Russian Music and Eastern Slovak Sights

Tuesday was busy at school.  Tim started the day with a 7:15 a.m. intramural basketball game - teachers versus one class - while I went to early morning teacher devotions.  I also subbed for 2 additional classes, so it was a full day!  

We had seen this flyer about a Russian men's choral group coming to our church for a concert, so we cancelled our English lessons for Tuesday evening.  Then, our pastor who also teaches religion classes at school ended up giving us comp tickets to the concert!  :-)  

Katarina decided to go to the concert too, so we arranged to meet at a coffee shop for some hot tea and cakes ahead of time.  It was lovely sitting at the outdoor tables on the square, watching all the people go by before we headed over to the church for the concert!  Zuzka also ended up coming to the concert, so it's a pity she wasn't there early to join us for the refreshments.  

The pictures aren't very clear because of the back-lighting in the church - sorry.  The men wore military-style uniforms for the first half of the program, which included all a cappella Russian Easter music.  (The Orthodox Catholic church celebrates Easter at a different time, and it was just recently.)  Here is one of the songs we heard (at least I think it's the one):
Tchaikovsky
The low basses were amazing!!  

They changed shirts for the second half of the concert, which featured Russian folk songs which were much livelier.  They also added a guitar and an accordion player.  Here is a link to one of the songs we heard (with the same soloist):
Donskych Kozákov
(Thanks, Katarina, for looking up the YouTube links for us!!)    :-)

The singers were very dramatic, and they had really BIG operatic voices!!  :-)  The church was packed with a huge audience, and everyone appreciated the music a lot.  There were two or three encores.  One of the encores was this Slovak favorite, which I loved:
Zahučali hory - Slovak Folk Song
Such a delightful evening of music!!   

Wednesday was another national holiday - Victory over Fascism Day - so we continued our sight-seeing tours in Eastern Slovakia with Janka, Marian and Livka.  Just like last Wednesday, we took the 8:00 a.m. bus to Prybilina, where they met us to head farther east.  

First stop - Spišska Sobota - which is actually part of Poprad - but this is the really old part of town.  Marian's uncle is a priest at this historic church - St. George's.  It was first built in the 13th century, and it houses five priceless Gothic altars.  Marian's uncle has been instrumental in the historic and artistic restoration of the church, which is really beautiful. 

We really weren't supposed to take any pictures inside, but this is the Gothic main altar, by the famous Master Paul of Levoče.   Marian was a tour guide here at one time, and he also helped in painting the building!  

Just outside the church is this monument, which is a Baroque statue.  (Very typical for each city square.)

These buildings on the square show the architectural style typical of the Spiš region.  (Note the distinctive rooftops!)  The town is one of the best-preserved medieval areas in Slovakia.

Janka, Livka, Tim and Marian in front of the Renaissance bell tower adjacent to the church.

We always get great history lessons along with our tours with Marian and Janka.  Many towns have 2-part names, with the first indicating the region.  (There are many towns near L.Mikuláš beginning with Liptov-, and many towns in this region beginning with Spišk-.)  The second part of the name is often the patron saint of the town or something else of significance.  Towns were sometimes granted certain privileges by the king, including the right to hold large markets on certain days.  "Sobota" means Saturday, so guess what day Spišska Sobota had the right to hold their market??    ;-)  

This beautiful park runs down the middle of the centrum beyond the church and bell tower.  It was very quiet and peaceful on this holiday!  

Random pretty flowers!  It seemed that everything was in bloom!!  

Next stop - Kežmarok, which has several famous churches.  The one on the left is a new Orthodox Catholic church, which you can tell by the different style of cross on top.  Just beyond you can see the bright orange Evangelical (Lutheran) Church. 

On the left is the wooden Articular Church (also Lutheran), which was built in 1717 when the Catholic king tried to make things very difficult for the politically rebellious Reformation supporters, by requiring Lutheran churches to be built according to specific "Articles".  (Hence the name, Articular churches!)

For example, the Articles stated that these churches could not be made of any permanent material such as stone, could not have a bell or any nails, must be built outside the city walls, and the doors had to be facing away from the city and the road.  The church looks deceptively small from the outside - it's HUGE and can seat 1,500 people, because it served a very large region all around Kežmarok.  

Livka was smiling all day, but we couldn't get her to smile for this picture!  Ha!  Anyway, we took this picture in front of one of the windows, most of which were round.  The reason is that Swedish ship-builders were brought in to construct the church, because they were experts at working in wood without nails, so they built the windows as they were used to doing - like ship portholes!!  The Articular churches are UNESCO sites and very beautiful inside, however photos were not allowed.  Bummer!!  The ceiling was all painted sky-blue, with puffy white clouds, and apostles and Biblical characters around the edges of 'heaven'.  And of course everything inside was wooden as well.  

