Podcasts about Slovakia

Natalia Jansen is a theatre-inspired transformation coach who specializes in helping clients take control and star in their lives … in this episode she shares how you can do that! What You'll Hear In This Episode: -Natalia's journey from Slovakia to America as an exchange student, where she pursued higher education despite financial challenges.   -How her story illustrates the power of perseverance, vision, and taking advantage of opportunities that arise along the way.   -Natalia's work as a coach who uses theatre and improv to help people recognize and step into their "starring roles" in life, teaching them to embody different identities and create new stories for themselves.   -Why practicing her approach becomes more natural and real over time and allows you to stay aligned with your evolving self and experience life as an adventure.   -Her advice for stepping into one's life's stage by making conscious choices and pausing and shifting perspective in moments of tension.

Beyond Violence: Jewish Survivors in Poland and Slovakia, 1944–48 (Cambridge UP, 2014) tells a story of Polish and Slovak Holocaust survivors returning to homes that no longer existed in the aftermath of the Second World War. It focuses on their daily efforts to rebuild their lives in the radically changed political and social landscape of post-war Eastern Europe. Such an analysis shifts the perspective from post-war violence and emigration to post-war reconstruction. Using a comparative approach, Anna Cichopek-Gajraj discusses survivors' journeys home, their struggles to retain citizenship and repossess property, their coping with antisemitism, and their efforts to return to 'normality'. She emphasizes the everyday communal and personal experiences of survivors in the context of their relationships with non-Jews. In essence, by focusing on the daily efforts of Polish and Slovak Jews to rebuild their lives, the author investigates the limits of belonging in Eastern Europe after the Holocaust. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Beyond Violence: Jewish Survivors in Poland and Slovakia, 1944–48 (Cambridge UP, 2014) tells a story of Polish and Slovak Holocaust survivors returning to homes that no longer existed in the aftermath of the Second World War. It focuses on their daily efforts to rebuild their lives in the radically changed political and social landscape of post-war Eastern Europe. Such an analysis shifts the perspective from post-war violence and emigration to post-war reconstruction. Using a comparative approach, Anna Cichopek-Gajraj discusses survivors' journeys home, their struggles to retain citizenship and repossess property, their coping with antisemitism, and their efforts to return to 'normality'. She emphasizes the everyday communal and personal experiences of survivors in the context of their relationships with non-Jews. In essence, by focusing on the daily efforts of Polish and Slovak Jews to rebuild their lives, the author investigates the limits of belonging in Eastern Europe after the Holocaust. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/jewish-studies

We take a look back at the week's headlines and some of our best stories from the past week.

Beyond Violence: Jewish Survivors in Poland and Slovakia, 1944–48 (Cambridge UP, 2014) tells a story of Polish and Slovak Holocaust survivors returning to homes that no longer existed in the aftermath of the Second World War. It focuses on their daily efforts to rebuild their lives in the radically changed political and social landscape of post-war Eastern Europe. Such an analysis shifts the perspective from post-war violence and emigration to post-war reconstruction. Using a comparative approach, Anna Cichopek-Gajraj discusses survivors' journeys home, their struggles to retain citizenship and repossess property, their coping with antisemitism, and their efforts to return to 'normality'. She emphasizes the everyday communal and personal experiences of survivors in the context of their relationships with non-Jews. In essence, by focusing on the daily efforts of Polish and Slovak Jews to rebuild their lives, the author investigates the limits of belonging in Eastern Europe after the Holocaust. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/genocide-studies

In this exclusive interview in English, the best Slovak female coach, Natália Hejková, talks about her career in Slovakia, Czechia, Hungary, Russia and Spain.

And we're back, and QPR are back. Two games in 4 days for your host Andy, Ant and Dun to dissect, but wait..what's this? Sanch is back from along term injury to join the regulars. He even turns up for kick -off! - The Stephan reign begins at home. Well...we didn't lose- Law of diminishing returns as Preston finish the game stronger, or did QPR run out of steam- We can't have nice things. Poku hamstrung by hamstring on debut and is Larkeche's season over before it even began?- New signings make a great first impression- Our (Sippy) Cup runneth over as the kids are allowed to stay up late in Plymouth. - Ba Humbug. Papa Meisse transfer from Schalke gets Meissy and falls through- Richard Kone wanders over from Wycombe- Are our sights set on securing Saito?- Cuomo have a go as Andrew messes with the Zohran- Who won the Goss/Kakay derby in Slovakia?- Watford's 90's Kit Korner - Flash or Trash?- Predicting the Watford game- Jacob's 5 Stanzas- Wine, Art, Live Music and Pigs - All lovely stuff Rate, review, comment - all feedback welcome

Today you are going to hear another round of our competition series Mysterious Slovakia – this time dedicated to the life and legacy of Rabbi Chatam Sofer. Then you will find out what is new on the Slovak culture scene and finally there is another episode of Who Was That – this time dedicated to Ján Palárik.

Traveling with a sweet tooth? Or maybe you're craving the kind of comfort food that lingers in your memory long after your trip ends?In this episode of Traveling with AAA, host Angie Orth is back with travel and food journalist Gerald Tan, who shares his top five incredible eats in Europe's best-kept secret cities.From protected pastries in Slovakia to cheesy Alpine comfort food in Liechtenstein, Gerald reveals the hidden culinary delights he has uncovered through years of off-the-beaten-path travel. You'll discover which city invented the Kit Kat, where to find Michelin-worthy seafood on the Italian Riviera, and the one simple shift in how you ask locals for food recommendations that can unlock your best meal yet.What You'll Learn:01:19 The most protected pastry in Bratislava 03:11 A paradise for chocolate lovers 05:14 Liechtenstein's take on mac and cheese with a twist06:44 What you need to know before ordering Slovakia's most famous soup09:38 Where to eat near Bordighera if you want Michelin-starred cuisineConnect with Gerald Tan:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/boulangerry/Website: https://boulangerry.com/Which of these local delicacies are you MOST excited to try? Tell us in the comments! Connect with AAA:Book travel: https://aaa-text.co/travelingwithaaa LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aaa-auto-club-enterprisesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/AAAAutoClubEnterprisesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/AAAAutoClubEnterprises

On hour one of the Big Show Patrick Dumas and Matt Rose are down at Canyon Meadows Golf Course getting ready to open up the Rogers Charity Classic. Today is Pro-Am round one and the fellas break it down, before Dumas gets a welcome back to the show after his vacation to Guatemala City. (22:14) The Morning Report with Patrick Dumas has all the latest in sports. Including, the Blue Jays game against the Cubs, Week 11 in the CFL with the Stamps on bye, continuing NFL camps, the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup in Czechia and Slovakia, and more RCC, before wrapping it up with some local sports. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

This week, we bring you the sounds and stories from the magical meadow of Hontianske Nemce, where every August, people of all generations gather for one of Slovakia's most charming summer festivals — Atmosféra 2025. Here, music, community, and nature come together in a unique celebration of life, creativity, and connection. In this special broadcast, we explore this year's theme, “Zažnime od seba” (“Let's ignite from within”), through voices from across the festival: Grétka Pavlovová, the heart and mind behind Atmosféra, musicians Lasky (Para), Jureš (Fallgrapp), and Martin Geišberg, Tomáš Bartoněk from Rádio Junior and the world of kids' programming, Žaneta Morovská, bringing light, love, and connection to the meadow, and Zdenko and Ema, long-time volunteers sharing what makes Atmosféra feel like home. The new episode of Slovak Sound Check dives into essential vocabulary for getting around and asking for directions in Slovak.

