Easter time

I haven't spent Easter in the UK for over 3 years. For most Britons, Easter time is just an excuse to clog up the roads and airports or to stay at home and do some DIY.
Easter time in Slovakia, on the other hand, is taken very seriously. The majority of Slovaks are devout Catholics who believe that Easter is more important than Christmas. For some, fasting up to Easter Sunday is part of the ritual. This is also the time where most churches are full.
It is also a time when Slovak women get cold water poured on them and get beaten with twigs. This is a pagan ritual which is meant to bring people good luck.

Springtime in the air

Spring is here at last!! After a few parky evenings earlier last week, the weather has finally got warmer and the tables are out again. The evenings are lighter and people are out in the hoardes to enjoy cold beer in the old town's patios. Yesterday, I decided to pay a visit to Devin Sands to enjoy the sunshine and the natural sandbergs in the cliffs. Sandberg is about 4km away from Devin Castle and can be reached from Devinska Nova Ves station

Spiš Castle

I am not normally a fan of castles. Castles are often overpriced and have very dull displays of old coins, heraldry and grumpy people running them. Many castles are also very similar to one another, especially in the Czech and Slovak Republics.
The ruins of Spiš Castle (pron. Spish) in eastern Slovakia, however, is one of the few exceptions. It is one of Slovakia's most well-known landmarks and has tremendous views of the town of Spisske Podhradie from the top.
The castle is situated in the town of Spisske Podhradie, and is a UNESCO landmark. Getting there is easy as it is on the road from Spisske Nova Ves to Poprad.

In 'loving' memory of a fascist

March 14th marked the 68th anniversary of the founding of the Nazi puppet state of Slovakia. 2007 also sees the 60th anniversary of the execution of it's Catholic priest leader, Jozef Tiso. Tiso founded the independent state of Slovakia in 1941. Slovakia's first wave of independence lasted until 1945 when it became reunited with the Czech Republic. Tiso was finally executed by Czechoslovak authorities on 18th April 1947.

He was a supporter of Hitler and ordered the deportation of 700,000 Slovak Jews to Germany in March 1942. To mark the anniversary, 150 young neo-Nazis and older-generation Slovaks gathered to his grave. According to a recent survey, 16% of Slovaks believed that he did a lot for Slovakia. Yet over 40% of Slovaks condemned Tiso's support for Hitler and the fact that he declared war on Britain and America.

Kosice: Full of Eastern Promise

Kosice (pron. Ko-Shit-Se) is Slovakia's second largest city and is situated around 450km away from Bratislava. It has a population of no more than 250,000 and has a small-town feel about the place. Unlike Bratislava, it is pretty laid-back, relatively quiet and friendly.

One of the nicest things about Kosice is that it is so compact that you don't need to take any buses or trams anywhere. Just hop off the train and the old town is 5 minutes away. What's more, it's old town is a lot better kept than Bratislava. There is less graffiti than in Bratislava and its buildings in the old town are well-preserved.

It also has its fair share of quality pubs such as the Kelt pub on the main street. The Kelt pub is a medieval theme pub that looks like something out of Lord of the Rings and sells traditional Slovak cuisine and fine white beer.

For a cheap, nostalgic pint, check out the Communist pub, close to the centre. Only 10sk for 0,3l and 15sk for a 0,5l pint. It's a bit smoky, but is a fave with older-generation proletariat.

Despite Kosice's beauty, some may find it too compact as everything is centred around one long street. There is not much to see outside the city apart from the natural geyser in a place called Her'lany. Her'lany is supposed to be Europe's only natural geyser that sprouts water up to 30metres in the air every 32 hours. I never made it to Her'lany because buses are infrequent and it takes 45 minutes to see a sprout of water.
By train, it takes about 6 hours to get there. I travelled on the painfully uncomfortable, dirty and slow night train from Bratislava, which cost me about 600sk.

Rip-off merchant bankers

The last couple of months have seen many newspaper reports about how British banks have been overcharging its customers with hefty overdraft fees. Banks have been charging customers £30 a time every time they go over their overdraft limits. According to consumer watchdogs, British banks have been acting illegally. As a result, people have been claiming back such charges.

