Jakubany Diary

**Colin P. Varga** · 12-16-2009, 09:20 AM

Jakubany is a big village in the Slovak Republic between Poprad and Presov, and northwest of Kosice. Here are some photos. Right now I am staying in a penzion and sometimes I make the 4km hike over the hills to the village.

Interior of SS Peter and Paul

Chrismas trees ouside the church.

The view from the top of the hills.

Jakubany, the Southside

Premator Dufala

Stefan

Bicyclist

Berries

**Colin P. Varga** · 12-23-2009, 06:15 AM

Lunch is here so I'll send these now and more after lunch.

This is the Children's Show at the Kutlure Dom, (Culture House) in Jakubany. It was a mix of traditional songs, Michael Jackson, and parodies of TV commercials.

**Colin P. Varga** · 12-23-2009, 07:19 AM

So I have figured out the bus system little so I don't have to walk over to Jakubany. Which I didn't mind doing but it took time, but it's a great hike. However, the snow on the ski slope is becoming too deep to walk up. Sunday I did it to go to church but I think that will be the last time for a while. Although the recent snow is melting pretty fast today. My family was trying to warn me about wolves but I haven't seen any tracks that would make me think this is a problem. I have seen some large tracks but they might be a large dog walking with someone or just one wolf which wouldn't be a problem because they hunt in packs.

Waiting for the Bus Karpaty. This is at the Lubovnianske Kupele stop.

Bus Station, Stara Lubovna

Traffic jam in Stara Lubovna. The traffic was stopped all the way around the town square. This is the first time I've seen this.

Cafe Marilla in Stara Lubovna. Great food at a good price, and WiFi!

Katerina hangs up her laundry.

Shrine in Jakubany

**Colin P. Varga** · 12-23-2009, 07:22 AM

My apologies of the duplication. I just wanted to edit out a duplicate photo and I got the message that I needed to enter "at least three characters for a message."

Originally Posted by Colin P. Varga

So I have figured out the bus system little so I don't have to walk over to Jakubany. Which I didn't mind doing but it took time, but it's a great hike. However, the snow on the ski slope is becoming too deep to walk up. Sunday I did it to go to church but I think that will be the last time for a while. Although the recent snow is melting pretty fast today. My family was trying to warn me about wolves but I haven't seen any tracks that would make me think this is a problem. I have seen some large tracks but they might be a large dog walking with someone or just one wolf which wouldn't be a problem because they hunt in packs.

Waiting for the Bus Karpaty. This is at the Lubovnianske Kupele stop.

Bus Station, Stara Lubovna

Traffic jam in Stara Lubovna. The traffic was stopped all the way around the town square. This is the first time I've seen this.

Cafe Marilla in Stara Lubovna. Great food at a good price, and WiFi!

Katerina hangs up her laundry.

Shrine in Jakubany

JuJ

**Bob_Head** · 12-23-2009, 08:32 AM

Really lovely work, Colin.

**Colin P. Varga** · 12-23-2009, 08:53 AM

Originally Posted by Bob_Head

Really lovely work, Colin.

Thanks BH. I'll be in Slovakia until March.

**Bob_Head** · 12-23-2009, 09:12 AM

Originally Posted by Colin P. Varga

Thanks BH. I'll be in Slovakia until March.

To spend the winter in such a hotbed of cyclocross! Right about now I'd be asking Santa for tickets to the World Championships, across the boarder in Tabor.

**Colin P. Varga** · 12-28-2009, 06:17 AM

Once again I am at Cafe Marilla. I was very hungry when I got here at 10:30am so I had some pierogi, they were great. I'm looking forward to lunch. This cafe has pre-Communist charm. Christmas was pretty big here, although not for the children in the way of lotsa toys or gifts. First there was mass at 2pm on the 24th and afterwards a feast. With the Bucko family this was mainly fish with other dishes of creamed corn, potato salad, basic Slovak dishes. Then children started to come to the house and sing and they were given some money and food. Then the Jaslickari came to announce the coming of Christmas. Actually two groups of these boys came to the Bucko house. I tried to follow one group but by the time I got dressed for the cold night they were gone. I did run into the second group but they were a little camera shy.