This Sunday it is time for the 7th part of the Window to the World series, and some Slovak artists coming from the Nitra region in western Slovakia.

We take a look back at the week's headlines and some of our best stories from the past week.

We take a look back at the week's headlines and some of our best stories from the past week.

In July 2023, internationally praised Tate Modern display of Maria Bartuszova artworks moved to The Museum der Moderne Salzburg. On this occasion, RSI gets back to the interviews with gallerist Alison Jaques and the curator of the show in Tate Modern, Juliet Bingham. Zuzana is the name that can be found in Slovak calendars on 11 August. On this occasion, we once again present to you some of the mostly recognised women named Zuzana.

In this king-sized episode of Spectacular Slovakia, host Oscar Brophy is joined by historian Juraj Poláček to delve into the rich history of Slovakia's medieval castles – tracing their development from the Bronze Age to the modern era. Poláček explains how early wooden fortifications evolved into stone strongholds following the 13th-century Mongol invasion, with Slovakia's strategic position demanding increasingly robust defences. Highlights include Trenčín Castle, with its 16th-century bastion, and the ruins of Spiš Castle – a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This episode is a must-listen for history enthusiasts and travellers keen to discover these enduring symbols of the nation's past.

Sommerferien har inntatt F1-sirkuset, men Atle og Stein oppsummerer Ungarn Grand Prix, mens Henning har lagt veien til Slovakia - et land med en norsk motorsportlink. Episoden kan inneholde målrettet reklame, basert på din IP-adresse, enhet og posisjon. Se smartpod.no/personvern for informasjon og dine valg om deling av data.

TALK TO ME, TEXT ITEver been criticized for checking on your loved ones during an emergency? That's exactly what happened to Minnesota meteorologist Nick Jansen, who faced public backlash for texting his wife about their six-month-old baby's safety during severe weather coverage. The absurdity of prioritizing "professionalism" over family safety sparks a compelling conversation about our societal values and expectations.The bizarre news continues with an encounter in Slovakia that defies explanation – a naked man wearing only a balaclava and carrying an explicit prop startled tourists near a historic castle. Rather than fleeing, the tourists engaged with him and even requested photographs, raising questions about how social media culture might be changing our responses to potentially threatening situations.We also explore the fascinating world of art valuation through the story of a New York artist making thousands by simply writing messages on old subway maps. Is this genuine artistic expression or a commentary on how easily we assign value to simplicity? The discussion challenges conventional definitions of art and creativity in today's market.The episode wraps up with a critique of Starbucks' decision to close many grab-and-go locations in favor of traditional cafés to restore "human connection." But is this what customers actually want? A practical suggestion emerges: dedicated drive-thru lanes for mobile orders would better serve efficiency-minded customers while maintaining the personal touch for those who seek it.Before signing off, we pose a thought-provoking question: What folklore or legend would you want circulated about you after you're gone? It's a fascinating prompt that invites listeners to consider their legacy and how they wish to be remembered in stories long after they've departed. Share your answers and join the conversation!Buzzsprout - Let's get your podcast launched!Start for FREE Thanks for listening! Liberty Line each week on Sunday, look for topics on my X file @americanistblog and submit your 1-3 audio opinions to anamericanistblog@gmail.com and you'll be featured on the podcast. Buzzsprout - Let's get your podcast launched!Start for FREESupport the showTip Jar for coffee $ - Thanks Music by Alehandro Vodnik from Pixabay Blog - AnAmericanist.comX - @americanistblog

The 31st annual IFF Art Film Košice took place from June 20 to 27, showcasing 130 films from around the world. As we mentioned in the first part of our report, the festival draws film lovers from far and wide—not only for its international lineup, but also for its vibrant cultural atmosphere. But what truly sets Art Film apart isn't just the diversity of its screenings. It's the platform it offers: a rare opportunity for Slovak artists of all disciplines to present their work alongside some of the world's most acclaimed filmmakers. It's a one-of-a-kind event—unmatched anywhere else in Slovakia. In this episode, we'll be speaking with some of these Slovak creators. From red carpet premieres and autograph sessions to quiet, thoughtful conversations in the park, we'll show you how Art Film Košice is much more than just movies.

