Wednesday, May 24, 2017

A Full Week

The Annapolis Group
This was a different past week since the LCCers were here for 'Language, Culture and Church'.  Allison, Heather, Jenn and Rebecca produced and presented topics ranging from food, to arts to the
Allison, Heather, Rebecca and Jenn at work.
Thank You Gifts handed out by Jirina 
more technical areas of health policy and astronautics (yea, I was impressed).  The format was a bit different from the past Tutoring Sessions in that there was a joint activities period beginning each night and afterwards, the attendees were divided into four groups which rotated through each of the four LCCers during the week - Friday's session was joint and included activities and an assessment period from both perspectives.  Feedback from the Letohrad perspective has been very positive and I know the LCCers experienced the inevitable Czech hospitality and love.  Also on the agenda was various local trips and regular meals from several church members.  I will let them brief you on all that but just wanted to highlight the outing that B.J. and I joined with the group.
The Usti bikers.
The Faltejskovi (Bob and Jana) and Suchomelovi (Katka and 14-month old Johanka) families guided a bicycle trip from Letohrad to Ústí nad Orlici on the superb bike path along the river (read that no hills!!).  It was a beautiful day and a marvelous bike ride - especially for Johanka who enjoyed the behind-the-bike carriage.  Johanka was a very disciplined participant except when we stopped a bit too long for rest - she always encouraged us to keep going (not to mention her brum-burm sounds to help Katka power the carriage forward)!  Lunch and a quick return trip rounded out the day.

The Festival
It seems that each year about this time Letohrad hosts a Festival or 'funfair'.  It can best be described
Street Crowd
(Novy Dvur in background)
as the Delaware State Fair, Czech style.  It was a bit shy on animals - there was a pony ride for the kids- but heavy on the usual carnival rides and 'nourishing' food and various sweets.  We were told this is the second largest fair in the Czech Republic outside of Prague; it seems there is a lot of open space here available for all the attractions and has been a tradition for many years.  Hoards of people from the surrounding areas come by car, train and bus for the fun.  In that the fair paralyzed the entire town, it was a bit like Boat Show in Annapolis; the locals decried
The town was closed for the three days.
the congestion, closed streets and hassle while the attendees relished in a weekend of screaming kids, strutting teenagers and blaring speakers.  I was quite amazed at the size of the crowds that transformed the usual rural town into a bustling small city. Over the course of the three days that the fair was here, B.J. and I joined several of the church members in beverages, food and the various rides.  The rides were very impressive, ranging from
The 'dangerous' Swan Ride
(with 5G Bungee
 and Petr, Katka & Johanka in background)
those for quite young kids to the challenging 5G force giant bungee.  B.J. ventured on the 'frightening' swan ride in conspiracy with Johanka accompanied by Katka and Petr.  I, on the other hand, suffered through the bumper cars, the sky rider, some knee-weakening swinging contraption, the swinging pirate ship and the roller coaster.   The entire downtown was converted into a carnival midway.   And every square meter of the main street was packed with sales booths for various nick-knacks, food and beer.   Of particular interest was the logistics and sheer engineering that went into the setup/teardown.  Some of the rides were like movie Transformers that morphed from a large truck
The Castle from the Swan
into a merry-go-round or some other attraction.  The larger rides did require some external equipment (like semi-trucks and a sky crane to put up two of the taller adult rides) but they appeared and disappeared magically.  Some rides were still in operation late Sunday afternoon but all were gone and the streets clean by 9:30 the next morning.






The Bands at the Chapel
Last night, Monday, the day after the Festival, we ventured up the hill (I mean up!) to the mid-18th
Vaclav (left) & Sisters/Brother-in-Law
A Great Venue
century chapel of St. Jana Nepomuckého.  I mentioned this place in an earlier blog when we had a chance to go inside to see the 5-sided alter.  There has been a tradition for the past few years that immediately after the funfair, there is an evening of band concerts in the chapel.  The chapel itself is surrounded by a semi-covered courtyard  - an ideal site for a small venue.  Benches were set up in the covered and uncovered areas and four bands played beginning at 5:30 until around 10:30.  The story we got was that
Bluegrass Czech Style
traditionally the concerts were held on consecutive days prior to the Festival but that became too cumbersome and now all bands play one evening immediately after the fair.  Of interest, the first band was composed of a single family unit; one brother, two sisters and one brother-in-law. The brother in the group turned out to be Vaclav Vychytil, Petra's husband (formerly Faltejsková) who played bass and sang.  They were very good!  Of the four bands, however, our very favorite was number three which featured Czech language Bluegrass.  Jim Botluck, you would have loved them!! A marvelous tradition and a wonderful night out.

