How would you define Czech-ness?
Are you proud to be Czech? Why/why not?
Other than beer, hockey & beautiful women - what do Czechs have to offer the world?
Any thoughts? :-)
Ok...here we are a week later...so, these are my thoughts :-) I do encourage ALL Czechs out there to challenge me...but these are observations (some of which my wife reminded me of!) that I've gathered over my 10 years here...
- Most Czechs have a problem with low self-esteem...however, they don't seem to like to boast much but perhaps like to be secretly proud :-)
- What is this habit of young Czechs (mainly guys) gathering together on street corners and spitting in a circle??!! Never seen this in England...!!
- Always easy to spot a Czech on holiday...especially if there is an open-buffet for breakfast!! They are surely hobbits!! They not only eat 3-4 breakfasts, but they also make snacks & arrange a picnic for later! :-o
- They like to complain, but are quite lazy to take any action...very apathetic when it comes to voting...
- Most Czechs appear to be atheistic...but some admit to praying when life gets tough ;-)
- Czech driving is bad...not as bad as the Slovaks (!!)...but BAD! And why is that?! Is it a lack of respect for the laws of the road? Or are they under so much stress?...
- Czech roads are becoming legendary....take a drive around Austria/Switzerland, blindfolded in a chauffeur driven car (of course!)...and when you cross the border back into Czech Republic...you will surely know! :-)
- Czechs are generally impatient when it comes to queuing...for a nation that used to queue a lot under the Communists, it seems this skill has almost disappeared... :-(
- Mushrooming...a VERY Czech past-time...
- Czechs (perhaps older ones) find it hard to throw things away...they hoard/collect things..."You never know when you might need it..." sort-of-attitude...
- Corruption...sadly seems to be part of the fabric here...though it is quite subtle at times...and other times it is quite blatant...almost expected!
However...it is NOT all negative!! :-)
- The Czechs tend to do more home-cooking than GB!! And it's very good too!
- Czech beer IS great...though Czechs do tend to drink too much of the stuff sometimes...but it IS CHEAP!
- David Navara!! - https://www.facebook.com/notes/chess-news/a-statement-by-david- http://chess.ugrasport.com/?p=3160navara/206678022728975?ref=nf - I guess if I have a Czech hero at this time it is this young man :-) Worth reading what happened...
- Czechs can be helpful to foreigners...and friendly...when I first moved here with my wife, a lady in church (who had never met me) made me a Babovka cake... :-)
- Czechs are very appreciative when a foreigner tries to speak Czech :-)
- Medical care...on the whole, I think it's better to get ill here than in the UK... ;-)
OK...there's surely enough there to stir up some thoughts/reactions....what say you Czechs?! :-)
Some may find us peevish or uninterested in things but that's only the outer show. We have a very good sense of humour and clever ideas :)
ReplyDeleteI'm proud to be Czech.
and I'm glad to hear it, Kristina... ;-) I wonder why the Czechs think the Brits are 'conservative, reserved etc...' when clearly the Czechs are much better at it :-)??
ReplyDelete... I've never really understood why we (is it really just us?!) think the Brits are conservative. Britan is where hard rock and PUNK came from. You can't get much less conservative and much more rebellious than that, can you?! And MrsT told us that some supercool fashion brands were born in England - and well, that's a F A C T :D
ReplyDeleteAnd who came up with that stupid thing that the Brits are too reserved? I don't think so. Whenever I got lost during the trip in London (and as I tend to ignore signs, I get lost A LOT), I was kindly helped by someone + wished a wonderful day! When you stop someone to ask for information in Prague (and again, I have to do so every now and then), it just feels wierd. Normally, it's not that the people were in such a hurry or didn't know how to help you, it's the fact that seem to feel really uncomfortable when talking to a stranger.
But still, I am proud to be Czech. For me being proud of your country means being patient enough to search for the brighter aspects of your nation... And I think you should do that, since you can't really change your nationality (and it would be "quite" difficult to change your nation... especially with the Czechs! :D), right?
(And I also think that most of the negative stuff can easily be turned into something positive when you use it for your benefit...)
Hi Mr Gilmour!! Great to read this comment...I've been busy lately & felt I should check out any comments that may have been left...and I've found a couple, including this!
DeleteYup - 'tis true - if Mrs T says it's a FACT, it is a F.A.C.T.!!
You should be proud of being Czech...not all Czech stuff is bad...!! :-)