May Newsletter - Kristen in Slovakia

May Newsletter

Spring is finally here

May brought about warmer weather and many exciting things in Velky Slavkov. Claire came and visited in the beginning of May, so we were able to spend time together and do some traveling before coming back to my placement. We started in Vienna where she flew in and explored the city for the day. We managed to stumble upon the Thiel Choir, my college choir, who were on tour in Europe for the week unbeknownst to us and we heard their concert in St. Stephan’s Cathedral. We also visited Bratislava, Slovakia’s capital city, and Krakow, Poland. We saw many castles and palaces, historical buildings, Auschwitz II, churches and cathedrals, marketplaces, gardens, and much more. Afterwards, we came back here to my placement for a few days and she was able to spend time with the people here and work with us in the kitchen and teaching English. It was wonderful to see her and have her experience a small taste of my life here.

Also, while Claire was here we had a girl’s night out with Eva (my host mom), Monika (the woman who’s family now lives at the center and who’s husband works at the center), Janka (the wife of one of the workers), and Jessie. Eva had finished her final exams for school so we went to celebrate by going out to their favorite pizza place for pizza and Kofola (the Slovak version of cola with a hint of licorice which I actually enjoy more than coke or pepsi). We had a good time with lots of laughter and enjoyed spending time together outside of the center.

Randomly one morning Jessie and I were told by my host dad, Stano, that soldiers and army trucks were going to be coming. A little confused by what he meant but knowing that we had understood the words, we waited to see what would happen. As it turns out, two giant army trucks and soldiers did appear that morning at Myln. They had come to deliver leftover army food and our center was the place to store it for all the centers in the eastern area of Slovakia. The boys spent most of the morning moving the boxes into our dining room and it was amazing how many boxes were in there by the time they finished. Over this month, many different centers have come in with vans and trucks to haul most of it away. And of course we get to eat the food as well. Jessie and I tried the canned meal of cabbage, sausage, and rice which was better than expected, and the tea which wasn’t quite as good. Also, we have become masters of opening cans with an army can opener which isn’t near as easy as it looks and is a rather useful talent now since our normal can opener has broken. I’ll be bringing one home if anyone wants to give it a try.

Also, over May I had the opportunity to get to know the Matas family much better. They recently moved into Mlyn and are now living in the flat where my host family used to live. Vlado Matas works here at the center with the finances and Monika, his wife, teaches English in Poprad. They have two children, Oliver, age four, and Kubko (Jakub), age six. Monika had us over for dinner for the first time at the end of May and she is definitely the typical Slovak hostess with lots of pushing for us to eat vast amounts of food and offering anything to eat or drink that she could think of. She is very sweet and fun to talk with. The two little boys had a lot of fun with us and enjoyed tying us up to the table and blindfolding us, as well as showing us their toys and giving us marshmallows to eat. We laughed a lot that night and have enjoyed stopping by for coffee or to talk since then. Whenever we see the little boys they run over to give us hugs, show us something like the fort they had built, or to play with them.

Finally, May has thankfully brought about some nice, warm, sunny weather which we have been able to enjoy by spending a lot of time outside. I love to go running out on a dirt path in the back by the mountains and open fields. Hiking in the Tatras Mountains, which are right in my backyard, is another enjoyable outdoor activity right now. Also, there are often games outside with the boys, usually either soccer or volleyball. And, of course, many cookouts which feature cooking sausages over the fire.

Thank you very much, as always, for all of your support and prayers. I really do appreciate them. I hope that everyone is doing well and enjoying their summer!

God’s blessings,
Kristen