Ryanair - discount air carrier

Several weeks ago Anya and I flew to Barcelona, Spain. Our mission was to visit a friend from Ramallah who brought the video and audio equipment that was used in the Romeo & Juliet student film production. Our friend was generous to bring the equipment out of Tel Aviv, as it can be a difficult process of questioning by the security at the airport. Thankfully the equipment was not inspected and it arrived in Spain with our friend as we had hoped.

Anya and I flew on Ryanair, one of Europe's discount air carriers. Our flight left Bratislava, so we were able to take the public transport to the airport! We also flew into a smaller airport north of Barcelona, so we needed to pay transport to get to the Barcelona bus station. Our Ryanair tickets totaled €78 (about $110). Here are a few differences that I noticed flying with the discount carrier:

• no air sick bag
• no seat pocket
• seats didn't recline
• advertising banners for their airline on overhead bins
• safety instructions laminated onto the seat in front of you - eye level (I didn't enjoy looking at it the entire flight)
• no reserved seating
• flight magazines passed out and collected at the end (I kept mine to sell on ebay)
• no complimentary beverages/snacks
• pre-recorded advertising messages for Ryanair during flight
• flight attendants sold scratch off tickets for prizes - proceeds went to charity

We did have a pilot, co-pilot and an adequate flight crew. That must be regulated. Bright yellow and royal blue was the color scheme. It was a bit loud for my taste, but fun at the same time. The plane was nice and clean and seemed new. Luggage is an additional fee (we paid for one checked bag) and the weight limit is 15kg. Carry-on bags are carefully checked for size. Overall, a great experience! I would fly with them again provided I did not have much luggage.

What the Slovaks do well....

Other parts of the world could learn a few things from the Slovak culture....... some of the my observations include:
Mass-transit: run frequently, on-time, all over the city. You can get almost anywhere you need by bus, trolley-bus or tram line. The fare system is easy - buy one ticket for the length of your trip, validate it on the bus, trolley bus or tram. It's good for your ride on all three modes of transport! The best part is that you can figure out the times and your transfers by looking on their website. After you know a few of the destination stops around the city, you can request a time and a route will pop up for you. Print it out and you're on your way. The website is http://www.imhd.sk/ and for English you press the British flag at the top. (Just in case anyone wants to pretend to be me).

Recycling: in my "how to look like a local" file, I noticed most folks had a reusable grocery bag that they were carrying around. I know most homes in the US have a place that is overflowing with plastic bags from every store and every purchase made in the last year. Many stores here charge you for bags, so if you bring your own, you can save some cash. Plus, the heavier plastic bags are more comfortable to carry if you have to walk further than just your car. Now I carry my own reusable bag so not only do I look like a local, I'm being green........

I will hold on posting my opinions of bothersome Slovak cultural norms. My cultural bias is unavoidable and it doesn't seem fair to report on societal ills (exceptions may occur). Someday I'll enjoy having a cup of coffee with those who are interested and I can report on some of the cultural oddities through my eyes.

The Posta

I've now had lots of experience with "The Posta", the Slovakian mail service. The Posta is much more than the mail service, however. You can pay bills here, using a voucher that contains the account number of the receiving party - we pay Justin's choir bill this way. Every other month he gets a slip with the amount and the Boys' Choir account info. I have successfully paid his bill twice now - you give them your cash and get a paid receipt.

Some of our friends and family have sent care packages and all have come through well EXCEPT the kids Christmas presents from Grandma & Grandpa........ Wouldn't you know it? Their box even got returned to sender from Bratislava. So, after the gifts made three trips across the ocean, our kids got to have Christmas in February!

I just had to share this photo of Justin.........a picture is worth a thousand words, right?

Weekend in Prague

A school holiday in February for the whole of Slovakia represents "Report Day". Children bring home their reports from school and there is a day off on Friday.

For us, we decided to take the train to Prague, Czech Republic. From Bratislava this is about a 4-hour train ride. The trains are comfortable, reliable and inexpensive. We took the express train, which stops at only a few cities along the way.

