This summer, dozens of friends and relatives from abroad made the journey out to eastern Slovakia for a celebration. (Reader, I married her!) (source: Courtesy, James Thomson)
We invited our copy editors to share their reflections on life in Slovakia over the past year. This letter is from James Thomson.
Public life in Slovakia over the last year has, sad to say, been dismal: an assassination attempt on the prime minister – which thankfully failed – was followed by a politicised and strangely ponderous investigation into it; there were disturbing signs of official disregard for free speech, with politics taking a distinctly illiberal turn since last year’s election; the economy is stuttering, taxes are about to rise sharply and ministers seem clueless about how to grow the cake; and the mood here and abroad is darkening, with the shadow of Russia’s ongoing atrocities in neighbouring Ukraine looming over everything.
One is almost tempted to thank the otherwise contemptible Andrej Danko for providing a little light relief for us all with his slapstick attempts at driving.
But amidst all this gloom, it doesn’t hurt to count our blessings once in a while – and in Slovakia we have many.
This summer, dozens of friends and relatives from abroad made the journey out to eastern Slovakia for a celebration. (Reader, I married her!)
I will admit to having felt some trepidation (about the logistics, not the wedding: best decision of my life). But it turned out that getting guests from France, Britain, Australia, Florida, Colorado and New Delhi to Upper Zemplín (the latter party arriving, rather daringly, by overnight train from Prague on the day itself) was not quite as difficult as I had feared.
Everyone made it, everyone enjoyed it, everyone said they found Slovakia delightful – and I am fairly sure they were not just being polite.
The local guests that they met were, of course, the main reason.
But the accommodation, the food, the countryside, the weather, the absence of traffic and even (somewhat implausibly) Košice International Airport charmed them.
An afterparty in the kultúrny dom of a tiny and very untouristy village had my extended family in raptures about the serene rural atmosphere. I was tempted to invite them back in February to haul some logs for the heating and see how they like it then – but on reflection I have to admit, it is a very picturesque place.
Those who had a chance to travel further afield were wowed by the High Tatras and the historical centres of Prešov and Košice.
Those who stayed in the local 4-star hotel were equally taken aback by its ambitious room rates.
That a comfortable and well-appointed, though hardly lavish, hotel patronised mainly by Slovaks and located more than an hour from a large city or motorway can fill almost every room during the summer while charging €200+ per night suggests there is more wealth in the local economy than the statistics might suggest.
Around Bratislava, there is further evidence of affluence, some of it extraordinary. It needs to be spread around more widely.
Slovakia certainly has its problems, but those of us who live here can count ourselves very lucky that we do.
Na zdravie!
If you’d like to share your own letter to Slovakia for publication on our website, please send it to peter.dlhopolec@spectator.sk
