Where are you from ? I´m from Czech Republic. How old are you ? I´m 29 years old. What do you do in your life ? Any plans ? I work and travel for 3 years now. I´m enjoying to get know new places and people. But I can´t wait to settle down finally. Why did you leave home ? (and when) Well I would say I left my home at my 16 when I started to study military school. I was home just sometimes for weekends and than I started to work in different city in Czech Republic and after I decided to travel. And reason? I love to life on my own and discover world. Where is your home now ? My home is and always will be where my family is and where I was born. There is no other place where I could feel like home. What is/was your relationship with your parents’ house ? I have an amazing relationship with both of my parents. They are not together since I´m 18 but it turned out better for all of us. I was living just with my mummy and brother after they broke up so I have really strong bound with my mum and she is my best friend. On the other side I have great relationship with my dad as well and we all meet each other sometimes. What does “being an adult” mean to you ? “Being adult”? What a question. Definitely responsibility, independent, freedom! But never forget to be crazy little bit ! Do you feel like an adult ? I do. But sometimes with my best friend I´m definitely not an adult! When did you first feel like an adult ? When I got my first job. I got my first salary and I became independent. I could afford an apartment, my own car, everything what I wanted. But all those things have responsibilities as well! I had to pay the bills and many other things. That´s the life and that´s the freedom on one side as well. Do you have confidence in yourself ? I do! Many situations in my life shown me that I have to have self-confidence, otherwise I won´t make it far. When was/is the moment when you feel fully accomplished ? When I´m coming back home after long time. When I´m arriving to the place where I was born I feel those butterflies inside. I remember every three, every building, every street, all cows in the field, all doggies … everything! It´s always such a good feeling to come back and watch every small change. My mum always give me amazing warm greeting together with my doggie of course! She always prepare my favourite food and great bottle of wine. If my brother with his family arrive as well, than it´s top of everything. Than I feel fully accomplished. In Czech Republic, is there pressure from society to be a successful adult after a certain age ? I would say it is. Everyone want to have at least college. But it´s not good thing always. There are many people with master degree but those people are unusable in normal life. We are mising manual skilled people a lot.
Have you ever gone on a trip alone for more than three months ? I never did and I would never do that. It´s always better travel with someone. Do you feel you have matured after leaving your country to leave by yourself in a new country, with a new language ? I wouldn´t say matured. I´m just not scared anymore to go somewhere out of my country and speak with another language. I feel independent. At what age did you leave on your own for the first time ? How did you live this departure ? I have never been just on my own. Always with my boyfriend by my side. We moved abroad when I was 26 and it was so exciting because we wanted that for such a long time but we couldn´t moved because of lockdown. It was hard just because I left my family for longer time. I love to discover new places so it was amazing time for me to finally do that ! Did traveling to another country, to new cities, help you grow up? No, it was just my dream came true. I grow up much more earlier. For you, age is an important / indispensable element to feel like an adult ? Important thing is how you feel not how old are you. Age is just a number for me. For you, does the fact that you are a man or a woman change the situation ? Do you have any examples ? I don´t think there are many differences between to be woman or man in this world. We are all on the same boat. But sometimes women can be really tricky and if can choose I´ll always choose men company. Do you have a story – funny or not – to share about a situation where you said to yourself “Oh shit, that’s an adult thing I didn’t do before” ? I have a hard stories but they are definitely not for sharing with others. So I don´t know about other things. For me is being an adult not really big thing. It´s just natural nothing crazy. Don’t you feel that being in your twenties is pretty hard to live in our society? You have to be beautiful, know what you want to do with your life, then find the great job, the great guy, the great girl, be surrounded, have the great apartment, get married and start a family? Is this what becoming an adult is all about ? How do you feel now ? I never care about our society too much. I just life my live how I want and I don´t care what other people think about me. All those things are just cliché. Many people did everything like it´s mention in question but are they actually happy? I don´t think so. Was it easy for you to become an adult ? It was really easy. My parents did a great job to raised me and prepared me for real life. Can you say “no” without difficulty ? It´s always more difficult to say no. I used to have a big problems to refuse someone. My life journey tought me that I have to say no in case I don´t like things how they are or if I don’t agree with other opinion. Anyway I think I´m doing great steps with that.
Is there a specific area that you are stuck on, you are not independent, you always need help ? Not at all. When you’re young, you want to be an adult. Do you remember what attracted you to being a “grown-up” ? To have my own money, to get things which I wanted, to become independent. Is being an adult today what you imagined it to be ? I´ve never imagine myself like an adult honestly. I always lived by presence. Last two years I finally figured out what I really want to do in my life and I´m starting to imagine myself like “an adult” in the future. Is being an adult about accepting reality as it is, and stopping dreaming ? It´s important to have a dreams and always do the best to make the true. Your fears, your questions about life ? I don´t have a fears right now. I know if I´ll go for something what I really want I can get it no matter how long it´s gonna take or how hard it´s gonna be. I´m not scared. Do you feel like you can shape your life the way you want ? Of course! That´s the point … live my life like I want. For sociologist Susan Nieman, becoming an adult is not about having a job, paying your taxes and saving for your retirement, but about experiencing intellectual and creative emancipation. What do you think about that ? I think that she´s living in different planet. Of course there is something on it and it´s important to experiencing intellectual and creative emancipation but that´s maybe the main point for rich people. The rest of us have to always pay our bills, taxes and have a savings. Those are responsibilities of adult world. Being an adult is being serious ? In some point yes I guess, when it´s something important in life, something what I really want and care about than I have to take it seriously. Self-mockery is important. Is it an adult thing ? Not every adult can handle self-mockery. It´s mostly about human nature. Everyone of us is different and I wouldn´t say it´s an adult thing. A great music, a great book, a great movie to share that has marked you so far ? I love piano and my favourite type of music is metal core, that´s my life. A motto, a quote, a tattoo, anything else that marks your life ? Everything is happening for the reason. Destiny decides who you meet in life but it´s only your heart that can decide who gets to stay in our life. Any advice for someone who is anxious with all these adult questions ? I don´t like those questions as well. Sometimes you have to step up from your comfortable zone. Are you happy ? I´m not happy in the moment. But I know what I want and I´ll go for it! Is there anything you’d like to add that you haven’t mentioned ? No, everything is here.
