Day 2 started with a planned rest, where we could all sleep in to account for jetlag. Good idea and highly recommend it to other instructors, as the group was bushed and out of it.
Moreover, what I found as we went through the week is that it is imperative to plan rest/downtime into the program. As it was, many of the planned visits I had arranged fell through, leaving us with about half as many as I had hoped (meaning formal visits to corporate offices, cultural events, etc.). In the end, I was glad that they had not worked out, because it most certainly would have made the trip more pressured and tense than was wanted. Lesson learned — be reasonable in how you plan your day and activities, accounting for the slower group dynamics and mobility issues.

As it was, on the first full day we were scheduled for our first visit — to Ceska Televize 24 (Czech Television 24 — their version of what would be most similar to CNN Headline News) and it was to start at 1. And with sleeping in, we were still almost late (highlight of the day — Drew Stephens running out of the door, barely dry from the shower, dressed in business casual, belt almost falling off, smiling, dripping wet hair, and hustling in disheveled fashion to be with us (“I’m with ya, I’m here” — in the rain as we walked to the station which was about a half mile from U Akatu, our bed and breakfast (“penzion” as they call it here).

Btw, I should also mention this: to avoid bureaucracy and  confusions with exchange rates, money issues, etc., I decided to collect from all participants before we left the money needed (in total $500 from each of them) for accommodations and this was smart, as it meant they did not have to have lots of money with them and I could manage it all in one fell swoop — namely  I withdrew it from my bank account at a lower exchange rate (be careful, there are maximum amounts you can withdraw per day — meaning I had to plan to have it withdrawn in parts across the days we were in Prague) but in the end it really saved, time, money, and the hassle of collecting all the fees needed for our hotel from everyone.  It also meant they only had to deal with covering their own food and travel (and we bought passes for transportation, so it was also less expensive and less of a hassle). In short, it made the business behind the daily routine something we only had to think about once. And I had all the money at hand to address all bills. To the point, leave the university out of the trip in as much as possible (i.e. icards, money collection, etc). The less bureaucracy, the better.

Enter Martin Loksik, professor of broadcast journalism at Charles University (the Czech Harvard). I’ve known Martin for many years and he offered to help me in organizing this first CzechMates excursion. “help” does not begin to describe all that he did for me/us.   As someone who is completely dialed in  regarding the Czech media realm, he was able to make some amazing arrangements for us, providing access and information that we could not have done on our own.

This morning, he came to our penzion and directed us to the TV station where we were introduced to Martin Reznicek, who was the Director of Foreign News for the station. Again, his English was impeccable and he graciously gave us a tour of the station, its news and broadcast rooms, and discussed in detail, the operations and changes occurring therein. The students had many interesting questions and although the tour was scheduled for one hour, we went almost two thanks to his hospitality and willingness to accommodate our  interest. Best of all, he talked with me about the possibility of developing internship opportunities with Penn State (and Staci Pawlak, a current CzechMate student is slated to be the first if all works out in our plans in the coming year). All in all, it was a wonderful excursion that satisfied and/or exceeded all our expectations — interesting, informative, and insightful for the students.

When we were planning the trips, we tried to think of gifts from Penn State we could tender to our hosts after our visits. T-shirts are tricky in terms of fashion and size.  Kitschy gifts (pasta, bottle openers, etc.) don’t translate well. We decided on calendars, but to our dismay, it is hard to find a calendar in the late spring, or one that does not have only pictures of Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lion American football team (again, translation does not work). As such, we settled for golf balls and PSU towels, as we thought they might appeal to burgeoning  class interests in the Czech professional sector. If nothing else, they were quirky without being tasteless.

Point to note: always think ahead with regard to bringing gifts to your hosts — sets a good tone and leaves a good impression. For their time and to distinguish your visit, PSU offers many gift options — it is up to you the impression you want to leave and how well you know the people. Even then, it is hit or miss. Next Xmas, I’ll be stocking up on calendars as they can be given to “everyone” in the office in general, they show a bit of our home turf, and they are often classy in their photography. A winner all around, I would think. They are also relatively inexpensive and easy to carry as well and I think leave a good impression. Of course, one is always guessing to some degree.

We finished the tour and went back to U Akatu to change (we all went to the visit in business casual, also to be respectful) and then it was to the center to meet up with Martin for a quick tour of part of Charles University, the highlights of Prague, and then on to dinner and drinks in a Czech pub.

The tour of Charles University, although brief and incomplete, was nonetheless important for how it showed the differences between Penn State and the Czech University system — no campus life on display, centuries-old buildings, no “campus” spirit to speak of and no sweats or bedheads in the halls or classrooms, etc. We did get a chance to see where Martin teaches (state of the art digital computers and broadcast equipment) and talk with him about what and how he teaches.   All in all, I think the students were a bit in awe of the mystic of the place — hallowed and timeless, yet contemporary as well.

From here, we left en masse to see what is arguably the highlight of Prague, namely Old Town Square. And here we encountered firsthand what remains a big problem in the Czech Republic to this day — namely racism. Raw, uninhibited, naive, sickening, and stupid.

While waiting to watch the famous clock chime in the hour, I suddenly realized I was hearing several voices singing boisterously about ” the white man marches on” and “N**gers blood”. I was in disbelief, even moreso when I realized they were singing it to CK. Stunned, I went into automatic mode — scanning the group with the singers (schoolkids, maybe Czech, but more probably German, boys and girls, maybe 15 years old, not too big, not too many boys, if CK takes a crack at the four boys singing, who might I need to get if they come to his defense (scan the group, scan the group, etc.) all the while reading CK’s reaction.

It was brilliant but more controlled and restrained than I could have ever managed. He drew his camera out, turned on the video, and encouraged them to sing it again for him. In a heartbeat, they lined up like lemmings, and piped in again with gusto (to the tune of Battle Hymn of the Republic – I later discovered that the song was written for American History X) bolting out the song in the tops of their lungs, smiles and shameless — perfect jackasses, but more accurately perhaps ignorant of the profound connotations and feelings that their words connoted. But in one action, CK emasculated them. While several passersby hurled epithets at the children, CK owned the show, and in doing so, profoundly and without any question, framed their ridiculousness and idiocy for all to see. Masterful. But I still would have liked to have punched their lights out. CK is a bigger man than me (and I have to say that thanks to CK, the following headline — “American professor on visit to Prague assaults several children in Old Town Square”– never appeared in the Czech  newspapers).

But it was nothing to make light of, as it haunted all of us in a sickly way for the rest of the evening, each of us trying to process it. For CK, for ourselves, for humanity. Martin was profusely apologizing for the shameful display without reason. And although we had a wonderful dinner and great discussions for the rest of the evening, I think we all went to bed trying to process just what exactly had happened and if we were going to see it again. Thankfully, we never did. Rather, we encountered only tremendous generosity and welcoming dispositions. But once was more than I wanted. It still bothers me.  At some point in the coming weeks, I hope to talk with CK about it, and to let him know he’s a bigger man than me. I learned something from this for sure. That no matter how much one thinks they know a place, there is always something else that can surprise and shock you. Day 2 finished with bittersweet satisfaction surrounding the first day and mild trepidation regarding what other surprises might await us in the coming days. 

Location: Prague,