Wednesday, May 17, 2017

A Prague Weekend

The LCC'ers at the table
and the supporting cast.
Welcome!!  B.J. and I met the four First Pres LCC'ers (Language, Culture and Church) at the Prague airport and escorted them back to Letohrad this past Thursday.  The group included Heather Shortlidge, Jenn Dodd, Allison Taylor, and Rebecca Pearson.  They are here for a week of special presentations at the church. So..... we were able to make a dash back to Prague after our Friday morning school classes since we have this week off (except for school classes)!! Plans were to stay through Monday and sneak back on Tuesday morning...done.


However, there was an ulterior motive for going to Prague; B.J. is
The Dragonboats
a recent member of the Rotary Club of Parole in Annapolis and there is an English language Rotary Club in Prague.  This past Saturday was the annual Rotary Dragon Boat Charity Challenge as well as a scheduled Rotary meeting on Monday so since the stars were all lined up we thought it judicious we take the plunge.  The dragon boat races were held on a section of the Vltava river upstream of the city center.  It was more of a sprint than a race since most boats made the straight course in about a minute - we understand one of the Rotary entries made it under a minute - a notable achievement we were told. The boats are owned by a company but each team is responsible for the rest of the logistics and training.  I was very impressed with the coordination and tactics of some of the boats but the main reason was to have fun, eat, drink and raise some cash for charity.  There was an excellent turnout as several large companies and organizations sponsored teams for the races.

An unanticipated highlight was that we noticed a water taxi plying back and forth in the vicinity. As
It's good to be back on the water.
fate would have it, we wanted some exercise equipment located in a shop on the opposite side of the river.  So we had a dynamite sausage and beer at the race concessions and headed for the taxi landing.  Of note was that we purchased transportation tickets for three days for any metro, tram or bus line in the city.  As it turns out, the water taxi honored those tickets; another big plus for the mass transit systems for Europe in general and the Czech Republic in particular.


One item that caught our eye in an internet search for things to do
Lots of room for lots of people.
Cheers!!
was a Beer Festival just opening in Prague for a couple weeks.  Featuring 70 plus beers from various parts of the country, it was staged in a huge tent with several adjoining tents and an internal open courtyard (for smokers, we found out).  [P.S. There is a new law prohibiting smoking in public spaces just like in the US; it will be effective this summer in June, I think.]  We paid a small entrance fee and received a beer tracking card and away we went; you tallied the damage and paid on the way out.

The adventurous babes.
We have been to Prague several times in the past and have always noticed the massive telecommunications tower from a distance.  You can't miss the thing... it dominates the skyline on that side of town.  Since we were
staying in the Žižkov district, where the tower is located, we thought it would be a good idea to drop by and take a closer look.  The tower was constructed during the Soviet era and many think it somewhat an eyesore.  Most likely for that reason, there was an attempt to humorize the thing with a series of babies crawling up the outside... yea, babies.  You can see from the photos the babes are not the least bit shy and are quite fearless .... wonder what their parents think. As luck would have it, at the base of the tower is a Jewish cemetery.  It seems the cemetery was quite a bit larger until the Soviets flattened the area to build the tower; there were upwards to 20,000 graves.  The remaining (not sure the number) are quite old and very impressive. There are lots of beautiful trees which give the place a peaceful and serene feeling.  It is called the New Jewish Cemetery since it was established in 1890 to replace the 'old' Jewish cemetery located in another part of the city.
I know, but I could not resist continuing the humorous theme.
Notice the 'victim' tally on the door!

Lastly, we did manage to get a bit of business done.  On Monday, we met with Eva Grollova at the headquarters of the Diaconia ECCB.  You will recall in a previous blog we visited an ECCB Hospice and were interested in learning more about the supporting program.  It turns out Eva has been associated with the Diakonia since its reemergence in 1989 just prior to the Soviet departure (it existed before but that is a long story).  She is retired but is now a part-time colleague with the new director, Jan Soběslavský. Eva offered a world of information.  We spent a very fruitful morning discussing her personal history which shed quite a light on the Diaconia history through the tumultuous Soviet period of Czech history.