However, there is one thing to be said about British banks: They don't charge people for having money in the bank, providing they are in credit. In Slovakia and the Czech Republic, however, the banks sting you for every penny, whether you are in credit or in debt. They charge 100sk for opening an accuont. You get charged extortionate amounts for withdrawing money from their machines. If you withdraw money from a cashpoint machine that isn't from the bank you belong, you get charged even more.

The Tatra Bank in particular are ruthless and crafty with their customers, despite their excellent reputation as an award winning bank. I recently learned about how the bank often adds extra money to people's accounts. This 'extra' money into people's accounts isn't actually theirs. It is a loan that the bank puts into people's accounts, even when they don't ask for it. This is so that they can sting the customers for interest on such loans. This recently happened to me when I found I had 7,000sk more than I actually should.

Despite such charges, most Slovaks seem to grin and bear it and say this is the way it is. When I mentioned to my boss about how such charges may be illegal, she said that the top banks would never act illegally.

Do's and Don'ts.

• DO NOT take out small amounts of money at a time. Instead, take out large sums in one go. This is because they will charge you every time they use the machines.
• DO NOT go for the internet banking option unless you really have to. The fee is very pricey
• DO NOT choose weekly or monthly bank statements. Go for quarterly statements, as they sting you for statements.

Slovakia's Healthcare

My migraine is still killing me, despite having taken strong migraine tablets, the doctor prescribed to me.
I decided to pay a second visit to the village doctor, as my migraine was not getting any better. My boss quickly wrote out a Slovak translation of my problem as the doctor could not speak any English whatsoever. He gave me a quick assessment and summoned me to Bratislava's top neurology department in a 1930s hospital in Americke Namesti, close to the centre .
The hospital waiting room was drab, grey and needed a lick of paint. The stretchers and wheelchairs seemed to date from the 1930s. As the place needed modernising, I wondered what the system was going to be like.

I was fortunate that I only had to wait 30 minutes for an English speaking neurologist to see me. She took my blood pressure and gave me a headscan. Fortunately, the headscan was negative as they could find no blood clot or tumour. She also gave me an x ray on my spine and injected some strong painkiller into my arm. On the whole, I was very impressed with how quickly they dealt with the problem and their good use of English. The neurologist also told me how people in the UK would have to wait for around 6 weeks to see a neurologist as the waiting list his huge.

The next day, I received a phone call from a woman in the village. She told me how concerned she was about my illness. I asked how she knew about this. She said that the village doctor told her everything. Doctors are not supposed to reveal anything, but this doctor couldn't resist bragging about how he dealt with an English patient. Although Slovaks tend to be reserved to foreigners, they apparently like to gossip and find out about other peoples' business.

Being ill in bratislava

I've had a hectic week this week. I've had a really nasty migraine for the last week or so. Went to the doctor's for the first time in Svaty Jur. Although I have healthcare insurance, I have to fork out 200sk if I want to make an appointment. Otherwise I just have to sit with a load of other people and wait to be called.
Fortunately, I didn't have to wait too long. The doctor did a very quick diagnosis of my migraine and ordered me some new pills called IBALGIN that would supposedly sort my migraine out straight away. He wrote out the prescrition and I went off to the Lekaren (Chemist) to get it. I tried 3 different chemists and they said they had never heard of this pill. I eventually found one chemist and they told me they would get it for me the next day.
Unfortunately, this wonder drug did very little for me as my migraines continue to wake me up in the middle of the night and interrupt my daily life.

Brno by train

Brno is Czech Republic's second largest city. It takes about 90 minutes by train from Bratislava and is well worth a visit. Brno is a lot quieter and more laid-back than Prague, but still has enough stuff to do and see in the daytime and a good variety of bars for the evening. Furthermore, it's cleaner than Bratislava as there is less graffiti and fewer winos on the streets. This city is also pretty vibrant and has many Herna bars and seedy joints. Just ask a taxi driver.

You should be warned about buying a return ticket to Brno. I thought that I could get on any train back to Bratislava. This was not the case. I planned on returning to Bratislava on the 18.21 train. Naturally, I got sidetracked in Brno's streets and missed it by 1 minute. I ended up taking a supertrain, which was ten times more modern an comfortable than the usual graffiti-daubed, squeaking train. Yet I didn't expect to be stung for a further 200sk. This train was a special train for reservations only.

