Coyans in the Czech Republic

Nikdo nikdy nezkousili vareni marsmela...Noone has ever tried a roasted marshmallow

The girls were at summer camp in a nearby village. It was a medieval camp where they made handicrafts using ancient methods. It was a very cool camp. Every morning they took the bus there and came home in the evening. This tiny village was on the edge of the forest and was absolutely beautiful. On the last day of the camp there was a bonfire (ohen) and we were to grill sausages. We, as Americans, wanted to bring some marshmallows that we had just received from the US so that we could introduce the kids to some American culture...roasted marshmallows. The Czechs have never heard of roasted marshmallows before. Our niece, Ciera was with us and she could not believe that an entire people group had been deprived of roasted marshmallows. Here is her blog entry about things that she was shocked by in the Czech Republic...
3 cheers for America
Many things about the Czech Republic sound really awesome. Crime rates are super low, family is very important, they don't fake nice-ness with strangers, and women get 4 years of paid maternity leave. All of that is great! Some things, however, are just plain wrong. Not different, but wrong. I thought my biggest issue would be the way women here are treated. At the end of the day, they are still 2nd class citizens. Krista said that even if the husband is retired and the wife is still working she does all the cooking and cleaning. It is simply her job, not his.
I learned something else, though, about Czech people that I just can't support. I mean, I can kind of understand the women thing. Obviously I disagree with it, but at least I can see where it comes from. If the women aren't taught that they deserve more than that, why would they push for change? This thing that I learned, though, is impossible to understand. I just can't fathom it. Czech people don't like roasted marshmallows.
I'll give you a few minutes to let that sink in.
Today we went to Roxie and Bekah's day camp, and a bunch of parents and children were roasting sausages over the fire. We brought marshmallows. Fortunately Danny and Krista had warned me about this ahead of time, but it was still truly shocking! First of all, everyone looked at us like we were insane. They asked if we needed meat, which we declined. Then they just laughed at us. Laughed at us in that, "You are out of your mind, but it isn't hurting me, so I guess I'll just laugh..." sort of way. A few brave children accepted when we offered them the roasted marshmallows, so I got to see a sight I'd never seen before: a ten year old eating their first roasted marshmallow (I also saw a live, wild hedge-hog, which I had never seen before either). They gingerly bit into them, then made odd faces at the gooey texture inside. A couple of the kids took to them, but most did not care for them at all. One dad was brave enough to try one, and he said it was "Weird, but kind of good." For the most part, however, we were simply mocked.
Now, there are a lot of things wrong with America. Yes, we think we are the world police, family is less important than money and succes, we are sexually repressed in some areas and at the same time hyper-sexualized in all the wrong ways, we are consumer driven, wasteful, and fat. But say what you will, at least Americans understand that when you whip sugar into a little fluffy cylinder, shove that onto a stick, and hold it over a flame until the outside is all brown and toasty and the inside is warm and gooey, it is delicious!!!
Don't even get me started on s'mores.