Radio International - The Ultimate Eurovision Experience is broadcast from Malta's Radio 105FM on Tuesday evenings from 2100 - 0059 hours CET. The show is broadcast live on Wednesday evenings from 1900 - 2300 hours CET on the Eurovision Radio International Mixcloud Channel as well as on the Facebook Page of Eurovision Radio International with an interactive chatroom.         AT A GLANCE - ON THE SHOW THIS WEEK  Interview with JVF (Jessika, Victorio and Fabrizio Faniello) (Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025) Interview with Kristy Spiteri (Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025) FanVision Song Contest 2025: Interviews with Baby Danka (OGAE Poland) FanVision Song Contest 2025: Interview with Krista Sujak (OGAE Malta) FanVision Song Contest 2025: Interview with Jonathan (EC Germany)  Eurovision Spotlight: Eurovision Song Contest 1988 with Eurovision Lordship Marcus Keppel-Palmer Eurovision News with Nick van Lith from www.escXtra.com Eurovision Birthday File with David Mann Eurovision Cover Spot with David Mann Eurovision Calendar with Javier Leal National Final Update for Junior and Eurovision Song Contest with Alain Forrotti  New Music Releases by Eurovision Artists  Your music requests Kirsty Spiteri (Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025) Interview with Kristy Spiteri (Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025): On Sat. 08 Feb 2025 Miriana Conte and her song "Kant" (now "Serving") was selected by the jury and Maltese public to represent Malta at the Eurovision Song Contetest 2025 in Basel in May. Miriana successfully placed Malta in the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest ranking 17th at the end of the voting sequence. Earlier on in February 2025, Radio International conducted interviews with all the contestants at the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025 and more. This week, Radio International will broadcast an interview with Kristy Spiteri who took part in the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025. The song she competed with is called "Heaven Sent" which came second in the Grand Final of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025 after Miriana Conte's "Serving".        JVF (Jessika, Victorio and Fabrizio Faniello) at the  Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025 Interview with JVF (Jessika, Victorio and Fabrizio Faniello) (Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025): The Trio JVF consits of Jessika Muskat, Victorio Gaucchi and Fabrizio Faniello formed for the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025 to compete with the good mood song "Festa (No Time for Siesta"  which reached Number 5 in the Grand Final of the competition. All three singers previously participated in the Malta National Final to Eurovision in their own rights. Jessika represented San Marino at the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 together with her then singing partner Jennifer Brening performing the song "Who we are". Jessika had previously attempted to represent Malta every year from 2008 to 2017 and in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Precious Time". Fabrizio Faniello represented Malta twice at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2001 and 2006 and Victorio previously entered the Malta Eurovision Song Contest back in 2009 with Dorothy on the song called "Promises".  JVF successfully could qualify for the Grand Final of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025 out of Semi Final 1 and after the Voting sequence in the the Grand Final JVF's fun act reached Number 5. Radio International's JP had the pleasure to chat with all three artists during the rehearsals of the TV Show which you can hear on the show this week.  You can watch all the interviews Radio International did at the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025  by visiting the Radio International YouTube Channel - or check out our complete coverage of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest - click here.     Eurovision Weekend - FanVision Song Contest 2025:  The Eurovision Weekend 2025 took place in Malta from 11 - 13 July 2025 following the victory of Martina Fennech in FanVision 2024 representing Malta. The FanVision Song Contest is part of the Euroision Weekend, where artists representing different Eurovision Fan Clubs, the OGAEs) performing covers of the Eurovision Song Contest. Artists from 11 Eurovision Fan Clubs from across Europe tooks part in the contest: Austria, Denmark, EC and OGAE Germany,  Italy, Malta, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. Over the next few weeks Radio International will broadcast the interviews with the participating artists and their songs.      Congratulations to David Schuler who represented OGAE Germany winning the FanVision Song Contest 2025 with the song  "Tous l'Univers" which was the Swiss Eurovision Song Contest 2021 entry by Gjon's Tears coming third.    Eurovision Weekend 2025 - The FanVision Song Contest Scoreboard 1.    (160)   OGAE Germany - David Schuler - Tous l'Univers (CH 2021) 2.    (157)   OGAE Switzerland - Francisco Ribeiro - Roi (FR 2019) 3.    (128)   OGAE Malta - Krista Sujak - It's my time (UK 2009) 4.    (118)   OGAE Poland - Baby Danka - Rim Tim Tagi Dim (CR 2024) 5.    (118)   OGAE Italy - Jessica Lipari - Tattoo (SWE 2023) 6.    (118)   OGAE Slovakia - Blazey "Bado" Fabian - Miss Kiss Kiss Bang (GE 2009) 7.    (117)   OGAE Slovenia - Zorica Prtovic - 1944 (UKR 2016) 8.    (107)   OGAE Austria - Elisabeth Sutrich - Mon Amour (FR 2024) 9.    (092)   OGAE Norway - Claus Michael Fasting - Amar Pelos Dois (POR 2017) 10.  (083)   EC Germany - Jonathan Perez Esquinas - Sugar (MOL 2021) 11.  (070)   OGAE Denmark - Mikal Johansen - Higher Ground (DEN 2018)        Radio International already broadcast the interview with the winner David for OGAE Germany and this week listen to the interviews with Baby Danka representing OGAE Poland singing "Rim Tim Tagi Dim" (Croatia 2024 performed by Baby Lasagna). Then an interview with Jonathan representing Eurovision Club (EC) Germany performing his cover of "Sugar" original by Nathalia Gordienko (Moldova 2021) and  Krista Sujak represented OGAE Malta performing a cover of "My Time" originally performed by Jade Ewan at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 coming 5th.     The Eurovision Spotlight - BACK TO THE 80s - The Eurovision Song Contest 1988 with Marcus Keppel-Palmer: Taking a little break from the Eurovision Magical Numbers as the Summer Spotlight, Eurovision Lordship Marcus Keppel-Palmer rejoins JP in the studio to take a look back at the Eurovision Song Contest 1988 which was staged in Dublin, Ireland with Switzerland winning for a second time with Celine Dion and and the song "Ne partez pas sans moi". Marcus will tell us all about that particular Eurovision Song Contest and also plays some great songs from this contest.  Eurovision News, New Song Releases, Birthday File, Coverspot, Eurovision Calendar:Also JP will be joined by David Mann for the Eurovision Birthday File and Eurovision Coverspot.  Javier stands in for Nick and will be presenting the Eurovision News courtesy of escXtra.com. There will be a lot of the great new releases of Eurovision artists on the show as well as great Eurovision Classics. Javier will be updating us on the upcoming Eurovision events in the Eurovision Calendar and Alain Forrotti gives us already some updates of the National Finals regarding the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2025 and the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 and and....   For full details of this week's Show Content and Play List - click here

Today's episode is about social etiquette in Slovakia. In the Slovak lesson, you will learn a few new words from today's topic. You will also learn how to say “Thank you for the meal“ in Slovak. At the end of this episode, you can find some dos and don'ts when dining in Slovakia. Episode notesIn today's episode, I'm talking about social etiquette in Slovakia. In the Slovak lesson, you will learn a few new words from today's topic. You will also learn how to say “Thank you for the meal“ in Slovak. At the end of this episode, you can find some dos and don'ts when dining in Slovakia.Slovak lesson1.    návod (instructions)2.    stolovanie (dining)3.    jedlo (food)4.    prípitok (toast)5.    hostiteľ / -ka (host)6.    zostať (to stay)7.    vyskúšať (to try)8.    odmietnuť (to refuse)9.    uraziť (to offend)10. pochváliť (to compliment, praise)11. preháňať / nepreháňať (exaggerate / not exaggerate)12. používať (to use)13. Ďakujem za jedlo. (Thank you for the food.)Návod čo robiť a nerobiť pri stolovaní na Slovensku: (Dos and don'ts when dining in Slovakia.1.    Počkajte, kým vám hostiteľ povie, kam si máte sadnúť a kedy začať jesť. (Wait until your host tells you where to sit and when to start eating.)2.    Ruky môžu zostať na stole, ale lakte preč. Myslite - slušné držanie tela. (Hands can stay on the table, but elbows are out. Think - decent posture.)3.    Vyskúšajte všetko. Aj keď si nie ste istí, čo to je. Odmietnutie jedla je ako uraziť babičkino varenie. (Try everything. Even if you're not sure what it is. Refusing food is like insulting your grandmother's cooking.)4.    Jedlo pochváľte, ale nepreháňajte to. Slováci sú skromní ľudia. „Vynikajúce“ je skvelé; ale „Bože môj, nikdy v živote som neochutnal nič také nebeské!“ vám môže vyslúžiť gúľanie očami. (Compliment the food, but don't overdo it. Slovaks are modest people. "Excellent" is great; but "My God, I've never tasted anything so heavenly in my life!" may earn you an eye roll.)5.    Pri prípitkoch sa pozrite ľuďom do očí, jemne cinknite a povedzte „Na zdravie!“. Žiadne lenivé "Cheers!" (When toasting, look people in the eye, clink gently and say "To your health!". No lazy "Cheers!")6.    Používajte nôž a vidličku kontinentálnym spôsobom - vidličku v ľavej ruke, nôž v pravej. Takže pozor vy, čo striedate vidličku! (Use your knife and fork continentally - fork in your left hand, knife in your right. So watch out, you switch-hitters!)7.    A vždy povedzte „Ďakujem za jedlo“. Zahreje to pri srdci a možno vám aj zabalia niečo chutné na cestu domov. (And always say "Thank you for the food." It will warm the heart and maybe they will even pack you something delicious for the trip home.)Timestamps00:35 Introduction to the episode02:28 A guide to navigating Slovak social life13:13 Slovak lesson17:37 Dos and don'ts when dining in Slovakia in Slovak19:20 Dos and don'ts when dining in Slovakia with English translation22:21 Final thoughtsIf you have any questions, send it to my email hello@bozenasslovak.com. Check my Instagram https://www.instagram.com/bozenasslovak/ where I am posting the pictures of what I am talking about on my podcast. Also, check my website https://www.bozenasslovak.com © All copywrites reserved to Bozena Ondova Hilko LLC

