MY SPRING 2002 TRIP TO SLOVAKIA  

Today is Sunday February 24. The weather in Vancouver is absolutely fantastic, sunny, blue sky and cold just like in early spring. When I woke up I was sorry that later on in the afternoon I would be leaving this paradise and won’t be able to go skiing to Grouse Mountain a peak of Vancouver that Mathew and I ski a lot during the season. Mathew has an early soccer game and I am going to watch instead of going to the mountain. I won’t see him for three weeks and I will miss lot of games. Their team lost 2:1, but it was a great game. Today is also the gold medal game for hockey at the 2002 Olympic games in Salt Lake City and Team Canada has a chance to end their 50-year Olympic Gold drought against USA. Well the game is a history now and as I thought for and believed, CANADA WON THE GOLD. I left for the airport about three minutes prior to the end of the game and just as I was pulling out of driveway they scored the 5th goal, the game was safe. When it was over I was just stopped at an intersection and many young people have run out of the stores with Canadian flags, cheering and shouting and the horns were horning all over. Maria and I, we both cried and that was the moment we realized once again how proud Canadians we are. I guess the whole CANADA was cheering their GOLD TEAM. And at the end the whole country was at stand still. I arrived at the airport just one hour prior to departure, worrying that the flight may be closed already as since last year after 9/11 they recommend that you arrive for check in 3 hours prior to departure. There were no line-ups, however the flight was almost sold out. I checked in with no problems. While in the departure lounge I was able to watch the last minutes of the game and also the awards ceremony and I cried again. Most of the people in the lounge had their eyes glued to the TV monitors. It was a great atmosphere. The flight as it is usual with LUFTHANSA, THE GERMAN AIRLINE was great. We arrived in Frankfurt of course on schedule. When I got to the luggage pick up area, my suitcases were already on the conveyor belt. As they were the last suitcases to get on and the first ones to be taken off the plane. I went straight to the AVIS counter and in few minutes got a car, this time it is a RENAULT diesel. It had only 1075 Kilometers on the tachometer. Practically a brand new car. I like the new diesel cars as they are sleek and they are fast and smooth. The price for diesel fuel is less expensive in Europe as well as opposed to gas. The weather was terrible, windy, and raining all the way to Bratislava. I arrived in Bratislava at 8:00PM. Talking about border security and surveillance, while it increased in North America in Canada and USA it is really relaxed in Europe. No questions at all at Frankfurt airport, then there are no border patrols at all anymore in the countries of European Union, meaning that there is just sign telling you that now you are in for instance in Austria. When leaving Austria for Slovakia, the border guard didn’t even check my passport and just waved me through. The Slovak Border patrol stamped my passport, but the customs officer waved me through without asking any questions. I can only dream of this kind of treatment while arriving in Canada by car from USA or at any International Airport. The weather in Bratislava is about the same as it was the in Germany and Austria today, no-good, just wind and rain. As I have difficulty sleeping, it is 4 AM local time here and 7PM in Vancouver I decided to write and update my files. Early morning I have to go to the post office and mail the newsletters to our Slovak recipients arrange for telephone cards, visit friends, and renew my Press Pass. I also have to go and see the new director of the House of foreign Slovaks PhDr. Karol Palkovič as they violated my copyright in one of their publications by reproducing the front page of our newsletter on their back cover and in the publication without first getting permission in writing prior to publication as it is stipulated in the copyright notice on the back cover of every Slovak Heritage Live Newsletter. It is sad that the former director of the Centre for Slovaks Living Abroad, Mr. Claude Baláž had no clue about the copyright law and allowed this violation to take place.

