I never thought I would be writing these words, but Trnava actually has a legitimately good sushi bar. It’s called Wasabi, and it is the real deal. I can’t say that it is in the same class as Austin’s Koreana (which, in a nightmare-become-reality, burned down last spring just weeks before I returned for a visit). On the other hand, I can honestly say their Broccoli soup is out of this world, and their maki and nagiri are tasty and fresh, though the variety is limited.
About the soup: it’s a heavenly creamy broccoli soup, with some chunks of fresh salmon, croutons, and topped with shavings of parmesan cheese. And it is unreal.
Oh, one more thing: I will start teaching a conversational English class there next Thursday evening. I plan to accept payment in sushi….
I have by no means visited every restaurant in Trnava; much less have I tried every dish offered; but I have made the rounds, so to speak, and I have the swelling girth to prove it. And after 16 months of grazing, I’m ready to declare which dish you should try when you make your way here.
You must make your way to the Hotel Barbakan, Stefanikova 11, and order the Gazdovské Kuracie Prsia (chicken breast in the peasant style). You will be served layers of grilled chicken breast alternating with layers of perfectly crisped potato pancakes, all covered with a gently tangy cream sauce. You won’t find this on the daily menu at lunch – you must request the full menu. It will set you back almost six euros, but you don’t need to order a side with it.
If you return to the Barbakan, note that they also serve the second-best dish in Trnava: Provensálske kuracie prsia (chicken breast in the Provencal style). With this you need a side, and I highly recommend the Sampinónová ryza (stewed mushroom rice). The chicken and the rice will both be laced with mushrooms, and the taste is out of this world.
Dobru chut!
Every Sunday evening we have a group of Slovaks and Americans who meet at our house to go through a video class from Third Millennium Ministries. The study is so intense that after 90 minutes of it we have to unwind a bit. The picture below shows Janka, Miska, and Paula playing Dance Dance Revolution. I’d have to say these three are the champs. But lest you think our cultural standards have fallen, behind them Ethan and Anya were locked in a vicious chess match. And it was a chilly night, so Petra made some hot spiced wine (varene vino) for us to sip on the terrace….
Perhaps as a light-hearted joke about my masculinity (or lack thereof), Paula bought me a box of cereal with an unusual name. It is produced by the Czech company emco, and I’m sure they intended the English name to communicate a robust message to athletic women who desire to keep their bodies in championship form. But, if you are a native English speaker, I’m sure you can’t help but chukle at the (probably unintended) double entendre.
And you’ll be happy to know that emco offers an entire line of Miss Fit products!
When she makes herself at home and takes her place in your family – as Petra has with us. Here she and Ethan are playing “Heart and Soul”:
As you could guess, Christmas traditions here are different from those we grew up with in the US. It’s almost time for dinner, and we plan the traditional Slovak Christmas Eve meal of cabbage soup followed by the main course of fried fish and potato salad. We opted out of buying a live carp and keeping it in our bath tub for a few days - our fried fish will be frozen fillets. Perhaps some year when we feel a bit more daring….
After dinner we open presents – a tradition that Kristian and Ethan are welcoming with open arms (they aren’t nearly so keen on the cabbage soup, fried fish, or even the potato salad). Tomorrow we will celebrate our old traditions with the team: turkey and ham and all the fixin’s at our house at 2:00. It’s nice to have two countries to draw traditions from.
And we have a special treat in the works, as you can see from the pictures: it started snowing this afternoon, with no signs of letting up. Paula, Ethan, Kim Watne, and I went for a later afternoon walk across town to enjoy it. (By the way, Kim and Carol Watne are good friends from our days in Las Cruces, and they joined MTW’s team in Romania the week before we came here. They rode a train up to spend Christmas with us.)
Merry Christmas, everyone!
It’s time to announce the winner of our contest to invent a history for the naming of the gramafon, the celebrated (and appreciated) portable potty from the neurological ward of the Fakultná nemocnica Trnava. We had several creative entries (and I suspect others had some excellent ideas but were too shy to write), but the judge (me) finally chose this as the winner:
This isn’t really the chair’s name, it is a euphemism for using the chair. Back in World War 1, a creative orderly invented this device for a badly wounded colonel to use. Unfortunately the colonel would shriek in pain when getting in and out of it, due to the extent of his injuries. Not wanting to appear weak before his injured enlisted men who were also in the ward, he would ask his orderly to fetch his gramophone and play something loud on it (the new pop hit “1812 Overture” was a particular favorite) when he needed to avail himself of the orderly’s device. “Štefan, bring the gramophone, please”, he would say, and his orderly would know that the colonel needed to go.
Alas, the colonel’s name is lost to history, but his euphemism remains to this day.
Incidentally, this is the real reason your roommate turned up the radio and then left – the tradition of the gramophone lives on.
Hats off and a big Golden Gramafon to Randy Scott!
When was the last time you heard “We Are the World” on the radio? I heard it twice in three days during my first weekend in the hospital, and still I have no idea what Willie Nelson meant when he sang
As God has shown us by turning stone to bread
So we all must lend a helping hand
When did God turn stone to bread? Perhaps someone could help me with this? But my point is not to critique Michael Jackson’s song-writing; I simply want to give the flavor of the music that was pounded into my skull from 7:30 each morning till after 10:00 each night. I heard “Forever Young,” the song played at the dance in Napoleon Dynamite (“Do you really want to live forever, forever and ever?”). I heard “Summer Wine” (“Oohh-oh summer wine”), “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm” by the Crash Test Dummies (I prefer Weird Al’s spoof of this song), and the at first intriguing but finally bizarre “One of Us”: (more…)
You should take notes or print a copy of this post just in case you ever come to Slovakia and have to be admitted to the hospital. I was fortunately forewarned, so I came prepared. There are some things that you need to bring with you, because they will not be supplied by the hospital under ordinary circumstances:
- Pyjamas (no gowns here – which is kinda nice)
- Towels
- Eating utensils
- Toilet paper (if you forget everything else, don’t forget this one!)
(more…)
Paula and the boys brought some balloons and tape to transform the otherwise-bland room into something a bit more, uh, festive. So here’s the birthday boy in bed with his banana and balloons:
