Czech the Flip

Tongue in Czech

Published on February 6, 2013 by Grace22 Comments

Tomorrow I will be starting my first formal lessons in Czech. After being here for almost 2 years now, it is amazing how I survived without speaking the language fluently. Of course I can get by with knowing how to count, say one phrase or two, or maybe even converse with my broken Czech, but if I really want to make something out of myself in this country, I have to speak the language like a native.

Another motivator is my son’s fluency in Czech. Since he has been in school, his Czech fluency has greatly improved. Pretty soon, I would like to be able to help him when he does his homework. His awareness of Czech and English as 2 different languages is very amusing. One day he asked me: “Mommy, what is gulas (Czech dish) in English?” I answered: “It is still gulas, but spelled as goulash.” But of course, it is difficult to explain spellings to a 2.5 year old, as he is not even able to read yet.

Me being able to speak Czech fluently will also take a lot of load off my husband’s shoulders. All through the building phase of our home, he had to arrange everything from buying the land, getting the permits and looking for a builder. On top of that, he has to go to work since he is the breadwinner of this family.

My current Czech knowledge is enabling me to go to the store and do groceries, bring my son to school , go to the doctor and even befriend a few locals. This time, I would like to be able to go to public offices, make negotiations, and perhaps even write essays in Czech. Very ambitious, I know. But I will get there….somehow.

One of Us

Published on February 3, 2013 by Grace7 Comments

Due to this bug that have infiltrated my son’s system, we have mostly stayed indoors this past week. Anyhow, it gave me time to figure out how to decorate the bare walls of our home.

I was browsing through some of the photos that can perhaps be made into a collage. It is a collection of pictures of some of our most memorable trips in the West Coast. Here’s some of them.

During a ski trip at Big Bear Lake, California.

Posing for posterity at Marina del Rey, California after biking from Will Rogers Beach to Redondo Beach.

During a short hike at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon in Arizona…..way back then.

Posing at one of the rest areas (can’t remember the name) during a wine tasting trip to Solvang, California.

Posing with our friend Gus during one of the weekend runs with the Finish Line Freaks, our running team. Boy, do I look freaky!

A classic pose after climbing the “delicate arch” in Utah.

At the Monument Valley in Utah.

Posing after coming back from a short hike down the Bryce Canyon in Utah.

As I was browsing through these pictures, my little boy was with me. Everytime a picture is shown, he would point to it and say: “Tati” or “Mommy.” But after this last photo, he exclaimed: “Where’s Jakub?” It was one of those very simple questions that touched my heart. He is starting to identify himself as one of us. He is starting to understand the idea of family.

Looking at those pictures made me miss the past. But my little boy’s simple question made me appreciate what I have, enough to get me excited of what’s to come.

Snow Freaks

Published on January 29, 2013 by Grace14 Comments

My son is now sick. I think it’s my fault. I must’ve overindulged him in too much snow. I did get what I wished for. We had a good amount of snow these past few days.

After seeing this much snow from my son’s bedroom window, it was only natural for him to want to go outside and play.

So last Friday, I took him out for a long walk in the woods.

It was -4C that day, but the cold did not seem to bother us. We were having fun! We crossed the woods to get to the other part of town. Everytime we find a little inclined space, we take advantage in sliding downhill on his sled.

By the time we got home, he was literally spent. He didn’t even wait to get to his room. He just crashed on the sofa.

This past weekend, we went skating with some friends. Because he is still too young to skate, we placed my son on a sled so he can still enjoy the ice with us. It was very cool. Unfortunately, that didn’t do him well. He got cold. And because he was also tired, getting sick was inevitable.

Now I am nursing him back to health. Hopefully, we can cut the “down time” so we can enjoy the snow all over again.

Winter Wonderland

Published on January 17, 2013 by Grace9 Comments

We had a good amount of snowfall this past week. My son had a blast!

In school, he was riding on sleds with his classmates.

They also made a snowman.

In one of our ‘neighborhood walks,’ I went to the woods with him on a sled. My right arm is hurting now but it was so worth the effort.

This whole winter thing is growing on me. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I wish we will get more snow tomorrow.

Inside Our Passive House – Part One

Published on January 4, 2013January 4, 2013 by Grace25 Comments

As promised, here is my first post regarding our experiences living in a passive house. I’m sure most of you are more curious about the technical aspect of the house rather than the interior design, so this post is solely dedicated for that.

Our initial expectation of decreased heater usage was indeed met during our first 2 weeks here.