Early morning I visited my friend Marin Mešša at UĽUV office, went to the post office, then I visited my friends at Ministry of Culture and then I went to the new and downsized offices of the Centre for Slovaks Living Abroad at Jakubovo Nám.12, 810 00 Bratislava 1, P.O. Box 119, Phone: 011-421-2-5293-1559, E-mail: palkovic@dzs.sk, http://www.dzs.sk. I found Mr. Palkovič is very pleasant man, he worked many years for Radio Slovakia foreign language division, he is also a journalist and it looks like he will put the office finally on the right track. He reduced the staff from 36 to 9 professionals. I retroactively granted them copyright permission for one time publishing. My best friends were skiing in Austria so I decided to cook for their son next few days. I went to buy supplies at the best privately owned meat market “U HURBANA.” Got some great spare ribs, pork tenderloin, pork roast, some beef and chickens. This store sells fresh meat products and the prices are much more reasonable than in the newly opened hypermarkets such as Tesco, Carefour or supermarkets Billa and Kaufland. So I cooked lunches and dinners to the delight of Andrew and his grand mother. Thursday I went to the opening of art exhibit: FULLA AND THE SLOVAK WORLD on the eve of 100-birth anniversary of Ľudovít Fulla. The opening of the exhibit was in the presence of the President of the Slovak republic, Mr. Rudolf Schuster, former president Mr. Michal Kováč and his wife and the minister of culture Mr. Milan Kňažko. This is the largest and most complex public exhibit of Fulla’s works ever. The exhibit is on two floors in the National Gallery in Bratislava. Ľudovít Fulla was born on February 22, 1902 in Ružomberok. He graduated from high school in Ružomberok, 1918-21 he studied at Business Academy in Dolný Kubín, 1921-22 at painter’s school of G. Malý in Bratislava and 1922-27 at Art College in Prague. In 1927 he became a teacher in Senica, 1928-29 he was a professor at Gymnasium in Malacky, 1929-39 School of Folk Crafts, 1939-42 Industrial College in Bratislava. He retired in 1942. From 1943 he lived in Martin. 1949-52 he became director of a section for of monumental decorative painting at the University in Bratislava, 1952-56 he was a freelance artist in Bratislava, 1956-62 in Žilina and from 1962 until his death in 1980 he resided in Ružomberok. In his art one can see elements of Slovak Folk Traditions. Following the opening I went to opera at the Slovak National Theater to see Guiseppe Verdi’s NABUCCO again. I can never get enough of Verdi’s operas and I always enjoy them.

Friday afternoon I went to opening of the TREASURES OF FOLK CULTURE OF SLOVAKIA exhibit at the Slovak National Museum. This exhibit was previously exhibited in Rome, Paris and in Germany and finally it opened in Bratislava. The exposition is made up of 13 themes covering the basics of working life, customs, and several types of folk art from the past. Family customs, birth and childhood, love and marriage, Christmas customs, spring and Easter customs, sacral art. All together there are over 700 items on display. My friends the members of the folklore group HÁJIČEK from Chrenovec-Brusno were providing entertainment. After the opening ceremonies I viewed the exhibit and seen different displays of folk crafts and arts. The mayor Of Chrenovec-Brusno EMIL TRGIŇA took me aside and asked me to stop writing the truth about his friend Megalomaniac GRUSKA. I told him that I write what I want and about whom I want and he couldn’t influence me at all. These things had to be said and the people needed to be informed about the truth. The problem is that in Slovakia many people involved in folklore with the same views as mine are afraid to talk about it. I also told him that I said what needed to be said and that as far as I am concerned I am finished writing about MEGALOMANIAC GRUSKA. For any further mentioning of his name on these pages he will have to pay, same as for display advertising.