Finding our bearings once we arrive in a new city is the biggest challenge. We generally have reserved a hotel on-line before we venture and then figure the rest out upon arrival! I have noticed that our experience with mass-transit in Bratislava has helped tremendously in other cities here. We found Prague to be fascinating. With extensive walking areas and beautiful old, old buildings and towers, our time passed quickly. There are museums of all kinds, souvenir shops galore and marionette shows and blacklight shows to take in. There is much more for us to do in Prague, so we will need another trip in the future. We found ourselves, however, being drawn to TGI Fridays for a meal rather than any traditional Czech cuisine.

I've randomly chosen photos for a slide show, but perhaps you can gain a feel for this Central European city through them. This has been described by many I asked as their favorite city in Europe.

Cub Scouts

Justin has joined the Transatlantic Cub Scout Wolf Pack #200 here in Bratislava. He

recently got to participate in the Pinewood Derby, his first! His race car was not in the top, so we had some disappointment to work through. All the boys had a great time cheering on their cars and it was fun to watch them. The pack and den are small, compared to many, but it is a great group of people to gather with while our boys are learning to be Scouts.

In Fair Palestine.......

January 19 was the premier of a student film in Ramallah. This film is especially close to the heart of Doug. The film was written, produced and acted in by students in Doug's classes at the Ramallah Friends School. In the Fall of 2005 Doug decided to scrap the textbook studies that the students were falling asleep to in his classes and use his own passion for Shakespeare to attempt to engage the young people. He chose a book - No Fear Shakespeare - Romeo & Juliet and, after the obligatory assignments and grades, there was a remnant of students who were inspired and empassioned to make a film. The theme would be Romeo & Juliet in the setting of Palestine!

The R&J Team, as they were named, began to write a script and meet weekly with Doug. As most of you know, our time in Ramallah ended prematurely after we began to have trouble renewing our visa to stay. But the students continued on, and in June 2007, Doug was able to return to Ramallah to catch the filming in person. The home video Doug brought home of them filming took my breath away!

More months passed as the R&J Team edited their film and began to get the final production ready. January 19 was a day that Doug should have been in Ramallah. I wish we could have all been there for the premier at the Cultural Palace of the student production of: In Fair Palestine A Story of Romeo & Juliet. Tickets were sold for the premier and the Cultural Palace was packed with over 1,000 in attendance. Here are a few comments that were passed on to Doug via email.

Dear Doug,
I thought I would write to you about the wonderful premiere
of Romeo and Juliet tonight. More than one thousand people packed the
Cultural Palace, all eager to see what a bunch of teens had produced. You got
sustained rounds of applause upon the mention of your name as the catalyst
of the film and its promoter throughout. It was an awsome (to use Faris's term)
evening.

You were missed and appreciated tonight.
Thank you.

Hey! Man you should have been there. More than a 1000 people were there. People were sitting on the stairs and others were standing.Thhey all loved it. It was unbelievable. Cheers

Hi Doug,
Thank you for developing the idea for the movie, it was amazing. The auditorium was packed and the students did a wonderful job.
Wish you and your family could of been her. Rave reviews in the newspapers and a local radio station.

Missing you and family,

Rave reviews in two local newspapers and one in Jordan, in addition to a five-minute report on al-Arabiyya satellite TV channel during the prime-time news broadcast, viewed by millions in the Arab world!!

Here's a link to the Youtube trailer for In Fair Palestine.....A Story of Romeo & Juliet. Take a look at what some 10th-12th Palestinian teenagers accomplished. http://www.youtube.com/v/zHNndYQ79nQ&rel=1

Weather related news

I found it funny when I returned to Michigan after our first overseas adventure how much people talked about the weather. At least the weather changed and there was variety. I guess that made it a topic of conversation, or at least worthy of commenting on.


Here in Bratislava, the winter is dismal, at best. Overcast, gray skies blend in with the streets, leafless trees, gray communist bloc apartment buildings and brownish grass. Living on the 7th floor gives us a view of the horizon, so some mornings I am fortunate enough to see a sunrise! It may quickly be swallowed up by the clouds, but it is a welcome sight. Last week we watched a most stunning sunrise!