I have lived in Slovakia for around 7 months and I have noticed some differences between
my home country, Lithuania, and my current residence, Slovakia. I would like to highlight
some of the things I have learned.

The first thing I noticed when I arrived here at the end of January was the way pedestrian
crossings work. In Lithuania, pedestrians are a priority. Whenever I want to cross a road
without traffic lights, I am not afraid to cross because I know the cars will stop for me
because that is the rule and car drivers don't want to break that. While in Slovakia it is quite
rare to see a car stop for you. You either wait for a gap between cars, wait for all of them to
pass or just go across the road, which is quite brave. So, in a sense, I have gotten even
more careful around cars here, to hopefully not get hit. If you come here, be aware!
The second thing also involves cars and roads. I do not have a driving licence but with the
circus I had the chance to visit other cities in Slovakia. I have found out that it's quite scary to
drive on a highway in the dark. In Lithuania, highways and main roads have lights along the
road, which quite surprised me when I realised Slovakia doesn't. I am not sure why this is
the case but that is one more thing I have noticed.

Furthermore, the roads in Bratislava and around Slovakia are not very good compared to
Lithuania's ones. Even though Slovakia is a bigger country and both of the countries had to
overcome the fall of the Soviet Union, Lithuania had managed to repair its most used roads.
Of course, it is not perfect in either of the countries but that was another thing I have paid
attention to in my time here.

And lastly, some smaller things I have noticed while living here: both Lithuania and Slovakia
use cottage cheese (or also known as quark) but in my country it's mainly used to make
sweet things. However, Slovakia differentiates cottage cheese and quark to make sweet and
salty foods. The use of vignettes is in both countries but in Lithuania it is only assigned to
bigger cars, trucks and buses. In Slovakia, everyone has to pay for the roads or they might
get a fine. Also, I like to go to cafes and if I like their coffee, I might buy some coffee beans.
In Lithuania, it is quite customary to grind the coffee before the person takes it home.
Though in Slovakia, people were surprised when I asked if they could do that and some
weren't even able to do it. Slovaks tend to have a small grinding machine that you turn
yourself to make beans into coffee. I am not a big fan of this tradition, 'cause it adds more
time into my morning ritual.

These were a few differences I picked up on while living in Bratislava. I still have some time
to explore what Slovakia has to offer, so maybe I will come back with more interesting
contrasts between these two countries.

Text a fotka: Saulé Dilyté - Jimin (he/him/them)

Jimin je dobrovoľníkom programu Európskej komisie Európsky zbor solidarity na dobrovoľníckom projekte v organizácii Cirkuskus pod koordináciou Bratislavského dobrovoľníckeho centra. Projekt bol podporený z programu Európsky zbor solidarity.