Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, my friends, supports and family! (I know I am a little late, but I know it is never too late to give thanks for those you love!) I hope that you had a joyous, refreshing and relaxing thanksgiving.
Brno...
I was able to spend Thanksgiving with other American teachers from Slovakia, Hungary and Czech Republic. On Thursday morning, (after sleeping in, Yeah!) we took the train to Brno in the Czech Republic. It is in the south of Czech, about an hour and a half from Bratislava, and is the second largest city in Czech, after Praha. On the train, we met up with all of the teachers from Hungary and had a very joyful and fun ride to Brno. Once in Brno, we made our way to the hotel. This was an adventure in itself as we had two families with us, with seven kids between them. It took us quite a while, but it was nice to visit with people and enjoy a nice stroll in the short daylight hours.
Pumpkin Pie!!!
After checking into our hotel rooms, we had a short meeting and then dinner. It was not like the dinners that I was used to (much simpler), but still good. We had a green salad, mashed potatoes (very yummy) and turkey. To make up for the simple dinner, we then went directly to desert. Which, since we had brought ourselves, there was in abundance. We had pumpkin pies, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin cake, apple pie, chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal cookies, Hershey kisses cookies, and spice bread. Yummy! And we all filled up on as much dessert as we could hold. Finally, it was feeling like Thanksgiving.
Phone Calls and Pictures
Then it was off to bed, or at least back to our rooms, where we caught up with friends we had not seen since training in California. I was able to call my family and wish them a Happy Thanksgiving (Thanks Taunya!). Even though it was not home with family and the traditional feast, it was a very wonderful day. Check out my Thanksgiving pics here:
I Am Thankful For...
There is so much for me to be thankful for this year. On the top of my list are my wonderful roommates, Karin and Becky. They are amazing women of God and the most amazing roommates a girl could ask for. Also on my list is my computer, internet, e-mail, blogs and Skype, which all enable me to keep in touch with my family and friends. Other things on my list: family, friends, Jesus, my new school (Narnia & CS Lewis), my students from San Jose and Slovakia, letters and packages from home, snow, warm boots, heaters, hot chocolate, good books, movies, LOST (and the brother who loned it out over many miles), buses, cell phones, dark chocolate, music, English, Slovak, new foods, and good health.
You Are Thankful For...
I would love to hear from all of you about your lists of things to be thankful for. Feel free to post a comment on my blog containing your list. God is good and has blessed us with amazing gifts according to His goodness… let’s share them with each other too!
I thank my God upon every remembrance of you. Philippians 1:3
27 November 2006
22 November 2006
Eastern Slovakia Trip
An Amazing Adventure
November 1st-3rd was my school’s Fall Break and we decided to take advantage of the time and go to East Slovakia. Karin, Jen (our friend who lives in Budapest) and I made plans to travel to Kosice, Presov, Levoca and Bardejov. Kosice is the second largest city in Slovakia and is a six hour train ride from Bratislava. We arrived in Kosice around 8 at night and after wandering around in the dark for a about an hour, we finally found our way to our hostel which turned out to be only a five minute walk from where we had gotten off the bus. Oh, the joys of being illiterate.
Kosice to Presov
Our time in Kosice was somewhat disappointing as we were there on a holiday- which in Slovakia means that everything except for the churches and some restaurants are closed. So, we were not able to see much. By this point, I was not feeling good and was pretty sure I was coming down with a cold. And of course, since we had to lug all our stuff around, I had packed light and had not brought my Vitamin C, Airbourne or Kleenex. So, after having coffee and a snack at a café and lunch at a Chinese restaurant, we decided to continue our journey to Presov. We arrived at Presov, wondering how we would find our hotel. Karin had made the reservation at this particular hotel, and the man she had spoken with spoke almost no English.
Very Long Side Story
(Side-story here of how the reservation was made: Karin called and asked the man if he spoke English. He responded with no in Slovak. She then asked, “Reservation?” He said “Yes” in Slovak. So, she told him two days in Slovak and told him Wednesday/Thursday in Slovak. He responded with Yes in Slovak and then proceeded to say the days of the week in English, as if to confirm. “Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday.” Karin said, “No, Wednesday, Thursday” and he again responded with, Yes, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday. After going back a few times, Karin heard him trying very hard to say the “th” sound, which does not exist in Slovak. So, hoping for the best, she thanked him and hung up. End of side-story.)