This is the new Evangelical Church, built in the 1800's.  Of course in America, this would make it an OLD church - LOL!!  It is interesting and significant because of the mix of architectural styles used - it's often called the Oriental church because of the Turkish influence.  The tower looks like a minaret, and there were supposed to be two matching towers, but they ran out of money.  

This is the first business we've seen in Slovakia that is open 24 hours!  'Potraviny' means grocery store, and many of them are tiny hole-in-the-wall places like this.  As far as we know, there's no place in Liptovsky Mikuláš that's open 24 hours!!  

I didn't get a picture, but we had another "first" this morning.   Remember our previous Saturday's stop at the pub before 10:30 a.m.?  Well on Wednesday, we stopped before 10:30 a.m. too -- this time for a zmrzlina (ice cream)!!  YOLO in Slovakia!!  

Ready to head into the castle at Kežmarok, dating back to the 1400's.  It is not typical of most castles we've seen in Slovakia, because this one is built into the city walls for protection of the town, instead of high up on a hill.  There was once a moat around it too.

Inside the castle courtyard, looking at the chapel. 

 The owner of the castle at one time was running short of money.  So he did the logical thing and married a rich woman 20 years older than he was.  Later, he locked her up in a castle tower with only one window, where she eventually went insane.  So gals, stay away from those younger men!!   (Thanks, Marian, for the corrections and the photo!!)  

A view of the Tatras far in the distance, through an archway along the town square.  

Marian and Livka heading towards another historic church - the Bascilica of the Holy Cross - dating to the 13th century.  

This church allowed one photo for free, and I didn't spend the 2 EU for unlimited photos!  This is another famous Gothic altar, with another to the left.  Some medieval frescoes remained on the walls.  

This Renaissance bell tower is another famous one, built in 1591.  

I took this picture of the picture of this chateau in Spišska Belá, just so I'd remember the name!  It looks a lot like a castle, but it was never a defensive structure.  It was a lovely country home of some rich nobility, with large park areas along the river.  

The balcony over Marian's head would have had fabulous views of the park, the river, and the mountains!!  

We've seen these unusual flowers several places in Slovakia - a variety of lilly!  

This is the view from the chateau - so pretty!!  We lucked out again with the weather, as it was a sunny and warm day with sparkling blue skies!  This is also where Marian and Janka had their wedding photographs taken.   :-)   We recognized many of the locations since we had seen their wedding pictures online!  

Church and bell tower just across from the entrance to Spišska Belá.

By this time, it was lunchtime, so we stopped to eat at the restaurant where Janka and Marian had their wedding reception - it specializes in traditional foods of the area, and everything was delicious!   (I took this picture because on both Wednesdays, Tim always got Livka out of the car, since he was on that side, and every time he would lift her up really high just like this!) 

We got used to Livka squealing with delight when she would see something exciting out the window - like cows (moooo), sheep (beeeeh), ducks, tunnels, etc.  But when she saw a stork, I was the one who squealed that I wanted to take a picture!!  LOL!!  It was HUGE!!!!

Our next stop was Červeny Kláštor (Red Monastery), just across the river from Poland.  This mountain is called Three Crowns because of its unique shape, and it's in Poland.  

Livka fell asleep in the car on the drive to the monastery, so Janka stayed with her so she'd get an uninterrupted nap.  The guys were heading into the monastery, built in the 1300's, which is now a museum housing many historical exhibits. 

This is the Church of St. Anthon the Hermit inside the monastery.

The ceiling was spectacular. 

Painted benches under a fresco dating to the 1500's.

This was a meeting room where priors were elected, novices were admitted, and issues were discussed relating to the monastery's life.  

This central courtyard was a place for silence and reflection since this was a strict order of monks living in seclusion with vows of silence, fasting, and meditation.  All around the edges were individual dwellings for the monks, with adjacent gardens.

Interior of the monastery, with the well to the left, in front of the church. 

In the 18th century, these monks were known for their cultivation of healing herbs and crops.  One famous monk was a physician, pharmacist and botanist, who kept records and catalogued different plants meticulously, and who treated people in the surrounding area.  

Inside the monastery.

The red rooftops evidently gave the monastery and the town their names.  

