Culture Crossing

So here's a survey i was asked to fill out about cultural differences, in case you want to know the deep dark truth about slovakia!

BASICS

1.What are the most common forms of greetings in slovakia? For example: a handshake, a bow, a nod etc.

For men greeting men –a nod usually

For women greeting women – cheek kisses (one or two), or just saying hello (in Slovak, of course!)

For meetings between men and women –

Children are expected to say hello (dobry den) to adults. Adults are not required to reply. In addition, when joining a group of people, introductions are not necessarily made quickly, and sometimes not at all.

People do not smile hello to each other. On the street, if you pass someone you are acquainted with, you can say dobry den (with a smile if you like). However, if you only smile, you will get a blank stare in return

2. What is the most common communication style among in people in ____? Do they tend to be direct and say exactly what they mean, or take a more indirect path when communicating, requiring creative speaking and listening techniques. Or somewhere in between.
~slovaks tend to be very polite. Of course it depends on the age, but manners are important. They tend to agree with you (in words) if they don’t in action…therefore you must not always believe everything you hear!
In keeping with the theme of politeness, Slovaks queue up orderly whenever a line is needed with no jumping the queue.

3. What is the generally considered the appropriate amount of .personal space when speaking? At arm’s length? Less? More? How is this different when interacting with family, members of the opposite sex, or business colleagues?
~ the appropriate distance is less than in America. Female friends can get quite close to each other, and can be very affectionate.

4. What is the appropriate amount and type of eye contact acceptable/common when conversing? Is direct eye contact acceptable? Indirect? Does this changes depending to whom one is speaking to? For example, an elder, a boss, a child etc.
When drinking, it is important to look everyone at the table in the eye as you clink glasses, and say Nazdravie! (to your health!) (this might be spelled wrong)


5. How do you view time in ______? What are the expectations about being on time? Is it rude to be late? Do services like trains, buses, etc run on time? Is punctuality valued? Do people covet their time or give it freely? Does this change when doing business vs. social situations?

You do not have to be on time. In business situations, it is appropriate to be fairly timely, although excuses are easily accepted. Strangely, the bus is often early. Time is given freely.

6. What are some common gestures? What are their meanings? For example, how do you point to something? One finger? Whole hand? How do beckon someone?
You can indicate someone is crazy by making a fist with your right hand, holding it to the side of your head and rotating your hand forward quickly once.

7. What are the generally accepted and expected roles of women in society? What behavior/activities tend to be unacceptable for women? Is this true for foreign women as well?


Women should not sit on any surface that is cold if they don’t want ten people telling them that that will hurt their ovaries. They should also not place their purse on the ground.

Women are also expected to take care of children, meals, and the house. Maternal Leave (after one has a baby) is three years for each child. It is common to see men walking the baby, but it is accepted to be the woman’s job. Daycare is frowned upon.

Women tend to be very protective of their kitchens, and if they share a house with older family members, this is the number one complaint!

Mothers bundle their children up as if they were constantly expecting violent snowstorms, and will get a talking-to from older women especially, if they dare to
break this rule!

8. What is the legal drinking age in Slovakia? Is it enforced? What about smoking age? Is it enforced? What are the penalties for possession of illegal drugs? Are they heavily enforced? What other laws are strongly enforced?
The legal drinking age is, I believe, something like 16. it is not strongly enforced…if at all. However, the legal limit for drinking and driving is ZERO, and it is VERY strongly enforced. The official tolerance for drug possession is NONE, but i don’t believe it to be monitored so much…maybe in the cities?