Man at the Hotel
After taking the long, long, LONG way around (the hotel had moved to a new location, we found out when we went to the old one), we called a taxi and found our way to the hotel. The man Karin had talked to came to the door and ushered us in. He was very pleasant and helpful, asking us which room we wanted and making sure we had everything we needed. This was all done with him speaking Slovak, us speaking English and LOTS of hand gesturing. When we explained (i.e. gestured) that we had not eaten, he drew us a map of how to get to old town where there would be restraints or the grocery store, both a ten minute walk. We decided on the grocery store and I decided to stay behind as I was really not feeling well. While we were talking about what to do, he came in and offered (gestured) that he would walk us there. During the walk there, Karin and Jen discovered that the man (we never quite got his name- Opps!) he spoke Hungarian (which Jen is beginning to learn) and understood some German (which Jen has a basic knowledge of). This made our conversations with him easier, but no less comical. Lots of “What did he say?” and “I don’t really know, but I think maybe…” After the trip to the grocery store, he offered us some of the chicken he was roasting and three pickles. And of course, Turkish coffee, blacker than black and thicker than mud. The next door he walked us to the bus station, helped us figure out which bus to take, and even spoke to the bus driver about us. Our guardian angel!
Spissky Hrad!
We went to the quant town of Levoca and wandered around until we were too cold, then took a bus up to Spis Castle(Spissky Hrad). I think this was the highlight of our trip. It was a long and daunting hike to the top (especially when you are sick.) Jen was a history major and she was practically running to the top while I was struggling to put one foot in front of the other. Karin was in the middle, wanting to share in Jen’s excitement, but not wanting to leave me in the dust either. When we got to the top, we found the gate closed and a picture of guard dogs and guns on the gate. Jen was frustrated and ready to climb the wall. We noticed someone inside though and they gestured that we could get inside if we walked around the castle. So, we went hiking again. (My face felt like it was frozen as the temp was nearing 0°C. When we finally got around to what we figured out was the main gate, it was open. We paid a nominal fee and were told to stay on the main path. We had the entire castle to ourselves. (We figure this was due to the freezing temperature and the biting wind.) Since there was no one there and the main path was not clearly marked, we explored every nook and cranny of the castle. We peeked in every room, poked our head through every window, climbed every staircase and took every path we could find. We had a glorious time and took tons of pictures. If you ever come to Slovakia, you must make time for Spis Castle. It is the largest castle in Slovakia and one of the largest castles in Eastern Europe. Well worth the hike, the cold, the wind and the cost.
Bardejov and Pastor Jan
Our last stop on our trip was Bardejov, a charming town that has been carefully restored and renovated to preserve the old town feeling. There we met up with a Lutheran pastor (a friend of a friend of a friend who spoke fluent English), who invited us into his home, shared with us the history of the town and took us on a tour of his town. It was absolutely gorgeous and made me feel as though I had stepped back in time. It was also my first snowfall and that added to the charm. The snow was brilliant white and still falling as we were walking by the old city wall, the town hall and the basilica. After our walk, we returned to his home, where his wife had made an amazing lunch for us. We had a great time of fellowship and enjoyed being able to converse and talk with Eastern Slovak people.
Almost home...
Our train ride home was another adventure with languages as we started out having a compartment to ourselves and slowly found it filled to the brim with elderly Slovaks. We again found ourselves communicating with hand gestures and German (thanks Jen!) and ended having a whole car full of Slovaks who were looking out for us, making sure we knew what we were passing, who was coming to check for tickets and just when we needed to get off.
Hmmm... Wherre to next?
We got home on Saturday evening and had Sunday as a day of rest and planning for the upcoming week. It took me most of the next week to recover, but it was well worth it. Eastern Slovakia is a beautiful place. The Tatra Mountains are glorious, the fall colors and the snow were brilliant and the people were genuinely friendly. I am looking forward to the next trip!
PS - If you would like to see pictures of our trip (and the amazing castle!) you can check out all my pictures of our Eastern Slovakia trip at:
November 1st-3rd was my school’s Fall Break and we decided to take advantage of the time and go to East Slovakia. Karin, Jen (our friend who lives in Budapest) and I made plans to travel to Kosice, Presov, Levoca and Bardejov. Kosice is the second largest city in Slovakia and is a six hour train ride from Bratislava. We arrived in Kosice around 8 at night and after wandering around in the dark for a about an hour, we finally found our way to our hostel which turned out to be only a five minute walk from where we had gotten off the bus. Oh, the joys of being illiterate.
Kosice to Presov
Our time in Kosice was somewhat disappointing as we were there on a holiday- which in Slovakia means that everything except for the churches and some restaurants are closed. So, we were not able to see much. By this point, I was not feeling good and was pretty sure I was coming down with a cold. And of course, since we had to lug all our stuff around, I had packed light and had not brought my Vitamin C, Airbourne or Kleenex. So, after having coffee and a snack at a café and lunch at a Chinese restaurant, we decided to continue our journey to Presov. We arrived at Presov, wondering how we would find our hotel. Karin had made the reservation at this particular hotel, and the man she had spoken with spoke almost no English.