What happens when someone holds a Bible for the very first time?In this episode of the 55:11 Podcast, Dirk Smith and Brooke Kehl sit down with Darryl Willis, Clyde Slimp, and John Mark Smith to reflect on their recent journey through Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Croatia.What began as a Bible distribution trip turned into something more—a series of powerful, personal moments that reminded them just how deeply God is at work across Eastern Europe.From conversations with local pastors to unexpected encounters with everyday people, this episode offers a glimpse into the impact of God's Word and the hope it brings—one Bible, one heart at a time.This isn't just a story about Bibles. It's about people, purpose, and the power of saying yes to God. You'll want to watch this one.Follow us on: PRAY.COMShow Notes:Follow us on: PRAY.COMConnect with EEM:EEM WebsiteEEM FacebookEEM LinkedInEEM InstagramEEM Media

David Mayernik is an architect, artist, writer, educator and most of all, he is a life-long student. David grew up in Allentown Pennsylvania. As he tells us during this episode, even at a young age of two he already loved to draw. He says he always had a pencil and paper with him and he used them constantly. His mother kept many of his drawings and he still has many of them to this day.   After graduating from University of Notre Dame David held several positions with various architectural firms. He always believed that he learned more by teaching himself, however, and eventually he decided to leave the professional world of architecture and took teaching positions at Notre Dame. He recently retired and is now Professor Emeritus at Notre Dame.   Our conversation is far ranging including discussions of life, the importance of learning and growing by listening to your inner self. David offers us many wonderful and insightful lessons and thoughts we all can use. We even talk some about about how technology such as Computer Aided Design systems, (CAD), are affecting the world of Architecture. I know you will enjoy what David has to say. Please let me know your thoughts through email at michaelhi@accessibe.com.     About the Guest:   David Mayernik is an architect, artist, writer, and educator. He was born in 1960 in Allentown, Pennsylvania; his parents were children of immigrants from Slovakia and Italy. He is a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome and the British Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, and has won numerous grants, awards and competitions, including the Gabriel Prize for research in France, the Steedman Competition, and the Minnesota State Capitol Grounds competition (with then partner Thomas N. Rajkovich). In 1995 he was named to the decennial list of the top forty architects in the United States under forty. In the fall of 2022, he was a resident at the Bogliasco Foundation in Liguria and the Cini foundation in Venice.   His design work for the TASIS campus in Switzerland over twenty-eight years has been recognized with a Palladio Award from Traditional Building magazine, an honorable mention in the INTBAU Excellence Awards, and a jury prize from the Prix Européen d'Architecture Philippe Rotthier. TASIS Switzerland was named one of the nine most beautiful boarding schools in the world by AD Magazine in March 2024. For ten years he also designed a series of new buildings for TASIS England in Surrey.   David Mayernik studied fresco painting with the renowned restorer Leonetto Tintori, and he has painted frescoes for the American Academy in Rome, churches in the Mugello and Ticino, and various buildings on the TASIS campus in Switzerland. He designed stage sets for the Haymarket Opera company of Chicago for four seasons between 2012 and 2014. He won the competition to paint the Palio for his adopted home of Lucca in 2013. His paintings and drawings have been exhibited in New York, Chicago, London, Innsbruck, Rome, and Padova and featured in various magazines, including American Artist and Fine Art Connoisseur.   David Mayernik is Professor Emeritus with the University of Notre Dame, where for twenty years he taught in the School of Architecture. He is the author of two books, The Challenge of Emulation in Art and Architecture (Routledge, UK) and Timeless Cities: An Architect's Reflections on Renaissance Italy, (Basic Books), and numerous essays and book chapters, including “The Baroque City” for the Oxford Handbook of the Baroque. In 2016 he created the online course The Meaning of Rome for Notre Dame, hosted on the edX platform, which had an audience of six thousand followers. Ways to connect with David:   Website: www.davidmayernik.com Instagram: davidmayernik LinkedIn: davidmayernik EdX: The Meaning of Rome https://www.edx.org/learn/humanities/university-of-notre-dame-the-meaning-of-rome-the-renaissance-and-baroque-city     About the Host:   Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog.   Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards.   https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/   accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/ https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/       Thanks for listening!   Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below!   Subscribe to the podcast   If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can subscribe in your favorite podcast app. You can also support our podcast through our tip jar https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/unstoppable-mindset .   Leave us an Apple Podcasts review   Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts.       Transcription Notes:   Michael Hingson ** 00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us.   Michael Hingson ** 01:17 Well, hi and welcome once again. Wherever you happen to be, to another episode of unstoppable mindset. Today, we get to chat with David Mayernik, unless you're in Europe, and then it's David Mayernik, but either way, we're glad to have him. He is an architect. He is an award winning architect. He's an author. He's done a number of things in his life, and we're going to talk about all of those, and it's kind of more fun to let him be the one to talk more about it, and then I can just pick up and ask questions as we go, and that's what we'll do. But we're really glad that he's here. So David, welcome to unstoppable mindset.   David Mayernik ** 01:57 Oh, thanks so much. Michael, thanks for the invitation. I'm looking forward to it.   Michael Hingson ** 02:02 Well, I know we've been working on getting this set up, and David actually happens to be in Italy today, as opposed to being in the US. He was a professor at Notre Dame for 20 years, but he has spent a lot of time in Europe and elsewhere, and I'm sure he's going to talk about that. But why don't we start, as I mentioned earlier, as I love to do, tell us kind of about the early David growing up.   David Mayernik ** 02:25 Well, so my both of my parents passed away several years ago, and when I was at my mom's funeral, one of our next door neighbors was telling my wife what I was like when I was a kid, and she said he was very quiet and very intense. And I suppose that's how I was perceived. I'm not sure I perceived myself that way I did. The thing about me is I've always drawn my mom. I mean, lots of kids draw, but I drew like credibly, well, when I was, you know, two and three years old. And of course, my mother saved everything. But the best thing about it was that I always had paper and pencil available. You know, we were terribly well off. We weren't poor, but we weren't, you know, well to do, but I never lacked for paper and pencils, and that just allowed me to just draw as much as I possibly could.   Michael Hingson ** 03:16 And so I guess the other question is, of course, do you still have all those old drawings since your mom kept   David Mayernik ** 03:23 them? Well, you know? Yeah, actually, after she passed, I did get her, Well, her collection of them. I don't know that all of them. My father had a penchant for throwing things away, unfortunately. So some of the archive is no longer with us, but no but enough of it. Just odds and bits from different areas of my life. And the thing is, you know, I was encouraged enough. I mean, all kids get encouraged. I think when they're young, everything they do is fabulous, but I had enough encouragement from people who seem to take it seriously that I thought maybe I had something and and it was the kind of thing that allowed me to have enough confidence in myself that I actually enjoyed doing it and and mostly, my parents were just impressed. You know, it just was impressive to them. And so I just happily went along my own way. The thing about it was that I really wanted to find my own path as somebody who drew and had a chance in high school for a scholarship to a local art school. I won a competition for a local art school scholarship, and I went for a couple of lessons, and I thought, you know, they're just teaching me to draw like them. I want to draw like me. So for better or worse, I'm one of those autodidacts who tries to find my own way, and, you know, it has its ups and downs. I mean, the downside of it is it's a slower learning process. Is a lot more trial and error. But the upside of it is, is that it's your own. I mean, essentially, I had enough of an ego that, you know, I really wanted to do. Things my way.   