Cross-cultural communication

Today I am thankful for just that - cross-cultural communication. And for being recognized. Though I have lived here in the Czech Republic for over a year, I am by no means fluent in Czech. In fact, I still only know a little bit, though I understand far more than I used to-and more than I can actually produce. That being said, I had a conversation today with our office manager, Květa, who speaks about as much English as I speak Czech. The conversation was in Czech. And it was about my transportation pass, or měsičník (I think that's how you spell it). It was interesting to learn about it and actually be able to communicate in my broken Czech and understand what Květa was saying.

And then tonight, I went to Albert. I have to be honest, my last few trips to Albert, our local grocery store, have been "pennies" particularly because of one cashier. We have been going to the same store about the whole time we have been here, and over that time, we have come to recognize the cashiers, since there are probably 10 at the most that we come into contact with. But one in particular has taken to greeting me with a smile, in a way that says "I recognize you and I'm glad you're here." I think she knows I don't speak much Czech. If she truly recognizes me, she knows this very well :-) But even when I'm not in her line, she will say hello to me and smile kindly. And tonight, I got to see her again. I look forward to the day that I can understand and answer her questions that are not the normal "Do you have (enter small number here) crowns" or "How many rolls?"I am pretty sure she said something about what I was buying, but I didn't understand enough to answer. Fortunately she said it more like a statement than a question, so she knew she wouldn't get an answer. In any case, she is super nice and I love going to the store and having her as my cashier.

There are still moments that catch me off guard, like when a guy was coming out the door of my building and his dog was barking and pulling on the leash, so he accidentally closed the door, rather than leaving it open for me. I understood that he said that it closed and sorry, but I couldn't think fast enough how to tell him it wasn't a problem. Oh well. I love that communicating is getting easier and easier every day that I am here. And I am so thankful that some things can be communicated across many cultures without words.