Very Long Side Story
(Side-story here of how the reservation was made: Karin called and asked the man if he spoke English. He responded with no in Slovak. She then asked, “Reservation?” He said “Yes” in Slovak. So, she told him two days in Slovak and told him Wednesday/Thursday in Slovak. He responded with Yes in Slovak and then proceeded to say the days of the week in English, as if to confirm. “Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday.” Karin said, “No, Wednesday, Thursday” and he again responded with, Yes, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday. After going back a few times, Karin heard him trying very hard to say the “th” sound, which does not exist in Slovak. So, hoping for the best, she thanked him and hung up. End of side-story.)
Man at the Hotel
After taking the long, long, LONG way around (the hotel had moved to a new location, we found out when we went to the old one), we called a taxi and found our way to the hotel. The man Karin had talked to came to the door and ushered us in. He was very pleasant and helpful, asking us which room we wanted and making sure we had everything we needed. This was all done with him speaking Slovak, us speaking English and LOTS of hand gesturing. When we explained (i.e. gestured) that we had not eaten, he drew us a map of how to get to old town where there would be restraints or the grocery store, both a ten minute walk. We decided on the grocery store and I decided to stay behind as I was really not feeling well. While we were talking about what to do, he came in and offered (gestured) that he would walk us there. During the walk there, Karin and Jen discovered that the man (we never quite got his name- Opps!) he spoke Hungarian (which Jen is beginning to learn) and understood some German (which Jen has a basic knowledge of). This made our conversations with him easier, but no less comical. Lots of “What did he say?” and “I don’t really know, but I think maybe…” After the trip to the grocery store, he offered us some of the chicken he was roasting and three pickles. And of course, Turkish coffee, blacker than black and thicker than mud. The next door he walked us to the bus station, helped us figure out which bus to take, and even spoke to the bus driver about us. Our guardian angel!
Spissky Hrad!
We went to the quant town of Levoca and wandered around until we were too cold, then took a bus up to Spis Castle(Spissky Hrad). I think this was the highlight of our trip. It was a long and daunting hike to the top (especially when you are sick.) Jen was a history major and she was practically running to the top while I was struggling to put one foot in front of the other. Karin was in the middle, wanting to share in Jen’s excitement, but not wanting to leave me in the dust either. When we got to the top, we found the gate closed and a picture of guard dogs and guns on the gate. Jen was frustrated and ready to climb the wall. We noticed someone inside though and they gestured that we could get inside if we walked around the castle. So, we went hiking again. (My face felt like it was frozen as the temp was nearing 0°C. When we finally got around to what we figured out was the main gate, it was open. We paid a nominal fee and were told to stay on the main path. We had the entire castle to ourselves. (We figure this was due to the freezing temperature and the biting wind.) Since there was no one there and the main path was not clearly marked, we explored every nook and cranny of the castle. We peeked in every room, poked our head through every window, climbed every staircase and took every path we could find. We had a glorious time and took tons of pictures. If you ever come to Slovakia, you must make time for Spis Castle. It is the largest castle in Slovakia and one of the largest castles in Eastern Europe. Well worth the hike, the cold, the wind and the cost.
Bardejov and Pastor Jan
Our last stop on our trip was Bardejov, a charming town that has been carefully restored and renovated to preserve the old town feeling. There we met up with a Lutheran pastor (a friend of a friend of a friend who spoke fluent English), who invited us into his home, shared with us the history of the town and took us on a tour of his town. It was absolutely gorgeous and made me feel as though I had stepped back in time. It was also my first snowfall and that added to the charm. The snow was brilliant white and still falling as we were walking by the old city wall, the town hall and the basilica. After our walk, we returned to his home, where his wife had made an amazing lunch for us. We had a great time of fellowship and enjoyed being able to converse and talk with Eastern Slovak people.
Almost home...
Our train ride home was another adventure with languages as we started out having a compartment to ourselves and slowly found it filled to the brim with elderly Slovaks. We again found ourselves communicating with hand gestures and German (thanks Jen!) and ended having a whole car full of Slovaks who were looking out for us, making sure we knew what we were passing, who was coming to check for tickets and just when we needed to get off.
Hmmm... Wherre to next?
We got home on Saturday evening and had Sunday as a day of rest and planning for the upcoming week. It took me most of the next week to recover, but it was well worth it. Eastern Slovakia is a beautiful place. The Tatra Mountains are glorious, the fall colors and the snow were brilliant and the people were genuinely friendly. I am looking forward to the next trip!
PS - If you would like to see pictures of our trip (and the amazing castle!) you can check out all my pictures of our Eastern Slovakia trip at:
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