A sunny winter day like this is enough to raise the interior temperature to 1C to 2C. Because of the thick insulation and air tightness, the house has the ability to keep the temperature stable.

Give us 7 sunny days like this and we may not need the heater at all.

But for days when it’s gloomy and Mr. Sun is hidden behind the thick clouds, the house’s integrated heaters are programmed to keep the temperature stable. Potential “cold spots” within the house are equipped with heaters that look like this.

This is the biggest one for the living room, but the smaller ones in the bedroom almost look the same.

The external blinds of the house has a central control unit that can be programmed to open and close at certain times of the day. In winter, it is useful to open everything during the day to let the sunshine in and heat up the house. But in summer, there will be a need to keep it closed. Remote control switches are also available to adjust the amount of opening or amount of light that one would like to have.

With its air-tight feature, you may be curious about how the house breaths. Well, this equipment makes it all possible.

Air vents are strategically located around the house to exchange the air. There is no need to open the windows. You are guaranteed to breathe in fresh air.

We still haven’t done much about the exteriors of the house, so this is pretty much how it looks like from the outside. Come spring and the landscaping is another major project.

Anyhow, we are happy with our first few weeks in this house although it is not completely decorated yet.

Call it crazy, but we are probably one of very few people who are very eager to receive their energy bill.

Precious Moments

Published on December 29, 2012December 29, 2012 by Grace20 Comments

Another Christmas tradition here in Czech is to take a walk with the family on Christmas Eve. In our case, it became a post Christmas activity.

Since we were celebrating with the extended family, and the boys love trains, we took them out for a short train ride in a neighboring city. We then went on the back roads that connected one train station to another. I was lucky to snap a couple of pics of my little boy with his cousins.

Precious little moments….

I tried to coax them into looking at the camera, but wasn’t very successful.

Someone is always looking away.

A simple thing can also be a reason to play.

In this case, a simple bottle cover became a soccer ball.

Although the walk was not in the nicest part of town, it is one of the most memorable walks we’ve ever had.

Happy New Year, everyone!

‘Twas a Merry Christmas

Published on December 27, 2012December 27, 2012 by Grace13 Comments

Whew! It almost seems like such a long time since I have updated this blog. After moving to our new house 2 weekends ago, most of my time has been spent cleaning and fixing up the new place….and we are not finished yet. With Christmas just around the corner, I found myself even busier. Needless to say, life happened.

I will have a separate post regarding the house. Meanwhile, here’s how we spent our Christmas.

On Christmas day, we drove to my in-laws’ place in Moravia in this weather.

Just looking at the frozen fog was enough to frighten me a bit, but it really is a way of life over here. Everything seemed normal.

That same day, my husband’s brother and his family also came. It was a time for opening the gifts from Ježíšek (Little Jesus). Instead of Santa, Czechs believe that Ježíšek is the one bringing gifts. In our family, the children were asked to go with Grandpa and watch a pohadka (fairytale).

Meanwhile, the adults prepared the gifts and staged the room to appear like Ježíšek just left. This was done by opening one window and tolling the bell. When the children ran to the living room, they found presents under the tree.

Since they were too young to read, the adults helped tell them who the presents were for and they distributed the gifts.

Everyone was then busy opening their presents.

My little boy was very happy with the biggest gift he got from Ježíšek (a.k.a. grandma) – a toy digger.

At around 5pm that same day, we went to my husband’s grandparents to celebrate with the rest of the family.

There was another set of presents to open. But the best part was just bonding with the family.

While the kids were busy distributing presents from the tree, the adults were doing their thing.

The kids got toys, candies and chocolates, the men got wine…..

…. or slivovice (plum liquor).

No matter what generation, it is always a hit.

In one corner, I was chatting with my father-in-law and his mother.

Although there are a lot of nice material gifts, I guess that the best gift of all is family. Even though, my own Filipino family is too far away and I didn’t get to spend this Christmas with them, my Czech family provided me the necessary “warmth” I needed this winter season.

Integration

Published on December 13, 2012December 13, 2012 by Grace16 Comments

Yesterday, it was -4C (25F) outside. But I found myself enjoying my homemade guláš and downing it with a mug of cold beer. A year ago, the idea of drinking cold beer on a cold day was quite repulsive for me. Having been raised in a tropical country and spending a lot of time in a temperate country with very mild winters, snow was very foreign to me. But the longer I stay here in Czech, I am starting to appreciate it now. Somehow, dealing with the cold temperature has become a way of life. I guess I am now integrating.

