Next Stop Transylvania

We're headed to Cluj-Napoca this weekend, the largest city in Transylvania.  #Draculaland 🧛‍♂️ Here's a bit about the region.

Transylvania is located in Romania.  On the region's east and south are the Carpathian Mountains and the Apuseni Mountains on the west.

The area was conquered by the Roman Empire in the 2nd century and it became part of the province of Dacia.  After the Romans, between the 3rd to 9th centuries came the Goths, Huns, Gepids, Avars and Slavs.  During the 9th century, it was conquered by Hungarian tribes.

From 1000 - 1526, Transylvania was part of the Kingdom of Hungary.  During this time, the elites were the Hungarian nobility, Székelys, and Saxons (Germans) while the Romanian majority were largely excluded from political representation. 

In 1526, it became the Principality of Transylvania which was an autonomous state under the Ottoman Empire.  After the Ottomans were defeated in 1699, it became part of the Habsburg Monarchy.  

After WWI, the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Treaty of Trianon, and the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it became part of Romania.  Romanians see it as a moment of national unity.  Hungarians consider it a national loss since it was part of Hungary for centuries.

There are a little over 1 million ethic Hungarians living in Romania today.  While some nationalist Hungarian politicians may talk about "Historical Hungary", and the need to protect Hungarians living abroad, Hungary does not officially lay claim to Transylvania.  

Romania and Hungary are both members of the EU and NATO, and both countries recognise each other's borders.

A fun historical twist:  Béla Lugosi, the start who made Dracula famous in the 1931 film, was an ethnic Hungarian born in what is no Romaia.

For Americans, the classic "Dracula accent" is actually English spoken with a Hungarian accent, not a Romanian one - a cultural legacy of Lugosi's performance.

European Day of Languages 2023

Today is the European Day of Languages again.  The EU promote linguistic diversity and encourages everyone to speak multiple foreign languages.  There are 27 EU member countries and the EU has 24 official languages.   

The official EU languages are Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Irish (Gaelic), Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, and Swedish.

This means that EU legislation must be published in all 24 languages.  All EU citizens have the right to communicate with EU institutions in any of the official languages.

Within the EU, the European Parliament is the most linguistically diverse institution.  All 24 EU languages are used as MEPs may speak any official language.  Very diverse but it's expensive to have interpreters and translators to handle all 24 languages.  

The European Commission values efficiency over linguistic diversity.  While legally bound to all 24 languages of the EU, in practice the three main working languages are English, French and German.

Adding or removing a language to the official list requires the approval of all 27 EU members.  This is normally a part of the ascension process when a country joins the EU.  For example, Croatian became an official language when Croatia joined the EU in 2013.

When Luxembourg joined the EU in 1957, back when it was originally the European Economic Community (EEC), the national languages were French and German.  Both of which were official languages.  In 1984, Luxembourg made Luxembourgish an official national language.  However, it is not an official EU language because (a) Luxembourg didn't submit it as a language when it joined, and (b) to add it now would require all 27 countries to agree.

In Cyprus, both Greek and Turkish are official languages but only Greek is an official EU language.  More or less, kind of for the same reason as in Luxembourg.  

Last month, Spain formally requested that Catalan, Basque, and Galician all become official EU languages.  I don't think that this will happen anytime soon because all 27 countries have to agree, plus the associated administrative cost of adding three new languages.

English is an official language in Ireland and Malta, which is why English stayed an official EU language even after the UK left the EU. 

Gliwice, Poland

Gliwice is located in southern Poland, about 25 km (16 miles) west of Katowice.  The city was founded in 1250 and it's home to just over 180.000 people.  Gliwice is one of the oldest cities in Upper Silesia, is an important industrial centre and a university town.  On Friday evening, we hopped on a train for a weekend away.

Gliwice where is WWII began.  Prior to the war, the city was called Gleiwitz and it was a part of Germany.  On 31 August 1939, German SS officers, wearing Polish military uniforms, commode a false-flag attack on the radio station.  Nazi Germany used this as an excuse to invade Poland the next day which was the start of WWII.

The Gliwice Radio Tower is the world's last wooden radio tower.  It is 118 metres (387 feet) tall and it is part of a local museum and a registered historic monument.

The Market Square dates back to the late 13th century making it one of the oldest medieval squares in Upper Silesia.

In the centre of the square is the neoclassic town hall and a fountain.  Around the square are a number of restaurants and cafes.

Saint Bartholomew's Church dates back to the late 1200s.  It was rebuilt in the 15th century and expanded in the 16th and 17th centuries.

The Christ the King Church is a Catholic Church that was consecrated in 1935.

The All Saints Church was built in the late 15th to early 16th century.  The exterior is Gothic and the interior is Baroque.  The tower is about 63 metres (207 feet) tall.

The Church of the Holy Cross is a Baroque era parish church that was built in 1623.  It is part of a monastery complex and is a registered cultural heritage monument.

The Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a wooden church that was built in 1493.  It was moved to its current location in 1925, near an old German cemetery. 

At Starokozielski Park is the Memorial Sarcophagus of French Soldiers.  It is a war memorial for 71 French soldiers who died while serving in Upper Silesia in 1920-1922 following WWI.

The Jews House of Remembrance is a branch of the Gliwice Museum focused on the history of the Jews in Upper Silesia.  The building was completed in 1903 and located next to an old Jewish cemetery.

There are over 600 tombstones in the cemetery.

