No hablo czech?

(FOR DR. LARSON: #4, so it doesn’t get lost!---- like I tend to!)

     Dobrou noc! See how good I am getting at Czech? I can differentiate between day (den) and night (noc) now! What can I say, I am pretty much fluent! Just kidding, that was sarcasm, the Czech language is actually one of the most difficult ones out there, apparently, and I have barely touched the top of the iceberg! From the moment my group and I flew into Praha (Prague), the English language has been surprisingly hard to come by. This is such a different culture than the one I am used to, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. This is by far one of the most different and unique places I have ever visited, but I am absolutely infatuated with every aspect of it, especially the language.  The first night we arrived in Praha, we made an effort to get the to know the locals, and from them we got to know the basics of the Czech language. Before I got to my home in Olomouc, I could only say “hello”, “good day”, “please”, and “thank you.” Luckily Praha had enough English speakers that my limited Czech was not a problem, but, of course, that was one of the most touristy places in the Czech Republic. 

     Here in Olomouc, there are a very limited amount of native Czech speakers that also speak English, so our group of Americans that have come here have been forced to learn a bit of Czech just to be able to function in this smaller town. Most of us have picked up how to order our favorite beer, glass of wine, or entrée by just listening and learning from the locals, but I don’t think any of us realized what we were getting into before we had our first real Czech lesson last Thursday. Our Czech professor is really our first real educated impression of the Czech language, and you know its going to be difficult when your teacher cannot understand half of the things you are trying to say. I can confidently say I am probably one of the most excited people to be here on this program, and my head most definitely hurt after those few lessons. Apparently, the people here in the Czech Republic are not used to other languages or accents, because our professor informed us that unless you have an almost perfect Czech accent, you literally will not be understood. I am working so hard to exactly imitate every word I am taught, but honestly I don’t think my mouth can even make some of the sounds this language requires! Luckily (surprisingly) I seem to have a bit of knack for the pronunciation here, and I have been pleasantly surprised at my ability to be able to be understood! Honestly once you are able to understand the rules of reading the languages on paper, you are actually able to pronounce them pretty accurately! Understanding those same words though is a whole other animal, and also for a whole other post. Na shledanou (goodbye) for now, and for everyone that is reading this (besides for educational purposes!) I miss you so much, but just know that I am having the time of my life and I love it here!