Another tell-tale sign is that I am starting to dig Czech humor. Although I still don’t understand everything, I somehow get the drift. Here is one popular Christmas commercial that touches on a Czech tradition and is presented in a very humorous way.

During Christmas, some people still practice the old tradition of fasting prior to midnight. Little children are told that if they don’t eat anything, they will later on get rewarded with a sighting of a golden boar. In this commercial, the little girl is asking her dad what the boar looks like. She further mentions that she doesn’t need to wait for later since she is already seeing one.

I hope to awaken the Christmas spirit in me, as we are moving to our new place this weekend. After the long wait, it is finally here. The place is not fully furnished yet, but it is already “habitable.” But we don’t have a tree yet. I hope we don’t end up like the dad in the commercial. Ironically, we live close to the woods.

Mikuláš Day: A Czech Tradition

Published on December 9, 2012December 9, 2012 by Grace13 Comments

These past few days, my son has been playing this game where he says “Čert”, then runs off and hides under the covers. The first time he said it I didn’t understand what he was talking about until it occured to me that he was actually referring to a Czech christmas day tradition, the celebration of Mikuláš name day (St. Nicholas’ name day). Although Czechs don’t believe in Santa Claus, they believe in St. Nicholas, his other personality.

Because I am still not used to this name day tradition, I completely forgot about Mikuláš Day, which is a tradition that is widely celebrated here in Czech. When I saw one of my friends’ picture of the celebration, I felt bad about not giving Jakub the opportunity to celebrate this tradition. But what I saw in their school’s photo board brought a smile into my face. He was able to celebrate Mikuláš Day after all.

Earlier that day, they were drawing angels.

Then they were out for a walk. It was snowing that day.

On their way back from the walk in the locker area, the mascots for Mikuláš Day were there.

It was funny to see my son’s apprehensive face beside the devil (Čert) mascot. So this was the reason for the game.

Here in Czech, the whole celebration starts on the early evening of December 5th. Traditionally, three personalities “Mikuláš, Anděl a Čert” (St Nicholas, the angel and the Devil), visit children at home to ask them if they have been good or bad. If they have been good, they will be rewarded with candies or chocolates. Otherwise, they will be rewarded with coal or potatoes.

Mikuláš Day signals the start of Christmas. In my household, we haven’t even put up a tree yet since we are in the process of moving to our new place. I’m glad that he’s in school and got to celebrate Mikuláš Day nevertheless.

Jsem řidič

Published on December 7, 2012 by Grace16 Comments

After passing all my driving tests last week, I guess I am now eligible for a Czech driver’s license. I only started getting serious about obtaining a Czech driver’s license 4 months ago, after living here for more than a year now. One can get by with an International Driving Permit, but this is only good for one year. Since we are here indefinitely, there is the inevitable need for me to obtain a Czech Driver’s license. Obtaining a Czech driver’s license is quite a process.

In the beginning, I thought I could convert either one of my “other” driving licenses, since I already own 2, from 2 different countries. I tried. Unfortunately, I learned that I still need to go through the whole process all over again. Classes in English were only offered in Prague. Hence, I had to periodically endure the 1 hour commute to attend my classes, although I missed most of the theoretical lessons and only completed the compulsory behind-the-wheel sessions. In retrospect, I think doing it all over again was well worth it.

Unlike the other cities where I obtained my other licenses, testing here in Czech is a tad more complicated. One has to undergo three tests – a computer test on rules of the road and first aid, a verbal vehicle maintenance test, and finally a behind the wheel test. Honestly, I have to say that these intimidated me a lot. First, because my language proficiency is not at an intermediate level. Second, because failure was not an option. With the help of a court appointed interpreter, I managed to answer all the questions of the rules and vehicle maintenance tests correctly. Then came the behind-the-wheel test the following day. Although it was freezing that day, I managed to sweat. That’s how nervous I was. The examiner only spoke Czech so my driving school teacher had to give me the instructions in English. After probably 10 minutes of driving, (which felt like forever to me), the examiner told me to pull over to one side and flatly said I passed the test. I almost squealed with joy, but the mood inside the car was so serene, I had to conceal my emotions.

After going through the whole process, I feel like a huge weight had just been lifted off my shoulders. Sure I can drive, but I feel more confident now that I am fully aware of all the rules of the road and its possible dangers. Now I am proud to say that I am a Prague driver, a Los Angeles driver and a Manila driver. So sit tight. Buckle your seat belts. Let’s go!

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