Hey Mr Brick-gas - slow down!
A CAMPAIGN designed to increase driver consideration and safety on Bratislava's roads will last until the end of March.
The initiative has a "City is Jungle" theme. At the start of the month amusing notices appeared at busy traffic junctions around the city. They depicted "species" of drivers known for their lack of consideration on the roads. These included Arogant cestný (Self-Important Roady), Tehloplyn obyčajný (Brick-gas Common) and Hlavohruď zavolantová (Head-chest Behind-Wheeled). The notices warn pedestrians not to "provoke" these dangerous beasts.
According to city officials, the campaign is a humorous reminder to drivers that many accidents are caused by aggressive and intolerant driving.
Branislav Bezák of the advertising agency Euro RSCG New Europe, the brains behind the campaign, thinks that nothing works better on self-important people than "others making fun of them". He believes that the notices can make drivers reflect and re-evaluate their attitudes on the roads.
The city also wants to cooperate with the advertising agency on a campaign against dog owners who do nothing about their pets' fouling of public places.
Rakús wins prestigious literary award
STANISLAV Rakús has been awarded the prestigious Dominik Tatarka literary prize for his book, Nenapísaný román (Unwritten Novel), the SITA news wire reported.
The novel is a gentle, ironic view of intellectual society during Communism.
One of the jurors, Peter Zajac, from the MR Štefánik Conservative Institute, said: "Rakús fulfils both criteria for the prize. His book is a great work and the author has clear and unambiguous civic attitudes, especially in relation to freedom and human responsibility."
The Dominik Tatarka prize was established in 1995 and is awarded to significant works that follow a humanist tradition.
Zajac added that Nenapísaný román is the first literary work in Slovakia in years that has earned unstinting praise from critics and readers alike. "It's a heavy read. It shows the demands the literary aristocracy in Slovakia has and that it can address people of today," Zajac said.
Slovak stamp wins beauty contest
A Slovak postage stamp won the prestigious Grand Prix de l'Exposition WIPA for 2003, awarded to the world's prettiest stamp.
The Fine Art issue stamp depicts László Mednyánszky's oil painting Potok za humnami, na brehu (Stream behind Bar, on the Bank), a spokesperson for the Slovak post office reported on March 21.
The painting by the Hungarian artist (1852-1919) is owned by the Slovak National Gallery. František Horniak turned the picture into a graphic work and the Slovak Post issued it as a stamp in May 2003. The stamp has already won three Slovak prizes.
COWS make it to Internet.
photo: Courtesy of CowParade
Virtual CowParade in your mailbox
THE INTERNATIONAL CowParade project has recently hit Slovakia and its development can be followed step-by-step on the Internet, at www.cowparade.sk.
The website, which is also in English, brings updates on the project's progress in Bratislava and other towns simultaneously hosting the parade.
The website also has the application material for those wishing to join in. A Newsletter section can be delivered directly to people's email addresses.
Compiled by Spectator staff
