Slivovice o Jirko?

Hi Everyone,
When I was reading through some expat blogs the other day, I came across this post from the DISPLACED NATION: Q: What is the Weirdest Multi-Cultural Celebration You’ve Ever Attended? This article is a great read—be sure to check it out. After reading the article, it got me to thinking. What was the weirdest celebration I’ve ever attended in the Czech Republic? A couple of memories came to mind (link to past posts). But there is one I’ve never told you about before: the first meeting with my in-laws-to-be. Now, that’s a good, funny story, though maybe not too weird.

First Visit to the Czech Republic

My very first visit to the Czech Republic was after Jiří and I became engaged in 2002. Jiří and I decided spring would be a good time for me to travel to the Czech Republic; Spring is a beautiful time of year—everything is blooming and growing. We also decided it was time for me to meet Jiří’s family and friends, along with me getting my first taste of what would later become my new home—the Czech Republic.

This was my third overseas trip—the first two were to Japan to visit Jiri while he lived and worked there. Thankfully, traveling to the Czech Republic wasn’t quite as traumatic as my first trip to Japan had been. I at least had a little bit of travel experience under my belt.My trip over to the Czech Republic was fairly easy that time, with planes on schedule, no bad weather or Icelandic volcanoes erupting.

I arrived to Prague tired, but safe and very happy to see my then fiancé, Jiří. He met me at the airport and what a joyous reunion we had. We stayed in Prague for a few days before going to Strakonice for my first meeting with Jiří’s mother. We were to spend the Easter holiday with Jiří’s mother and his family.

Meeting My Future In-Laws

After spending a day or two in Strakonice with Jiří’s mother and experiencing my first Easter beating with the pomlázka, we three traveled to where one of Jiří’s brother’s has a big house and a beautiful garden. The weather was pretty that year—not too hot and not too chilly. It was a perfect Easter to stay out in the family garden and talk and get to know one another. I was very nervous about this first meeting, as none of Jiri’s family spoke English. I wasn’t sure how things would go, or if I would be included in the family activities or not.

Introductions and Easter Dinner

Once all the introductions were finished--and there were many of these--we all sat down for a traditional Czech Easter dinner. We had the beranek (lamb-shaped cake), ham and other meats, along with so many side dishes I thought the table would collapse. As it was, the table was groaning with all that delicious Czech food.During our dinner, everyone was very nice to me and were asking questions about me, my kids, etc. Jiri did the translating back and forth, poor guy. He was a real trouper that day. During and after the dinner there were copious amounts of alcohol (which is also traditional for most Czech gatherings), though I didn't have too much to drink. I was grateful for that when we went outside to sit in the garden.

Fun and Games in the Garden

While we were in the garden, Jiri's sister wanted to get me involved with the family. My sister-in-law, Alena, is a wonderful person who just happens to be a real tease and funny. Alena stood up in the middle of the family gathering and motioned for me to stand up with her. Oh no, the fear ran through me...what was Alena planning to do?

I couldn't understand her too well and was afraid of making a fool of myself in front of Jiri's family on this first visit. Wanting to be a good sport, I stood up with Alena, in spite of my fear. We were standing in the middle of the family when Alena asked for some glasses. These were two small shot glasses that were about the size of a shot glass in the US. Along with the glasses, my brother-in-law brought out a pretty fancy, rounded bottle of some clear liquor. I had no idea what it was, but I figured that they were going to have some sport with me. I wasn't sure what form this sport was going to take.

Unidentified Clear Liquor

Alena filled both the glasses, to the brim, with this clear liquor. Then she proceeded to tilt her head back and chug down the entire contents of her glass. Alena then motioned for me to do the same. I was caught between a rock and a hard place in that moment. She expected me to down this unidentified liquor just as she had done.I wanted to make a good impression on my new Czech family-to-be, and wasn't sure how best to proceed. I decided it was best to follow the saying, "When in Rome..." I downed the liquor as Alena had done, and then started choking. That was embarrassing, but everyone clapped and cheered. They could see I wasn't a stick-in-the-mud American, and that I would adapt to Czech ways...at least in something!

Slivovice o Jirko?