A better view of the Three Crowns, from the river's edge, within a stone's throw of Poland.   Marian remarked with a chuckle, that the Poles couldn't even see their own landmark without crossing over into Slovakia!  

Last stop - Marian's parents' house in L'ubice for refreshments!  This little outdoor eating area is in their back yard, and it's a perfect place for relaxing and enjoying the afternoon sunshine, good company & conversation, and delicious food!  

We had sandwiches, salty crackers, sweet dessert, and an assortment of beverages.  Marian's brother lives directly behind, so his family was there too.  

Livka and her cousin Kristinka had a great time playing together!!  

At first I figured some cows had gotten loose and were being rounded up, but Marian said, no, this is a daily occurrence.   People in the village own cows, and they drive them through town to graze on the pasture land up the hillsides, then at the end of the day, they bring them back to their houses for the night.  A few years ago there were about 100 cows going through town every day, but now fewer people keep cows.  

The storks' nests are not uncommon in Slovakia either.  Marian promised he'd show me another big stork nest in his hometown on the fire station.  WOW!!  Evidently the storks used to build their nests on chimneys, which is not helpful for homeowners, so now, large platforms are built on places like fire stations, post offices, and just on poles, so the storks will build nests in more convenient locations.  And yes, storks are said to bring babies here!

A view of the scenery on our drive home, with so many different hues of greens, and the flowering trees adding contrast.  Beautiful!!  

Today the school day flew by, and we went on a relaxing bike ride for about an hour and a half before our evening English students came.  We want to send a shout-out to Paul and Alana on their 4th wedding anniversary.  We love you soooooo much!!!    :-)  

Shepherds at the Salaš

Remember when Tim got his Slovak T-shirt from the basketball guys??  Well this week I was given a Slovak volleyball T-shirt by the student I went to watch play in last weekend's tournament!!  So cool!!   :-)  

Front side - with the Liptovsky Hrádok team logo.

Back side, with the tournament information for the Juniors Tournament.  I'll LOVE wearing this special T-shirt from Miška!!     :-)

Marian emailed me a few more pictures from our Saturday hike, so I'll add those to this post too.  It was such a fun day!!  

This was at the micro-brewery enjoying the morning air and pivo outdoors on the patio before our hiking began.  

On the trail with Susan.

Overlooking the stream and waterfalls far below in the valley.

Next to the mill with Marian.  

Sunday was one BUSY day!!  I woke up early and decided to bake a batch of cookies.  :-)
We went to church as usual, had Jan translating for us, and stayed for the separate Holy Communion service afterwards, which includes an additional liturgy and sermon.  Then Jan gave us a ride home, because we had to hurry to catch a bus, since church lasted an extra 30 minutes!  

On the walk to church - some of the beautiful flowering trees!!  

On the walk to the bus station - the beautiful flowering lawns -  dandelions!!   ;-)  

We went to Liptovsky Hrádok to see Miška, my I.A5 student, play volleyball in another tournament, this time with a team of younger girls.  She "plays up" for the older team and starts for them, and she is definitely the best player on this younger team.  They had a rough first game, but ended up playing well and winning the match!!   :-)   I pretended to be "team mom" like in olden days, and took cookies for the girls after the match.  

Saška, our elementary principal, picked us up at the bus station when we arrived back in Liptovsky Mikuláš, to take us to a special event in the valley behind her village, Bobrovec.  

A salaš is a sheep farm/ranch where they make sheep cheese, and there is usually a  small restaurant or at least somewhere to have a beverage and buy some cheese.

This beautiful valley with its rolling hills was a scene straight out of some movie!!  See the sheep on the hillside way in the background?  They were giving horse-drawn carriage rides over the meadow as part of this special event.  

The event at this salaš was a one-day demonstration of the art of shepherding, plus kind of a folk festival of music, traditional foods, a craft market set up in stalls, rides for the kids, etc. etc.  This shepherd and his border collie were amazing as they herded the sheep together.  Here they are first heading out towards the sheep.  

The sheep were spread out all over the meadow, and separated into two groups at first.  Saška's husband, Ignace, brought binoculars for us to use, and it was neat seeing the little baby lambs out in the group too.  

The border collie was dashing all over around the perimeter of the herd, and he quickly got all the sheep bunched up tightly.  Very impressive!!  Then the shepherd would give commands to move the whole herd different directions, and the whole 'blob' would just go wherever the dog moved them.  

This shows more of the surrounding hillsides, with another big herd of sheep over to the right in the distance, and Liptovská Mara way out there in the center of the picture.  

