Being Prepared in Slovakia

Back in the late 1990s I got the opportunity to travel to Slovakia. My dear friend, Maria, and her then boyfriend, Charles, took me on a trip to the High Tatras, a mountain range in the northeast part of the country, and featured on this postcard. They didn't tell me where we were going, and I was happy to just ride along in the back of the car, quietly screaming as Charles took it upon himself to make sure there was never another driver in front of him, even if we were going around a hairpin turn at breakneck speed.

As the Tatrys came into view, I was struck by how much they resembled the mountains I drew as a child. Steep, pointy, and jagged. I've never seen mountains so pointy. In my area of New England, mountains are softer, rounder, and don't jut up looking like teeth. Beautiful teeth, but sharp, nonetheless.

We walked around the lower areas of the mountains, admiring lakes and I was quite impressed. Then my hosts decided we should take a short hike up one of the slopes. I looked at my feet, clad only in flimsy tennis shoes, and up at the peaks in front of me. "I don't think I have the right shoes for a hike," I explained. But Maria and Charles were not to be discourage. Up we would go! And up. And up. Each time I thought I saw the top, it would be just a false summit and there would be another above us. We finally got to the top, and it was a stupendous view, though I didn't get anywhere near the edges like Charles and Maria did. But, my flimsy tennis shoes held out and I lived to tell the tale. I felt like a mountaineer.

Maaike also visited the Tatrys in the summer, and she also walked a lot, and admired the lakes. She writes that she didn't go above 1,800 meters because "you really need to know what you're doing." Here I was thinking I had done an amazing climb, but I am sure I never got above 1,800 meters. Not even close.

And, Maaike also reminded me that parts of the movie Eragon were filmed in this part of Slovakia. I didn't see the movie, but I did read the book. It is a dragon tale, and the first tale in the series is beautifully told. Slovakia is the perfect place for dragons. The landscape is magical, and you just know there are legends and mysteries around every corner.