Michael Hingson ** 05:02 Well, you illustrate something that I've believed and articulate now I didn't used to, but I do now a lot more, which is I'm my own best teacher. And the reality is that you you learn by doing, and people can can give you information. And, yeah, you're right. Probably they wanted you to mostly just draw like them. But the bottom line is, you already knew from years of drawing as a child, you wanted to perhaps go a slightly different way, and you worked at it, and it may have taken longer, but look at what you learned.   David Mayernik ** 05:37 Yeah, I think it's, I mean, for me, it's, it's important that whatever you do, you do because you feel like you're being true to yourself somehow. I mean, I think that at least that's always been important to me, is that I don't, I don't like doing things for the sake of doing them. I like doing them because I think they matter. And I like, you know, I think essentially pursuing my own way of doing it meant that it always was, I mean, beyond just personal, it was something I was really committed to. And you know, the thing about it, eventually, for my parents was they thought it was fabulous, you know, loved great that you draw, but surely you don't intend to be an artist, because, you know, you want to have a job and make a living. And so I eventually realized that in high school, that while they, well, they probably would have supported anything I did that, you know, I was being nudged towards something a little bit more practical, which I think happens to a lot of kids who choose architecture like I did. It's a way, it's a practical way of being an artist and and that's we could talk about that. But I think that's not always true.   Michael Hingson ** 06:41 Bill, go ahead, talk about that. Well, I think that the   David Mayernik ** 06:44 thing about architecture is that it's become, well, one it became a profession in America, really, in the 20th century. I mean, it's in the sense that there was a licensing exam and all the requirements of what we think of as, you know, a professional service that, you know, like being a lawyer or a doctor, that architecture was sort of professionalized in the 20th century, at least in the United States. And, and it's a business, you know, ostensibly, I mean, you're, you know, you're doing what you do for a fee. And, and so architecture tries to balance the art part of it, or the creative side, the professional side of it, and the business side. And usually it's some rather imperfect version of all of those things. And the hard part, I think the hardest part to keep alive is the art part, because the business stuff and the professional stuff can really kind of take over. And that's been my trial. Challenge is to try to have it all three ways, essentially.   Michael Hingson ** 07:39 Do you think that Frank Lloyd Wright had a lot to do with bringing architecture more to the forefront of mindsets, mindsets, and also, of course, from an art standpoint, clearly, he had his own way of doing things.   David Mayernik ** 07:54 Yeah, absolutely he comes from, I mean, I wouldn't call it a rebellious tradition, but there was a streak of chafing at East Coast European classicism that happened in Chicago. Louis Sullivan, you know, is mostly responsible for that. And I but, but Right, had this, you know, kind of heroic sense of himself and and I think that his ability to draw, which was phenomenal. His sense that he wanted to do something different, and his sense that he wanted to do something American, made him a kind of a hero. Eventually, I think it coincided with America's growing sense of itself. And so for me, like lot of kids in America, my from my day, if you told somebody in high school you wanted to be an architect, they would give you a book on Frank Lloyd Wright. I mean, that's just, you know, part of the package.   Michael Hingson ** 08:47 Yeah, of course, there are others as well, but still, he brought a lot into it. And of course there, there are now more architects that we hear about and designers and so on the people what, I m Pei, who designed the world, original World Trade Center and other things like that. Clearly, there are a number of people who have made major impacts on the way we design and think of Building and Construction today,   David Mayernik ** 09:17 you know, I mean America's, you know, be kind of, it really was a leader in the development of architecture in the 20th century. I mean, in the 19th century was very much, you know, following what was happening in Europe. But essentially, by the 20th century, the America had a sense of itself that didn't always mean that it rejected the European tradition. Sometimes it tried to do it, just bigger and better, but, but it also felt like it had its, you know, almost a responsibility to find its own way, like me and, you know, come up with an American kind of architecture and and so it's always been in a kind of dialog with architecture from around the world. I mean, especially in Europe, at Frank Lloyd Wright was heavily influenced by Japanese architecture and. And so we've always seen ourselves, I think, in relationship to the world. And it's just the question of whether we were master or pupil to a certain extent,   Michael Hingson ** 10:07 and in reality, probably a little bit of both.   David Mayernik ** 10:12 Yeah, and we are, and I think, you know, acknowledging who we are, the fact that we didn't just, you know, spring from the earth in the United States, where we're all, I mean, essentially all immigrants, mostly, and essentially we, you know, essentially bring, we have baggage, essentially, as a culture, from lots of other places. And that's actually an advantage. I mean, I think it's actually what makes us a rich culture, is the diversity. I mean, even me, my father's family was Slovak, my mother's family Italian. And, you know from when I tell you know Europeans that they think that's just quintessentially American. That's what makes you an American, is that you're not a purebred of some kind.   Michael Hingson ** 10:49 Yeah, yeah. Pure purebred American is, is really sort of nebulous and and not necessarily overly accurate, because you are probably immigrants or part other kinds of races or nationalities as well. And that's, that's okay.   David Mayernik ** 11:08 It's, it's rich, you know, I think it's, it's a richer. It's the extent to which you want to engage with it. And the interesting thing about my parents was that they were both children of first generation immigrants. My mom's parents had been older Italian, and they were already married, and when they came to the States, my father's parents were younger and Slovak, and they met in the United States. And my father really wasn't that interested in his Slovak heritage. I mean, just, you know, he could speak some of the language, you know, really feel like it was something he wanted to hold on to or pass along, was my mom was, I mean, she loved her parents. She, you know, spoke with him in Italian, or actually not even Italian, the dialect from where her parents came from, which is north of Venice. And so she, I think she kind of, whether consciously or unconsciously, passed that on to me, that sense that I wanted to be. I was interested in where I came from, where the origins of my where my roots were, and it's something that had an appeal for me that wasn't just it wasn't front brain, it was really kind of built into who I was, which is why, you know, one of the reasons I chose to go to Notre Dame to study where I also wound up teaching like, welcome back Carter, is that I we had a Rome program, and so I've been teaching in the Rome program for our school, but we, I was there 44 years ago as a student.   