News digest: Accused NAKA investigators return to work

Historical heating plant successfully converted into a creative hub, former night club in Sad Janka Kráľa will serve as a restaurant and Devín's currant wine turns 100.

(Source: SME.sk / Hej,ty)

Good afternoon. Catch up on the main news of the day and get some tips for the weekend with the October 8 edition of Today in Slovakia. We wish you a pleasant read.


For weekend tips and reads, check out our Spectacular Slovakia weekly roundup. This week, Peter Dlhopolec is writing about the abuse of Slovak singer Peter Nagy’s hit Láska je tu s nami (Love Is Here with Us) by the Czech far-right and Norway's fresh take on the 1973 Czechoslovak fairy tale classic Tři oříšky pro Popelku (Three Nuts for Cinderella).

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The former erotic club in the park Sad Janka Kráľa on the left bank of the Danube in Bratislava will be rebuilt into a modern eating place. The abandoned building has been a source of shame for the city for years. The Bratislava city council obtained it through exclusive ownership at the beginning of 2021.

The reconstruction of the former erotic club into a modern eating place for visitors is part of the ongoing, extensive revitalisation of the park.

“Sad Janka Kráľa is one of the oldest central European parks and is one of the city’s protected monuments,” said Mayor of Bratislava Matúš Vallo, as cited in the press release. “Thanks to the new services that will be added in the former building of the night salon, people will be able to spend an even more comfortable time in the park.”

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Coronavirus in Slovakia

  • 1,690 people were newly diagnosed as Covid positive out of 11,034 PCR tests performed on October 7. The number of people in hospitals has increased to 806. 15 more deaths were reported on Thursday. The vaccination rate is at 44.83 percent; 2,465,677 people have received the first dose of the vaccine. More stats on Covid-19 in Slovakia here.
  • Starting on Friday, October 15, the required quarantine period will be shortened. New rules will also be implemented for registration at the border and documents shown to prove one’s vaccination status.

Photo of today


The heating plant has been converted into a creative and community centre with co-working offices and features three original concrete storage bins.


Feature story for today

Fabrizio, Maurício, Paťo. 20-year-old Patrizio Gravina, who grew up in Slovakia as a child from a mixed Slovak-Italian marriage, recalls that growing up, his not-typically-Slovak name created difficulties for his Slovak classmates.

Nowadays, that problem is history. “There are more people like me,” Gravina told The Slovak Spectator. By "people like me" he means children from mixed families.

In this interview with The Slovak Spectator, he explains how his family's “Italian lifestyle” often left his friends astonished and how the Italian and Slovak sides manifest in his identity.

Being of Italian origin is like a hobby we share. It brings people together, says Slovak-Italian Read more 

In other news

  • The 10th edition of the three-day Tatra Summit conference organised by GLOBSEC started in Štrbské Pleso in the High Tatras on Friday, October 8. Political and economic leaders will discuss the world's economic recovery during the pandemic crisis.
  • Four accused investigators from the National Criminal Agency (NAKA) will continue their work. Interim Police Corps president Štefan Hamran confirmed this on Friday, October 8. He acknowledged their work, saying he sees no reason why they should be suspended.
  • Incumbent National Crime Agency (NAKA) head Eva Kurrayová will vacate her post on October 15, while Police Corps vice-presidents Jana Maškarová and Robert Bozalka will follow suit by the end of 2021, Hamran also announced on October 8.
  • Bratislava’s borough of Devín will mark the 100th anniversary of its local specialty – currant wine – on Saturday, October 9.
  • Slovakia’s total export in August 2021 amounted to €6.4 billion, increasing by 0.5 percent year-on-year. Despite the slight year-on-year increase, total exports grew by more than 8 percent when compared to August 2019. Meanwhile, the country’s total imports in August grew by 11.1 percent y-o-y to €6.5 billion. Compared to August 2019, the imports of goods from Slovakia grew by 7 percent. As for Slovakia’s trade balance, the country recorded a negative trade balance of €146.2 million. In July, Slovakia posted a trade-balance deficit of €22 million. (the Statistics Office).
  • Several medical organisations are against the planned reduction of health insurance payments for state policyholders by €232 million to €1.2 billion.

More onSpectator.sk today:

Unique scientist platform helping Covid-19 fight still going strong amid third wave Read more  Fewer tourists visit the Tatras, number of overnight stays down as well Read more  New bus station is open, but Bratislava still far from a new train station Read more  Hydrogen car premieres at the Dubai Expo Read more  Moka pot and tomatoes. How to be an Italian in Slovakia Read more  From Hollywood to the Presidential Palace: American brings “renaissance of the real” to Slovakia Read more 

Top stories

Stock image.

Twice as many Ukrainians work in Slovakia now than before the Russian invasion.


Píšem or pišám?

"Do ľava," (to the left) I yelled, "Nie, do prava" (no, to the right), I gasped. "Dolšie," I screamed. "Nie, nie, horšie..." My Slovak girlfriend collapsed in laughter. Was it something I said?


Matthew J. Reynolds
Czech biochemist Jan Konvalinka.

Jan Konvalinka was expecting a pandemic before Covid-19 came along.


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