Culture is Cool

As I mentioned in my last post, I talked to three very articulate Croatians and reaped a lot of insight on the nuances between our life-styles.  Naturally, some of it I had already gathered from three years of rowing with "the Croatians" (as our team often lumped the four together).

--They don't share the idea of a "normal family home:" a house with a yard, a garage... I was initially shocked to hear that people might actually prefer an apartment to a house.  What about privacy, space away from neighbors, land ownership, the American dream?!  Jelena prefers her apartment, as do the others, claiming that by living there, in the city, you don't have the time-consuming commute into the suburbs-- work is done at 3, you're home by 3:30, and you have all afternoon to twiddle away...

-- The apartment buildings that I saw and in which my friends live are what I'd call "socialist" buildings.  They reflect the communist influence of the 20th century: blocky, utilitarian.

--They're big into fashion, or they dress nicely when they go out, at least.  My teammates were taken aback upon arriving in Texas and seeing students attending class and grocery shopping in T-shirts, hoodies, gym shorts, or - heaven forbid - pajama pants. In Croatia, it's always nice pants, nice boots, nice blouse, nice coat... Most young people spend money on brand names. (Side story: When Jelena's cousin came to visit Austin, my jawed dropped as I watched her spend hundreds of dollars in a single day, mostly on a $500 pair of cowboy boots. I lived in Texas and I don't own boots!  It's not that she's rich; she's not. It's just that they have this thing for shopping).

--Many 20-year-olds still can't drive because 1) they use public transportation.  2) The legal driving age is 18.  3) The process (lessons, etc) is far more lengthy and expensive than in the U.S. About $1000. Same goes for France.

--Their movies are in English; no big surprise there.  The French, though, are so staunch in the cultivation of their language that they dub over our movies.  The Croatians don't bother; they just read the subtitles.  When I asked one of the guys how he's speaks such good English, he answered "movies."  I don't believe for a second that he got it all from the cinema-- it's also a requirement in school from an early age.  But the point is worth making that the French effort to keep English at bay versus the Croatian indifference to it might result in more English-fluent Croatians than Frenchmen.  Are the French worse at English than their less-proud European neighbors? I have no idea.  Nor do I blame the French for getting defensive.  It's language imperialism, or language globalism, call it what you will.  How would we feel if we had to watch movies and TV shows where the mouths didn't match the words, or if we were forced to learn a language from elementary all the way up?  (Maybe it won't be long for America.  Many are already disturbed by the inroads Spanish is making).

-- Since college in Croatia is practically (if not literally) free, there's no rush to get out.  It's not uncommon to stay in school until your late 20s, taking it easy and drinking lots of coffee along the way.

-- Their vocational schools seem to be more serious than ours, though.  They asked me how, for example, one could become a plumber in the United States.  Oddly, I couldn't conjure an adequate answer.  I hadn't given much thought to how blue-collared workers get their jobs, besides gaining experience, joining the family business, getting a license of some kind from a voc. school.  (Maybe I'm revealing my ignorance on the issue).  In Croatia, a significant amount of time is put toward becoming such a worker.  It takes three years to become a qualified waitor! (As in France, service is seen as a career, not just a way for teenage girls to make money after school). Vocational schools often replace high school-- teenage years are spent learning a trade... When I asked Jelena "doesn't that mean you have to choose a career path when you're only 14?," thinking it a grave injustice to youth and freedom of choice, she just shrugged and said "people in the United States wait too late to decide; they never choose."  Knowing many peers (myself included?) whose careers still hang in the ambiguous "future," maybe she's right.