{"id":8709,"date":"2021-05-02T09:51:36","date_gmt":"2021-05-02T13:51:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=8709"},"modified":"2021-05-02T10:04:13","modified_gmt":"2021-05-02T14:04:13","slug":"episode-330-tension-at-a-slovak-dinner-party-who-will-pay-the-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=8709","title":{"rendered":"EPISODE 330 TENSION AT A SLOVAK DINNER PARTY…WHO WILL PAY THE BILL?"},"content":{"rendered":"
EPISODE 330    TENSION AT A SLOVAK DINNER PART<\/p>\n

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MAY 1, 2021<\/div>\n

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THE SLOVAK DINNER PARTY<\/div>\n

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\u201cDad, we have arranged a special dinner party tonight\u2026for you\u2026\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cFor Marjorie and me?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cWell maybe a few others\u2026like all my fellow American School visiting teachers.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cProbably 20\u2026\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cWhere is the party?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cSort of a secret, really. even I do not know where we are going… we will all take taxis to a village not far from Bratislava\u2026a real<\/div>\n
Slovak village\u2026 with music and dancing and food and wine\u2026the whole ten yards\u2026All arranged by the gym teacher at the school.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cBig restaurant?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cNo.  it will be held in a  wine cellar.  A place with no sign\u2026a strange place, Dad\u2026as you will see.<\/div>\n

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(A year or so later the gym teacher came to visit us in Canada.  He and his wife loved swimming<\/div>\n
in our farm pond in spite of the leaches.)<\/div>\n
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Slovakian signage was limited.  NO great neon signs.  These signs<\/div>\n
were found on top of the High Tatra Mountains .. for hikers.  We would<\/div>\n
go there for a couple of days.  But the big day \u2026today \u2026 was<\/div>\n
the wine party \u2026in a village in the dark.<\/div>\n

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So we all piled in several taxis  and travelled  into the darkness of a Slovak night.  Not many street lights<\/div>\n
and soon there were none.  We passed through several villages\u2026all shuttered up and dark.  No one on<\/div>\n
the streets … the village houses tended to have no front yards.  Direct street access.  Set back<\/div>\n
somewhat though\u2026cobbled.  A few pin pricks of light escaped some houses but most were dark as<\/div>\n
a dungeon.<\/div>\n

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When we reached our party centre, we were really non plussed.  No signage.  Just darkness and<\/div>\n
ancient buildings.   Kevin led the way with  a Slovak host.  Really secretive.  As if we would be<\/div>\n
arrested for some communist reason.  Like lack of respect.   Or flaunting wealth.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Kev and our guide from the school hammered on a big round topped door\u2026big enough for a cart<\/div>\n
to enter.  We walked through a couple of stone arches and then descended into<\/div>\n
a big room with a curved stone ceiling.  And lots of barrels.<\/div>\n

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Perhaps you have not noticed that there are no signs\u2026not a sign.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThis is a winery Dad.  Slovak wines are special.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cWhy so secretive?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t really know.  Seems to have something to do  with the socialist government.  Capitalist businesses were suspect of Western<\/div>\n
way of life.  So better to not flaunt the success of this winery.  But really, Dad, I do not know<\/div>\n
why having a dinner party seems to be kept  a secret.\u201d<\/div>\n

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There were  a whole bunch of people serving us.  We had one long table piled with food\u2026Slovak specialities that I have since<\/div>\n
forgotten.  And wine.  Loads of wine in dark green bottles\u2026corks  removed.   No labels on the bottles<\/div>\n
made me  feel this was out of the ordinary.   Wine was soon splashed around.    And a musical group arrived in folk costume<\/div>\n
to entertain us with dance and Slovak music.  It was a grand time.  The kids like Kevin seemed to need a<\/div>\n
chance like this to relax. Lots of noise and lots of laughter.  Great hurrahs  for the music makers.  <\/div>\n

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The average age of the revellers  was 21 or 22\u2026or even younger.  Marjorie and  i were the old folk and were treated<\/div>\n
 nicely by both Kevin\u2019s fellow teachers and to Slovak hosts.  It was a great party.<\/div>\n

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Then it ended.  Abruptly.  The music stopped.  The hosts gathered in a little coterie with suspicious glances<\/div>\n
at our group.  Something was wrong.  Really wrong.<\/div>\n

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\u201cWhat is happening, Kevin?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know\u2026let me ask our guide.  He set the whole thing up.\u201d<\/div>\n
(whispered  conversation then Kevin reported)<\/div>\n
\u201cThey are wondering how a bunch of kids like us are able to pay for the dinner and the music.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cThey know teachers do not get much money.\u201d (wage for these young teachers was $125 per month)<\/div>\n

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I thought about the situation.  Marjorie and I seemed  to have special status.  Maybe we could get the <\/div>\n
situation under control.  I took a quick look in my wallet.  Perhaps  $300 or $400 in U.S. currency.<\/div>\n
This party for 20 people would certainly cost that much.  I got worried but decided to be the big spender\u2026the big shot.<\/div>\n

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\u201cTell them that we will pay the whole bill, Kevin.\u201d<\/div>\n

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(Aside to Kevin: \u201cDo  you have any cash ?\u201d   \u201cA little\u201d  \u201cBack me up then just in  case\u2026\u201d)<\/div>\n

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What a change.  The music started with special  soloist in Slovak language.  Broad smiles<\/div>\n
all around.  Lots of looks our way \u2026  smiling.   These Slovak villagers were not wealthy but they<\/div>\n
had put on a grand dinner party for the young American teachers all of whom were working for little<\/div>\n
pay and living wherever cheap housing could be found.  Neither the kids nor the hosts were<\/div>\n
in it for the money.  <\/div>\n

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 (Amusing thing happened with one  teacher who was staying with a Slovak<\/div>\n
family.  She got fatter and fatter because the family ate a lot of lard. Lots  of lard slathered on toast<\/div>\n
for breakfast.  She did not object.  She was a guest.)<\/div>\n

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But my thoughts were centred on the bill.  Could I pay the bill?<\/div>\n

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Yet!  Maybe!  I had no idea of the total cost of this extravaganza and only hoped I had enough<\/div>\n
cash to cover a dinner for 20 young people with wine and music.  What if I did not have<\/div>\n
the cash?   <\/div>\n

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Surprise!  When the evening was over and it was time to settle up I got a bill for somewhere<\/div>\n
around $120 or $130!  That was all.  Included money for the musicians. Amounted to $6 or $7 each.<\/div>\n
And to top it off we were all given a corked bottle of wine.  No label wine.  No name on the winery\u2026so<\/div>\n
I could never thank the hosts properly.<\/div>\n

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Then in the darkness of a March night somewhere in rural Slovakia our taxis arrived and<\/div>\n
we drove back to Bratislava.  Village after village dark.  I don\u2019t remember street lights<\/div>\n
until we arrived in the city.<\/div>\n

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An unforgettable evening.  Wonderful.<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
alan skeoch<\/div>\n
May 1, 2021<\/div>\n
(remembering a March evening in 1993 in <\/div>\n
the new republic of Slovaks)<\/div>\n

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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EPISODE 330    TENSION AT A SLOVAK DINNER PART MAY 1, 2021 THE SLOVAK DINNER PARTY \u201cDad, we have arranged a special dinner party tonight\u2026for you\u2026\u201d \u201cFor Marjorie and me?\u201d \u201cWell maybe a few others\u2026like all my fellow American School visiting teachers.\u201d \u201cHow many?\u201d \u201cProbably 20\u2026\u201d \u201cWhere is the party?\u201d \u201cSort of a secret, really. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8709"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8709\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}