So a couple cups of coffee kept me awake for Mass at midnight which went on until 1:30am. I think I have mentioned before about how cold this church can be. Earlier that day it was fairly warm but inside the church it was freezing, at the 2pm Mass I needed another layer. That night I wore everything I could to church. The priest would like to heat the church but I don't see how that can be done unless they find a thermal spring underneath it. After Mass I spent the night at the Bucko house and people visited and talked. I turned down the palenka, (hooch). Then we got up and went to Mass at 7am.

The next day I went to Jakubany and since the snow had melted I walked but I took a new route and went up to the mountain where the TV antenna is and then came down into the village. While I was up there I made a panorama which is far to big to put on Photobucket and when it is shrunk it becomes unreadable. Anyway, I went to the rectory and met Fr. Damian and we went through part of Jakubany called Czarinka (The King's Land) to bless houses. When the crew comes to a house the altar boys sing a song and then once inside the blessing is bestowed. Fortunately for me some of the homes had food for us because I had not really eaten that day, but before I left at 7pm I had my fill. Of course there was palenka, vodka, wine, which I drank in small amounts.

Penzion Silvia. This is where I am staying and it's nice place for a good price. It's very quiet. Some nights I can hear my heart beating. This area has trails and would probably be a good place for mountain biking. I'm not sure if there would be enough thrashing but there are hills and forest and plenty of natural beauty. The big hotel has been empty up until Christmas when people came, I suppose they booked their time there thinking they would be skiing but I didn't hear anyone complain as they were hiking around on the hills.

Woman & Icon

The Jaslickari. They go around to houses announcing the coming of Christmas on Christmas Eve.

Kecera, 12:00AM Christmas Morning

Fr. Damian, Early Christmas Morning

Kecera, Early Christmas Morning

3 Wise Men

Shepherds

The Four Wise Women?

Students Finale

Singers and Chaplan

The God Squad

Fr. Damian blessing houses

Between Lubovnianske Kupele and Jakubany

Nearly Everybody Reads It

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-02-2010, 08:37 AM

New Year's Eve day I started to walk over to Jakubany but there was so much ice I couldn't walk up a hill. So I realized this wasn't going to work that day. However, I did see people skiing. I thought I would like to do this. I haven't skied in 20 years and my doctor that repaired my knee said that skiing probably would not be possible for me, but my knee has been very strong lately and I thought I could try it. So I got out there and it was great and my knee was fine. Later that night it was sore but I didn't need to ice it. A big thank you to Dr. Michael Cavanaugh, the ROX YMCA, and myself for working so hard.

That night there was a nice celebration at the Silvia. I drank but not too much and not too fast. There was much singing and dancing and then fireworks. The hotel nearby also had fireworks. It was a pretty good show.

On the first I walked over to Jakubany and I heard the echo of the speaker from the ski slope playing "Losing My Religion" and it seemed like one of the perfect moments looking at the clouds and the mountains. After I got over the first ridge I heard the church bells from Jakubany, another perfect moment.

Skiers

Jozef Macuga, founder of the feast.

Watching Fireworks NYE at Penzion Silvia

Fireworks NYE at Lubovnianske Kupele

Lubonianske Kupele (Lubovna Natural Spring) traditionally known as sour water. The spring itself smells of sulfur, the water has an initial taste of sourness but after that it's quite good. The bottled version has no foul smell or sour taste. Many people drive here to fill their bottles and take them home.

Echoes of "Losing My Religion"

Echoes of Church Bells

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-05-2010, 08:39 AM

We have gotten more snow. Not a blizzard, it snows slowly here. It's also a fine snow. Sometimes there are large flakes but it doesn't last. The wind kicked up on Sunday while I was on my walk to Jakubany for Church, but I was dressed well enough. I have been wearing three layers usually when I go out, but I work up a good sweat this way so I thought I would try this walk without the Polartec 300 sweatshirt. This was better, I was warm without getting really hot. When I got to church I wasn't so sweaty and then I put on the Polartec and stayed warm in the church. My relatives were concerned about how I would get back to the penzion but I walked and I was OK.

