A winter walk in my hometown
Before I went to Slovakia I planned my itinerary as usually. I wanted to go to the mountains and spend a few days there. I also wanted to visit some historical places that I haven't seen before. I wrote down everything, so that the only thing I had to do is look at my schedule, get in the car and go. This was the plan but...
I was so happy to be there that a first couple of days I didn't even think about traveling. I wanted to spend as much time as I could with my family. When I was ready to leave for a few days, there were severe snow storms in the places that I wanted to visit. It was not possible to get there and some people even got stuck in their homes because of snow.
I had to prepare a new plan. Instead of traveling I met old friends, worked on the business plan, ate my body weight in traditional food and compensated it with lots of walking.
Today, I'd like to take with me on a walk in my hometown...
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My hometown is located in Eastern Slovakia, close to the Ukrainian and Polish borders. It is surrounded by beautiful hills but they were not visible during my stay because of the clouds, so you'll have to be happy with a couple of historical buildings today 😊
Let's start out walk!
The oldest building in the city is The Manor House. It's about 15 minutes walk from my parents' house.
It is a classicist building that was created by the reconstruction of the original wooden building in 1781 for Terezia van Dernathova. The first mention of the wooden building dates back to 1646. The town's rulers from 1321 to 1684 were from the Drugeth family, who came from Salerno near Naples. The wooden building was constructed during their rein.
After Terezia's death in 1799, her sons sold the manor house to Jozef Rohl - a mining and metallurgical entrepreneur. His children developed the region until 1857. They built an iron and steel works in the valley in 1809. The region was booming during that time.
After 1857, the manor house changed the owners a few times until it was abandoned to ruin and decay. The city bought it in 2009 and the complete reconstruction was finished in 2013.
Today, it serves as a museum and library. There are also various interesting events held in the manor house such as concerts, various exhibitions, and so on.
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This is how it looked before:
Behind the manor house is a smaller house that was used to accommodate servants in the past. This house is still waiting for its reconstruction. When I was there in the summer, the building looked like ruins and it was quite spooky.
The elementary schools in the city helped to improve its looks by making various paintings and attaching them to window frames. I like how it looks now 😊
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The most precious monument in the city is The Statue of Hercules. The statue depicts Hercules in the fight with the Hydra.
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There were three statues cast from iron in 1841. One is in my hometown, the second one is in Uzhhorod and the third one is probably somewhere in Hungary.
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The areal is open to public but it looked like there was no one for at least two days as there were no foot prints in snow 😊 I walked around a lot and left many of them behind 😊
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We will probably have to wait until spring to take a seat...
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Just before I walked back home I saw this pretty green plant covered in snow. It was melting already and I thought it was a nice place to take some photos.
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That's it for today 😊 I hope you enjoyed this winter walk with me.
Thank you for reading,
Cheers,
Martina
Love those window drawings! A lot of talented people in your region, I also know a very talented photographer and story teller :)
Then you have to tell me who this person is as maybe I know him/her too :D Just kidding! :)
I was surprised to see these paintings as this building was left completely abandoned for a long time. Finally someone took the initiative and did something. I hope that the reconstruction is on the plan too ;)
Thank you for stopping by, Dan :)
I really enjoyed reading this post @delishtreats and learning about your hometown. Nicely done!
This is one part which stood out to me. I was smiling at your sense of humor in "ate my body weight in traditional food," but I know how much I enjoy food from home, so I loved it. 😊
I also really enjoyed the historical input about a family from Naples ruling over the area for ~350 years. I've spent most of my life in the western part of America where something that dates back to the late 1800s is considered really old ... 😉
A man I hired years ago to be on my team in western Canada was from your country - Victor Kumpera. Your post brought back fond memories of my conversations with him.
Hope all is well with you and yours @delishtreats and that your New Year is off to a great start! 👍
I'm glad that you enjoyed my post and it's also very nice to hear from you.
Oh yes, I had to make a plan B and food taste so different there than here that I indulge in it as much as I can while being there. I used to think that vegetables taste the same wherever you go but it's not the case.. Home food is the best, isn't it? :)
It's interesting to see that such families had so much power and were ruling over such huge areas. It's similar to Habsburgs from Austria. There were times when they were ruling over almost all Europe..
I've heard that there is not much history in the US.. You need to come to Europe to visit very old places then :)
There was time when many Slovak people emigrated to Canada. I believe it was mainly because of a good social system there. Wasn't his name written with 'k' (Viktor)? I would be surprised if it would be with 'c' :) Glad that my post brought back some memories...
I hope that you're having a great time too and that you're enjoying your days of work ;)
Definitely @delishtreats ...
... there's no place like home! That’s part of the charm of your post; “seeing” that through your eyes. Food references make it all the better! 😉
Yes, I suppose, although our history books tell us we are descendants of those who wanted to get away from there … 😉 I have been to England, Scotland, and Sweden, and have enjoyed those visits. I would be dishonest, though, to say there was anything I experienced that led to any thought of moving there.
