Jason and Susan were walking down an old busy street in the Czech Republic. They had just arrived the night before, just after midnight. It was early morning, and they were super hungry!
“I’m in the mood for eggs and bacon with a slice of toast,” said Susan.
“Where do you think we are going to find that? None of these shops even sell food,” replied Jason.
He was a bit frustrated because they had been looking for food for a long time. They had walked into many shops before, but each time they were disappointed to find that they were gift and souvenir shops. They did find a café once, but the only food there was croissants, which isn’t enough to fill anyone’s stomach!
What’s worse is that they couldn’t read or speak any Czech! When they left the hotel early that morning, they tried to ask the lady at the info desk where they could get breakfast, reading from a Czech phrase book they picked up at the airport, but the lady just pulled a confused face and pointed toward the restroom, thinking that’s what they were asking about!
“How about we ask someone?” asked Susan.
“Please no! I’m not going to embarrass myself again! Nobody understands anything we try to say. I told you we should have taken some Czech classes before we came.”
They both went quiet. Susan didn’t respond. It was a sensitive topic, and neither of them wanted to fight about it again.
“Sorry,” said Jason. “I don’t mean to be ruining our first day in the Czech Republic. Let’s try to enjoy this breakfast-finding-experience!”
They had only been a couple for a few months, but they already learned a lot about having a healthy boyfriend-girlfriend relationship. One of the tricks is to remember that we are easily upset when we haven’t eaten!
“It’s ok,” replied Susan, “I know you’re super hungry. I am, too. … Hey! What’s that ahead?”
They both looked up the road. They were walking up one of those old cobblestone alleys that Europe is well-known for. It was a bumpy street, not smooth like the black asphalt roads they had back home. There were tons of little signs lining the streets so it was hard to point out anything specific.
“You mean the clocktower? Wow, it’s eight past seven! We’ve been looking for breakfast for more than an hour!” Jason replied.
“No, no, no, not that far away. Before the intersection, on the left. I think I see a McDonald’s.”
“Oh, I see it, too! Do you really want McDonald’s on your first day in the Czech Republic? It’s not Czech at all.”
“I know it’s not ideal, but at this point I’m ready to eat anything. We can look for something more local for lunch.”
“Ok, maybe we can look for some ‘Czechanized’ food in McDonalds, if there is such a thing,” agreed Jason.
“Great!” Susan exclaimed, ” I’ve never been so excited to see a McDonald’s in my life!”
“Hahahaha,” laughed Jason, “Me neither. Me neither!”