Saturday I went to my favorite spot, Liptovská Teplička. I went through Nitra, Zvolen, Banská Bystrica, Brezno and through Čertovica. Čertovica is a tourist destination ski resort. The road to Čertovica was sanded and bare, this wasn’t the case from Čertovica to Králová Lehota near Liptovský Hrádok. The road wasn’t sanded at all and there was about 6 inches of ice and snow on the road and it was really dangerous. I went through Hybe, and got on freeway there that took me to Važec and continued to Štrba and from there through Šuňava to Liptovská Teplička. The road from Štrba was covered with ice and snow as well. I made it safely. Right away upon my arrival I went to prepare dinner for my friends. I made spare ribs in chili sauce with garlic, honey, and Worchester sauce. Sunday I returned to Bratislava. Monday morning I went to visit my friend Stanka Bulavová (SHL Volume 9, No.4) in the hospital, as she is still there and receiving treatments. She went through several chemotherapy treatments and her situation has improved. She has more red cells and is gaining weight as well. As soon as she reaches the optimal weight for bone marrow transplant they will do it. Her older sister is a perfect match.

Later on I called Ms. Brodnianska at the press office at the Theater of Andrej Bagar in Nitra and managed to get a ticket for sold out performance of Slovak musical “BATHORYČKA.” Alžbeta Bathory the bloodthirsty countess of Čachtice was born in Myirbátor. (Today’s Hungary) in 1560. She was married to František Nádasdy who was a nobleman, on May 8. 1575 in Vranov. They had five children. Between the years of 1585-1610 she tortured and at the end murdered young girls. The number of her victims probably exceeded 600. According to the modern medicine she was an impulsive sadist. Her victims were lured to work for her as servants. They were all young and beautiful and mostly from poorer nobility families or orphans. Her servants were also grabbing girls on roads or kidnapping them from their homes. Most girls were tortured and murdered at castle in Sárvár, but many also in Čachtice, Vranov nad Topľou, Bratislava, Vienna and during her travels between her residences. She was caught by palatine Juraj Turzo. Many of her servants were sentenced to death by cutting of their head and by burning alive and she was sentenced to life home arrest at Čachtice castle. The musical performance vas great.                      

I returned to Bratislava after the performance. Tuesday I went for a beer with four of my old friends from 36 years ago to Plzeňský Pub. Here we were remembering the good old times of our youth our travels in Austria and Germany during 1968. After we left the pub I met my friend Maroš Veselský who told me about new small program premiere of LÚČNICA, designed and choreographed and directed by my friend Jano Blaho. Second premiere was to be on Friday in Petržalka again. So I decided to go.

Wednesday my friend and our correspondent Miroslava Dulová and I went to KOMÁRNO to see the Square of Europe. A newly developed square in which the architects incorporated buildings copied from the major squares of the main towns of European Union. I have no clue what they were trying to achieve by this tourist attraction as Komárno tourism is barely noticeable and Komárno is hardly a tourist destination as this is a town through which people go to Hungary. Half of the town is in Slovakia and the other half is in Hungary. To make this project viable, that the small gift and other stores may survive they would need at least 50 busses per day filled with spending tourists, which is highly unlikely. The underground parking garage has a capacity of no more than 50 cars. After I parked my car there I noticed that all four hubcaps were stolen from it in Bratislava. So I learned very valuable lesson and next time I will take off my hubcaps immediately after my arrival and keep them safe in the trunk and replace them prior to returning the car to rental company. Around lunchtime we drove to HURBANOVO. Hurbanovo is a head office for one of the best Slovak breweries ZLATÝ BAŽANT, which is owned by Heineken of Holland. The management got a deal with the city by which they restored an old manor house in the middle of the town and in return they got the right to operate first class restaurant specializing in pheasant cuisine. We went for lunch at the Manor House restaurant. Wow. The service was superb, as was the food. We had pheasant soup and pheasant on blueberries and crepes with walnuts, chocolate, and whip cream. Later on we went back through Komárno and Dunajská Streda to Bratislava.

Thursday I stayed in Bratislava and in the evening I went to one of my favorite Bratislava hang outs, Café Amsterdam and to my greatest surprise my old friend and singer Vasko Velčický was playing and singing there. I was so exited to hear him sing after all these years again that I even called my friend Makši in Cariboo, British Columbia on my cell phone to tell him about the happening. Makši was in the hospital getting his blood transfusion, so I left a message on his answering machine. We sung along all night to Vasko, singing Elvis Presley’s songs.