I think we are all pretty similar. “No place like home” … Oh, wait a minute. This post says you were from this place, but now in Switzerland? If you have written about this somewhere, I would very much enjoy reading it, as I like how you write.
My favorite “history” story from those trips was sitting in a pub in York. Not New York. The original York. This was back in the ‘80s, so don’t remember the precise years (but this is pretty close), but the sign over the entrance said “Established in 1147, Remodeled in 1623!” We were sitting on oak planks about 8 inches thick which generations of patrons had worn into “bucket seats” … 😊 Loved it!
Nope, officially retired and I wrote a brief post about it this morning. They were very kind and made me a German chocolate cake from scratch. Speaking of “home food,” this has been my favorite cake as far back as I can remember.
A short time away now from getting “out on the road” ...
P.S. Now that you mention it, yes, I believe Viktor spelled his name with a "K."
I see that you didn't choose the most charming European countries :) When I said that you should come to Europe I was thinking more about Italy, France, Germany or Switzerland :) I've been to the UK only once and I must say that I wasn't very impressed.. I've been to Sweden as well.. it's a nice country but very different to the southern once.. I've never been to Scotland but I've heard that they have beautiful nature. I will have to visit it once day!
I have several homes.. I come from Slovakia but I spent a lot of time in Prague as well. I live in Switzerland since 8 years but I spend a lot of time in the Netherlands as well as my husband is Dutch. So I have 4 homes :) I might write about it one day but so far I don't really make such personal posts. I've done one or two but don't feel so comfortable about it..
I love visiting such old places! It makes you think about how people lived there many many many years ago. You can 'smell' long history there :)
I have just gotten to read your post! You must be on road already... I'm so happy to hear that you took your life in your own hands and that you're going to focus on your well-being. This is such a big step! I wish you a lot of fun and happy memories :)
Oh, and I'm glad that you like the way I write. You made me smile :)
Have a lovely day, my dear friend! (It was nice to see a photo of you)
Good morning @delishtreats. “In” briefly this morning, before I head back “out on the road.”
This made me smile. You are likely to not agree with me, but this reminded me of what I might say to someone about visiting the various states of America. Some I would give a “two thumbs up,” some a “one thumb up,” and others I suggest you just pass them by … 😉 Now, to be fair and “nice,” there is good and bad everywhere we go, so there is always some redeeming feature somewhere. You may just have to look harder … 😊
This is my favorite of the places I’ve been in Europe. And the one I hope to take my beloved lifemate to someday. I would just drive slowly and go from bed and breakfast to bed and breakfast and just enjoy talking with the people and visiting their quaint little villages. I love their accent and they were much warmer and friendlier than their countrymen to the South …
You are wise. I would stick with this. We can be “personal,” up to a point, as I hope you would agree I “engage” in a personal way. But there is simply a line I will not cross. Not that I distrust you or most of my fellow Steemians I have had the pleasure of “meeting” in here. They are not my concern. It is others “mining” the “immutable” nature of this blockchain for who knows what end. If I don’t like Google knowing so much about me and do my best to avoid them, I don’t know why I would change my mind on this (or any) blockchain. One’s man’s opinion … Kind of an ornery one … 😉
Well, off into Day Five I go. My posts about these experiences are doing pretty well, having gotten some awards from c-cubed, c-squared, steemitworldmap, and traveldigest. Thank you again for introducing me to these communities.
Until we “meet” again, all the best to you! 😊 👍
U crazy...I just checked how many @archisteem posts do you already have and you should be called archisteem queen :D
Btw ja neznal, ze ty Vyhodnarka! To mozeme po nasim hutoric, ne? :)
Hahaha, yeah, I have a couple of them there. But I also work on completion of the project on the editing side ;)
Joj, ta asi ne :D Moj otec je Rusnak, mama Snincanka a kedze si velmi (jazykovo) nerozumeli, tak u nas sa rozpravalo len po Slovensky :D ked sme boli pri otcovej rodine, tak sa rozpravalo po rusnacky a ked sme boli pri maminej rodine, tak po sninsky (napr ja nehutorim, ja hvarim :D ) NO a dopadlo to tak, ze neviem dobre ani jedno ani druhe, ale mam to take pomixovane :D
jaj taaak :D a to s tym sentisteemom nechapem. Ty im pomahas s vytvorenim toho ebooku ci co to presne robia?
No editujem clanky.. nie kazdy vie dobre po anglicky, alebo clanok nie je velmi strukturovany.. tiez redukujeme pocet slov.. v knihe je max pocet slov na clanok 350.. viac ti mozem povedat na discorde, kedze tu si to mozu nejakym sposobom prelozit :D
The contrast of green leaves and white snow is striking! Like a meeting of summer and winter. :)
The architecture of the yellow manor looks like something I could have seen in Moscow or Saint Petersburg. Or even in my home town in Southern Russia.
So you're originally from Slovakia, Martina? I didn't know that!
Exactly! It was so nice to see and the photos came out quite good too :)
I wouldn't think about it but now when you say that I agree with you. It looks like the houses that I saw in Moscow. What is your hometown?
Yes, I'm Slovak :) But I've been living abroad for 14 years already...
