Sunday October 30, 8:06 pm, Trump Across the World

I stood on a Berlin sidewalk, bags at my feet. The chill in the air had me bouncing my legs and squeezing my hands to keep them warm. My Uber pulled up, a grey sedan. I hugged my friend and grabbed my bags, throwing them into the back seat before I slid in.

“I’m going to Sudkreuz bus station, please,” I said to the driver.

“Okay, Sudkreuz,” he responded. After a brief silence he said, “So you’re American. Do you like Donald Trump?”

I laughed, and we went on to have one of the most fascinating discussions among the many I’ve had with Uber drivers.

“I am related to Obama,” said the blue-eyed gray-haired German as he made a left at the end of the street. After sensing my disbelief -- as I’m sure he gets from everyone he tells -- he says that he is married to a woman from Kenya.

“You know, Obama is from Kenya. And everyone there is related. So my wife is related to him, and since I married her, he is sort of like...my cousin!” I couldn’t argue with that.

I’m constantly surprised by how well Europeans keep up with American politics. It’s a testament to how crucial this election actually is; the whole world is affected by it. The people who ask me about Donald Trump are usually older men. I wonder if this is simply out of the stereotypical predisposition old men tend to have for politics, or if it’s because they’ve lived through political disasters of their own -- and recognize one when they see it.

Not surprisingly, it’s been pretty easy keeping up with the election from abroad. I follow major news networks on Twitter, and my Facebook timeline has been inundated with political posts for the past year now. The only media I’m missing is TV news -- I don’t get any American channels in Prague. My roommates and I have made it our priority to watch each Presidential debate online, but the time change makes it difficult to stay completely caught up to speed. I guess in that way, I feel more removed than just physically. I have to intentionally read the news online and check my Twitter feed for updates, which requires a different type of involvement than simply keeping the TV on MSNBC.

I’m more involved in this election than I have been in any other, which I believe is a result of a combination of things: forcing myself to stay up to date to make up for my absence in the states, and it’s the first election I can vote in.

NYU Prague makes it pretty easy for students to vote. We received an invitation to a voting event at the home of the American Ambassador living in Prague. There, we could ask questions about our registration status and send in ballots or absentee voter requests, which I did. Once I received my ballot, I simply brought it to one of the NYU RA’s and she helped me mail it back to the states, first class postage and all.

I think with NYU being a more liberal school, I’m surrounded by like-minded peers. I’m both shocked and in love with the social and political awareness my friends have. And Prague is a most interesting place to view our current political situation from because Milos Zeman, the President of the Czech Republic, is sometimes dubbed the Czech Donald Trump. He’s known for his very right-leaning politics and outrageous comments, not to mention his alcoholism. He tends to be favored by Czechs in less educated regions, like the countryside, while intellectuals in Prague rave on about his idiocy. This parallel is a bit scary to me, to know that a candidate who seems so incapable can still be elected, and that I’m living in a place where it actually has happened.

I’m doing my best to stay updated on American politics, and I already sent in my absentee ballot. All I can do now is keep my fingers crossed.