In the edgy age of cell phones, video game consoles and hip-hop, Czech teens have clung as well to the gentler habits of a bygone era, taking traditional ball-room dancing and etiquette courses. Every year, thou-sands aged 15-18 attend such courses to learn rituals established at the time of the Austro-Hungarian empire that continued -- even thrived -- throughout the oppressive years of communism.
在手機、電腦遊戲機和嘻哈饒舌歌當道的焦慮年代，捷克青少年不忘擁抱過去那個年代比較紳士的習慣，上傳統交際舞和禮儀課程。每年有數千名15到18歲的青少年去上這種課程，學習這種根源於奧匈帝國時期，並在共黨壓迫的年代持續發揚光大的傳統舞藝。
"I registered because it's a tradition here. My parents and my grandparents also went to dancing courses when they were my age," said 16-year-old Eliska shyly. She is one of 200 youths kitted out in fancy dress and twirling under huge crystal chandeliers at a municipal palace in the capital. "Waltz Remember that's one-two-three, one-two-three," their teacher cried out.
「我報名登記，因為這是這裡的傳統。我的父母和祖父母在我這個年紀也都去上舞蹈課，」16歲的艾莉絲卡害羞地說。她也是200位穿著華麗禮服的年輕人之一，他們在捷克首府市政廳巨大的水晶吊燈下翩然起舞。
Eliska is wearing high heels and a dove-grey strapless cocktail dress, bought for the occasion. Her young partner, like all the other boys, has donned a suit, bow tie and white gloves for the occasion. The programme includes fox trot, two-step, polka, mazurka, cha-cha and waltzes, but also a brief course in good manners -- how to hold a glass at a cocktail party, how to dress for a banquet, how to blend in with the society, what flowers to buy for your dancing partner.
艾莉絲卡腳踩高跟鞋，身穿為這個場合特別買的藍灰色無肩帶小禮服。至於他的舞伴，一如其他男孩，也為了這個場合身穿禮服，打蝴蝶領結，戴白手套。舞碼包括狐步、兩步舞、波卡舞、馬祖卡舞、恰恰和華爾滋，外加良好禮儀的短期課程，包括在雞尾酒會如何拿酒杯，赴宴如何穿著打扮，如何打入社交圈，該給舞伴買什麼花。
"In the Czech Republic, dancing lessons are per-ceived as elementary social education," said Ruzena Chladova, who has been in charge of the prestigious Vinohrady school for 25 years. The course comprising 10 two-hour lessons once a week, costs up to 278 dol-lars, roughly a quarter of the average monthly wage.
「在捷克共和國，跳舞課被視為基本的社會教育，」主持布拉格名聞遐邇的威隆拉第舞蹈學校25年的夏拉多瓦說。每周課程包括10堂兩小時的課程，要價約278美元（約台幣9,200元），約為每月平均收入的四分之一。
The lessons are not limited to the posher parts of the capital. All towns and cities across the country offer such courses. Though still strong, some say the tradition is slowly fading among teens as Czech society changes. But ballroom dancing has become increasingly trendy among adults. Two TV channels posted record ratings after broadcasting dance contests featuring celebrities, and private companies are now buying dance courses for employees as a perk or team-building exercise. Photo shows students taking a classic dancing course on October 21, 2008 in Prague.
這些課不只限於首都生活較奢華的地段，全國所有城填都提供這類課程。雖然還很熱門，有人指稱，這項傳統隨著捷克社會改變，在年輕人之間已漸漸式微。但在成年人中卻成為日益熱門的趨勢。兩家電視台在播出名流舞蹈比賽後，收視率創新高。私人企業現在也為員工購買跳舞課程，當做建立團隊精神的運動。圖中學生於10月21日正在布拉格上古典舞蹈課程。