Wherever you are, you are with the BBC. Or so I thought

When I arrived home after a hard day's teaching on 23rd January, I tried to tune into the BBC world Service only to find that hid had been taken off the air. I tried so hard to find it, thinking that the frequency may have moved. It was nowhere to be heard.
ON 93.8FM, the BBC's station had been replaced by Lumen, a Slovak talk station. I later found out that the reason that the reliable BBC world Service was taken off the air was because the govwernment decided that all radio stations need to be understood by the entire Slovak population. This legislation means that stations can only broadcast in Czech or Slovak. It's a shame when the socialist government wants to encourage more people to learn other languages. It is also a shame for those who tuned in especially for the station's Learning English programme.
Although programmes on this station are often dull, it provides a service and also enbales me to sleep at night. Since it was taken off the air, my insomnia has gradually got worse.

The BBC World Service is still available on TV, and of course online. I am now dependent on 5-minute podcasts of the latest news.

Goodbye to The Kyjev (1973-2007): The end of an Era (or error)

The Kyjev: So beautiful they had to cover it up with advertising

I heard some very sad news last night. The Hotel Kyjev, one of Bratislava's finest landmarks is to be demolished in April to make way for yet another glass building shopping and hotel complex. Fans of Bratislava's modernist architecture are said to be devastated to see such an important landmark go. In its prime, this was a five-star hotel where many VIPs stayed. However, due to lack of funds and interest in the place, the hotel has not been modernised since the 1980s.
When I walked into the lobby bar to use the wi fi facility, a prostitute sat next to me and gave me a light for a cigarette. I thought nothing of it, until she tried to kiss me. I instantly backed off. The woman then had the cheek to order a coke and get me to pay for it. When the bar man insisted that I should pay 40sk, I refused. She then asked if I wanted a solo. I declined and told her that I was married. She then asked me if I spoke German and started swearing at me, calling me AN ARSCHLOCH.

Enjoy it while you can. Enjoy the sleazy lobby bar with scraggy-looking prostitutes lurking around the reception, waiting to pray on desperate westerners who don't know any better.
Enjoy the super-high prices for very basic rooms with poor-quality bathrooms and radios that don't work. If you are interested in staying, they are accepting reservations until March.
The Tesco store is also likely to topple with the Kyjev, which is a blessing.

Life in a Soviet Tower block

I've moved out of Svaty Jur... I'm now living in a region called Kramare - about 8 minutes by bus to the old town. The area itself is relatively quiet and is close to Bratislava's highest point, Koliba.
I'm living on the 4th floor of a small panelled tower block. The place itself is very Soviet Union on the inside and outside. This includes most of the appliances inside. More pics later.

Bratislava's urban decay

Many people have seen postcard images of Bratislava's beautiful, baroque old town. However, the old town is just a small part of the city. The majority of Bratislava's skyline is dominated by tower blocks. There are many buildings that are in decay such as this almost disused train station, Predmestie. Although Predmestie Station is still used, it is almost in a state of disrepair. The ticket office is shut, the ticket machines are broken and the cafe hasn't been used since the collapse of communism in 1989. Thanks to lack of sufficient funds, Slovakia's rail network is falling apart. Many trains are old, noisy, slow. and are often daubed in graffiti like the one above. They also have brakes that squeak so loudly, you can hear them from half a mile away. The interiors of such trains are grubby and have toilets which are almost holes in the train.

It seems that Predmestie station hasn't been renovated since the 1970s. Sadly, the place has become a magnet for junkies, winos and graffiti artists. Avoid this place at all costs!!

More pubs and stuff

One of the best hangouts in town is Nu Spirit on Medena Street, not far from Tesco. Jazzy music and a nice vibrant atmosphere. The Free WiFi service makes up for the expensive beer @ 35sk for 0,3 litres.

Cachtice: The home of Elizabeth Bathory

Cachtice is a small town in the lesser Carpathian mountains. As a town, it is a typical Slovak town with baroque architecture. It has an old church, a churchyard and a restaurant. However, its beautiful castle ruins are world-famous for being the home of being the former home of Elizabeth Bathory (1560-1614) who became known as the female dracula or the bloody countess. According to legend, Bathory drained the blood of her victims and bathed in it.
To get there from the village, you have to take a 30-minute hike up the hill. The place is free of charge, and the views are tremendous. On the downside, there is no information in English, so you will have to rely on kind Slovaks to translate for you. Alternatively, check out the link.
http://www.spectacularslovakia.sk/ss2002/cachtice_ascii.html


It takes approximately 90 minutes to get to Nove Mesto Vahom from Bratislava and takes a further 5 minutes by another train. Be warned!! Getting back can be a problem on Sundays, especially as trains are infrequent
More later plus pics

House hunting, Bratislava style.

