Amsterdam was a snap. Everyone spoke English and all menus/signs were in English and Dutch. The Czech Republic is another story and I had a little freak out over it yesterday!
However, Michael Seymour was on it like Rick Steves on white rice! He had noted all the important sayings in Czech in our Eastern European phrase book. So after a day of feeling like a total freak for only knowing one language, I shared a moment with a waiter at a Czech restaurant in the town of Karlovy Vary. After thinking he angrily took our menus away from us while saying something to us in Czech, because we didn’t know a lick of Czech (actually we deduced later that they were only selling drinks no longer dinner and that is why he took our menus away). And even though I was scared of him because he seemed like a really grouchy Czech waiter, I said – “Dekuji” to him after he brought us our bill for our 2 beers (that means thank you) and he smiled, squeezed my arm and said “Prosim” (you are welcome) and then smiled and said “Na shledanou” (good bye). And I said “Na Sheldanou” back to him. And then proceeded to skip happily out of the restaurant! I was so totally excited that I had actually communicated that day with another human being!! (other than Michael of course- poor thing, I communicate with him a lot all day long!). I think more Americans should travel overseas like this. It is a total reminder that, believe it or not, America is not the center of the universe.
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