Banská Bystrica

I guess just like everywhere else in the world, sometimes the work weeks all blend together.  Last week was like that at school - we taught, we led morning devotions, we wrote lessons plans, we enjoyed our students and colleagues, but there was nothing particularly memorable except for April Fool's Day.  Yes, that is one holiday which is pretty much the same in Slovakia and in America!!  :-)

I looked out the window and saw Dušon's snazzy car completely hemmed in by garbage and recycling dumpsters.  

And Janka's car was covered in stickee notes written by students.  (Some had already blown away since it was a rather windy morning.) 

Zuzka's car had been teepee'd in the parking lot, and we're pretty sure her son Timko had a part in that little activity!    

Here is my Septima class, who spoke only in Slovak the whole lesson.  (At least for the most part.)  They did help me out when my Slovak wouldn't cut it , but we spent the first part of the lesson with them basically giving me a Slovak language lesson.    :-)
I also confiscated two water balloons and threw them out their third-floor classroom towards students below in the parking lot.  I missed by a mile intentionally, just so no one would get hurt, and so I wouldn't get in trouble!!  (I also wanted to use up the water balloons to keep my students from getting in trouble!!!)  

Here are a couple of bird pictures - this is a pair of jackdaws.  Their light-colored eyes creep me out a little bit, I have to admit, but they are very common here.  

This is a European chaffinch - such a pretty little bird.  This one finally hopped close enough for me to get a picture.  (Thanks, Peter, for the ID on the species!)  

Friday afternoon Erik picked us up in a rented van, then we stopped to add four more basketball teammates for a co-ed tournament in Martin.  I only went along to watch and cheer, and to meet up with Matt, our American lector there.  

The pre-game handshake ritual.  Everyone shakes hands with everyone!  First they line up facing one another, then they do the handshakes before the tip-off.  

Oops - I got this one during a dead ball I think.  The first opponents had their gals in pink and their guys in black.  That should have been a technical violation and free throws!!  LOL!

Tim did a lot of ball handling, bringing the ball up the court, and passing off, but he did score a lot too!  It was fun watching the teams play!

Matt is our American colleague teaching at the bilingual school in Martin, so we picked him up on the way to the gym too.  He and I watched all three of our team's games, then joined the entire group for supper together afterwards, served by the hosting school team.  We were puzzled that Matt's school's name was on this big logo, but yet we were in a different school?!?!

Everyone insisted that Matt and I join the team picture!  After supper there was even music - dancing too - just like at our volleyball tournament.  

Matt and Tim laughing at something - probably at me or something I said!   Everyone had a fun evening, and there were prizes too.  I even ended up with a new umbrella, which I really needed now that mine tends to blow inside out all the time. 

Then on Saturday morning, we were picked up by Marian (Tim's student) and his wife, Susan for a sightseeing excursion to Banská Bystrica, to our southwest, over the Low Tatras.  

Our first stop was up near the mountain ski resort area of Donovaly.  This is a children's tourist attraction, kind of on the lines of Disney but without the rides, and it's all based on some famous Slovak folk tales.  

Habakuky was closed, but we could see a lot from outside the fences.  It looked like a fun place to take kids for a visit, and the views were great from up there too.  

One of the villages we passed through on the way to Banská Bystrica was Staré Hory, which is famous because of the Virgin Mary's appearance to some people there.  On the first Saturday of every month, there is a mass, which was going on while we were there.  Down below, in front of the church, there was also a market with many booths of sellers.  

We hiked up the hill beyond the church to this shrine to Mary, where there is also a natural spring where we refreshed ourselves with the cool, delicious water.  

After we came back down the hill, we went into the back of the church, but that's as far as we could get because it was literally wall-to-wall people for mass.  They filled every seat and were standing in every spare space.  The altar was gorgeous with so much gold. The space all the way around outside the church was also packed with people listening to mass over a loudspeaker.  

We continued on and finally arrived in Banská Bystrica.  The main pedestrian walkway leading to the center town square was very picturesque.  Each building had its own unique character, color scheme, and decoration.  

The cobblestone square is really beautiful too, beginning with this WWII monument to the Russians who liberated the town.  The buildings in the square were even more impressive than the ones leading up to it - very historic and well preserved or renovated.  

These street musicians were awesome, and I definitely threw some coins in the accordion case on the way by.  The whole scene in Banská Bystrica just seemed like we were walking through some movie set!!  

This historic building is Benicky's House, which is unique because of the porch with its arches and columns.  It would have been a wonderful place to sit and watch all the activity down below on the square!  

Springtime is starting in Banská Bystrica!  The yellow clock tower on the right is from the 16th century, and it's called the leaning tower because it's 68 cm. tilt.  You can actually see the tilt with the naked eye from a little closer.   