After this first downing of the Slivovice, Alena proceeded to do another shot and I followed suit. It didn't take too long before I was having trouble standing. Come to find out, Slivovice is a hard alcohol typically made from plums. It's very good, though not many foreigners appreciate the taste. Back to the garden and Jiri's family, I was having trouble standing up and everyone was happy I was participating in this fun with Alena. Finally, just before our last shot together, Jiri's family began to ask me, "Jirko o Slivovice?" They were asking which one I wanted most--Jiri or Slivovice. I first answered Slivovice, but then added Jiri, too. My new Czech family was very happy, Jiri's mother said he was marrying the right girl, and I was from that time completely accepted into my Czech family. My brother-in-law to be then presented me with a huge new bottle of Slivovice. I still have this bottle at home in New Mexico.

Added Note

When I wrote this post yesterday, it didn't occur to me that some people just might take this event as more like some type of family hazing. I'm here to tell you this first meeting with my Czech family was not a hazing event at all. It was, indeed, a warm and fun gathering. You could say this Easter gathering with my new Czech family was more of a "let's see what the foreigner's made of" event.
This was my first introduction to my Czech family, and it was a fun, warm gathering. This was probably one of the strangest Easter celebrations I'd ever experienced (up to that point), but what fun we had.

From the beginning and over the years, my love for Jiri has surpassed my liking of Slivovice!

That's all for now! Have a great day!
God bless,
Sher :0)

(c) 2012 by Sher Vacik. All Rights Reserved.

Prague Peculiarities: Taking a Smoke

Taking a smoke.

Hi Everyone,
Jiri and I were out in Prague yesterday (near Vaclavske namesti), and saw this funny situation.  In the picture above, there's a guy sitting on a sign and taking a cigarette break (on the second floor of the building), balancing with one foot on the building's ledge, while his buddy (standing on a scaffold) is doing some flashing work on a window.  I just couldn't pass up this photo op.   Really, the guy smoking reminded me of a classic book, The Good Soldier Svejk by Jaroslav Hasek.

Have a great day!

God bless,
Sher :0) 

PS  The photo quality isn't very good as it was taken with my cell phone--the only camera I had along that day.

Photo credit:  S. Vacik


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You Think Life’s So Easy Here, Don’t You?

Hi Everyone,
The title is a joke that my husband and one of his colleagues use from day-to-day at their office. I’m not sure what it means exactly…well, not sure what it means at all (!!!), except that it appears to be a somewhat ironic type of saying that is typical in the Czech Republic! The Czechs have a very different type of humor than what we are used to in the US. Czech humor seems to be ironic/black/a little bit sarcastic, and they are able to also see the comic side of themselves and their culture and country…in other words, they don’t take themselves too seriously…well, at least not all the time! I’m only just beginning to understand, and slightly appreciate this Czech sense of humor!

My husband also uses this saying “You think Life’s so easy here, don’t you?” with me, too. At first, it was very maddening—“Of course I don’t think Life is so easy here”, I would tell him! He would say it just to tease me. But I didn’t see it that way at all! Life is not easy here, or anywhere else, for that matter. I’ve experienced some tragedy in my life (as have most of us on the planet Earth)…and just look at the headlines in the news…food riots, oil prices skyrocketing, the current economic situation which has hit everyone around the world, etc.! No…I don’t think Life’s easy here or anywhere! So, his statement/teasing would drive me crazy!!!!

Well, to combat this saying that he is so fond of, I first decided just to ignore him when he said this to me. That didn’t work as Czechs are notoriously stubborn and persistent…so I finally got wise and said, “No, Life’s not so easy here…it’s a pity!” When I said that the first time, my husband was so shocked…and then he laughed. Finally, I was catching on to this Czech humor a little bit! And I finally was able to surprise my husband and tease him back!

Now, this sentence is not so irritating…it is just a nice game we play every-so-often to make one another laugh. This type of teasing is very common in the Czech Republic….once you begin to catch on a little bit, many doors begin to open for you just into the Czech culture and psyche. It is nice to begin to understand this just a bit; I’m looking forward to being able to understand more and more…and make some progress into this onion of Life in the Czech Republic! Life is really not so easy…here…Believe me!!!

You all have a great day!

God bless,
Sherry :0)

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© 2008 by czechoffthebeatenpath

Mobile Phone Car

Hi Everyone,
Just a quick note about these pictures…this is a car that was on display in Prague one day. The car was covered in mobile phones…it might have been an ad for one of the mobile phone companies, but I’m not sure! It was a great ad…and another typical Czech sense of humor!! So, I thought I would share that with you today, too!

Have a great weekend!

God bless,
Sherry :0)

PS My husband is coming along with his cold...he's almost over it. I don't know if it is due to the garlic soup, or just the cold has run its course!!! I just know that I am sick from smelling so much garlic this past week!! :0)

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© 2008 by czechoffthebeatenpath