9. Any other cultural tips that foreigners traveling to ____ should be aware of?

Be prepared to remove your shoes when entering any home. Usually, slippers are provided. If you are a guest, you will be fed lavishly and encouraged to keep eating/drinking.
In western slovakia, wine is made by most households. Other common drinks are slivka (plum brandy), and borovička (juniper brandy). If you drink your glass, you will be given more. Homemade products are valued much more highly than storebought.
Most stores do not stay open late, are not open on Sundays, and close at noon on Saturday. For holidays, such as Easter and Christmas, EVERYTHING closes for about a week. So stock up on what you need!
Folk culture still exists, such as music, dance, costumes, food. And it is highly specific based on what region you are in.
Name days: until a few years ago, Slovaks were required to name their children with one of the “official” names, and each one corresponds to a particular day, which is celebrated like a birthday.
Everything (almost) in Slovak in given a diminutive. Sara = Sarka, Martin = Martinko, etc.
Slovaks tend to head to the hills constantly, for any occasion…weekends, holidays, etc. Cities may be empty, but the woods are full.





STUDENTS

1. When does the school year begin? When does it end? How long are vacations?
School year begins in September and ends at the end of June.


2. What is the most common form of teaching? Lecture? Group work? Discussion? Experiential? Etc.
From what I understand, mostly lecture.


3. What do most university students do to socialize/party? I.e. go to bars? Discos? Sporting events? Parties?
Discos on weekends, concerts in the summer are HUGE. Parties in the woods are also common, the whole year round!

4. Is drinking acceptable? Smoking? Is it polite to be excessively drunk in public?
Oh yes, drinking is accepted. Very much so. Smoking is everywhere, it is not common for bars/clubs to be non-smoking. There seems to be a general ease towards people who are VERY drunk, like, “ah well”


5. Any other cultural tips for foreign students studying in _______?
People are friendly once you break the ice, and are very generous. It takes time, though, to allow them to get used to foreigners. There is a general atmostphere of “why are you HERE?” as many young Slovaks want to leave the country for school or work.
In addition, NOW English is becoming common for children/young adults to study, but this is quite recent. The older generations learned Russian, and many people who are now in their 20s and 30s learned German – so sometimes it can be difficult to find an English speaker.

Now you know! And, as GI Joe has stated before, the more you know...the more you grow :-)

who likes to not create powerpoint presentations?

OH, it is SARA who hates making powerpoint presentations! Agh, must find way to postpone actually doing work, which is due on tuesday! I am a disaster. I am so wrapped up in my work permit paperwork* and end of school and castle-restoring workshop and the HEAT, that i am very lackadaisical about accomplishing much.
At least there is the Italy-Spain match tonight, Plus Beer and Possibly Ice Cream (if i finish my stupid presentation).

* = for those who DON'T read Slovak, that entry a couple times ago says that I got a job in Bratislava, and i'm sticking around the SJ another year. But this paperwork i think will drive me insane.

So i just killed an hour rereading OLD entries in this blog. Yeesh, every now and again my words get a little syrupy.
OK. I AM GOING TO MAKE MY PRESENTATION RIGHT NOW. Time is: 17:07. GO! Yes! I am motivated! I am on the ball!
dammit....still dragging....okay.....here i go.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

BOOYA
time: 17:54. And it is pretty snazzy, if i do say so myself.
Bad news, i took a time out to discuss work permit BS, and now i am hyperventilating all over again. I must talk to my New Landlady to convince her to go to Pezinok with me, By bus (did i mention she walks with a cane?) to go to the Katastar in order to get a vypis z katastra nehnutelnosti. Bravo Ja. And this will cost me something like 1000 korunas (approx. fifty bucks).
OH and this has to be accomplished by friday, as i must go to the foreign police office at the crack of dawn and wait in the Non-EU person line. This week there is also: i have an english lesson on monday, My Crap-erPoint Presentation on Tuesday, a Lennie Kravitz concert also on Tuesday, and the "final party" for my school on thursday. On friday after my visit with the foreign police, i am spending the weekend restoring a castle in Central Slovakia.

I think i need a pivo.