Shortly after that, we met with Ivana Adámková, a member of the ECCB congregation in Brandýs nas Labem, a town just in commuting distance of Prague.  This is the church of Petr Slama, on the faculty of the theological department of Charles University and well known to anyone associated with the Presbyterian/ECCB partnership.  He wanted to see if we could find some time to conduct a similar set of lectures there.  We met Ivana to flush out details for us to present in Brandýs during the period when the Czech VBS (English to the Church) is being conducted in Letohrad this July.  We are looking forward to another cultural exchange opportunity with their community.

Tuesday, May 16, 2017

What? Another National Holiday. Throw me in the briar patch, Br'er Fox!

OK... not my fault the Czech government decreed two back-to-back Mondays as national holidays... but if that is the case then so be it.  It's off to Ostrava, Olomouc and surroundings.

Dan's immediate family.
Technical help with the new phone from
David and Barbara
One of the primary reasons we headed that direction was to attend the 79th birthday of mother of Dan Popelář.  We had visited her several years ago and this time was pleased to find her still young and vigorous. We anticipated family, hugs, gifts and some dynamite cake and sweets.... not disappointed!  Dan's two brothers and their wives plus a niece and nephew were on hand in addition to Renata, B.J. and yours truly.  It was a 'warm' visit in spite of a gentle chill in the air. As an extension of the birthday festivities we hit a couple of favored pubs over the two nights in the area...and once again the 'pivo' was perfect. Oh, yea, we also learned of a place called the "Chow Meow" and wanted desperately to see it; it is a coffee shop that has free ranging cats.  However, the day we tried to get in was a national holiday and it was closed.  It was also late, but you could see the cats lounging just inside the glass front.

In the mine.
The vicinity of Ostrava is a very industrial area of the Czech Republic.  Accordingly we spent some time visiting an abandoned coal mine and remains of an iron smelting facility from the Soviet era that have been converted to educational tourist sites.  The two sites are part of DOV (or "Dolni Vitkovice"), an association of legal entities, founded in 2007 with the aim of opening up the area's urban industrial heritage.  The coal mine was one of many in the area (coal is still produced in the area but this site has gone as deep as is practical to extract coal).  We were able to go below into one of the tunnels where we were guided by a excellent ex-coal miner who was stuffed with details about its operation - at least that is what Renata tells me since it was in Czech.

The expansive smelting complex is located just on the edge of the city.  We actually visited this
facility on a previous visit so this time we headed to the adjacent science center.  It was under construction the last time so was not in full operation.  The Science and Technology Center was an impressive collection of kid- and adult-based, hands-on exhibits.  We spent nearly four hours marveling at the ingenious contraptions explaining various science, engineering and nature topics.


A WWII Memorial
A Soviet Shrine
As we headed back towards Letohrad we stopped at a massive World War II memorial site in Hrabyně.  This was the site of a two week battle in April 1945 in which the Soviet army pushed the Nazi's out of the area and then proceeded to Prague to free the city.  The particular day we visited was the national holiday commemorating the end of WWII and is roughly equivalent to our Memorial Day.  The huge site was constructed during the Soviet occupation with specific political aims in mind; it has now been converted into a more generic memorial but still acknowledges the sacrifices of the Russian soldiers (and Czech and others also) who died fighting Nazi Germany.

Remember the Sacrifices!

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Back to Business

Weekly Programs
Among our recent two holiday weekend trips are our regular weekly commitments including the Tuesday advanced beginner English lesson, our Wednesday discussion group sessions, one advanced and one intermediate, and two mornings, Monday and Friday, with the kids at each of the two basic schools (elementary schools) here in Letohrad.  The advanced beginner is a class we had not anticipated but have found we are learning as much as the four/five regulars.  It has pushed our boundaries and we are thankful for the requests to conduct this class.  Their dedication and enthusiasm is impressive as is their progress.

The two discussion groups, while requiring varying levels of preparation, are highlights every week.  However, this past session we used a format familiar at First Pres.  Most Sundays feature the "Fellowship of the Bean" in ZW house in which there is an open forum for discussions.  Our session here was named "Down the Rabbit Hole" (that was a treat to translate and explain).  We announced at the previous session that everyone should bring a topic and then let the discussion go where it will - ergo; down a rabbit hole.  Both the advanced and the intermediate came prepared; some with written stories and even a video presentation. The format was a win-win as we got a short breather from preparation and the class had a chance to bring up interested topics.  Both classes produced a lively discussion - with some Czech background discussion- but a lot of English in the final stages.

