Archive of articles - September 2009, page 9
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Institutions involved in tourism in Slovakia
Ministry of Economy
Sedembolestná
THERE are not very many languages that have a special word for a lady who has to undergo seven bouts of grieving. Slovak does – “sedembolestná”. The Virgin Mary of the Seven Sorrows is Slovakia’s official patron, and on September 15 the entire country gets a day off to commemorate her.
Children’s camps attract Russians
RUSSIAN holidaymakers were most interested in camps for children and youths during this year’s summer season. The Economy Ministry told the SITA newswire that Slovak spas and combined trips to Slovakia, Austria and Hungary were also quite popular among Russian visitors.
Dalai Lama visits Slovakia
THE 14th DALAI LAMA, the spiritual leader of Tibet, visited Bratislava to receive a human rights award on September 9. Slovakia’s highest state officials did not greet him in person, in deference to the country’s relations with China. However, the Dalai Lama held a meeting with the Slovak public in Bratislava and also met the leaders of the opposition parties.
Fico sues over cartoon
A NERVOUS man with a red tie is being told by his physician that since his x-rays show he has no spine his cervical spine problems are only “phantom pains”. It is a cartoon, but the image has sufficiently angered Slovakia’s prime minister that he is now suing the daily newspaper which printed it.
Congress hotels actively pursue business
SLOVAK hotels with meeting and congress facilities must be very active in seeking business during the current economic crisis as companies are reducing their budgets for meetings. Special service packages, an individualised approach, efforts to find price compromises and intensive promotion are ways to keep the hotel business as healthy as possible according to three hoteliers.
Clean–up at Environment Ministry
THE HERALDED clean-up has started at Slovakia’s Environment Ministry. Acting Environment Minister Dušan Čaplovič was charged with the task of tidying up the mess that the previous ministers from the Slovak National Party (SNS) had left behind: the bargain-basement sale of Slovakia’s emissions quotas, a dubious tender for disposal of fly ash and the leasing of valuable land at a price of just a few cents per hectare.
Jánošík premieres in Bratislava
JÁNOŠÍK: The True Story was showcased on all screens of Bratislava’s Palace Cinema in the Aupark shopping centre on the evening of September 4, the TASR newswire wrote. The premiere took place in true Hollywood style with 1,200 invited guests arriving in limousines and walking a red carpet before the film’s first screening. The film depicts the life of Juraj Jánošík, an 18th century outlaw often referred to as the “Slovak Robin Hood”. Jánošík managed to give the local authorities plenty of headaches before being finally caught and hanged by the ribcage in 1713.
SkyEurope's liquidation begins
SKYEUROPE is no longer flying but Slovakia’s former low-cost airline is still making business headlines. The collapse of SkyEurope has impacted many more people than the passengers who waited in vain to board their grounded flights or who bought more than 280,000 tickets that they will never be able to use with the airline.
Judge who complained was suspended
SUPREME Court Judge Peter Paluda can no longer hear cases. Slovakia’s Judicial Council decided on September 8 to temporarily suspend him and also proposed his recall from the court.
Slovakia remembers Holocaust victims
SLOVAKIA’s highest state officials, political leaders, and representatives of civil society and the Jewish community gathered to mark Holocaust Remembrance Day on September 9. The country’s three highest state representatives, a delegation from parliament, cabinet members, diplomats and some Holocaust survivors laid wreaths at the Holocaust memorial in Rybné Square in Bratislava, the SITA newswire reported.
Quote of the week
The twentieth century was a century of bloodshed, but this century should be the century of dialogue.
Changes in coalition agreement
THE LEADERS of the coalition parties met on September 8 for the first time since Prime Minister Robert Fico stripped the Slovak National Party (SNS) of its authority over the Environment Ministry. SNS leader Ján Slota did not attend, saying he did not want to sit at the same table with Vladimír Mečiar, the head of the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), who had made some strong statements addressed towards Slota in an interview with the Sme daily, the SITA newswire reported.
Countrywide Events
Western SLOVAKIA
Rain and sunshine over Stráže
THIS nice picture of Stráže dates back to the times when the main squares of small towns were not yet paved. Though this was not a problem in the dry seasons, rainy weather would turn the streets into seas of mud and people often had to clog their way through it.
Shooting the messenger
THE PROMINENCE of politicians shows up in the way they treat opponents, critics, rivals, challengers, commentators and, perhaps, even cartoonists. The eminence of a government gets reflected in the direction it sets for how the nation treats its minorities. And the steadfastness of elected officials to the principles of democracy can be measured through the independence of a country’s judiciary.
Broadcasting in Slovakia going digital
SLOVAKIA is expected to fully switch to digital broadcasting by 2012. On September 8 the Ministry of Transport, Posts and Telecommunications launched an information campaign to help Slovaks decide how they will receive their TV signals after that date – for those who receive their signals through individual or collective antennas. There are about 650,000 Slovaks who currently receive their signals in that way, the SITA newswire reported.
Bratislava relives Hungarian coronation festivities
AFTER 371 years, the Slovak capital relived the coronation of a new queen of Greater Hungary. On February 14, 1638, the wife of King Ferdinand III, Maria Anna Habsburg was crowned in the St. Martin’s Cathedral in Bratislava (then known as Pressburg or Pozsony).
Some security firms have criminal links
A DECADE ago, chances were that if you opened a pub or nightclub in a larger Slovak town, you could expect a visit from the local mafia, offering you the “protection” services of a certain private security company. To refuse was to invite a beating or worse – to have your business wrecked or set on fire.
Slovaks pay tribute to the “Radio Priest”
CALLED by his biographers “radio’s forgotten genius”, “priest-scientist” and “Renaissance man”, he is considered to be a pioneer in the domain of wireless transmission. Even though he was an emigrant, he directly participated in the founding of the first independent Czechoslovak state. Jozef Murgaš, known in the US as Reverend Joseph Murgas, is one of the few Slovaks that have become famous worldwide.
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- From eight to thousands of runners. How Košice marathon rose to prominence Photo
- Iconic Slovak barn still draws crowds. Without donors, it might have been lost Photo
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- From eight to thousands of runners. How Košice marathon rose to prominence Photo
- Convicted of multiple murders, Slovakia’s mafia boss seeks release from prison
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- 3 free things to do in Bratislava in the next seven days
- Top 10 events in Bratislava for foreigners
- Digital Jarvis is real now. He is coming for your to-do list
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- A mayor resigns over €2.7 million fraud scandal at town hall
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- Fico praises China and Vietnam as models, says liberal democracy has failed
- News digest: Violent gang in Bratislava is under arrest
- He designed Gatwick. But this is his masterpiece
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- News digest: Prosecutor seeks jail for NBS Governor Kažimír as his political support wanes
- Slovakia loses another EV model to Spain as Stellantis chooses Zaragoza over Trnava
- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- News digest: Fico’s bloc wants to save money by restricting electoral access
- Slovakia plans to restrict access to new medicines amid funding shortfall
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process More articles ›