I was very happy to join Fr. Damian on his visits to the Roma homes. This is a part of Jakubany that I hadn't been to before just because I didn't want to start a big stir about a non-Roma person walking into this area. I should say that not all the Roma in Jakubany live there but most do. The conditions of the homes very greatly, but I noticed that all the homes were warm (at least when we were there), but overall these people lived in slightly to greatly poorer conditions compared to the rest of Jakubany. There are certainly more people per sq. meter in this area, and more families living in smaller rooms or room than the rest of Jakubany. However, we did visit a few homes that were new and large and well appointed. Also, most homes were in a state of renovation or at least some work was being done or had been done.

To the people themselves, we were greeted with the same hospitality found in the rest of Jakubany. We were offered food and drink, and food and drink just the same as we were last week in the other homes. The Roma are certainly just as religious as the rest of Jakubany and maybe more so judging from the pictures, and textiles on the walls. Also, Fr. Damian said that the Roma in Jakubany were better off than the Roma in other towns and villages. This seems to be true which is a credit to the Roma and non-Roma of Jakubany. There is some unease to antipathy between the two and probably discrimination in the village against the Roma but I haven't heard any hatred.

Fr. Damian with the Roma children.

Fr. Damian blessing the homes of the Roma in Jakubany.

Roma Shrine

Our Mother of Perpetual Help
This is a beautiful church in Stara Lubovna. The exterior is interesting but the interior is spectacular and the acoustics are perfect. You can hear a whisper clearly from one end to the other. I'm going there later today for a Mass.

The end of the day of skiing.

Penzion Gurmen
I guess this Christmas Tree was inverted to save space.

Jakubany Fire Chief

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-08-2010, 06:45 AM

On Tuesday I was carrying my laptop and my camera and flash, etc. and walking alot, and Wednesday I walked to Jakubany with my camera, etc. and stood in the church for and hour and a half and stood outside in the cold for another 45min. I was pretty tired yesterday, so I took it easy and just worked on my computer editing a friend's story.

However, I did go to the bazen or pool at the Lubovna Hotel which is just across the stream from the Silvia. It's a chlorinated pool with water from the spring without the sulfur I guess because it doesn't stink. All the walking with the weight of digital yadda yadda has left me a little sore and I thought I would use some other muscles. Anyway, the pool is nice and I had it all to myself for an hour. I thought that was long enough.

There are more people at the Silvia now so it's not like "The Shining" anymore. Mostly skiers and some people that have just booked parties in the dining room. However, I miss the quiet at 5am. Yes, I guess these people just had to hit the slopes early.

On Tuesday I got off the bus in Stara Lubovna and heard the unmistakeable sound of hockey being played. There is a skating rink right across from the bus station. There was a game being played by some men and a boy. I should mention that Marian Hossa of the Black Hawks is from Stara Lubovna, and Peter Bondra's family is originally from Jakubany and now lives nearby. I took some pictures of the game. No fights broke out, but I did see one guy get body checked, but it wasn't a problem.

Wednesday I indeed walked to Jakubany which is about 4km from the Lubovna Kupele. Whenever I do this walk and it's snowing I think about Dr. Zhivago, I just can't help it. Fortunately, I don't meet any Red or White Army troops or run into people like Count/Comrade Komarovsky or Strelnikov. But it's a quiet walk, there's landscape and snow. Still haven't seen any wolves, just deer. Some people are very concerned about me making these journeys but I know the way very well now.

In any case, after a Mass at the church there was a procession to the river, the Jakubianka, where a small ceremony was performed and the water was blessed. After the priest gives the final blessing and washes his face with the water the people of Jakubany gather the water in containers to take home, but also they wash their faces with the water and drink it out of their hands.

Helena Bucko; Cantor of SS. Peter Paul, Jakubany

Girls from Kecera

Drinking the Blessed Water

SS. Peter & Paul, Jakubany

Bus Driver

Mother of Perpetual Help

Hockey in Stara Lubovna

**Malloy** · 01-09-2010, 02:05 PM

Great pics!

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-11-2010, 05:40 AM

Originally Posted by Malloy

Great pics!

Thanks

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-15-2010, 05:52 AM

Mr. Ed this Bud's for you! This beer is 16% alcohol. Think about all the glass that will be saved by drinking one of these as opposed to 3 of the regular Buds.

