In this Blorecast episode, I respond to viewer feedback on two recent videos:

🇸🇰🇬🇧 Slovak vs British Christmas and 5 Ways Slovakia Is Definitely Better Than the UK.

Over the holidays, both videos generated thoughtful discussion on YouTube and Instagram. Here, I reflect on what people agreed with, what they challenged, and what I learned from the comments — from Christmas traditions and food, to practicality, multilingualism, and access to nature.

Topics include:

• Slovak vs British Christmas traditions (and the “no birds” debate)

• Why turkey replaced goose in the UK

• Slovak practicality and real-life repair stories

• Multilingualism, dialects, and a controversial language quote

• Name days and traditions

• Food quality and processed food

• Nature in Slovakia vs the UK — and why people disagree

This episode is about cultural comparison without hostility, and why good discussion matters.

💬 Which translation of the language quote do you prefer — and does the attribution matter?

👍 Like, subscribe, and share if you enjoy thoughtful takes on language, culture, and life in Slovakia.

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🔔 Subscribe for more

The Blorecast is a podcast from The School of Blore in Košice, Slovakia. It’s about life, culture, language, and exams – all served up with a dose of humour and storytelling. Whether you’re learning English, preparing for Cambridge exams, or just curious about life in Slovakia, you’ll find something here.

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#Slovakia #UK #ExpatLife #LivingAbroad #CultureComparison #FoodCulture #Nature #Multilingualism #CentralEurope #BritsAbroad

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📺 Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@bloresk

📌 Find out more at: https://blore.sk/

📧 Contact: podcast@blore.sk

👍 Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blore.sk

📸 Or instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blore.sk/

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Photos used for the thumbnail and interstitials:

Jastrabia veža (I think), https://www.vecteezy.com/free-photos/stone

View of the Cheshire Countryside from Beeston Castle, https://www.vecteezy.com/free-photos/british-countryside

Masaryk photo: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tom%C3%A1%C5%A1_Garrigue_Masaryk_1925.PNG

Our theme tune is Ode to Joy – Heavy Edition, written specially for us by the most excellent dafteaux: https://youtu.be/rU6nLowrtmE

The funky breakbeat drum loop is by Alexander, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License: http://www.orangefreesounds.com/vintage-drum-and-organ-beat-87-bpm/

Is Slovakia actually better than the UK? 🇸🇰🇬🇧

I spent the first half of my life in the UK — and the second half in Slovakia.

So I’ve experienced plenty of Christmases, dentists, supermarkets, and public offices in both.

In this episode of The Blorecast, I ask a slightly dangerous question:

Is Slovakia genuinely better than the UK — and if so, how?

To keep things fair, I set myself some rules:

• No cheap shots

• No unfair comparisons

• No obvious wins like skiing or ice hockey

• And no pretending that salaries, healthcare, or history are simple

What’s left are five areas where Slovakia really does have an edge — based on lived experience, culture, data, and everyday life.

This episode covers:

• Why Slovaks are often more practical and pragmatic

• How Slovakia became quietly multilingual

• Why traditions are still lived, not just performed

• How Slovak food culture avoids the worst of ultra-processed diets

• And why nature, forests, and mountains are Slovakia’s greatest advantage

This isn’t about claiming Slovakia is perfect.

And it’s definitely not about saying the UK is awful.

It’s about noticing what works — and what we might lose if we’re not paying attention.

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⏱ Chapters

00:00 Intro

00:42 The Rules

01:49 #5 Practicality & Pragmatism

03:34 #4 Multilingualism

05:56 #3 Traditions

07:50 #2 Food

09:43 #1 Nature

12:05 Outro

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💬 Join the conversation

Have you lived in Slovakia, the UK, or both?

Do you agree — or am I talking complete nonsense?

Leave a comment — I read them all, and I often feature viewer responses in future episodes.

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🔔 Subscribe for more

The Blorecast is a podcast from The School of Blore in Košice, Slovakia. It’s about life, culture, language, and exams – all served up with a dose of humour and storytelling. Whether you’re learning English, preparing for Cambridge exams, or just curious about life in Slovakia, you’ll find something here.

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#Slovakia #UK #ExpatLife #LivingAbroad #CultureComparison #FoodCulture #Nature #Multilingualism #CentralEurope #BritsAbroad

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The Blorecast is also available as a podcast

🎧 Listen: https://feeds.captivate.fm/blorecast/

https://open.spotify.com/show/0kHQShCL2BG10TD20ILDNb

https://podcasts.apple.com/sk/podcast/the-blorecast/id1837288694

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📺 Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@bloresk

📌 Find out more at: https://blore.sk/

📧 Contact: podcast@blore.sk

👍 Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blore.sk

📸 Or instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blore.sk/

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Photos used for the thumbnail and interstitials:

Jastrabia veža (I think), https://www.vecteezy.com/free-photos/stone

View of the Cheshire Countryside from Beeston Castle, https://www.vecteezy.com/free-photos/british-countryside

EU flag: www.vecteezy.com/video/36025113-european-union-waving-flag-realistic-flag-animation-seamless-loop-background

Masaryk photo: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tom%C3%A1%C5%A1_Garrigue_Masaryk_1925.PNG

Morena: Jaroslav Moravcik - stock.adobe.com 605763679 a 497770811

Folk dancing: kviktor - stock.adobe.com 76542936

Morris Dancers: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morris_Dancers,_York_(26579460201).jpg

Infographic adapted from here: https://slidesgo.com/theme/visual-comparison-infographics

All other photos (and the wood warbler video) are mine.

Our theme tune is Ode to Joy – Heavy Edition, written specially for us by the most excellent dafteaux: https://youtu.be/rU6nLowrtmE

The funky breakbeat drum loop is by Alexander, used under a Creative Commons...

I spent the first half of my life in the UK, and I've lived the second half in Slovakia — which means I’ve experienced Christmas from both sides.

In this episode of the Blorecast, I put British and Slovak Christmas head to head in 10 festive rounds, comparing everything from food and traditions to timing, TV, Christmas markets, and the man himself.

This isn’t a rant, and it’s not a culture war — just a good-natured, slightly nerdy comparison from someone lucky enough to have lived both.

1. The Christmas build-up
2. Decorations
3. Christmas markets
4. Timing
5. Starters
6. Main courses
7. Desserts
8. Traditions
9. TV
10. The Dude

#ukchristmas #vianoce #slovakiaculture #christmastraditions #fatherchristmas #christmasfood #livinginslovakia

🔔 Subscribe for regular Blorecast episodes on culture, life in Slovakia, and a bit of humor along the way!

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🎧 Listen: https://feeds.captivate.fm/blorecast/

https://open.spotify.com/show/0kHQShCL2BG10TD20ILDNb

https://podcasts.apple.com/sk/podcast/the-blorecast/id1837288694

📺 Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@bloresk

📌 Find out more at: https://blore.sk/

📧 Contact: podcast@blore.sk

👍 Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blore.sk

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🌍 About the Blorecast

The Blorecast is a podcast from The School of Blore in Košice, Slovakia. It’s about life, culture, language, and exams – all served up with a dose of humour and storytelling. Whether you’re learning English, preparing for Cambridge exams, or just curious about life in Slovakia, you’ll find something here.

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Jingle Sound Effect from https://pixabay.com/users/dragon-studio-38165424/

Our theme tune is Ode to Joy – Heavy Edition, written specially for us by the most excellent dafteaux: https://youtu.be/rU6nLowrtmE