The weather in the distance over the mountains was strange - clouds and rain would go across, then it would be sunny again.  Eventually we had a little light rain at the salaš too, but nothing much.  It was incredibly beautiful out there on the sheep ranch!!  

The grill on the left was for various typed of sausages, and the kettle on the right held lamb goulash, both with wood fires underneath.  Saška got us some goulash to try --- YUM!!   It was served with some lovely brown bread.  

There were some folk musicians performing traditional Slovak music in local historic costumes.  We saw another group leaving with instruments in cases, so they must have traded off performances during the day.  

There was a big crowd enjoying the salaš for this special event, but Saška says it's normally very quiet and peaceful out in the countryside.  They hold 8 of these events, one each Sunday during May and June, at 8 different salaš locations in the Liptov region.

These are the traditional wooden mugs used for serving žinčica, a much-loved drink which is a by-product of the sheep cheese making process.   Ignace and Saška explained that the shepherds had many long hours of boredom in the pastures, so they would carve these intricately decorated mugs!  

This little cutie-pie was in the doorway to the salaš.

Saška gave us a taste of her žinčica - it's O.K., but not my favorite Slovak specialty!  (Kind of like watery-tasting buttermilk, thin and watery but sour, and with tiny curds.)  They definitely love it here!!  :-)  

This is a particular specialty of Bobrovec, called droby, which is a sausage-like food made of potatoes and blood/meat.  It was actually delicious, but the texture wasn't as firm as most sausage - it kind of fell apart when you picked it up.  Saška and Ignace are on the left, and some friends of theirs from the Ukraine are on the right.  

Ignace and Saška in front of their house, where they also have 2 apartments and a cottage for tourist rentals during skiing and hiking seasons.  And they surprised us with the American name!   :-)

Saška had been telling us all along that she was looking forward to introducing us to her American neighbors.  Well, this is the place next door ---- the Slovaks who once lived there moved to America in about 1913 and never came back!!  HAHAHA!!  Evidently there aren't any heirs and the legal situation is unclear, so the house just sits there vacant and is starting to fall down.  

This boy was over playing with Janko, Saška's son, and Tim was so excited that they were both wearing caps from Michigan colleges!!  I'm not sure the little guy knew what Tim was even talking about, but he smiled for the picture!   

Then Saška gave us a tour of their house and the rental properties out back - we were amazed at how beautiful the place is, and how gorgeous the views are.  Wow!  We went inside and had some cakes and mineral water - delicious!  We even got a short piano recital from Janko before going back to our flat.  :-)  

Our final destination for the day was dear Janka's house for dinner.  She picked us up and took us to Okoličné, (technically part of L.M.) where her house overlooks the Vah River.  Poludnica (which we climbed last fall) is the mountain right over Tim's head in the picture.    What a view!!  Her garden is absolutely gorgeous with flowers, blossoming trees, and vegetable beds too.  Janka cooked spinach lasagna which was delicious, and we had a relaxing time sharing 'paradise' with our other Slovak 'daughter'.    :-)

This is a random school picture from this afternoon ....
Right now the World Championships for ice hockey are being played in Finland and Sweden, and there is hockey mania here in Slovakia.  Our students, Tim's basketball buddies, and lots of other Slovaks are glued to the TV's for their team's games, and we see flags fluttering on many cars in town.  Here are four students at our Drama Club rehearsal, sharing one set of earbuds to listen to the game today.  LOL!!  

Today was a normal busy Monday school day, with one Slovak lesson during the day and another after school.  Then we went to church choir practice, where "Kumbaya" is coming along nicely.   :-)    We dashed home to change clothes for volleyball, and our landlords and their daughter were in the flat checking on the washing machine.  It works again.  All by itself.  Just started working again.  Embarrassing!!  I tried it multiple times over the course of TWO days, and every time I'd start it, the red 'service' light would come on and it would stop.  Well, all they did was just turn it on, and it worked fine.  Grrrrr!!!!  But they are also trying to check out some water leakage that's damaging the flat below.  It sounds like some pipe  joint below the floor is the problem, so they're trying to figure that out.  Lenka, the daughter who lives in Prague, was here, so we had fun talking all together.  We love getting to communicate with her mom, Luba, since usually we are rather limited by our language barrier!   They liked the sugar cookies we shared with them too!!  :-)  So we didn't make it to volleyball, unfortunately.  

Just now we enjoyed a snack of some cakes that Janka's grandmother made (she sent some home with us) and a cup of tea from some herbal plant from Saška's garden that she sent home with us.  So the good times of Sunday's excursions continue with these delicious memories!