I just got back from a trip to the grocery store, Tesco. Before that I went to try a so called ‘legitimate döner’ with a few people. On this venture out I observed a lot of Czech activity. Now that I feel comfortable in this city I have taken a lot more time to people watch. Throughout this trip I have also found myself observing human behavior (how people act when they have a crush, first stages of relationships between romantic partners and friends, the forced friendships that occur among people in close proximity, roommate dramas, the differences between extroverts and introverts in the study abroad experience, shit talking, acceptance of mixed culture, opinions and world views of different states, reactions of Czech people to tourists and other people in general.. ya know… basically everything).
Let me say that I love non-verbal behavior. I have held complete conversations with strangers without saying a single word. A lady on the tram a few weeks back went on and on about something to me… she smiled.. I smiled… she made a strange face.. I made a strange face… she laughed… I laughed… I laughed and she looked at me strange… I nodded my head and utilized the sad confused face, as if I misheard her. Although I should be past the point and show stage I do it almost everywhere I go. When you speak Czech here the locals look at you confused (and angry) and try to speak to you in English. I will never learn Czech or understand why it is so hard to order something as simple as a bowl of potato soup and a pivo (beer). Sidenote: last Friday I found an amazing place to get this meal for about $3. Delicious!
So today on my trip to the grocery store I specifically observed several things. 1) People here judge you. By this I mean they stare at you, give you the ol’ up and down look, all while maintaining the typical Czech, solemn ‘I won’t smile at anything’ look. Yes. This makes me feel like crap and sometimes I smile back just to make them uncomfortable….or I mug them back so that I appear to be a local.
2) I saw two young men helping woman exit the tram with their baby carriages. When I first arrived in Prague I watched a short video that explained that this act is a polite gesture on all trams. People here are also very respectful to the elderly and give up their seat willingly to seniors. (Sidenote: During the day the majority of the people on the trams are elderly and middle aged people with a few punk teenagers. People are mostly quiet and keep to themselves. At night the trams are packed with young people….girls sitting on their guys lap… making out, hands in each other’s pockets, cooing and kissing. (we have a point system game going for PDA. It is everywhere). At night the young people are loud and everywhere. I feel like most the youngins I see are in their late teens. Maybe this is because the drinking age is lower or Czech people look more youthful. )(that was the longest sidenote/paragraph ever. )(Random picture from Vysehrad.. the park above my house).
3) In broad daylight, children pee in public all the time. I witnessed two today… both were in trees. By trees I mean one, not a forest of trees…those lone trees in the middle of the sidewalk that are surrounded by, not shrubbery, but concrete or a grate. This means that everyone walking by… and there are a lot of people walking by… can see them. The first kid I saw was a little boy, about 3 years old. The second a 10 year oldish girl… that is wrong! Remember I have witnessed these things at 2 in the afternoon. Not appropriate to my standards of ‘civilized’.
4) Dogs are everywhere. YES!... but they poop everywhere too. And now that Fall is here, I have come to terms with the fact that I will step on a leaf and either a)realize the smell later or b)slip and fall on my ass right then and there. .. Speaking of slipping… I’ve got a story.
Story: Friday night, sometime after midnight, a friend, Bonnie (we joke about being the same person), and I were making our way home on the tram. We were escorting our friend’s friends from Denmark back to their hostel. They needed to get off at I.P Pavlova which is a few stops near out tram stop. We put them on a train heading that direction(home for us)… without realizing that we were supposed to be getting on the same tram. Instead we waited at a stop heading the opposite direction. About 46 seconds too late we realized we needed to be on a tram that was just about to leave about 30 meters away (the one the guys were on). We sprinted as best we could on the wet and slippery cobblestones towards the soon to be departing, stopped tram. Now at this time I am running….thinking “don’t slip Erinn, you’re going to fall… don’t slip don’t slip’. BAM! Bonnie, who was right in front me, falls to her knees and slides about 6 feet, arm stretched out towards the tram as if she was about to propose to someone who had just climbed on the tram. She pops right back up (like a good softball player would) and gets on the tram… or what we thought was a tram. I get on and suddenly realize “Oh shit.. this is a bus Bonnie get off get off!!’. Out of breath and laughing hysterically we make it off the Bus and wait for the correct tram.
We get on the right tram and reach our transfer stop. Across the street we see the tram we need to transfer to. On the run again….across the street… on the wet slippery cobble stones and BAM!!.. I’m on the ground…. Sliding….on my ass.... not graceful at all. Bonnie with her loud laugh cocks her head back, laughing with her mouth wide open. I’m on the ground sitting and laughing as well. A drop of roof water plops right onto Bonnie’s tongue…. HAHAHA. She is grossed out, I am laughing even harder… and we missed our tram. This is just an example of the crazy things that happen when Bonnie and I are alone together and when night transportation gets a bit confusing. All this happened while sober… just to give you a better idea.
Back to Czech people and culture. (And something I can use as an excuse to post pictures.. the earlier topics are sort of wordy)
I went to my second hockey game yesterday evening. I was in the 3rd row right next to the fan section for less that 6 bucks. I could hear the roar of the Slavia fans and see the players’ expressions as they smashed each other up to the glass. We were right behind the goal so it was pretty exciting. I was like ‘monkey see monkey do’ when it came to cheering. I had no idea what anyone was saying but I chanted along using sounds that may or may have not been correct. Slavia won… they are a pretty good team and win often so that is always nice. The last quarter was intense! 2-2 and Slavia scored to win it with 00:45 left in the game. Amazing! Another amazing thing about the game was this fierce red mullet (Appreciate it Melissa.) Also, at the end of the game (if they win) the players come out on the ice and sing with the crowd. Then they line up and slide on their bellies towards the crowd. So entertaining!
...Also... a picture to inspire you to read about the photography exhibits I have seen since I've been here.(You can read more about it on my other blog if you so desire....
No comments:
Post a Comment