The basic school sessions continued unabated except for classes cancelled for national holidays and some special school activities.  We have continued the original format of three, 45 minute classes at each of the two schools.  Our style has improved as we became familiar with the teaching requirements and now produce a batch of vocabulary words and phrases which is repeated during the following class. We have received a request for English slang terms and are now compiling our favorites.


Ad Hoc Opportunities
One of the three 'Ad Hoc' classes of 7-9 year olds
This past week offered a bit of a change when we were asked to present to three classes of 7-9 year olds at one of the basic schools (we usually have the 13-15 year olds). The older kids were on a field trip so we spent the day with the younger ones and it was a challenging treat.  These groups were highly appreciative of our efforts, were non-judgmental and an easy audience for a Jackson 5 song and video!! And, yes, I know how that dates me.

We also had the second of our community lectures last week.  This week's topic was "Trump's 100 Days" and focused on a factual analysis of completion of the various elements of his
One of the slides in the '100 Days' Presentation
"Contract with the American Voter" issued prior to the election.  There was a good crowd with several more attending this time over the first community lecture last month. Like the previous lecture this was with a translator which allowed us to cover quite a bit of material.  The afterward question and answer period was lively and enlightening.



But by far the highlight of the past week was a visit to a Czech hospice facility.  We had the opportunity to visit the Ostrava area in the far eastern part of the Czech Republic during the past
holiday weekend.  Nearby in Valašské Meziříčí is one of the many facilities associated with the Diakonie. The Diakonie as an organization provides aid to people in need of care, to people with disabilities or illness, to children and families, to immigrants and their families, to addiction and to those otherwise disadvantaged. This particular facility, the Hospic Citadela, is run by our host organization here, the Evangelical Church of the Czech Brethren (Českobratrské cirkve evangelicke).  It, like others run by different organizations, receives state support but is managed and operated by the ECCB.  This facility provides end of life care primarily for oncological patients but also provides half of its beds for temporary housing of seriously ill patients whose caretakers just need some time free; a unique angle on use of a hospice facility.  There is also an associated facility just up the road which provides in-home care of dying, alzheimers and otherwise incapacitated patients.  We were graciously shown the
The 'hugging' building
facility by its director, Mgr. Květoslava Othová.  She generously took time from her holiday and for that we are appreciative.  We respected the facilities request not to photograph inside so you will have to take it from me the absolutely wonderful condition and design of the building.  If you would please notice the curved shape of the building; from inside the facility, the curving hallways look like a pair of arms embracing the rooms with the hospice patients.

Out and About in Letohrad

Selájam
We heard the music on and off most of the afternoon.  It was one of the nicer days of late and I kept
trying to figure out from which window from the surrounding houses it was coming from.  We were a bit busy with upcoming programs and were somewhat annoyed with all the various music.  And it was quite loud at times.  So, later that evening we headed for Thursday evening bible study
(it was our turn to lead which I did with a type of guided meditation) via the most direct route which skirted the main square.  After we left the church to return home there was more music.... this time obviously not coming from someone's window.  So with nothing immediately pressing we ventured up the hill toward the main square. And, poof, there was a crowd, a stage, a band and several concession stands with food and drinks.  Scheese.... we gotta get our heads out of the sand!

It turns out this was the day of the traditional student festival, or Majáles.  From what I can gather, Majáles is a hundred or so years old and is traditionally the day when students were, more or less, excused from being 'proper'.  Now, this day is usually one of festivals and events for students.  The Letohrad 'Selájam' (that's Majáles backwards) was sponsored by the local private high school and the city.  It was set up on the main square and featured eight events beginning about two in the afternoon. The headliner event, a single performer called VOXEL (no translation), was just going on and immediately attracted a crowd of young ladies in front of the stage.  The performance was very interesting to an American ear (although B.J. has been humming it...) but quite a treat for the mass of fans in front of the stage.  Check out one of the songs, Click Here.

