For two years Diego Angel Chamorro Ramirez disciplined himself to learn the language of a country from the other hemisphere so as to use it to pass entrance exams and thus be admitted to a high-prestige university course. He has now lived in the Czech Republic for eight years. How does he like studying in Brno, I wonder?
“Hi, I'm Diego." At first sight it is obvious that he is not a local man. In fact, Diego is from Paraguay. How did it happen that he travelled the 10,000 kilometres to Brno? “Usually I say by plane," he smiles enigmatically, before going on to give a full explanation in softly-accented Czech that charmingly includes the odd imperfect declension.
“After secondary school I wanted to become independent and go abroad. I looked for scholarship opportunities and I found one here. The Czech Ministry of Education scholarship included financial support for my studies preceded by an intensive course in the Czech language that lasted almost a year." At that time Diego knew little about the plunge he was about to take. “I knew Czechoslovakia and Prague. I used this knowledge to search for photos on Google. Then I said to myself, 'What a beautiful city, I think that I'll like it there'."
But things weren't so simple. He chose to study psychology, a subject that admits only a handful of new students each year. At the first attempt he was not accepted by any of the faculties to which he applied. So he tried all the harder to broaden his Czech vocabulary and read up on psychology. “Friends of mine applied to less demanding schools, to which they were admitted without having to take entrance exams," Diego recalls. “In their first year they went to lots of parties while I was preparing for my entrance exams." But the hard work paid off – at the next attempt he was accepted by Masaryk University's Faculty of Arts.
Although it is not customary for Paraguayans to go abroad for an education, Diego was encouraged to do so by friends and family. According to Diego, Paraguayans are not in the habit of travelling anywhere but to neighbouring, Spanish-speaking countries. As a secondary-school student he had to go to a language school in order to study English.
Although Diego claims to have no particular talent for languages, in addition to his native Spanish and now Czech he understands Slovak and has a working knowledge of English and the indigenous language Guarani. “My Guarani is not up to much," he concedes. “My parents spoke Spanish to me and I didn't encounter it until I went to school, where it is taught for reasons of tradition. Now I wish that I could speak it better, as I consider it an important part of my identity."
The Czechification of his identity took some getting used to. “In Paraguay people are far less reserved with each other. We talk, embrace and in general show our feelings more. For Czechs, such behaviour is not natural." By now, however, he has many good friends among Czechs, although he spends more time among Slovaks. “That's probably because many first-year Czech students go home for the weekend," he explains. “For many of my Slovak friends, home was too far away, so they stayed in Brno like I did."
Now he spends whole days in the University Computer Centre, finishing work on his dissertation. “At home I have a bed, and that encourages me to be lazy. At the Centre I work alongside my fellow students and we encourage one another." He is torn away from his dissertation by the Spanish teaching he gives to supplement his income. “As the scholarship covered only the standard period of study and I have extended mine by a year, now I have to make my own living."
He is in touch with his family on Skype every other week or so. “My mother even set up her own Facebook account so we could communicate more easily," says Diego. In the past eight years he has been home only once. He plans another trip home after his graduation, which he will celebrate with his family. “But I'll be back," he promises.