Michael Hingson ** 12:28 Yeah. So quite a while, needless to say. And you know, I think, well, my grandmother on my mother's side was Polish, but I I never did get much in the way of information about the culture and so on from her and and my mom never really dealt with it much, because she was totally from The Bronx in New York, and was always just American, so I never really got a lot of that. But very frankly, in talking to so many people on this podcast over almost the last four years, talking to a number of people whose parents and grandparents all came to this country and how that affected them. It makes me really appreciate the kind of people who we all are, and we all are, are a conglomerate of so many different cultures, and that's okay, yeah? I mean,   David Mayernik ** 13:31 I think it's more than okay, and I think we need to just be honest about it, yeah. And, you know, kind of celebrate it, because the Italians brought with them, you know, tremendous skills. For example, a lot of my grandfather was a stone mason. You know, during the Depression, he worked, you know, the for the WPA essentially sponsored a whole series of public works projects in the parks in the town I grew up in Allentown, Pennsylvania. And Allentown has a fabulous park system. And my grandfather built a lot of stone walls in the parks in the 1930s and, you know, all these cultures that came to the states often brought, you know, specialized skills. You know, from where they they came from, and, and they enriched the American, you know, skill set, essentially, and, and that's, you know, again, that's we are, who we are because of that, you know, I celebrated I, you know, I'm especially connected to my Italian heritage. I feel like, in part because my grandfather, the stone mason, was a bit of jack of all trades. He could paint and draw. And my mom, you know, wrote poetry and painted. And even though she mostly, you know, in my life, was a was a housewife, but before she met my father, and they got married relatively late for their day, she had a professional life in World War Two, my mom actually went to Penn State for a couple of years in the start of at the start of the war, and then parents wanted her to come home, and so she did two years of engineering. Penn State. When she came back to Allentown, she actually got a job at the local airplane manufacturing plant that was making fighter planes for the United States called company called volte, and she did drafting for them. And then after World War Two, she got a job for the local power company drafting modern electrical kitchens and and so I've inherited all my mom's drafting equipment. And, you know, she's, she's very much a kind of a child of the culture that she came from, and in the sense that it was a, you know, artistic culture, a creative culture. And, you know, I definitely happy and proud of   Michael Hingson ** 15:37 that. You know, one of the things that impresses me, and I think about a lot in talking to so many people whose parents and grandparents immigrated to this country and so on, is not just the skill sets that they brought, but the work ethic that they had, that they imparted to people. And I think people who have had a number of generations here have not always kept that, and I think they've lost something very valuable, because that work ethic is what made those people who they were   David Mayernik ** 16:08 absolutely I mean, my Yeah, I mean my father. I mean absolutely true is, I mean tireless worker, capable of tremendous self sacrifice and and, you know, and that whole generation, I mean, he fought in World War Two. He actually joined, joined the Navy underage. He lied about his age to get in the Navy and that. But they were capable of self, tremendous self sacrifice and tremendous effort. And, you know, I think, you know, we're always, you know, these days, we always talk about work life balance. And I have to say, being an architect, most architects don't have a great work life balance. Mostly it's, it's a lot of work and a little bit of life. And that's, I don't, you know. I think not everybody survives that. Not every architects marriage survives that mine has. But I think it's, you know, that the idea that you're, you're sort of defined by what you do. I think there's a lot of talk these days about that's not a good thing. I I'm sort of okay with that. I'm sort of okay with being defined by what I do.   Michael Hingson ** 17:13 Yeah, and, and that that's, that's okay, especially if you're okay with it. That's good. Well, you So you went to Notre Dame, and obviously dealt with architecture. There some,   David Mayernik ** 17:28 yeah. I mean, the thing, the great thing about Notre Dame is to have the Rome program, and that was the idea of actually a Sicilian immigrant to the States in the early 20th century who became a professor at Notre Dame. And he had, he won the Paris prize. A guy named Frank Montana who won the Paris prize in the 1930s went to Harvard and was a professor at Notre Dame. And he had the good idea that, you know, maybe sending kids to five years of architecture education in Indiana, maybe wasn't the best, well rounded education possible, and maybe they should get out of South Bend for a year, and he, on his own initiative, without even support from the university, started a Rome program, and then said to the university, hey, we have a Rome program now. And so that was, that was his instinct to do that. And while I got, I think, a great education there, especially after Rome, the professor, one professor I had after Rome, was exceptional for me. But you know, Rome was just the opportunity to see great architecture. I mean, I had seen some. I mean, I, you know, my parents would go to Philadelphia, New York and, you know, we I saw some things. But, you know, I wasn't really bowled over by architecture until I went to Rome. And just the experience of that really changed my life, and it gave me a direction,   Michael Hingson ** 18:41 essentially. So the Rome program would send you to Rome for a year.   David Mayernik ** 18:46 Yeah, which is unusual too, because a lot of overseas programs do a semester. We were unusual in that the third year out of a five year undergraduate degree in architecture, the whole year is spent in Rome. And you know, when you're 20 ish, you know, 20 I turned 21 when I was over there. It's a real transition time in your life. I mean, it's, it was really transformative. And for all of us, small of my classmates, I mean, we're all kind of grew up. We all became a bit, you know, European. We stopped going to football games when we went back on campus, because it wasn't cool anymore, but, but we, we definitely were transformed by it personally, but, it really opened our eyes to what architecture was capable of, and that once you've, once you've kind of seen that, you know, once you've been to the top of the mountain, kind of thing, it can really get under your skin. And, you know, kind of sponsor whatever you do for the rest of your life. At least for me, it   Michael Hingson ** 19:35 did, yeah, yeah. So what did you do after you graduated?   David Mayernik ** 19:40 Well, I graduated, and I think also a lot of our students lately have had a pretty reasonably good economy over the last couple of decades, that where it's been pretty easy for our students to get a job. I graduated in a recession. I pounded the pavements a lot. I went, you know, staying with my parents and. Allentown, went back and forth to New York, knocking on doors. There was actually a woman who worked at the unemployment agency in New York who specialized in architects, and she would arrange interviews with firms. And, you know, I just got something for the summer, essentially, and then finally, got a job in the in the fall for somebody I wanted to work with in Philadelphia and and that guy left that firm after about three months because he won a competition. He didn't take me with him, and I was in a firm that really didn't want to be with. I wanted to be with him, not with the firm. And so I then I picked up stakes and moved to Chicago and worked for an architect who'd been a visiting professor at Notre Dame eventually became dean at Yale Tom Beebe, and it was a great learning experience, but it was also a lot of hours at low pay. You know, I don't think, I don't think my students, I can't even tell my students what I used to make an hour as a young architect. I don't think they would understand, yeah, I mean, I really don't, but it was, it was a it was the sense that you were, that your early years was a kind of, I mean an apprenticeship. I mean almost an unpaid apprenticeship at some level. I mean, I needed to make enough money to pay the rent and eat, but that was about it. And and so I did that, but I bounced around a lot, you know, and a lot of kids, I think a lot of our students, when they graduate, they think that getting a job is like a marriage, like they're going to be in it forever. And, you know, I, for better or worse, I moved around a lot. I mean, I moved every time I hit what I felt was like a point of diminishing returns. When I felt like I was putting more in and getting less out, I thought it was time to go and try something else. And I don't know that's always good advice. I mean, it can make you look flighty or unstable, but I kind of always followed my my instinct on that.   