This is a drotar in Kamienka near Jakubany. (A drotar is a metal worker or wire worker unique to Slovakia.) I took the bus there but I didn't know where I was going to find the famous drotar in this town. So I just asked people who told me where to go but my Slovak is limited so I understood that he lived near the church. Then when I got near the church I looked around at the house thinking that there might be some signs of a Drotar like wire art work hanging around the outside of a house, but no. So I asked a few more people and got an address. When I got there this man did not admit to being a drotar but I figured it out and he then quietly started to work showing me how to fix an old bucket, and then how to fix a hole in a metal pot. In the end he was flattered that I took an interest in what he did and I had a little lunch with him and his wife.

(There were many drotars in Philly at one time. Some of their work is at the Atwater-Kent and the Balch/HSP had a large wire art piece of an old fire engine which was sold at auction. A shame, it was a unique piece of ethnic art probably made by one of the workers at one of Philly's wire manufacturers.)

So I went to this cattle yard and got a little tour. This is the son of the owner playing his recording of cows for the new calfs.

Pregnant cow.

Cow needs help giving birth.

New calf.

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-16-2010, 06:42 AM

I thought people like to see what Slovaks are driving. On my first trip here in 2002 most of the cars were small with a few SUVs, at that time there was a Hummer dealer near Presov. SUVs are very practical here since not all roads are paved or marked. Now larger cars are common.

Station wagons very popular along and vary in size. This is the Skoda Octavia Combi:

Also Opel has a large presence here:

Skoda makes a line of small cars based on the Fabia:

It looks small on the outside but inside it’s roomy. You can also get this was a two-tone paint job similar to a Mini-Cooper.

The wagon or Combi is also popular:

Mini vans are also popular but usually they have a taller profile which can give more cubic meters while keeping its sq. meter dimensions lower. The Skoda Roomster:

SEAT, the Spanish car manufacturer makes this hot number called the Ibiza:

KIA has a factory outside of Zilina, Slovakia (Zh-ill-ee-na) which produces 7 models, the Soul is one of them:

Citroen also builds a mini-van here, the Picasso:

Frankly, I prefer the previous model:

Skoda also makes the Octavia sedan which is ubiquitous in Slovakia. It seems to share its design with the VW Passat. Skoda has a larger sedan called a Superb.

When I first came here this Skoda was ubiquitous:

It’s a rear engine car. The front trunk opens from the side which if it is overloaded looks a little odd with things coming out of the side. Below is the previous model, and this particular car was made in 1971. I took this photo in 2007 but I recently saw this car again and it's still going.

The old Lada which was based on the FIAT 124 must have been made like a Russian tank, they are still being driven. The white one is actually a Polski FIAT.

Citreon makes a very handsome sedan the C4:

Dacia, a Romainian company with Renault designs seems to be a recent hit here:

Along with Chevrolet, this is a Spark but Chevy has a full line of cars from this to a SUV:

Ford is no stranger in Eastern European. Henry Ford made a deal with Lenin to build Model T’s in the Soviet Union and provide trainers to teach people how to drive them.

This is the Ford Focus over here:

Apparently the styling is just a little to hot for the US.

Ford also has a full line of cars from this small KA to mini-vans, full size vans, and SUV's:

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-22-2010, 03:17 PM

Now I’m in Presov which is a beautiful city with wonderful architecture. It’s also a beautiful city with some of the worst architecture. I’ve seen Communist architecture before and you have to love it like a dull witted child but some of these buildings just go beyond bad. There was one building I thought was some kind of giant Communist trash compactor but it’s the Ceremonial Hall where I suppose weddings were performed.

I am staying at a nice pension, Sladky Sen. It’s 20 euros a night, nothing fancy which is fine with me because I just sleep there. It has a good restaurant and there’s another good restaurant across the street called the Spirit Restaurant. It’s about one block from the main street. I had wanted to stay at the Hotel Saris which was in a beautiful building which used to be the Bosak Bank, but it’s closed.

