Košice
View of Kosice from a Church Tower
August 26, 2005
I took off this morning from Krakow to Košice. The trip started off pretty slow
on the osobowy train into Źilina, Slovakia. It felt slow until I reached the Tatras,
peaking in their beauty on the Polish side around Ziwiec. The trip was horrendously
slow though and at the border we had to get on a bus to the Slovakian side at which
point we got on another train which continued on to Źilina.
In Źilina I transferred to another train and almost immediately realized that Slovakia
got the better side of the mountains in this deal. The intercity train from Źilina
to Košice was spectacular running across the northern part of the country. Everywhere
there seemed to be tiny villages in mountain valleys with a catholic church rising
above the rest of the buildings. Each church was slightly different; however each
seemed to be white with a green copper steeple or a darker surface standing like
a painting on the canvas of a mountainous background. The scene became almost identical
everywhere and by the end of the trip the scenery was predictable,, however this
fact failed to tarnish the beauty and each town seemed just as perfect as the previous.
The landscape grew more incredible with each passing town and soon I arrived in
Košice, the capital of the east and home of the Czechoslovakian communist party’s
conception.
Upon arrival I quickly found Gruber and his girlfriend, Yanna, who lives in Ukraine
and is half Ukrainian and half Slovakian. After attempting to find some non-carbonated
water, an unsuccessful attempt mind you, we headed through the park to check into
the hotel. The hotel is nice and a private room for $12 is a pretty good value.
After this we headed into town to grab some grub and see the city since we would
only be here for a day.
Yanna seemed more than eager to show me the city as if it were her own. She told
me of the architecture and its beauty. Gruber is convinced it is a hidden gem and
it perhaps is. If this city were further west or more accessible it would be more
touristy, however it has one "flaw," it has no night life and the city
shuts down by 10 or 11. This is not a problem for us, however those looking for
a “lads’ weekend” will never go; this is perhaps the greatest attribute the city
has.
It was a very pleasant day and after walking the streets for a couple hours we grabbed
dinner. I had a dish Yanna said is very traditionally Slovakian so I got it, not
quite sure what I was getting myself into. It was great, an almost pasta-type thing,
but more doughy, small and round covered in a light sauce. This sauce was dominated
by the sour cream and “salo,” or pig fat; translated as bacon on the menu it really
is almost the same as bacon fat. The food was great and extremely filling.
After this we headed across the street to watch the water fountain show to music.
At one point I just started laughing. The show was nothing more than music and lights
as the water pressure rose and fell to vaguely represent the music. What I laughed
at though was the people; they were so involved in the show and everyone who walked
past couldn’t help but stop. Yanna also seemed to enjoy it so I covered my laughter
and just shook my head.
Architecture in Kosice
Church in Kosice
August 27, 2005
Got up too early today to hit up the grocery store, see the church tower and head
to Uzhgorod, Ukraine. Yanna is very impressed with the grocery stores in the area
and Tesco just amazes her. I guess it would amaze me too if I had never seen anything
like it; the first time I saw Sam’s Club I was amazed. We went shopping for food
and stuff like peanut butter became a priority for my Peace Corps friend, Gruber.
This grocery store had a great selection and soon we were waiting for Yanna, who
seemed to be rather good at the whole shopping thing.
After this we grabbed ice cream and soon Yanna was shopping again, this time for
shampoo. It somehow took her about twenty minutes, which is a feminine trait I'll
never understand, nor do I want to, so Gruber and I just caught up and relaxed on
the steps of the theater. Upon Yanna’s return she almost immediately needed to buy
something from Tesco so disappeared again.
Once she finally returned we headed to the top of the church tower. The climb was
great and the views spectacular. Yanna kept talking about the communist block apartment
buildings and how the population grew so much during the time of communism. It struck
me as odd how her and I find completely different things of interest, but I suppose
it exemplifies our different backgrounds. The communist apartment buildings also
struck me at first, but after Russian I had grow accustomed to them and haven’t
really thought twice about them since.
On the other hand, from my perspective, the church’s roof is in colored tiles, much
like a large number of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire including Buda’s castle church,
a few buildings in Pest along with works in northern Romania, Bratislava, and northern
Serbia.
After enjoying the views we headed to the bus station, where Gruber got us tickets
and Yanna and I headed to the train station so she could translate for me: from
Slovak to Russian. After getting my return train ticket we made it to the bus station
next door with plenty of time to spare.
Streets of Kosice
Theater in Kosice