You've got to S-M-I-L-E...to be H-A double P-Y

By Courtney

That's true right? You have to smile at some point during your day to keep your happiness intact. At least I believe it to be true. If I notice myself feeling down...I notice that I'm also not smiling. So far, I have found one problem with Prague and it's citizens. It is very rare that someone you do not know, will smile at you, or say hello on the street, or in their case, Dobry den (good day). After Morgen and I had made it safely up our apartment stairs with our luggage in tow, we decided to step into the pub that is right outside our apartment entrance. Our landlady Marketa had mentioned to us that some of her previous students frequent it, and they LOVE English speakers. Well, they weren't there. In fact there only about five people inside, including the bartender. It was smoky and dimly lit, a mish mash of decorations, and wooden tables and chairs.

As we walked in, I immediately spotted her (the bartender) and exclaimed Dobry Den as a greeting. Expecting a greeting back though was not right. She said nothing, her face didn't crack, and she stared at Morgen and I as if we had just told her the worst joke in the history of jokes. So, I requested two small beers (mare pivo proseem) and we took a seat at a table. After leaving there we decided to find our school which we did with no trouble. And after walking around for another half an hour or so, we decided to stop and eat. We found a restaurant that seemed alright (Morgen was thankful it was non-smoking) and walked right in, picked a table and sat. The waitress approached us...Dobry den we say.......crickets I tell you. Nothing. Soo....two pivo proseem I say. The food was delicious, the service wasn't bad. And we were quite entertained the entire time by an Italian family that refused to sit at a table, they wanted to stand...and chit chat, I could tell that what they were saying was funny, I just wished that I could understand it! Darn. :)

So, I told Morgen at some point during the day that I just don't get it. Why don't they smile at people they don't know...or say hello or good day to people in the street? But I am now making it my mission (and i'll make Morgen join me) to smile and say good day to as many people as I can.

Two people can change things ya know?