Michelle Eichenberg

The night was somehow disrupted by me not being able to fall asleep, then waking up at 6 am again after a mere 4 hrs sleep. Obviously, I couldn't fall asleep again. So, I just tried to organize the day by finding some stops on the route to Zilina.
When my host knocked on the door at 9 am, I was nearly ready. She took a picture of my passport and wanted 8 € for Aluna. However, I only had Euros with me and she would have liked Czech money... I also only had a 20 € bill. She asked for 5 € and fortunately, I don't know where this money came from, I found exactly 5 € in coins in my wallet. Thank God.
She was happy with that and told me to leave the keys after checking out. Then I went for a walk, but already put my big luggage in the car. That must have looked like I had already checked out to her, as she was driving up to me, stopping me in my walk to ask for the key. I explained that I would go back after my walk to get the rest of my stuff and she was happy once again. It didn't really help that she could barely understand German (English wasn't an option, and I'm very sorry, but Czech isn't in my language repertoire either). Anyway, she was extremely friendly, so no worries whatsoever.
After a little walk around the village, I made my way to the first stop I picked out on Maps. It was a viewing tower. However, when I arrived there the tower looked super small and the surroundings were not very appealing. I would have to pay only 80 cents to go up, but I thought "Nah, this won't satisfy me anyway, rather save the money". I don't care about spending money during my travels, but I do care about ROI and I was convinced that wouldn't give me what I wanted.
Instead, I decided to get myself some food at Lidl. And dear lord, I wasn't let down. I found Pistachio donuts and cronuts that cost under 1 € each... In Germany you'd have to pay at least 2,50 € for each of them. I treated myself and decided to eat one of these delicious looking donuts at my next stop: Lávka, a beautifully arranged lake with wooden bridges floating over the water.
And I wasn't disappointed by either the donut or the lake. It was nice and peaceful, and the donut was absolutely mouth watering. Very good combo - would recommend.
After a walk around the lake, we drove on to the next stop: Zatopené Bridge.
It was basically a little bridge in the woods, but the walk around the forest was kinda nice. Luni and I found a way to the river at the bottom of the bridge and as it was like 30°C outside, the cool water was a welcomed refreshment.
The lack of sleep and the hot weather asked for a tribute now, and I was soo freaking sleepy. I decided for one more stop: The Brno Dam.
There, I ate my rolls-hummus-cheese-cucumber-combo and then walked a bit along the Dam and lake, however it somehow wasn't really made for pedestrians, and the tiredness in my bones didn't help either. So I cut the stop short and went back to the car to start the last 2,5 hrs to Zilina. I had planned to visit St.Pauls in Brno, but honestly, I couldn't care less about a cathedral in a city now. That was too much hassle. I also wanted to stop in Telcin on the way, but... Well.
The last hours of my drive today were going alright, and I arrived in Zilina on time.
But it wasn't a normal apartment I'd stay in during my time in Zilina. I would do my very first SERVAS Stay.
SERVAS International is a network in over 100 countries that I'm a part of for a year now. The mission: With friendliness and respect, we can connect with others and contribute to the tolerance of different cultures and backgrounds across the world. Hosts will offer you their home in which you can stay for free. And you can exchange your worldviews and experiences with each other.
I've never just knocked on some stranger's door to sleep at their house for free and was rather excited. I mean, obviously we had chatted before to see whether it would work for both of us if I'd stay with them. But still.
I rang the bell and was greeted by Ludo and Alexandria - the parents. They showed me the room I'd share with their younger daughter (she was coming later that night) and offered me some tea. We sat down, chatted about their experiences with SERVAS, what we do, some politics, etc. After a while, their youngest son Martin arrived after a 10,5 hrs shift at the climbing centre where he works. He was learning German, so my task was to only speak German to him. He was really good actually! He told me about his day and the competitions they had today at the climbing centre. I've learned that it's important to tip the "zone" and "end" during Boulder competitions, and that the routes always had to be built. Fascinating, I don't have a clue of climbing.
It was getting late, so I excused myself and went to the much needed shower, and then to bed. It felt not as weird as I thought it would, to sleep in someone else's room, under someone else's roof. It's crazy how fast you get to know someone and then be somewhat comfortable around them. The SERVAS mission does really work, I suppose.Read more