I heard it many times. “Why did you choose the Czech Republic to live in?”. I know it could seem a bit strange at first, but there are a lot of advantages living here. I will tell you a secret, for you italians: nobody lines up for the bread anymore! Leave your preconceptions out of your mind, this is a modern country! I decided to create this page where I will add day by day the positive and negative things about living in Czech Republic, especially compared with italy (the country where I was born, unfortunately).

Means of transport on time

CR: The busses and trams are ALWAYS on time. All the busses are synchronized on a time whichh is shown on every bus. If your clock is synchronize with that time you can arrive at the bus stop and wait almost nothing. It is really unusual a delay higher that 1 minute.

IT: If you arrive late, with no dubts, at the bus stop you always ask to the people waiting there if your bus has already left. Probably you are still on time.

CR: If you are late at the bus stop the driver will close the door and leave. He will not wait for you. Even if you are running, and only a couple of meters are missing. You are late, your fault. In this way they can be always on time and respect the timetable, and the behaviour of the late people doesn’t damage the people always on time.

IT: Are you late, it doesn’t matter. We will wait you! In italy you can do whatever you what. What are the rules?

Tickets

CR: If you do not have a ticket you can buy one on the bus. It will be more expensive but you can buy it. The driver doesn’t waiste too much time because just few people do it, and they can be always on time in any case.

IT: Try to buy a ticket on the bus. You cannot! So, it will become a good excuse for the inspector: “I couldn’t buy the ticket either on shops nor on the bus, what could I do?” Nothing, and therefore the inspector will not give you a bill.
Good for the honest ones.

CR: Don’t try get in a bus without a ticket. The inspector will you make you regret to be born.

IT:

Money

CR: You can pay a few crowns bill with a 1000 crowns banknote. The assistant at the cash desk will not tell you anything.

IT: If you do it, everyone will ask you to pay with a lower banknote (jesus, if had it I would do it!)

Relations between people

CR: if you meet a person you do not know he/she will talk to you in the formal way (using the “vy”)

IT: everyone, even the cashier at the supermarket, thinks to be your brother and will talk to you without the formal way. It seems that the respect is out of fashion.

Supermarket

CR: shop bags are almost always for free

IT: you have to pay for every bag you take (and for bring their adversting on the bag all around the city)

Politics

CR: you can be 35 yo and become PM

IT: you need to be almost 70 yo to become PM

Bank system

CR: The bank account have really low fees.

IT: Be careful! A bank account is very expensive, be sure that you can affort it!

CR: The bank offices are open ALL DAY LONG, usually from 9am to 5 or 6 pm.

IT: If you work you will never be able to go to the bank office, because they are open only in the morning.

CR: If you want to close a bank account you can just say it and they will close it without bothering you asking the reason why you want to close it.

IT: They will stress you asking to keep it active and finally they will take weeks to close it.

Dressing code

CR: People normally dress normally. If you dress a suit you are not automatically considered a nerd (you could be going to take an exam!)

IT: People usually keep underwear ot of trousers or huge sunglasses (even in December) because they thing it makes them cool.

National anthem

CR: Great anthem wich makes the heart vibrating

IT: Awful march with involutary recall to the fascit regime, or to vampire behaviour with polishes.
According to it we should be ready to DIE for this fu*king country (fuc*k you!)
Read here the lyric.

****DEFECTS****

Of course, Czech Republic has some defects as well, here are some:

- The czech keyboards are very difoult to use
- It is almost impossible to find ethyl alcohol
- Only few Czechs believe in God
- Czechs have never seen “Happy Days”, therefore they do not know who Fonzie is.
- No coffee after a meal
- Traffic light has usually 3 or 4 s interval for pedestrians.