The 23rd of September, the first day of autumn, was an unforgettable day for many of our senior students, primarily those taking maturita exams from History and Civics. They were joined by several other senior students. These students, among whom I can proudly say I belong to, visited a place, where our fate is continuly decided on a daily basis: the National Council of the Slovak Republic.
Some, mainly the people who travel to Myjava by bus, train or even by a car, had to wake up a little bit earlier, because we were scheduled to leave Myjava at 7:30 am. The fact, that the bus actually left at 7:50, did not raise much concern, and everyone survived, even though some had to catch their breath. While on the road, we were surprised by the long journey through Modra caused by road work, a problem with parking in Bratislava and a very tight security check upon entrance to the building of the National Council.
However, we were pleasantly surprised by the program that had been prepared for us. After being greeted by our guide, we met with the chairman of the Trenčín municipality, Jaroslav Baška, who prepared a short speech and conducted a debate about the current migrant crisis with us. He explained the reasons, why Slovakia had not yet accepted refugee quotas and why our country´s government does not agree with the aforementioned quotas. When confronted with the question of what to do with so many refugees and migrants, none of us can probably provide a straight answer, some however were prone to engaging in a talk with Mr. Baška, which yielded interesting results.
Between the discussion with Mr. Baška and the visit of the council hall, our guide explained the meaning of the art of Albín Brunovský, whose magnificent art serves as decoration in one of the halls of the building. While inside the council hall, on a balcony overlooking the hall, we had the chance of overhearing part of the talks being led there. Some of us had the luck of taking a selfie while there. Also while there, the chairman of the National Council, Mr. Peter Pellegrini officialy greeted us as visitors from Gymnazium Myjava. At the end of our visit, our guide spoke to us about some of the significant people of our nation. For example, we learned why our nation´s state symbol is a part of our flag.
Afterwards, we travelled to Aupark, where many of us finaly fed ourselves. Some of us even found the time to do a little shopping. The last obstacle which lay in front of us was the trip home. While some laughed and talked during the trip back, for some it was a chance to sleep. This trip was unforgettable and I personaly believe, that many of our students would love to go on a similar trip in the future.
We would like to thank Mr. Baška, the Chairman of the Trenčín municipality for giving us this incredible opportunity. It was truly an honor to actually see what is going on inside the National Council of Slovakia.
Original by Ľuboš Rybníkar, V.B, translated by Jakub Barszcz V.B
Year 2, Issue 1