(in Czechia that is) I came here with my interpreter, Marta, to conduct research interviews with what turned out to be a remarkable organization called Don Bosco. They assist and work with young people who grew up in institutions and have little chance of making it on their own without assistance. Some are developmentally delayed. Others have problems likely a result from being raised in such an artificial environment. Others suffer from fetal alcohol syndrome. Others still simply do not know how to have a normal, healthy, relationship or how to love or be loved. And the staff of Don Bosco take them all in, up until age 35 if you can believe it. We had the honor of talking with not only the social workers and director but also the young people they serve.
But may I backtrack and say a few words about Marta? She is more than an interpreter, of course. Marta is incredibly talented. She is able to translate the message and the emotion. And nearly simultaneous to the spoken word. She also knows about the substitute care system and I rely on her to note questions I overlooked. She’s a second set of eyes and ears.
She also has a law degree. And she is a realtor. She has a keen eye for architecture, so visiting a new city with Marta means seeing things you would never normally notice. The difference in the bricks between the building and its fence. The small ornamentation added to a staircase. The shape of the roof, of the column, of the walls. Or Noah being eaten by a whale (or giant goldfish as I see it – which would explain why he doesn’t look all that worried).
It’s a treat to visit a new place with Marta. Plus she make me laugh – and she laughs at me when I try to speak in Czech. Did I mention that she is also my Czech language teacher?
Pardubice is beautiful. We didn’t find the historic district the first night and we were terribly disappointed with the city. But the second day we found the old town square and the castle.
We had the castle to ourselves – an experience I’ve had repeatedly in this country. So often I’m alone in a museum. The staff/owner will turn on the lights for me or make a phone call to the docents who will eventually come and give me a tour or at least let me in. Over and over I’ve had this experience. In Pardubice. In Ostrava. In Brno. Even in Praha (as long as we’re not talking about the Prague Castle).
So we got a private tour of the castle. Its original murals still there at least in part. It seems many castles in this country have peacocks. I guess the royalty liked them around. They roam freely, but what awkward creatures they are. Hard to imagine evolution permitted such difficult bodies all for the sake of attraction. Here there was a white (albino?) peahen. We also saw several peahens huddled near a window. Made me wonder if someone feeds them from there?
We did our castle tour, roamed the ancient streets, ate both good and bad food, and returned home on our 2-hour train ride.
Adventures in the Czech Republic 
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