What I’ve Learned So Far – Drink Beer, Wear Shoes, Skip the Hat

Update: Excuse all they typos and grammatical errors, but if you read #2, you will understand why.

After leaving home about 42 hours ago (I think – the time difference is screwing me up), I’ve learned a few very important lessons during my short stint in Europe (and on the plane ride over here). I thought this would be a good time to share just in case you find yourself suddenly traversing the globe with little warning.

1. Even an adult can kick/tap/push against the back of your seat for 12 hours on a non-stop flight to Frankfurt. I’ve had this happen on a flight to Hawaii, but a child was involved, so at least it was understandable. The parents of a 10 year old boy sat in first class and left him in coach. Behind me. Kicking my seat for the whole flight. But that was only 6 hours, and he was 10 and alone, so I didn’t kill him. But on our overnight flight to Frankfurt, the young lady behind me was in her early 20s. She pushed against my seat the entire flight no matter how many times I turned around to glare at her. It was a completely full flight, so there was no way to change seats. Finally, after about 9 hours, Hubz took pity on me (or was afraid of what I might do to the clueless girl), and switched seats with me so that I could at least get a couple of hours of sleep. We all safely arrived in Germany.

2. Beer is drunk all day. And night. And in the morning. Seriously, beer is more prevalent than water or sodas, and cheaper. You can get a big mug of beer for about $1.50, while a Coke or small bottle of water will cost you $2.00. Unrelated side note: everyone seems very relaxed and happy. On a second unrelated side note: Hubz and I decided that we should save money on water and support the local customs.

3. If you don’t speak, everyone assumes you’re German, even in the Czech Republic. I’m used to going to countries like Mexico, Korea (where several women actually started petting my sons’ blonde heads while we were waiting in line for the train), Italy, France, etc., where Americans stick out like sore thumbs. Here, you really can’t tell the Americans from the Germans until they speak. In fact, there are so few Americans here that everyone always seems surprised when we start speaking English. Surprise!

4. Don’t wear flip flops to sightsee in Prague. Many of the streets are cobblestone, and after an 8 mile run this morning, followed by a 4 hour walking tour of the city, my feet are talking to me. Since I wear flip flops all the time, it didn’t occur to me that walking all afternoon would be a problem. But, since we don’t have a lot of cobblestone streets to train on in the US, my feet took a beating. Remind me to stop complaining about running on sidewalks in Los Angeles.

5. Nobody wears baseball caps in Prague. And I mean nobody. It was kind of rainy, and very humid, and since I have Rosanna Rosanna Danna hair, I decided to forgo trying to fix my hair and just donned a baseball cap over my ponytail. I got more strange looks, and at lunch, the waiter thought I was a boy. Sheesh. Now I have to worry about looking old AND like a boy.

Now, it’s time for a nap. Beer at lunch is not the best idea, especially with jet lag.

Happy Running!

Tagged as: beer, flip flops, germany, jet lag, prague