Many foreigners complain that Czechs are not friendly enough, that they are cold. It is true that Czechs do not smile at strangers, neither are they very fond of superficial social niceties. So the first contact with Czechs is not easy. However, once you get to know them better and they get to know you, things change.
Learning the Czech language
Over time, I have come to the conclusion that this distance has partially been created due to the language barrier between foreigners, especially non-slavic speakers, and Czechs. When I came here first and did not speak any Czech I found myself being quickly drawn to the large Ex-Pats community that exists in the city and I began to frequent English speaking bars and cafes, where language acts as the common ground whereby people can meet and converse together.
One thing that struck me in such places was that the vast majority of the locals whom I met there didn´t speak Czech and had no intention of learning it, although some of them have been living here for a long time. It suddenly dawned on me that unless I have some level of Czech I will never feel completely at home here.
So I started learning the language and despite the fact that I am still not fluent at it, I have seen a marked difference in how I am treated by Czech people now. Some of my friends who have learnt Czech feel the same way as I do and agree that many new comers to Prague don´t make an effort and miss out on certain dimensions and hence a lot of things which Prague and its inhabitants have to offer.
English in Czech offices
On the other hand, it needs to be said that the efforts have to come from both directions. In general, if needed people in Prague are willing to talk to you in English, although some of them prefer not to, as they lack confidence. The real problem arises when you need to deal with Czech offices, where quite surprisingly, it seems extremely difficult to find anyone having at least basic knowledge of English.
Every foreigner who is living here understands what it feels like to visit an office on numerous occasions in order to get and fill in a single form. I do urge anyone who tells me that they wish to move to Prague to learn the language as soon as possible but even this would not adequately prepare them for dealing with many offices where a high level of the language is necessary it do even the most basic tasks.
It would really benefit people’s experience of Prague if office going was made a bit easier for non-Czech speakers. As an EU country, I believe that in each office, especially those that foreigners have to visit, at least some of the staff employed should have adequate knowledge of the English language.
I feel that if greater efforts were made on both sides, the interaction between foreign residents and Czech would become much more pleasant and would make a huge difference to the lives of all those who reside in Prague.