E3: Rest day in Prešov: Day 111

A rest day in which I visited the old centre of Prešov.

This morning I caught the trolley bus into the centre of Prešov. I remembered these vehicles from my youth in Britain. They have long since dissappeared in the UK but I still wondered how the long arms stayed attached to the overhead wires (they are pushed onto the wire by springs according to the Internet).

Slovakia only came into existence in 1993, a short period in the Second World War is excluded, and I wondered what made it coalesce into a distinct entity. For centuries it had been part of either the Ottoman or the Austro-Hungarian Empire, so how had a unique Slovak identity remained? The Slovak language is of the Slavic group similar to Czech and other Eastern European languages. I could understand why Slovaks were distinct from Hungarians with their quite different language, and I imagine the Slovaks were second class citizens compared with Hungarians during the Empire period, which would have engendered solidarity. In addition, perhaps the Carpathian Mountains, which I would be following, gave a natural boundary with Poland.  However I was surprised about the split from the people of the Czech Republic. I asked a man selling coffee from a trailer in the central area of the old town. He said it was partly because Slovakia came under Hungarian influence while the Czechs were under Austrian influence during the Empire period. In addition he said the Slovaks were quite religious and the Czechs were not. Although Roman Catholicism is the main religion in both countries Wikipedia states that in Slovakia 68.8% of the people count themselves as Christians as opposed to only in 11.7% in the Czech Republic.

Today I visited the Roman Catholic Cathedral in the centre of Prešov. When I first tried to enter a well attended service was in progress so I returned later. Even then, there were many people in the pews praying. I joined them with a pray for the health of my knee and my wife's happiness. Sunlight shining through the modern stained glass windows cast soft orange coloured light patterns over the nearby pews. I also visited the Greek Catholic Cathedral. This denomination accepts the leadership of the pope but follows the Orthodox Christian rites dating from Byzantine times. Although I tried to visit the Synagogue it was locked up despite signs stating it should be open. As in similar places in Eastern Europe the Jewish population was decimated in the Second World War.

Lining the main strip of the old town, beyond the lines of young maple trees, were buildings all dating from before the First World War, with ornate rendering on the outside. Each building was painted in a different pastel colour. Visiting one for cake and another for a more healthy salad for lunch, I noted how they both had barrel vaulted ceilings inside.

After some shopping, chores and eating pancakes for dinner I watched the Slovak news on the TV in my room. I guessed the subjects, one of which was about the current drought in Slovakia affecting the crops. I confirmed this by an internet search. Made me worry that there would not be any water at the springs. The maize and sunflower crops on the TV also looked pretty miserable.