Catching Up: Switzerland to Slovakia

I am way behind in my posting. Currently in Eastern Slovakia.

On the road to the High Tatras:


Here is a quick summary of the last leg journey (Basel, Switzerland to Poprad, Slovakia):

Part 1: Cheese and Chocolate
After a great time couchsurfing in Basel with some very kind hosts (pictured below in their garden) I cycled a wet day over the hills to Zurich. Unfortunately it was a couple degrees above freezing so I had heavy rain instead of snow. I finally gave up on try to stay dry and just kept pedaling fast enough to keep my internal furnace burning. When I finally arrived at my friend's flat in Zurich, I stayed in the area for almost 2 weeks. During this time I consumed more chocolate and dairy products than I would have thought humanly possible. Much music was played with friends in Zurich and Winterthur. I think I spent the entire two weeks in Switzerland smiling.



Part 2: Cheating and Saunas
Having spent so much time in Zurich, I ended up getting a really cheap night train ticket across Austria. Passed a few days in Vienna with a friend from UCSB and made the snowy route to Bratislava, Slovakia. I had never intended on coming to Slovakia but I ended up really loving it. Couchsurfed with two really incredible brothers (Peter and Brano) and ended up in a sauna on both my second and third nights in Slovakia.

Part 3: When alone in the woods with a gypsy...
Brano suggested that I check out a Roma (often called gypsy) camp 30 km North of Bratislava. That was one of the stranger experiences of my trip. Though in the region for hundreds of years, the Roma have, for the most part, successfully resisted integration. Many now live in separate slums outside of towns and cities throughout Eastern Europe and the Balkans. In Slovakia, unemployment among the Roma stands around 80%.

They first came up in conversation in the Sauna. When one Slovak mentioned their India roots I was a bit surprised. After a couple days of reading, I came to learn that they had migrated out of South Asia (hence their facial features), most likely as a low (perhaps untouchable) caste in the Hindu hierarchy. Though they tended to adopt the religion of the region in which they moved (Islam in Turkey and Bosnia or Christianity in Slovakia or Romania for example) they did little else to assimilate.

I don't have time to provide a full history of the Roma or talk fully about my limited experience in the slum, but I have to say that the tension between the Roma and Slovaks was visible and the conditions in the slum were a bit shocking to see in Europe. After leaving the camp, I was followed by a friendly (a bit too friendly) Roma and, well... if you see me in person, feel free to ask about what happened. The only advice i can give is, "When alone in the woods with a gypsy, bring equal parts caution and sense of humor."

Part 4: The Tatras
Took a train across western Slovakia and biked to the Tatras mountains. Currently couchsurfing with a kind Slovak girl who took me skiing yesterday and is letting me rest today. My route has now drastically changed. Looks like I'll be in Ukraine soon. Think I'll rent a room there for a week or two (so far I have only paided for one night of accommodation since I started my trip Dec 13th) so I can have some alone time and catch up on the work I doing for the University. I will also finally have a chance to get some Russian language immersion. Afterwords, I will continue on to Georgia somehow...

Tatras: