More things I've noticed

I don’t have anything specific to say, so it’s time for another installment of unusual things I have noticed since I have been here.

This time, here’s what I have seen:

• People take their dogs with them everywhere. This includes into restaurants. Just think about how well that would go over in the US for a bit.

• You can have any kind of beer you want, as long as it’s pilsner. I’m going to make what might be a very unpopular statement for someone in the Czech Republic, but pilsner is not my favorite style of beer. There’s nothing wrong with it. I just don’t find it all that exciting. Well that’s too bad, because that’s your only option in this country. There are loads of breweries and tons of bars, but they all really only serve pilsner. Sometimes you can also get a dark pilsner.

• Public transportation is quick, efficient, and useful. This is a shocker coming from places that have MARTA (which is none of those things), or the T (which isn’t really quick or efficient). The system here is all three AND you can take some form any time of the day. I don’t even miss my car, except in the sense that I’m still paying for it right now while it sits in the Clocktower garage.

• There are no obese people in the entire country. Okay, that’s not quite true. I did see one the other day. But seriously, that’s one in two weeks as opposed to the dozens you see daily in the US. Given the continuous consumption of liters of beer, fatty ground beef, and fried pork I am not at all sure what it is. My current theory is that not everything is filled with high fructose corn syrup.

• Phone booths still exist. Quick, think of the last place you saw a pay phone, let alone one in its own enclosed booth.

• This place is full of herna bars, most of which proudly proclaim that they are NON-STOP! A herna bar is like a miniature casino, complete with jackpot signs out front, flashy ads, and promises of riches and good times. They usually also have attractive people on the signs in the windows - the kind you just know would never be seen in such a place. They’re usually extremely depressing looking from the outside what with the covered windows and bad neighborhood. I can only imagine how soul-destroying they are inside.

• All the appliances in this apartment are tiny. They look pretty small from the outside, but that’s only a disguise. From the inside they are just laughably small. The washing machine holds approximately three towels. The dishwasher holds about four plates and four glasses. The fridge is basically pocket sized. I guess that’s just the way things are done over here.

That’s about all I can think of for now. I’ll be sure to keep up a list of more unusual things and post it when I batch up enough and have nothing better to say.