Pre-Departure Post (CE - Sylvia Corfman)

I arrived by plane from San Francisco this morning, napped a couple of hours, unpacked, washed and am ready to iron and pack again. Our oldest son's wedding was this past weekend in Monterey, where it was uncharacteristically warm, and as beautiful as ever. As I prepare to travel an approximate distance in the opposite direction tomorrow, I am mindful of the startk contrast between the two destinations. Reviewing the itinerary to plan appropriate attire makes this contrast even more apparent.

It is with mixed emotions that I begin this trip, mostly from the after effects as the 'mother-of-the-groom,' an invisible persona akin to the U.S. Vice President's position, and the little time to properly prepare for Central Europe.

I am eager, though, to see this part of the world. I have listened to many stories from acquaintances who have visited the area, before and after the 1989 Velvet Revolution, and the dissolution of the communist state. These stories along with our class readings, presentors and discussions about Central Europe, its people and history, have piqued my interest to learn even more personally about this culture and how it affects modern-day women.

From my pre-departure paper, I selected an excerpt about CE's cultural awareness:

"Central Europe is an area that is defined more by its historic legacy than its geographical boundaries. Its diverse culture has been shaped over the centuries by war and cultural hegemony, a theory put forth by Antonio Gramsci in the early twentieth century. Gramsci’s theory simply states “that man is not ruled by force alone, but also by ideas” (Bates 1975). Forty-eight Czech female factory workers provide evidence of this theory when they resign themselves to their plight of economic hardship after the Czech Republic’s stalled economic transformation from socialism to capitalism during the 1990’s (Weiner 2005). These women accepted the political mantra of delayed gratification for long-term gain, positioning themselves to see no other alternative than to remain as factory workers."

With the Velvet Revolution in 1989 and consequently the transition from a socialistic economy to a free-market economy, workers valued a higher future orientation. However, these same workers remained attached to their strong cultural heritage of family and group structure, as a means of protection against the disappointments forced upon them by the variety of government and regime changes. This strong family attachment illustrates Central Europe’s high in-group collectivism cultural dimension. When the anticipated economic hardship delay of five years stretched into ten, these Czech women, as well as the entire Czech Republic, became disillusioned. This repeated pattern, which played out across most of Central Europe, except Hungary, contributed to this culture’s low future orientation."

Now, back to packing, and the myriad other details that must be done, before embarking on an (additional) 11-day trip. See everyone at the airport tomorrow!