Friday my friend Martin Mešša and I went to the LÚČNICA’S performance in Petržalka. Before performance we met the director and choreographer and our friend Prof. Štefan Nosál and his wife and many other folklorists. Prof. Nosál arranged for out free tickets. We were seated on the balcony and had a perfect view. This program was different, as there were only few pairs at the time on the stage and songs and choreographies were all new and I really enjoyed the performance.

Following the performance there was a party at Lúčnica’s private club in down town Bratislava. Many of my friends including Martin and me went there. We had few beers for starters followed by what I consider to be the best goulash soup I ever had in my life. No kidding. This was work of art. Lots of spices, beautiful taste, and aroma, not too hot, just fantastic. Later on we had some wine and there was a sing along to the piano playing of my friend Maroš Veselský who recently became the director of the V-Klub in the center of the town in the National Cultural Centre building. The V-Klub did open again on March 22, two days after my return to Canada. V-Klub used to be where the happening was in Bratislava in my youth and I certainly hope that the new venture will be successful and that the V-Klub will once again become the center of University student’s life and happenings. We went home around 3 AM.

Saturday early morning I went to Vienna, Austria. I used to live in Vienna for six months in 1969 and I love Vienna and I just like to be there. This time I went to Naschmart, open-air market with fantastic atmosphere of many cultures from around the world. It is in walking distance to the Opera and Kärtner Strasse that has been changed to a pedestrian mall many years ago, together with many streets in the area. I walked pass the Opera, the Mozart Café, Hotel Sacher the home of the famous Sacher Torte, the beautiful stores, pass the street entertainers, the St. Stephen’s Dom Cathedral and through two walkways under buildings I came to my favorite Viennese restaurant: THE FIGELMUELLER located in the passage at Wollzeile 5.

You can also find information on the restaurant at: http://www.figlmueller.at. I have been here so many times that by now I know the waiter, originally from Bratislava, Slovakia. The specialty of this restaurant is fast service and of course their trademark, the LARGEST SCHNITZEL IN THE WORLD that is made from veal it’s round in shape and way larger than your plate. The schnitzel weights about 250 grams and it is very thin. They even have their own-bred crumbs made of emperor rolls. The schnitzel is fried in vegetable oil and ready to be served in 18 seconds. All you really need with it is a plate of their very own salad with delicious dressing and ein firtel of their very own wine from Grinzing a wine growing area near Vienna, where they have restaurant there as well. Their third restaurant opened recently just around the corner from here at Bäckerstrasse 6. Funny coincidence, as I lived my first days of my emigration way back in 1969 in the youth hostel located few doors down the street in Jesuit monastery.

I left Vienna early afternoon as I had a ticket to the opera at Slovak National Theater in Bratislava to see the second premiere performance of Bizet’s CARMEN. This performance was simply fantastic and also one of my favorite Slovak opera star Martin Babiak was singing. He is not only a great opera singer but also he looks good and he is a great actor as well.

Immediately after the performance I went to Liptovská Teplička via Nitra, Zvolen, Banská Bystrica and Donovaly. The road through Donovaly was covered in ice and snow and it was really dangerous. As I was driving near the Hotel under Šturec past Banská Bystrica, a car traveling in opposite direction started to slide from side too side, luckily by the time it got really close to me the driver managed to gain control and steered the car to his side. The road ahead was dreadful, so I drove really slow and continuing through Ružomberok, Liptovský Mikuláš, Štrba, Šuňava, arriving in Liptovská Teplička at 5:30 AM. In all the years driving through Slovakia it never ever took me so long to travel this distance.

I slept till 8:00AM and I was off to Poprad by buss with the folklore group Tepličan to hear and see the tradition of taking out Morena that was written about in the last issue of the newsletter. It was sunny but really cold and very windy. Taking out Morena was repeated few hours later, however in much more idealistic surroundings in Liptovská Teplička.