Back in 1929 there were approximately 2.200 Jews in Gliwice.  Only 25 survived WWII with all of them being in mixed marriages with gentiles.

The Red Army Cemetery was established in 1951.  

There are about 2500 Soviet soldiers buried here.

The Weichmann Textile House was built in 1922.  It was built as a textile and department store.  In 1988it was designated as a historic monument.

The 19th century Chopin Park is home to the municipal Palm House, one of the country's largest.  

The brick water tower was built in 1918.

Vila Caro was built in 1885 for a local industrialist.  Today it is a museum.

Piast Castle was built in the mid-1300s.  Today it is part of the city museum.

The Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul was completed in 1900.  The church became a cathedral in 1992.

Gliwice has a street art scene and we found an industrial area that was full of various murals.

We enjoyed our little Polish city break weekend.  Well worth the trip.

Bad Medical Experience

I've had nothing but positive experiences with health care here in Czechland.  But last month that streak came to an end.  So here's what happened...

I had two lipomas that I wanted removed.  If you don't know, a lipoma is just a fatty tumour normally below the skin.  Normally it's a genetic thing and usually harmless.  I've had them before and they're usually not a big deal to have them removed.  

I went to my primary physician who referred me to a local surgeon's practice.  I got a consultation with the surgeon who examined me and sent me to go get a sonogram.  I went back to the surgeon's office with the results.  He told me that the sonogram looked fine but that he was not set up to remove them in his office.  He was not able to refer me to someone who could.  WTF! Why not tell me that before going to get the sonogram?  I really got the impression that doctor just wanted to be able to bill the state for the two office visits.

I was so angry.  I immediately went to my primary physician's office and complained.  My doctor apologised and referred me to a surgeon that's located at the same place where I got the sonograms done.  

I managed to see the new surgeon a few days later.  He examined me and reviewed the sonograms.  He told me that it wouldn't be a problem.  I got a surgery scheduled for two weeks later.  

I showed up for my appointment and everything went smoothly.  Both lipomas were removed in under 30 minutes.  I went back 10 days later for a follow-up and to have my stitches removed.  My faith has been restored and one bad experience hasn't ended my confidence in the Czech healthcare system.

Day at the Zoo

We went to Vienna yesterday with Kája's friends Hana and Alena.

After the 90 minute train to Austria we started the day at Aïda, my favourite Vienna coffee and cake shop.   

Then it was off to a day at the zoo.  Of course I had to check out the the pandas, koalas and penguins.

The pandas, because they are my goddaughter Tünde's favourite.

A few years ago I told Tünde that the English word for "penguin" was "snow chicken."  She knows the real word now but we still call them "snow chickens."

Back to School Supplies

Kyndryl, like IBM, is good about getting involved with the local community in various ways.  At Christmas time there are always toy drives and such.  

In Atlanta, we used to collect school supplies for kids in need before they headed off to a new school year.  

A few years ago I suggested that we do this in Brno and I'm so glad that this continues every year.

My team collected quite a bit for this year's school supply drive.  I'm so proud of them!!

Normalizace

Normalizace was the period that followed the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 that brought an end to the Prague Spring.  

"Normalisation" began in 1969 and lasted 20 years until the Velvet Revolution in 1989. 

It was the systematic restoration of hard-line control of the communist party in Czechoslovakia characterised by political repression, censorship, and enforced societal conformity.

In April 1969, Gustáv Husák replaced Alexander Dubček as First Secretary of the Communist Party.  There was no Stalin-style executions or gulags but rather administrative and bureaucratic oppression to keep people under control.  

• About 500.000 people who had supported the Dubček's reforms were kicked out of the communist party.  Many were demoted to manual labour positions regardless of their education or expertise.  
• Loyalty declarations were required to:
• Keep your job
• Study at university
• Hold cultural or academic positions
• Travel abroad
• Censorship was fully reinstated.
• Books, films, and music from the reform era were banned
• Artists, writers, musicians, and filmmakers were blacklisted
• Independent organisations were dismantled
• StB surveillance increased dramatically with informants recruited, or coerced to inform, in workplaces, apartment buildings and student dorms

Normalisation relied on quiet pressure, social isolation and the fear of consequences to keep people in check.  

Basically that the system will leave you alone so long as you don't challenge the system.  

This helps explain why today Czechs are often so skeptical towards authority, don't trust political slogans and value personal freedom.

23rd Strážnice Vinobraní

This past weekend was the 23rd annual vinobraní in Strážnice. 

We went on Saturday morning.  It was a full-day wine and folk festival.

Lots of wine and burčák, plus beer and slivovice, along with performances by local music and dance groups.

Here are a couple of videos I filmed at the festival.

Příběhy z Ukrajiny

Příběhy z Ukrajiny, Stories from Ukraine, is an exhibition showing the experiences of Ukrainians feeling the country due to the Russian invasion.

Near the Moravian Gallery, there are civilian cars that were hit by Russian missiles in Ukraine.  

The exhibition brings a bit of the war to the centre of Brno.  

Я за Україну. Я за Україною. Слава Україні  Stojím za Ukrajinou!  I stand with Ukraine. 

Open-Air Concert

On Thursday, the Janáček Theatre out on a free open-air concert, in front of the theatre, to kick of the start of the 2023-2024 season.

Kája and I met up there after work to enjoy the performances before going to dinner.

There were performances by soloists, a choir and the opera company orchestra.  

Here are a couple of videos I took during the performance.