sidewalks of the city with friends. It was a party at Mandarin where I finished my first whole beer - I definitely do not have a European tolerance for alcohol. On Friday we ate at a very touristy "medieval" restaurant that had real candles burning everywhere and I wondered how many times people had caught their coats on fire. I ordered an herbal mead and a dumpling. The mead arrived literally smoking like a potion and the dumpling had a sparkler in it. Meanwhile, thundering music boomed from the musty cellar and we were sure this meal would be our last. It was fun, and we made plans to go out on Fridays to discover new and interesting places to eat - like the pub run by nuns. Last night a friend and I watched the 1961 Rock Hudson/Doris Day movie "Lover Come Back" - an awesome night of old films, music, pasta, and a beer that I hope becomes a tradition too.

Plans
So looking ahead, on Tuesday I've signed up for wine tasting. Nine South Moravian wines and some dinner - hopefully I'll find something I like enough to buy and bring back as a gift - then on Thursday the 10th we're going to see the opera The Marriage of Figaro.

How Wrong We Were To Think That Immortality Meant Never Dying
My first real big trip/adventure/dream is for March 17th - 20th. In high school, my favorite band was My Chemical Romance, and they'll always have a special place in my heart even if my current music tastes wear a lot less make up. Well, they're playing a show in Stockholm on March 18th and I really want to go - but arranging transport, a hostel, and stuff to do besides the concert is probably going to be over my budget. I'd really love to see Stockholm in general - and being in the most atheist country in the world has always been on my bucket list. We shall see.

A Day in the Life
Besides teaching tomorrow, my goal is to do a photo-post of my normal day. I'll carry my camera and just take pictures of the things I see and do on a normal basis. So there's something to check back for. <3s L.

"You've got a soul, use it"

Dobry den!

My first week in the Czech Republic has been - in a word - long.

I can't help but feel I have been here for over a month already. I have seen so much that I have never seen before. Heard so many sounds and walked on so much ground that I have never known before. No matter what expectations I might have had, nothing could have prepared me for this.

I am a TESOL TE student at Masaryk University for this spring 2011 semester, working toward my CELTA (Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults). My first class is on Monday and I'm supposed to stand in front of twelve students for 30 minutes without making an ass of myself. Let's cross our fingers and close our eyes tight and hope.

College, Beer, and Other Intoxicates

Brno is the definition of a College Town. Every night of the week, drinking and parties are more common than unflavored, still water (don't even get me started on the love of fizzy, fruity water here). This is both awesome and entirely obnoxious. I barely even party in the states. Drinking has a different meaning here, however. In Brno and the Czech Republic, it is perfectly normal to have a beer or two at lunch (some even report having one at breakfast). But even that's a different grade than the kind they'll drink at dinner. Maybe the reason I don't party at home is because American beer tastes like hell - Czech beer (and wine!) on the other hand is absolutely delicious. And cheap. Holy shit is everything here cheap.

Money
A good beer in America is about $3-$10 depending on what you drink and where you are. For a beer like Pegas - brewed exclusively in Brno - you'd have to be the King of Hipsters to even find the damn thing, forget how much you'd shell out for it. Here, it cost me 33kc (czech crowns, or korunas). That's the same at $1.80. While prices here are unbelievable, I can't help but wonder what the minimum wage is and how the every day person must struggle for - or simply live without - what Americans take for granted every day.

Culture Clash
Something unique about choosing to study in Brno instead of London, or Ireland, or France is that the Czech Republic is a crossroads of cultures. I've made friends from Turkey, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, France, Bulgaria, Hungary, America, England, Greece, Spain, Brazil, Canada, South Korea, China, Latvia....okay...you get the point. I honestly didn't have many stereotypes in mind about Europe - except maybe the misconception that it could be thought of like a whole entity. Each country has it's own identity, and own issues, with the others. Of course, as students we're all trying to get along with each other as best we can. I'll write more on this in detail later. It deserves a post all its own.

Food and Favorite Things
I need to go soon actually - we're going to a Fashion Market at 2pm and then Laundry at Clubwash (a laundromat and pub in one...enough said) later this afternoon. Before I go, I have to say I love the food here. Vegetarian dishes and menu options are aplenty and everything just tastes better. Somehow the produce in the supermarket is big and fresh despite it being February (genetic engineering maybe?) and they don't fuck with food the same way they do in America. The Czechs have a love of potatoes and this cheese I still can't identify but it's like super thick Mozzarella.

Another awesome part of Brno is the transit system. There are trams and buses and a small airport - public transport is a big part of life. There are cars too of course, but I can get anywhere I need to by bus, tram or walking. Having a car in Ithaca - I'm really enjoying being a passenger again.

It's been difficult getting used to a new city and new people - plus a new language that looks more like someone bashed the keyboard than an attempt to communicate - but each day gets a little better. I will write more soon.

To my friends, I love you.
To all else, peace be with you, and I probably love you too.
-L.

*Please leave comments! If you have any questions, I'll answer it in my next post.