Monday I went to Vyšehradné to visit my friend and master potter Rastislav Haroník. It was a sad and emotional visit as his mother passed away few weeks ago. I will never forget her kindness and smile. Rasťo made me a special herbal tea from herbs that he picks himself and dries. Later I continued to Bratislava, where I spent again few days. Of course I went for a great dinner at the VODNÍK restaurant again.

Wednesday I went to Liptovská Teplička again and Thursday early morning I set out to go to Prešov, Údol and Košice. While passing the Spiš Castle I couldn’t resist the perfect setting. The sun was just raising up from behind the Branisko Mountain and the castle was in the sun in its unbelievable beauty so I made turn and went to my favorite spot to photograph the ruins of the largest Gothic castle in Europe. While on the way to Prešov I changed my plans and I went straight to Košice first. I wanted to visit my friend Frater Gabriel at the Dominican Monastery there and I knew he wouldn’t mind early morning visit. Right at the door to the monastery I learned that his father whom I know as well is visiting from Dolný Kubín. Frater Gabriel was called to the door and when he saw me he was totally surprised and very happy. He took me to the visitor’s room where his father was staying. I stayed behind when he announced to him that they have a surprise visitor. As soon as he saw me there was a big smile on his face, as we didn’t see each other for about a year. We had a nice talk, I had a tea and some mineral water and I went on to see my friend Jaroslav Biroš-Bohulile Onasisse in Prešov. We went for a coffee and had a rally nice talk; later on we went to pick up his girlfriend Helenka at her store where she works. They went for lunch at Čierny Orol and I continued to Údol near Stará Ľubovňa visiting family of a friend of mine. From my family in Bratislava I learned that in Plávnica located very close to Údol is a farmers cooperative that grows all kinds of herbs and they do package and sell their own herbal teas. They have herbal teas for everything. Later on in the day I returned to Liptovská Teplička again and for next few day I was resting there. Sunday evening I returned to Bratislava, Monday I packed and visited some friends and Tuesday early morning I went to Vienna again to visit the Austrian National Historic Museum. I seen the Egypt exhibit and the art treasures. For lunch I went again to Figelmuler and then I returned to Bratislava. Around 10 PM I started my over 800 kilometers journey to Frankfurt. The weather was really bad, heavy rain and windy. I missed the Passau exit past Linz and went to Salzburg instead. The Autobahn took me to Munich as well. This miss has caused me additional hour of driving and over 100 kilometers. I made it in time to the airport. I checked the car in and took the check in slip to AVIS car return office for the final bill. To my surprise the final has shown additional 79 EU. So I immediately asked why? The answer was that I ordered a full tank of gas in case I would return the car empty. I made a point to gas up, just prior to coming to airport and the check in personnel did marked the slip, as 4/4 meaning gas tank is full. When I was picking the car three weeks ago I specifically requested this automatic entry for gasoline to be taken off. All the clerk did was to scratch it with the pencil on my bill, however it remained on my account in the computer. Anyway my bill was decreased to 19 EU. I consider this to be a fraudulent procedure on the part of AVIS rent a car company in Germany, as this wasn’t the first time they tried this trick on me. So as of now all my requested adjustments will have to be made right through the computer by their staff right at the time of the pick up. The flight on Air Canada to Montreal went fine with good service and food. I had to wait about five hours for my flight to Vancouver and arrived around 9 PM. And this is how my spring 2002 trip to Slovakia ended.

Vladimir

GO BACK TO TRAVEL

Published in the Slovak Heritage Live newsletter Volume 10, No. 2, Summer 2002
Copyright © Vladimir Linder 2002 
3804 Yale Street, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5C 1P6
The above article may not be copied, reproduced, republished, or redistributed by any means including electronic, without the express written permission of Vladimir Linder. All rights reserved.