The town where I was born is a small Cossack settlements (a township?) called Tsimlyansk, in Southern Russia, on the river Don. But I grew up in a nearby city, Volgodonsk. I lived in Moscow for five years between my undegrad (done in my home city) and my graduate studies (for which I moved to Sweden). Now I've been living abroad for 12,5 years already. :)
Do you prefer to live in Sweden? I guess there are many Russian speakers as well, aren't they?
I've checked Volgodonsk and it looks like a city with typical soviet architecture :) We have similar architecture everywhere in Slovakia..
Yes, I definitely prefer Sweden over Russia. I had dreamed about emigrating to Europe since I was 14. And Sweden feels much more of a home these days to me than Russia.
Yes, Volgodonsk was founded just 70 years ago, so it's architecture is blocky and grey. I think its ugliness was among the powerful incentives that pushed me out there. :))
I hear people speak Russian in some bigger cities of Sweden, especially in Stockholm. But I don't seek contact with them, just because they happen to be from Russia. I had three Russian friends among my students, when I was teaching, but usually I don't have much contact with the Russian people aside from my parents.
Our cities are historical and have beautiful old towns but all those hideous buildings were built in the 70's... at least we have some nice buildings too :)
Oh, I'm the same! I don't seek contact with Slovak people here. I know a few of them but I prefer foreigners :)
Too bad there are lots of snow but the snow made the colors pop up which is really nice. I like it! It's good that historical structures are being restored. It shows how attached you are with your past and how you appreciate it. Lucky you :)
I actually love that there was snow :)
It took them too long for the restoration to start but there was a push from people so then they finally did it :) We should treasure what we have from past as it tells us a lot about our history :)
Thank you for stopping by!
What s great se for photos. I fo miss snow sometimes - crunching through it and enjoying the peace it brings to the world as a whole is really quite magical. Wonderful work Martina xxx ❤️🌈🦋🍀🌴
Thank you my dear! I miss snow now as well.. But I hope we will get some soon :) It's so funny as it's raining here but one and a half hour driving from here there is too much snow. They say that they didn't have this much snow in the Alps for many many years.
Glad you like the photos ;)
Great tour. The construction on the building is so great. I also love the plants with the snow, beautiful. Oh and the bronze sculpture made my art self so happy.
Thank you Sara!
It was a walk with diverse things to explore :) I've never been inside of the building as anytime I come there it's closed. But one day I'll hope to make it to see the reconstruction from the inside too.
I also like the green contrasting with snow :)
We are very proud to have the sculpture there. The fact that there are only 3 of them made in my region makes it special to us..
Fun walk. Sometimes the best times are not in the plans :) I'm glad you took a close up of Hercules statue. It caught my eye in the "before" picture
I agree! Sometimes being spontaneous is good too :)
When I was a child I was not interested in stuff such as sculptures so I didn't even know that we had something like that. Plus the site was abandoned so I've never been there.. It's just maybe 10 years or so that I learned about the statue being there for centuries :)
Thank you for stopping by Steve!
Howdy delishtreats! I love your winter walk through a little of your home town! Everything is so OLD there, I mean it makes sense of course but to hear the dates going back hundreds of years is amazing. We're so young over here. We think something a hundred years old is ancient! lol. Anyway, great job and wonderful photos as always!
You always make me laugh :D Hundred years and ancient :D the house where my grandma lives is around hundred years old :D
howdy today delishtreats! I know it probably sounds crazy ...maybe that's why I like castles so much because they're like these big, timeless, ancient structures and there is nothing like them over here.
Any progress on finding a chef or talking to some of them? Are you going to do a post about the process or an update post on where you are in the business set up?
I'm busy with the business plan at the moment. Putting together calculations for capital expenditure and working capital. I should be ready in a few days and then I will look at the pricing of meals and drinks. In the meantime I will be looking for a place.. I didn't get to talk to any chefs yet as I can't promise anything at the moment.. first I have to get a place.. and this is challenging here..
I will definitely make a post about it.. but first have to get to a stage that I have something to share here :)
howdy again delishtreats! This is so exciting! I can't hardly stand it. lol. And I bet you are so good at putting all the numbers together and running calculations. Do you guys have to borrow money for this?
You said it was challenging to get a place there..is that because of the cost or because of a shortage of buildings that would work? The location as to be perfect.
Hahaha, I can put some numbers together but I can't judge if I'm good at it..I don't know if we need any external financing.. I hope not to be honest..
It's a small city so there are just a few places available. At the moment there is just one and I truly dislike it. I will talk to a real estate agent soon and get some advice. I don't want to get a place that it's not built like a restaurant already. I would need so many permits to get it rebuilt and I don't feel like doing it. Perhaps I will have to do it but for now I hope not :)
Thank you for the walk in your hometown, I really enjoyed it, loved the history as well as the snow shots. Isn't nature amazing, to see the green plant and flowers in the snow.
Thank you for stopping by :) I'm glad that you like it.
I agree! I loved seeing this green plant contrasting with snow. It was a very nice sight :)