Reasons To Stay In Slovakia, Part Dva

I. Folk heritage is totally still alive



J. Incredibly beautiful Skies





K. Oh Mah Gawd, a whole new year of posing with My Favorite Statues



L. The forests



M. the trains



Are you sick of this yet? Because I'm only on Letter M. There are totally like, um. thirteen more, or something.
Amusing fact about slovakia 1: "ch" is it's OWN letter, and in the dictionary it comes after "H"
Amusing fact about slovakia 2: it is surprisingly common for women to name their daughters after themselves. This is especially true with Lucia. I know SEVERAL sets of Lucia and Little Lucia (Lucka).

Amusing fact about slovakia 3: The paperwork to be allowed to live here is hardcore rediculous, and you have to notify everything...and it can seriously all be lies...you just HAVE TO have the right documentation...whether or not it is TRUE.

všetko pre teraz...ciaote!

Reasons To Stay In Slovakia, Part Jeden

A. The drinky drinky



B. The lilacs


(ok, this picture makes me look weird, especially my teeth. but the lilacs are nice!)

C. Svatojurske Hody



D. Cherries



E. Eating meals in the courtyard




F. CHRISTMAS MARKETS!



G. Halusky!!



H. Maybe i haven't mentioned how lovely SJ is?



....ok, enough for now. i have to write this STUPID PAPER THAT I HATE now :-(

Mam pracu, ostavam v svatom jure

not sure if this is the time or place to announce that, but if you can read slovak, then bravo! rozumiete mi?

Pride and Prejudice, much?

Yesterday evening, i was bored and a bit antsy. The girls had all gone to Vienna for the European Championship match between Croatia and Austria; two of them held tickets, the other two planned on meeting them afterwards. As for me, I had an english lesson and spent the rest of the afternoon working on various projects and dancing to bob marley, the cure, and bajaga in the kitchen.
So around seven i headed for a hike in the vineyards, knowing that there was at least two hours of sunlight left. So i'm hiking, and it's all lush and green and overgrown, until i reach the top of one hill with a great lookout point. there I notice a looming black cloud at twelve o'clock.

"My," I say, "what a looming black cloud."

so i think that i ought to head back, and as i do so, it starts to rain. and then it starts to pour. So i'm running down the hill, through the winding vineyard footpaths that quickly became small rivers. My converse are soaked. I come to a fork in the road, and i can't see which way will lead me to my house, and which will lead me to the upper part of the village. Into view comes a guy and a big black dog. We are all soaking wet, and we smile at each other across the way as if to recognize the comedy of the situation.
I yell towards him, "which way?" fully expecting him to answer "Prosim?" and not comprehend..but instead he answers, "where do you want to go?"
Yesssss....and english speaker! So he comes towards me and leads me back down the hills, and we talk and i learn his name and find out that he had lived in Australia for a year - hence the english. He leaves me just outside the village walls.
I've never felt quite so much like a character in a romantic comedy before, or such a damsel in distress.
I arrived back to the house and put on dry clothes. Srki was baking a cake, and we made tea and watched Victor/Victoria, and that's how i'm going to leave this post.

A short list of awesome

Life is good, c'est la vie.

The weather is warm and i am almost loath to sit down at the computer. I think this experience has spoiled me, with long days and cherry trees overflowing with fruit. We have been sitting in one courtyard or another, often until the early hours...just because we have wine and cigarettes and no one has work in the morning.

This is the best time.

The streets of st george, which had been full of lilacs, are now covered in roses.

I've been biking through the vineyards. It's strange, when i arrive home from that, i feel just as if i have been to the beach. I don't understand the connection, but it's good.

Wild strawberries grow between the grape vines and are shared freely. We've been gorging on the fruit given to us in dripping baskets from the hands of neighbors.

I have four students that i tutor now, for pocket money and free beer.

On the way to watch a European Championship match at Garage yesterday, we gathered handfuls of white cherries, spilling from our hands and stuffed into rucksack pockets.

Life this past year has not always been easy, but this feels like a reward for all my hard work and frustration...
This is the best time.