Michael Hingson ** 21:57 I don't remember how old I was. You're talking about wages. But I remember it was a Sunday, and my parents were reading the newspaper, and they got into a discussion just about the fact that the minimum wage had just been changed to be $1.50 an hour. I had no concept of all of that. But of course, now looking back on it, $1.50 an hour, and looking at it now, it's pretty amazing. And in a sense, $1.50 an hour, and now we're talking about $15 and $16 an hour, and I had to be, I'm sure, under 10. So it was sometime between 1958 and 1960 or so, or maybe 61 I don't remember exactly when, but in a sense, looking at it now, I'm not sure that the minimum wage has gone up all that much. Yes, 10 times what it was. But so many other things are a whole lot more than 10 times what they were back then,   David Mayernik ** 23:01 absolutely, yeah. I mean, I mean, in some ways also, my father was a, my father was a factory worker. I mean, he tried to have lots of other businesses of his own. He, you're, you're obviously a great salesman. And the one skill my father didn't have is he could, he could, like, for example, he had a home building business. He could build a great house. He just couldn't sell it. And so, you know, I think he was a factory worker, but he was able to send my sister and I to private college simultaneously on a factory worker salary, you know, with, with, I mean, I had some student loan debt, but not a lot. And that's, that's not possible today.   Michael Hingson ** 23:42 No, he saved and put money aside so that you could do that, yeah, and,   David Mayernik ** 23:47 and he made enough. I mean, essentially, the cost of college was not that much. And he was, you know, right, yeah. And he had a union job. It was, you know, reasonably well paid. I mean, we lived in a, you know, a nice middle class neighborhood, and, you know, we, we had a nice life growing up, and he was able to again, send us to college. And I that's just not possible for without tremendous amount of debt. It's not possible today. So the whole scale of our economy shifted tremendously. What I was making when I was a young architect. I mean, it was not a lot then, but I survived. Fact, actually saved money in Chicago for a two month summer in Europe after that. So, you know, essentially, the cost of living was, it didn't take a lot to cover your your expenses, right? The advantage of that for me was that it allowed me time when I had free time when I after that experience, and I traveled to Europe, I came back and I worked in Philadelphia for the same guy who had left the old firm in Philadelphia and went off on his own, started his own business. I worked for him for about nine months, but I had time in the evenings, because I didn't have to work 80 hours a week to do other things. I taught myself how to paint. And do things that I was interested in, and I could experiment and try things and and, you know, because surviving wasn't all that hard. I mean, it was easy to pay your bills and, and I think that's one of the things that's, I think, become more onerous, is that, I think for a lot of young people just kind of dealing with both college debt and then, you know, essentially the cost of living. They don't have a lot of time or energy to do anything else. And you know, for me, that was, I had the luxury of having time and energy to invest in my own growth, let's say as a more career, as a creative person. And you know, I also, I also tell students that, you know, there are a lot of hours in the day, you know, and whatever you're doing in an office. There are a lot of hours after that, you could be doing something else, and that I used every one of those hours as best I could.   Michael Hingson ** 25:50 Yeah. Well, you know, we're all born with challenges in life. What kind of challenges, real challenges did you have growing up as you look back on it?   David Mayernik ** 26:01 Yeah, my, I mean, my, I mean, there was some, there was some, a few rocky times when my father was trying to have his own business. And, you know, I'm not saying we grew up. We didn't struggle, but it wasn't, you know, always smooth sailing. But I think one of the things I learned about being an architect, which I didn't realize, and only kind of has been brought home to me later. Right now, I have somebody who's told me not that long ago, you know? You know, the problem is, architecture is a gentleman's profession. You know that IT architecture, historically was practiced by people from a social class, who knew, essentially, they grew up with the people who would become their clients, right? And so the way a lot of architects built their practice was essentially on, you know, family connections and personal connections, college connections. And I didn't have that advantage. So, you know, I've, I've essentially had to define myself or establish myself based on what I'm capable of doing. And you know, it's not always a level playing field. The great breakthrough for me, in a lot of ways, was that one of the one of my classmates and I entered a big international competition when we were essentially 25 years old. I think we entered. I turned 26 and it was an open competition. So, you know, no professional requirements. You know, virtually no entry fee to redesign the state capitol grounds of Minnesota, and it was international, and we, and we actually were selected as one of the top five teams that were allowed to proceed onto the second phase, and at which point we we weren't licensed architects. We didn't have a lot of professional sense or business sense, so we had to associate with a local firm in Minnesota and and we competed for the final phase. We did most of the work. The firm supported us, but they gave us basically professional credibility and and we won. We were the architects of the state capitol grounds in Minnesota, 26 years old, and that's because the that system of competition was basically a level playing field. It was, you know, ostensibly anonymous, at least the first phase, and it was just basically who had the best design. And you know, a lot of the way architecture gets architects get chosen. The way architecture gets distributed is connections, reputation, things like that, but, but you know, when you find those avenues where it's kind of a level playing field and you get to show your stuff. It doesn't matter where you grew up or who you are, it just matters how good you are, yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 28:47 well, and do you think it's still that way today?   David Mayernik ** 28:51 There are a lot fewer open professional competitions. They're just a lot fewer of them. It was the and, you know, maybe they learned a lesson. I mean, maybe people like me shouldn't have been winning competitions. I mean, at some level, we were out of our league. I wouldn't say, I wouldn't say, from a design point of view. I mean, we were very capable of doing what the project involved, but we were not ready for the hardball of collaborating with a big firm and and the and the politics of what we were doing and the business side of it, we got kind of crushed, and, and, and eventually they never had the money to build the project, so the project just kind of evaporated. And the guy I used to work with in Philadelphia told me, after I won the competition, he said, you know, because he won a competition. He said, You know, the second project is the hardest one to get, you know, because you might get lucky one time and you win a competition, the question is, how do you build practice out of that?   Michael Hingson ** 29:52 Yeah, and it's a good point, yeah, yeah.   David Mayernik ** 29:55 I mean, developing some kind of continuity is hard. I mean, I. Have a longer, more discontinuous practice after that, but it's that's the hard part.   Michael Hingson ** 30:07 Well, you know, I mentioned challenges before, and we all, we all face challenges and so on. How do we overcome the challenges, our inherited challenges, or the perceived challenges that we have? How do we overcome those and work to move forward, to be our best? Because that's clearly kind of what you're talking about here.   David Mayernik ** 30:26 Yeah, well, the true I mean, so the challenges that we're born with, and I think there are also some challenges that, you know, we impose on ourselves, right? I mean, in this, in the best sense, I mean the ways that we challenge ourselves. And for me, I'm a bit of an idealist, and you know, the world doesn't look kindly on idealist. If you know, from a business, professional point of view, idealism is often, I'm not saying it's frowned upon, but it's hardly encouraged and rewarded and but I think that for me, I've learned over time that it's you really just beating your head against the wall is not the best. A little bit of navigating your way around problems rather than trying to run through them or knock them over is a smarter strategy. And so you have to be a little nimble. You have to be a little creative about how you find work and essentially, how you keep yourself afloat and and if you're if you're open to possibilities, and if you take some risks, you can, you can actually navigate yourself through a series of obstacles and actually have a rich, interesting life, but it may not follow the path that you thought you were starting out on at the beginning. And that's the, I think that's the skill that not everybody has.   