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Travelogue to Transcarpathia 11-17 May 2007On Friday 11 May 2007 we set out toward Ukraine clattering along the roadway. There were 12 of us, all members or friends of the Transcarpathia Benefit Society. We were from the Vogtland and Ore Mountain regions of Germany, of all different ages, and with various connections to the region in western Ukraine, looking forward to three very interesting days. Because it happened to be a holiday, there was no processing of border crossings from Slovakia to Ukraine at the most important frontier post. After a brief farewell gesture by the Slovak-European border guard, our Ukrainian bus had to make a short detour in the mountains. Naturally many other travelers had the same idea. A guided tour of the castle in Munkács/Mukachevo under bright sunshine was the first stopping point on the trip that Saturday. We continued with the mini-van onward to Balazsér, where that evening we moved into our lodging for those days in the Bethel Conference Center of the Reformed Church of Transcarpathia.
A major event of our trip was on Sunday morning at the worship service in the Vári Reformed Church. A strict seating order is very prevalent in the churches there, which is based on age, gender and social status. Immediately afterward the music school of Vári invited us to a brief and very nice concert. They had received various musical instruments as well as notes with the support of the Benefit Society. The parish community cooked us a tasty and sumptuous midday meal. Our next things to visit were the local soup kitchen, the parish hall and the future playground. In the church, where the temperature was cool, we received information about Vári and its history from the chairman of the Benefit Society, Christian Ehrler. Using rickety ladders we went up into the steeple and enjoyed the great view. A tour of the local school included a few surprises for us and piqued our curiosity. In the evening we met with local volunteers who partner with us, and with those who had received our donations for a common evening meal. We got to know each other and were treated to a brief concert by the band of the youth organisation KRISZ of the Reformed Church.
Using two mini-vans, we went to the Carpathian Mountains on Monday, a wonderful countryside. A palace used since the Soviet era as a sanatorium made it clear to us how poorly the people live. There is not the slightest comparison of this place of treatment with similar establishments in Germany. After a short stop at a mountain meadow, we hiked to the Sipot waterfall to refresh ourselves on that hot day. On the way back to our lodging we first stopped at one of the numerous mineral springs that exist in the Carpathians, and later we went to a rather long rope-bridge over a mountain river. We went across it and back—most of our group had to summon the courage needed to dare the shaky crossing over the rushing water below. After that we included a short visit in the basket-making village of Iza. We dined that evening outdoors as guests of the deaconate, like at a garden party.
After visiting the bishop’s office of the Reformed Church early on Tuesday we strolled over to the large market in Beregszász/Berehovo. You can really buy everything here, provided you have the funds available. We visited the Reformed Church of the city and enjoyed the comfortable coolness of its thick walls. Then we went to the orphanage in the village of Bene. The children at this facility every year get Christmas care packages from the parcel drive by the Benefit Society. We had brought along some sweets for the boys and girls. They went wild with delight. The headmistress and the teachers at the place were almost even more excited. That afternoon we visited a dentist’s office to get a glimpse at the state of their medical treatment. We were all happy none of us needed to be treated there. They lack tools, materials, hygienic procedures and machinery. Two women traveling with us were especially affected by this visit—one is a dentist herself, and the other a dentist’s assistant. We then had a look at KRISZ-PONT, the newly opened coffee shop for young people in Beregszász/Berehovo, and were invited to enjoy a cup of coffee.
On Wednesday it was already time to say good-bye. Sad to leave and so full of impressions and experiences, we all embarked on the trip home after breakfast. We were amazed and inspired by the simple and satisfying way of life we had come to know, and by the indescribably good hospitality so rarely found in Germany.
But I think that this method of living life becomes more and more attractive when a person gets acquainted with life in Transcarpathia and in Southeast Europe in general. We would all like to give our sincere thanks to the Bishop of the Reformed Church, Pastor Sándor Zán Fábián and his assistants, who made possible for us these wonderful days and experiences. Christine Blechschmidt of Falkenstein, Germany |
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