Excerpts

Croatian "Živjeli" or "U Zdravlje" (zheev ye lee), (oo zdrav'lee) ("Cheers," "To Health") A golden rule of Balkan toasts: if you've heard one "Zhiveli" you've heard them all. Croatians express their version of the staple Balkan toast with a different vowel on the middle syllable--zhivyeli, rather than zhiveeli. Croatians will also say "U zdravlje," as well as "Živjeli," but that's about it. But what could possibly account for this astonishing coincidence in Živjelis? Once upon a time in the early nineteenth century, a Serbian folklorist named Vuk Karadžić got the idea to simplify his native Serbian by introducing a simplified Cyrillic alphabet. Simplification in the name of standardization was a theme later taken up by the Croatian poet Ljudevit Gaj, who urged his countrymen to adopt as a literary standard a dialect spoken throughout the Balkans called Shtokavian ("Shto," meaning "what," the dialect literally translates into something like "what-ese"). The suggestion was debated, bandied about, tossed around, laid aside, taken back up, and finally, by the end of the 19th century, accepted as a pretty good idea. The result was later called Serbo-Croatian or Croato-Serbian--a rather testy balance, like Lennon-McCartney. Later, this stylistic cobbling encompassed even more languages and became the eloquently termed Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian, or BCMS. By 2009, the former Yugoslavia was a puzzle-board of new and semi-newly independent countries and a national language was a patriotic hammer in the toolbox of independence. BCMS lost its hyphens as Bosnians claimed a Bosnian language, Serbians Serbian, Croatians Croatian, and Montenegrins Montenegrin. The separation is mostly political but there is a difference in the alphabet. Serbians use the Cyrillic and Latin, Bosnian Latin, Montenegrin nominally both, but leans towards Latin, and Croatian is strictly Latin. This might not seem like much of a difference, but take a moment to reflect on how the extra "L" in "traveller" or the "S" in "organise" immediately distinguishes a Brit from an American. Now as for drinks, the go-to liquor of Eastern Europe is rakia/rakija in all its forms (cherry, pear, plum, walnut, etc.). Too many shots and even the most resilient drinker may have trouble getting out of bed in the morning but if you're lucky, before bed your Croatian comrades will prescribe you a good dose of sage tea--Croatia's hangover remedy. In addition to some of the bluest beaches on the planet, Croatia has also got a flourishing wine market. While in Croatia, take some time to sample the dark red Plavac Mali (considered a relative of Zinfandel), white Posip, or the dessert wine Prosek (no relation to Prosecco). If you're eating out, ask for a recommendation and you'll get something new every night. And while you're at it, why not supplement your language learning with the Serbo-Croatian/or BCMS, or just plain Croatian version of 'Bon Appetit: "Dobar tek." Tasting Note: Rakia, Sljivovica fruit brandy, Karlovačko, Ozujsko, and Pan beers Norwegian "Skål" (skol) ("Toast") Norwegian loan words are easily spotted in English. Fjord and floe take little linguistic training to recognize. There's a kind of curveball with the word ski, but slalom (not-too-fast downhill skiing) and klister (ski wax) are decidedly foreign, as is the skrei (crowd) of fish terms: brisling, krill, and lutefish. If you fall off your yngling (small boat) or wipe out trying to execute a complex Telemark (ski turn) you might say "Uff da!" and Norwegian even has its own term for a Benedict Arnold--a Quisling. This sounds a little humdrum but it ought to be mentioned that Norwegian also gave English its kraken and its narwhal, two sea-dwelling, alienesque creatures of mythological proportions. The kraken was a giant squid that dragged merchant ships to the bottom of the sea, according to Jules Verne, Herman Melville, and Captain Jack Sparrow. The narwhal is an arctic-dwelling whale masquerading as a unicorn. They're the ones responsible for all the unicorn horns you find in old museums. There's even a whole throne made of "unicorn horn" in Copenhagen. But back to the list. You might guess from it that Norwegians are a laid-back people with a fondness for skiing, sailboats, and salty fish and you'd be exactly right. Actually, according to the World Economic Forum, it's a close match between the Finns and the Norwegians deciding who are the happiest people in the world. While there are all kinds of hypotheses about what makes the world's happiest people (I imagine it has something to do with also being named one of Europe's most beautiful countries by Travel Away), there's an idea that Norway's restrictive alcohol laws might play a part. This starts with prices. A standard Norwegian beer generally costs between six and ten bucks. Young Norwegians usually avoid getting drunk at bars but when they go to supermarkets, they have to buy their beer before 8 pm. Wine Monopoly (Vinmonopolet)--the only outlet where you can buy stuff over 4.75 percent--closes even earlier, at 6 PM. That sounds awfully restrictive. Hell, it is restrictive, but Norwegians seem to like it this way: 80% of people voted to keep their Vinmonopolet, according to a 2016 survey. Does less opportunity equal less drinking? Logically yes, but drinking is still done with gusto, albeit more often at house parties and home settings. All the usual spirits are brought out for casual consumption, but for special toasts and holidays you may be introduced to Akevitt (from aqua vitae), a grain spirit flavored with anise, cumin, cardamom, caraway, fennel, or orange, and sipped, not chugged. For a quiet toast there's cheers with the simple skål but before you take shots, don't be freaked out if the Norwegians break out into song. Actually, feel free to join in: the most popular is "Ol, øl og mere øl" and the only thing you need to know before belting it out is that øl is "beer" and og mere, "one more." Happy countries, simple pleasures. Tasting Note: Pils, Export beers, Akevitt/aquavit schnapps Excerpted from Cheers!: Around the World in 80 Toasts by Brandon Cook All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.