28 July ’04, Wednesday. Throttle to the floor and maintain speed….ya, high head winds, rain that stings, and me driving a VW Van in the high altitude of the High Tatras….. Boy, the wind was howling last night and we were hoping that it would blow it’s self out before we had to get up and head for the showers. That was wishful thinking at it’s best.
When I stepped out of the van this morning the ground was like stepping into a wet sponge …it squirted water in every direction all at once. The young man at the reception center asked if it was because of the rain that we were leaving….”Yessss !!!!”.
Our first goal for the day was to find (or not find) a student of Bonnie Rohrer. His name was Peter Pitonak and we knew, that he used to or still did work for Whirlpool in Poprad.
As we headed out of town we drove to the plant and went to the reception gate to ask if he might be in. When the receptionist told Peter over the phone that he had 2 people (that he didn’t know) from America asking for him, he thought there was a mistake until we mentioned Bonnie and then he was down in a flash. Peter is married now and has a family of 2 young girls that he cherishes . It was a pleasure to have personally met him and I hope that we will see him again before we leave Europe.
Our destination was only 40+ km but we were hoping that it might be in the sun belt or something crazy….Nope, rain and high winds. Levoèa is one of Slovakia’s finest examples of “Walled Towns”. The central area is also quite striking with all the Renaissance buildings. This town dates back to the 13th century. It also has an absolutely beautiful St. James Church. It is amazing how well some of these churches have maintained their beautiful collections since the 13th century, or even much later for all that matters. The central square also houses a “Cage of Shame”, were those of need (or not) were housed so that all could see. Not a good idea to be given an invitation to the “Cage”…. The wall that surrounds the town is really something it’s self. The size and the architecture of the wall is amazing and it still stands as it did from the 13th and 14th centuries. Unfortunately, it was an awful day to be out in the weather, so we missed a lot of the town as we headed on to find a new home for the night, and hopes of out-running the storm. Our day ends at the Turlec Campgrounds just outside of Martin, Slovakia. We were met by the owners and after check in were given tour of the grounds and shown a number of sites that might fit our needs. Nice job !!! It also was very surprising to us that we are the 1st Americans to have camped here. What can I say….
Tomorrow…..I just couldn’t say for sure
When I stepped out of the van this morning the ground was like stepping into a wet sponge …it squirted water in every direction all at once. The young man at the reception center asked if it was because of the rain that we were leaving….”Yessss !!!!”.
Our first goal for the day was to find (or not find) a student of Bonnie Rohrer. His name was Peter Pitonak and we knew, that he used to or still did work for Whirlpool in Poprad.
As we headed out of town we drove to the plant and went to the reception gate to ask if he might be in. When the receptionist told Peter over the phone that he had 2 people (that he didn’t know) from America asking for him, he thought there was a mistake until we mentioned Bonnie and then he was down in a flash. Peter is married now and has a family of 2 young girls that he cherishes . It was a pleasure to have personally met him and I hope that we will see him again before we leave Europe.
Our destination was only 40+ km but we were hoping that it might be in the sun belt or something crazy….Nope, rain and high winds. Levoèa is one of Slovakia’s finest examples of “Walled Towns”. The central area is also quite striking with all the Renaissance buildings. This town dates back to the 13th century. It also has an absolutely beautiful St. James Church. It is amazing how well some of these churches have maintained their beautiful collections since the 13th century, or even much later for all that matters. The central square also houses a “Cage of Shame”, were those of need (or not) were housed so that all could see. Not a good idea to be given an invitation to the “Cage”…. The wall that surrounds the town is really something it’s self. The size and the architecture of the wall is amazing and it still stands as it did from the 13th and 14th centuries. Unfortunately, it was an awful day to be out in the weather, so we missed a lot of the town as we headed on to find a new home for the night, and hopes of out-running the storm. Our day ends at the Turlec Campgrounds just outside of Martin, Slovakia. We were met by the owners and after check in were given tour of the grounds and shown a number of sites that might fit our needs. Nice job !!! It also was very surprising to us that we are the 1st Americans to have camped here. What can I say….
Tomorrow…..I just couldn’t say for sure