8 things about Czech people

If a person you know happens to be Czech or if that Czech happens to be your friend, you should know this, before creating a value judgement.

You might often get the impression that Czechs can be reserved and cold. But it doesn´t mean that we don´t like you...because we most-likely do...we just have a few issues.

The truth is that...

We are passionate people. We can love deeply, hate deeply, enjoy our food or drinks a lot and have fun a lot. 

But we might not necessarily tell you about it...and you might have a difficult time telling it too.

And ... It´s not like we can´t or don´t feel or that our hearts are made of ice either.

A bit of history to help you understand...

We might have a slightly difficult time trusting people, not just foreign people. 

People in general. 

In the past few centuries we would be persecuted for believing in different religions and eventually that became a highly private thing.

During the communist times, we would be growing up and living in a society, where people would be instructed to spy and report on each other. Or we would be pressured to do so ourselves. 

People grew up with a mindset of not trusting anyone and not sharing with anyone. Not even kids would be invited for birthday parties to each others flats. 

"What if that kid sees/hears something in our flat and will tell on us."

Now that we luckily don´t live in such environment anymore, we have not fully recovered from the conditions that we have surrouded ourselves in order to protect ourselves and our families.

That does not mean that we are cold, reserved and/or that we don´t trust you.

We haven´t yet realised that we can let go.

So...Forgive us and help us know better!

Here is a list of things that we do...or don´t do:

1. Personal zones

If we stand 1,5 meters from you when we speak, it does not mean that you or we stink.

I guess we have a greater personal distance zone than you might see in other nations. We don´t need to be in your face when we speak. We also don´t need you to be in our faces either...just saying.

2. We can be suspicious when you offer us free food

Bad things can happen to us, you know? That is what our mums always told us.

Seriously...even my mum told me, not to take anything from other kids. So when in first grade my friend offered me a chocolate Easter egg, I said: "Thank you, but I am not hungry" and then watched another girl eating it.

3. We don´t share our food

"What? There is such a thing as sharing? But I paid for it!!!"
or
 "Germs, germs...Are you feeling ok? Cause I don´t want to get sick."
Again, no hard feelings, we would love to share, but we just don´t know it yet. 

Also, we grew up with our mums telling us, that we are surrouded with a world full of nasty germs that people spread.

4. We don´t hug

We are not big huggers.
We grew up not being hugged.
 We don´t hug our family much neither we hug our friends. 

Once, right after I came back after 5 months in England and tried hugging my best friend, because I forgot that is not what we Central Europeans do. And well, that didn´t go well...rather awkward if you ask me...or her.

If you are confused about us not trying to make a first step for hugging you, it´s not that we don´t like you or are unhappy that we see you.
We simply don´t know any better, so teach us.

5. We don´t kiss the same sex people 

>unless they are our family, or we feel attracted to them<

Ok...possibly the biggest cultural shock I ever had was when I was 13. We went for an exchange trip to Denmark and got confronted with the way people in my age behaved there. I was speechless. I thought that Denmark was full of gays and lesbians.

We just don´t do it, feels weird for us.

6. We don´t say "I love you" to our family or friends

Honestly...even our parents don´t say this to us. This phrase does not work in the Czech language when expressing positive feelings to our relatives or friends.
That is why you won´t hear it from us in English either. Because we are not used to it and it sounds really odd to us.

This phrase to us is something that couples share, when have only the true and deep feelings for each other. 

If you say this to us in a friendly way, expect that we will suspect that you are likely after something or thinking that you must have misinterpreted the signs. 

>Agan...It´s not like we don´t feel it, but we don´t have a way of expressing it<

7. If you met our family / partner / boyfriend / girlfriend, consider yourself lucky

We talk about our beloved ones a lot. We can share worries and gossip, but that´s about it. You will probably never meet those people.
Not that we would have a specific reason for it and we would not like you to.

But...ehmm...it just somehow doesn´t occur to us.

8. We have hard time saying "I am fine"

If someone asks us how we are, the first things that come our minds are the negative ones. Instead of casual "I am fine" you might find yourself listening to a 30-minute confession of a mildly depressed person that you haven´t been interested in that much in the first place you we just trying to be polite,  right?
 Well, prepare yourself to listening to a story how we slipped on ice, how we wish it was summer already, but than that we infact don´t enjoy summer that much, because you have flies flying around and ticks in the woods.

I am pretty sure that even if we won a lottery, we would not be able to say "I am fine".

There are exceptions of course! 

You do meet a lot of people that contradict what you just read, but I dare say that most-likely they are young and on top of that lived some time abroad.