BiggestSurprises

BIGGEST SURPRISES

We could not buy an electrical adapter ANYWHERE.
They go Czech-->US but not US-->

Czech.

Imagine -- we have 2 computers, 2 digital and 1 video camera, electric shaver, mp3 player, electric toothbrush.   How can Lonnie do his work and me my fun web pages? Fortunately, Czech friend Pavel, whom we met through Lonnie’s Thai student, lent us 2 adapters he bought outside of the country!

No public Laundromats
Everyone owns a very small washing machine and prefers to dry their clothes outside on lines or balconies, so driers are also not available.   So Julie is back in the Stone Age, doing laundry by hand. It took an hour a day for 2 weeks to catch up until I discovered that the bathtub is a natural soaker.

All the women dye their hair
Yes, unless you are a natural blond, and if you are a woman, you dye your hair. Most go to shades of red, most very unnatural colors.    I have seen blond on top and red on bottom (recent fashion statement), bright orange and reds, grey heads with a hint of red passed through, and lots of frosted blond hair.   Most of the young guys have brown hair for a comparison, although you do see more natural male redheads here than in the U.S..

How clear and light the eyes are, and how tall the guys are
Many of the people have the clearest, palest shades of light green and light blue eyes, so light that you have to look for the color. It is beautiful. And as I walk from the bus to the university, male students are a head taller than me, many of the girls as well. I used to be a head taller than the men in

Mexico

, so it is a nice surprise to feel average height in comparison.

People wait for the “walk” sign
People are so patient. They push the button and wait for the green walk light before they cross the street, even when no traffic is coming. Drivers actually stop for people crossing in the white-striped crosswalks. It is the law, although farther out from the center, the pedestrian has to be careful.

Buses and trains run on time
On time and frequently must be the secret to a successful mass transit system. The trams run down the center of the street, so never get caught in traffic. Emergency vehicles actually weave down the center of the tram lines. Trams runs every 4 minutes, while buses are every 9 minutes, until later, about every 30 minutes. After midnight there are no trams which Lonnie and I learned the hard way Sunday night, but 35 minutes at an uphill all the way took us home by 1 a.m.

Medical costs are so low
Went in for an emergency opthamalic (eye) exam, saw a specialist at the eye clinic in the big hospital late on a Friday afternoon and paid 350 crowns - $17.50. (white flashes at night due to age and near-sightedness, not a detaching retina was the good news).

Tooth crown fell out and had it recemented by a dentist for 430 crowns - $20.50.

Medical care is free to Czech citizens. How come they can do it and we cannot?

Contact lense solution is exorbitantly high
Searched everywhere for Complete contact lense solution and highest cost was 515 crowns - $26 for what I would pay $12 in U.S. Settled for a $20 bottle of Optifree. Must be import duties.

Recycling is a must
Czech is a small country and they support recycling everywhere, I think even the toilet paper (joke, but it is scratchy). I have separate bags for plastic bottles, aluminum, cardboard/paper, coated milk cartons. In addition there is a recycle barrel for glass, and in the suburbs a barrel for yard material. All else goes in the garbage. Once you separate it, there is not much left. Yellow, blue, green, red, brown recycle containers are on every block. The university has blue and yellow plastic bags on every floor. You have to rinse and smash. It is an effort that everyone makes. Very impressive. And you have to bring your own carrying container to the market, all except the big Tesco and Hypermart. So everyone has a backpack or heavy sack with handles

Beds
Beds are thick foam on top of a wooden frame. If you want a double bed, you put two singles together. You get two single bottom sheets, and each of the top sheets has a pouch and a comforter is slipped inside. Thus you get double heat in the middle of a double bed or a big airy space. Pillows are huge square shapes and oh so comfortable. Must be down and fits your back and neck beautifully. Can I get one in my suitcase?

Trying to get a grocery cart
Grocery carts are outside chained together by little locks, and you have to slip a $.50 coin in the lock to get the cart. Money stays with the cart and insures that you WILL return the cart to get your $.50 back. Now that is a ingenious way to save manpower!

All shops close at noon Saturday and do not reopen until Monday
Downtown is dead Saturday afternoon, so get your shopping done early and you can get out and bike or hike, play field hockey, rollerblade, walk your dog, tend your flower & vegetable garden, push your baby buggy, play tennis on clay courts, play badmitton or squash, volleyball or basketball, visit with neighbors, stroll in the nearest park, stow your family bicycles on a train and head out to bicycle somewhere new for the price of a cheap train ticket ($0.05/kilometer).

SPORTS and MORE SPORTS for the Average Person
It still amazes me the amount of daily sports participation for the average person. My regret is that I did not have time to get a bicycle helmet and roam the countryside. I could spend at least 2 warm months riding anywhere in Czech, after taking a short train ride. New friend Ivana spends her spare time bike riding. Friend Pavel and landlord Stefan do orienteering -- receive a topographic map and either ride a bike, run or ski the course after mentally memorizing the map, competing within their own skill level. A couple we recently met is going to switch to golf (joke) because her knee is finally giving out from squash, volleyball and basketball. Ski areas abound and TV shows a live video of the snow on the mountains and skiiers in the winter for 30 minutes each morning. All of Czech, and Germany as well, have well-defined bike paths along side every sidewalk and color-coded, detailed trail maps for hike & bike. The train publishes flyers on train line's suggested travel routes for bikes, rents the bikes and helmets, carries the bikes free, and lets you return them to a different station. Last week we watched a local field hockey game, an unusual hooked stick, played much like soccer. Outside our apartment we watch tennis games on clay courts, even in light sprinkles and heavy winds. They had a plastic bubble on one court for winter. The university students have short racket handles pointing out of their backpacks. On the tram you see long handled hockey sticks and they have an arena just for ice hockey. Also see kids carrying rollerblades on the tram, going over to the skate park. Kids start sports very young, and you see all ages of bike riders, most in sleak duds. I did NOT find the internet gaming craze/phenomena that we found in the young male youths of China. I think the difference must be the wide open spaces and the good example of their parents.

This is what I like best about the Czech Republic, the ability to get outdoors and be active.