There’s a great coffee house/pub called Victoria Café. The food and coffee are good and the WiFi is good too. The café has Mucha prints and an early 20th Century atmosphere, except for the music. Pop, Heavy Metal, today I heard Smoke on the Water, oy vey. Right now I’m in the pub and it’s a young crowd so videos and Euro-Pop are playing.

Presov is a college town among other things, and there are religious schools here as well. Also, there is a Roman Catholic Bishop and a Byzantine Catholic Bishop in Presov, and both have palaces. (The Byzantine have the larger quarters.) This also seems to be a town of martyrs: two Byzantine bishops, 120 died protesting Fascism in 1944, various uprisings against the Hungarians, Partisan Street, etc.

There are some nice shops selling folk goods like fujary, drotari, ceramics, textiles, etc. I’m trying to avoid buying anything so I don’t have to carry it all around Slovakia for the next few weeks.

Tonight for dinner I went to a Chinese restaurant. I didn’t recognize anything on the menu but I chose some sliced pork in a brown sauce and underneath was cabbage. This is actually something that would appeal to Slovaks as they like pork and cabbage and the restaurant seems to do good business.

Jan at Victoria Cafe

Fast Food Tony

Typical Presov

Bosak Bank

Presov Synagogue

This Synagogue is a museum but it is also an active place of worship. "On the eve of the Holocaust (1940), some 4,308 Jews lived in Prešov, forming 17.6 % of the entire population. Today the local Jewish community numbers only 55 members."
Prešov – Orthodox Synagogue

International Style

Communist design

One is made to be lived in and one is for storage.

1944 Monument

This is a monument to 120 people who died protesting the Fascist government.

**scottpeezy** · 01-24-2010, 08:32 PM

Nice glimpse into a society I know absolutely nothing about.

How long have you been over there? Does the hotel provide you with extended stay rates? Are you there as a photojournalist? For work? Vacation? Family?

Just curious how you ended up there. Keep up the good work and keep the pics coming.

**ZARK** · 01-25-2010, 02:55 PM

Colin these photos are just wonderful, I don't know if me being of eastern European stock or what, but they speak to my soul, Thanks.

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-25-2010, 03:17 PM

Thank you.

This is my 11th trip over here. Basically I came over this time to finish work I had begun and been working on since 2002. My grandmother and grandfather came from Jakubany (although my gm was born in New Jersey her family went back to Jakubany when she was a year old). So I have family in the village.

I was given a special rate for at the Silvia Penzion near Jakubany, and I stayed with family in Poprad for a few days. In Presov I just found a Penzion with a good rate from the tourist Information Center. Here in Kosice I found a penzion online but I will have to move to another penzion tomorrow because this one will be full. (Normally I would make a reservation but sometimes that costs money on top of the cost of the room, and Rick Steves never makes reservations. However, now I just might start doing that again.)

Here in Kosice the cheapest penzion I could find with the help of the Information Center is 35 euros. Which is good considering this is the 2nd largest city in Slovakia.

**Colin P. Varga** · 01-27-2010, 06:04 AM

I took the train down here to Kosice on Monday. It only took about 45 mins. There was a little confusion as I left the penzion in Presov. I asked for a taxi and then a little later they asked where I was going but I didn't realize they were talking to the cab co. and I told them Kosice. But I added that I was going to the Train Station referring to Presov train station. However, when the cab arrived the driver thought I wanted the cab to go to the Kosice Train Station. As we just started to go past the Presov train station I realized what had happened. No Problem.

So I had a nice little train ride to Kosice. If you have read the Slovak Healthcare thread you know the rest of the story of that day. The first penzion I went to could only provide me with one night. OK, so I went to the Information Center and they found another penzion just up the street and the next day I walked everything up the street.

Yesterday I did a little shopping and then I decided to take it easy and just try to rest hoping that the soreness from my little accident would go away. I just went back to the penzion and took some Tylenol and fell asleep.

Presov ala Harry Callahan:

Kosice

The American Taxi co. drives Chryslers.

Mardi Gras already?

Frankly I don't know what the story is here.

This guy played well but as I walked by several times he seemed to be playing the same song.

The T&A Party

In the US you got your Tea Party, but over here it's a T&A Party. I heard that after a party plateform the drinking began and everyone forgot what the platform was. But they seem happy anyway.