'Sick of trees, take me to the city. Train coming round the bend.' Lou Reed

When I arrived back in town, my landlady gave me a badly written piece of paper on how she has found a buyer for her new place.
This means that I have to find somewhere new to live by the end of the month. It also gives me an opportunity to move closer to the city.
The first place I visited was about 11,000 sk a month - way too expensive for someone on Slovak wages. However, the location was in an area called Bajkalska, a convenient junction in the city. When I visited the place, I couldn't believe that the woman told me that she would be taking the TV, washing machine and sofa with her.
The second place, close to the city centre in a region called Kramare seemed promising with nice housemates, but there was no bed.
I finally looked at a place near my favourite restaurant in Ursynyho, close to Racianske Myto. At 6,600sk par month, this was place seemed promising, but the person who I would have to share with gave me the creeps. I would also have to see this person every single day. This place is definitely out of the question.

One of the most popular sites for renting is a site called reality.sk. Unfortunately, most of these places seem far too expensive for my budget. A one-bedroom flat in Petrzalka costs around 9,000 sk. Yet there are many hidden costs. There is not only a deposit of 9,000sk, but there is a one-off payment of 9,000sk that you will never see again. These letting agents will also try and charge more for foreigners.
Anyway, will keep you all posted on my whereabouts soon.

HRH Prince of Wales award for fine modern architecture

Bratislava has some amazing architectural gems from the 'glory' years of the Brezhnev era. On a recent visit, HRH Prince of Wales, a big fan of Brezhnevian architecture, picked some of his favourite pieces of 'classic' design from the 1970s. The odd triangular building is home to a Bratislava radio station. The other is my favourite tower block with a distinctive cylinder design
More pics soon.

The warmest January.....ever???

It is the beginning of January, and there is no snow in sight. Infact, the weather is so mild that it feels like Spring. The birds are already singing and flowers are beginning to bloom. Some people are even wearing T shirts. The midday temperature is currently +13C - the warmest January in Slovakia for over 100 years.
Many Slovaks are unhappy about the warm winter as skiing is one of the most popular passtimes for them. There is no snow anywhere, even on the highest peaks of the Tatras!!!

'The Terrorist.'

After all the speculation of the 'muslim terrorist' on EZY flight 5443, there was no terrorist. The person who threatened the hostess turned out to be a drunken Hungarian who probably had a few mental health issues.

Nightmare on flight 5443

This morning I flew to Budapest from Gatwick on EZY flight 5443. It was a flight that I'll never forget.

The plane was delayed for an hour, thanks to an essential change of a front tyre. This was chaotic enough as there were so many restless people determined to get home after the Christmas holidays.

The actual flight itself was uneventful. I did the usual stuff people do on planes - talk to the person next to me, read and sleep.

We arrived in Budapest 30 minutes late, which was expected due to the delay. However, the plane never made it to the terminal as it stood to a complete standstill in the middle of the runway. We all sat there wondering when we were going to disembark. 30 minutes later, the person next to me asked the air hostess in orange, 'can you please tell me what's going on?' The hostess said 'I'm sorry, but I can't.' Two minutes later, the captain announced there is a Muslim terrorist on board. It was believed that the 'terrorist' said to a stewardess as she was serving tepid tea and overpriced Pringles, 'Watch out. I'm a Muslim Terrorist.'

The captain asked us to remain seated with our seatbelts fastened. I looked outside to find the plane was surrounded by the Hungarian army and armed police. About 20 armed policemen came on the plane and dragged some light-skinned, wired eyed looking person off the plane. As you would expect, there was a massive round of applause.
10 minutes later, we were all allowed off the plane. We then had to wait another hour for our baggage, as they had to sniff out any bombs.

I am still in one piece after my brush with terror, despite the fact I'm a little shocked.

Yet everything is is still a total mystery. Who was the guy? Was he a real terrorist or just some nut job acting out alone? Was he just a Schizophrenic? I tried to find out stuff on BBC, but found nothing. I was interviewed by RTL Hungary TV and told them my piece. However, I may never know about this mystery situation.