Cultural Comparisons (5)

I'm going to be completely honest and say that there is no possible way that I can possibly describe the difference in culture here in the Czech Republic compared to that of the United States.  I will say that it is definitely something that everyone should experience though.  It's a lot like America in some ways, but CRAZY different in others.  An obvious difference is that the people here for the most part don't really speak English, they speak Czech.  Also, the food is completely different here... I'm still not sure how I feel about it.  Some of it is incredibly delicious, the only problem is you have to know what you're ordering, and when you can't read or speak Czech that can be a major problem.  A lot of the restaurants, bars, and cafés have a menu or a description of the items in English, but the description can sometimes be very difficult to understand.  Another cultural difference is that people walk or take public transportation EVERYWHERE. That's a huge difference compared to back home, as I even sometimes drive to my classes that are about two blocks away.  Some people do drive here, but it appears that it is mostly only the wealthy or the upper working class.  To compare the traffic here to back home, my city of Olomouc has a population of roughly 100,000 people; however, the traffic is much better here than in my hometown of North Platte, a town of only about 25,000 people.

Another major cultural difference is that people are much less religious here.  As said by one of the leaders of my program, in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, roughly 80% of the people identify themselves as non-religious. That is a tremendous difference compared to my state of Nebraska, where I would estimate that 60-70% of people are fairly religious.

Lastly, another major difference here is the obvious toll that communism took on this incredible nation.  Although communism rule ended here in 1989 with the Velvet Revolution, its effects can still be seen in many places.  Many of the buildings look like scenes that would appear in a movie about the Soviet Union, and there are many other small things that just make you realize that this country was once ruled under a communist government.  It is obvious that at one time communism had completely devastated this nation, as the effects can still be seen today.  With this being said, I absolutely love this amazing country with its intriguing history and its extraordinary culture.  Although I have only been in this country for a week, I can honestly say that I have learned more in this one week than I have in YEARS back living in America.  It is truly an eye opening experience to travel to and to live in another country and I strongly encourage anyone and everyone to do it at some point in their life.  Not only will you learn so much about the history and culture of the world, but you will learn so much about yourself and gain a much deeper appreciation for so many things that are taken for granted.  

Here are some pictures that I have taken over the last few days of my trip.