There are so many colorful towers to see!  The front center is the Marian Tower with the Virgin Mary on top, built at the end of the Plague.  Of course the clock tower is on the right, and then behind the plague tower are the Barbicon (formerly and entrance to a castle) and the 13th century church steeple.  

The Church of the Virgin Mary's Ascension, the oldest building in Banská Bystrica with many Gothic art works inside.  

Resting and enjoying some hot tea (coffee for Susan and Marian) at the café which is now housed in the base of the Barbican tower.  

Our next stop was Matej's House, a 15th century building which was part of the original castle bastion, and it's now a museum.  Behind and to the left through the gate is a lovely cemetery where many famous Slovak writers, poets, etc. are buried.  

Yep, that's right, the date above the door says it dates from the 1450's - WOW!!  We are continually amazed by the difference in the definition and concept of "old" between Iowa and Slovakia!!  

The Matej House museum was really excellent, with many fascinating displays.  Here are Marian and Tim with some soldier costumes.  

Marian took this picture of Tim in front of the model house because it looks so much like a modern day bus stop in some village here.  LOL!! 

There were many armaments from all periods of history from the middle ages on, including this suit of mail.  It's amazing how heavy they must have been to wear!  

These are intricate forms for molded cookies.  

Traditional wood carving masterworks like this were amazing.  

This gorgeous magnolia tree was in full bloom, and the fragrance was wonderful as we walked by!  

This museum is the SNP Museum, an exposition dedicated to the Slovak National Uprising.  There were Slovak resistance members who fought against the Nazis and were eventually defeated due to overwhelming odds.  We were glad to have the opportunity to learn about the bravery of the Slovak people during WWII.  The building itself has fascinating architecture too!  

Statue in the courtyard of the SNP Museum.  

After the museum we stopped for a very late lunch at a nearby restaurant.  My grilled chicken and veggies was a work of art almost too beautiful to eat!   (It was delicious!)

We had a relaxing time enjoying lunch together.  

And here is Marian's Lamborghini --- O.K., so we just pretended it was Marian's as we spotted it while walking by!  I'm not sure if I've ever seen a Lamborghini, but it was sweet, and the powerful-looking engine was visible in the back under the rear window.

Our last stop was the Kalvaria.  Similar to the one in Banská Štiavnica, the stations of the cross were on the pathway up the hill, with a chapel at the top.

On the way back down the Calvary Hill, Tim spotted these trees that looked like they had very soft needles, so we went over to check them out.  It turns out they are the trees (junipers) from which borovička is made - a very, very strong alcohol served here.  And the needles are indeed quite soft!  

Finally, we headed back after a wonderful day of sight-seeing with Marian and Susan.  Banská Bystrica was another of those 'must-see' destinations in Slovakia, so we are very grateful that we had such excellent tour guides for the day!  

Sunday we met with the choir a half hour before church to run through our anthem before the service.  It was a new Czech song which we did with Edo and Martin playing guitars.  After church there was a communion service, so Zuzana stayed with us and translated again, as she had done in the regular service.  Then the three of us stopped for tea at a café on the square before we headed back to our flat.  We didn't go anywhere the rest of the day, just listened to an online sermon, did laundry, and finished writing some postcards.  

Tonight we had choir rehearsal, and things went very well, with some significant improvements in uniform vowel formation, dynamics, and eliminating undesirable glissandos!  (For my music geek readers - you will understand!)   :-)   We were rolling along, when all of a sudden the pastor, the church secretary, and the organist, all just got up and started collecting music from everyone with about 25 minutes to go in our hour-long rehearsal time.  I was bewildered, but I am really learning to just go with the flow here, so then I  shut off the keyboard, sat down, and waited to see what would happen next!   LOL!!  Well, one of our altos had a birthday, and a big one -- #70!!  So they presented her with a gift and a flower, and she had brought oodles of food to share - little decorated sandwiches, darling bite-sized decorated desserts and sweets, and your choice of red or white wine.  (Remember, the person who is celebrating a birthday is the one to provide the party here!)  We sang "Živijo", the traditional birthday song in Slovakia, then "Happy Birthday" too!  I have to say, sometimes church choir rehearsals can be much more interesting here in Slovakia!!  ;-)  

Click here to hear a YouTube version of:     Slovak "Happy Birthday" song ---- "Živijo"

After the choir birthday party, we had made arrangements for a double date with Eva, my student, and her husband, Ivan, the choir director at the Catholic university in Ružomberok.  We met for pizza and had a lovely evening, finishing with a glass of wine at the Mraz's flat after dinner. (Unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me for the birthday party or our date night ---- bummer!)   They are such a neat couple, and it was fun spending time with them!!