Bowling
OK, which way did you say to roll it?
Now there's a term I have not taken seriously for, oh, let's just say a number of decades.  But here we are in the two-laned Letohrad bowling center.  There's a good crowd ranging in age from middle single digits to the higher double digits (no comment).  It was not like I remember back in the dark ages.  Yes, there still are the
Sam lining up a shot... with a little help.
Now, it's tap time!!
automatic pin setters but this time the score is automatically kept on the screen just above your lane.... I know, I said it's been a while!  So..... let the games begin.  First on tap (no, that was later) was to find a pair of bowling shoes from the rack that would fit and not have your little toe screaming in pain.  After a bit of shuffling and groaning all were in uniform.  Next pick your weapon... I grabbed a green one that I found to be quite comfortable with the grip I was able to dig out of memory despite several billion brain cells being consumed daily with practicing Czech.  The order was somewhat arbitrary but worked out well, with lots of pinch-bowlers thrown in.  What a great time!  B.J. and I actually had a couple strikes although the big head feeling was immediately deflated with the next gutter-ball.
Hana, Nad'a and Josef 

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

May Day Weekend


May Day in Europe is widely celebrated as a national holiday and we had the opportunity to expand our horizons into the Slovak Republic and Hungary.  The primary focus of our weekend with Danny and Renata Popelářovi was a visit to Bratislava (Slovak Republic) and Budapest (Hungary) with, of course, the opportunity to see the country side and peel off to other areas of interest.  The long and short of it all is that both cities were marvelous-- for very different reasons.
Bratislava Castle with Old Town
down the hill.

Stairs to the Castle
We found Bratislava a 'large small town' in that it was relatively compact and very warm and friendly. We were there only overnight with half-days either side but were at home with the cozy parks and rows of restaurants and bars; not to mention a very enjoyable stroll along the banks of the Danube.  The city is laid out with the Castle on a high hill, and the old walled city at the bottom of the hill bordering the Danube. The city is located in southwestern Slovakia.  Its location on the borders with Austria and Hungary makes it the only national capital that boarders two other countries; additionally it is only 38 miles from the border with the Czech Republic and only 37 miles from the Austrian capital Vienna.  This location reflects some interesting politics in its past. In fact, did you know that during the post-WWI revolution of 1918 - 1919, the name 'Wilsonstadt' (after President Woodrow Wilson) was proposed by American Slovaks, since Wilson supported national self-determination.  The name Bratislava, which was used before only by some Slovak patriots, became official only in March 1919.  ...but anything further is for your world history classes and not this blog.

With Parliament Building
in the background across the Danube.
Liberty Statue on Gelle'rt Hill.
Soviet monuments used to
stand at the base.
Budapest, on the other hand, is a mega-city.  It teemed with flocks of tourists and associated busses; large crowds following the ever present small flag atop a stick carried by the tour guides.  The city is reportedly the largest physical city in Europe but, don't get me wrong, it is a gotta-see place.  The Budapest you'll see today is the result of many years of rich history, with traces of inhabitation dating back as far as the second millennium BCE.  Hungarian tribes arrived at the end of the ninth century and the Hungarian Kingdom was established in 1000. The city today was formed in 1873 through the joining of Buda and Obuda (old Buda) on the hilly west bank of the Danube and the city of Pest on the flat east bank.  We managed to walk almost 20 miles in the two days we visited and never failed to find something unique and interesting -- not to mention something high as we visited Gellért Hill, a highly visible
'Pest' from 'Buda'
spot which was the prior home to several large Soviet monuments.  Very impressive is the Hungarian Parliament building across the river from the Buda Castle and of interest are the myriad of boats of every kind plying the river from freight to the large passenger boats cruising the length of the Danube.






However, one of the more enjoyable places we visited was on the way out of Budapest, on the
Soviet monument moved from
base of 'Liberty' on Gelle'rt Hill.
outskirts, the Memento Park.  After the Soviets left in the late 1980's,
Quintessential Soviet era monument.
the large assortment of monuments erected during the previous 70-ish years were not all just torn down and destroyed.  A select group was collected and moved to this park for display.  It was a treat to actually see the statues with their distinct bombastic style.





And finally, on the return trip just before Bratislava we visited the
UP......
Gabčíkovo dam. The dam is only one of several planned during the Soviet period which would have been located on both the Hungarian and Slovakian sections of the Danube.  Construction was in progress when the Soviets left and after years of bickering over the contract the Slovaks finished their dam and the project ended.  I was personally intrigued with the lock structure which allowed the large boats running the Danube to pass the dam area.
... and DOWN
 In our trips back and forth to Florida we have to deal with a locks on the Intracoastal Waterway but at worst is, maybe, six feet variation.  The dam has locks which raised or lowered the boats 59 feet, a 10-fold increase.  This is the only lock on the Danube and we were fortunate to actually see it in operation.