Michael Hingson ** 31:43 The other part about that, though, is that all too often, we don't really give thought to what we're going to do, or we we maybe even get nudges about what we ought to do, but we discount them because we think, Oh, that's just not the way to do it. Rather than stepping back and really analyzing what we're seeing, what we're hearing. And I, for 1am, a firm believer in the fact that our inner self, our inner voice, will guide us if we give it the opportunity to do that.   David Mayernik ** 32:15 You know, I absolutely agree. I think a lot of people, you know, I was, I for, I have, for better or worse, I've always had a good sense of what I wanted to do with my life, even if architecture was a you know, conscious way to do something that was not exactly maybe what I dreamed of doing, it was a, you know, as a more rational choice. But, but I've, but I've basically followed my heart, more or less, and I've done the things that I always believed in it was true too. And when I meet people, especially when I have students who don't really know what they love, or, you know, really can't tell you what they really are passionate about, but my sense of it is, this is just my I might be completely wrong, but my sense of it is, they either can't admit it to themselves, or they can't admit it to somebody else that they that, either, in the first case, they're not prepared to listen to themselves and actually really deep, dig deep and think about what really matters to them, or if they do know what that is, they're embarrassed to admit it, or they're embarrassed to tell somebody else. I think most of us have some drive, or some internal, you know, impetus towards something and, and you're right. I mean, learning to listen to that is, is a, I mean, it's rewarding. I mean, essentially, you become yourself. You become more, or the best possible self you can be, I guess.   Michael Hingson ** 33:42 Yeah, I agree. And I guess that that kind of answers the question I was was thinking of, and that is, basically, as you're doing things in life, should you follow your dreams?   David Mayernik ** 33:53 You know, there's a lot, a lot of people are writing these days, if you read, if you're just, you know, on the, on the internet, reading the, you know, advice that you get on, you know, the new services, from the BBC to, you know, any other form of information that's out there, there's a lot of back and forth by between the follow your dreams camp and the don't follow your dreams camp. And the argument of the don't follow your dreams camp seems to be that it's going to be hard and you'll be frustrated, and you know, and that's true, but it doesn't mean you're going to fail, and I don't think anybody should expect life to be easy. So I think if you understand going in, and maybe that's part of my Eastern European heritage that you basically expect life to be hard, not, not that it has to be unpleasant, but you know it's going to be a struggle, but, but if you are true to yourself or follow your dreams, you're probably not going to wake up in the middle of your life with a crisis. You know, because I think a lot of times when you suppress your dreams, they. Stay suppressed forever, and the frustrations come out later, and it's better to just take them on board and try to again, navigate your way through life with those aspirations that you have, that you know are really they're built in like you were saying. They're kind of hardwired to be that person, and it's best to listen to that person.   Michael Hingson ** 35:20 There's nothing wrong with having real convictions, and I think it's important to to step back and make sure that you're really hearing what your convictions are and feeling what your convictions are. But that is what people should do, because otherwise, you're just not going to be happy.   David Mayernik ** 35:36 You're not and you're you're at one level, allowing yourself to manipulate yourself. I mean, essentially, you're, you know, kind of essentially deterring yourself from being who you are. You're probably also susceptible to other people doing that to you, that if you don't have enough sense of yourself, a lot of other people can manipulate you, push you around. And, you know, the thing about having a good sense of yourself is you also know how to stand up for yourself, or at least you know that you're a self that's worth standing up for. And that's you know. That's that, that thing that you know the kids learn in the school yard when you confront the bully, you know you have to, you know, the parents always tell you, you know, stand up to the bully. And at some level, life is going to bully you unless you really are prepared to stand up for something.   Michael Hingson ** 36:25 Yeah, and there's so many examples of that I know as a as a blind person, I've been involved in taking on some pretty major tasks in life. For example, it used to be that anyone with a so called Disability couldn't buy life insurance, and eventually, we took on the insurance industry and won to get the laws passed in every state that now mandate that you can't discriminate against people with disabilities in providing life insurance unless you really have evidence To prove that it's appropriate to do that, and since the laws were passed, there hasn't been any evidence. And the reason is, of course, there never has been evidence, and insurance companies kept claiming they had it, but then when they were challenged to produce it, they couldn't. But the reality is that you can take on major tasks and major challenges and win as long as you really understand that that is what your life is steering you to do,   David Mayernik ** 37:27 yeah, like you said, and also too, having a sense of your your self worth beyond whatever that disability is, that you know what you're capable of, apart from that, you know that's all about what you can't do, but all the things that you can do are the things that should allow you to do anything. And, yeah, I think we're, I think it's a lot of times people will try to define you by what you can't do, you   Michael Hingson ** 37:51 know? And the reality is that those are traditionally misconceptions and inaccurate anyway, as I point out to people, disability does not mean a lack of ability. Although a lot of people say, Well, of course it, it is because it starts with dis. And my response is, what do you then? How do you deal with the words disciple, discern and discrete? For example, you know the fact of the matter is, we all have a disability. Most of you are light dependent. You don't do well with out light in your life, and that's okay. We love you anyway, even though you you have to have light but. But the reality is, in a sense, that's as much a disability is not being light dependent or being light independent. The difference is that light on demand has caused so much focus that it's real easy to get, but it doesn't change the fact that your disability is covered up, but it's still there.   David Mayernik ** 38:47 No, it's true. I mean, I think actually, yeah, knowing. I mean, you're, we're talking about knowing who you are, and, you know, listening to your inner voice and even listening to your aspirations. But also, I mean being pretty honest about where your liabilities are, like what the things are that you struggle with and just recognizing them, and not not to dwell on them, but to just recognize how they may be getting in the way and how you can work around them. You know, one of the things I tell students is that it's really important to be self critical, but, but it's, it's not good to be self deprecating, you know. And I think being self critical if you're going to be a self taught person like I am, in a lot of ways, you you have to be aware of where you're not getting it right. Because I think the problem is sometimes you can satisfy yourself too easily. You're too happy with your own progress. You know, the advantage of having somebody outside teaching you is they're going to tell you when you're doing it wrong, and most people are kind of loath do that for themselves, but, but the other end of that is the people who are so self deprecating, constantly putting themselves down, that they never are able to move beyond it, because they're only aware of what they can't do. And you know, I think balancing self criticism with a sense of your self worth is, you know, one of the great balancing acts of life. You.   Michael Hingson ** 40:00 Well, that's why I've adopted the concept of I'm my own best teacher, because rather than being critical and approaching anything in a negative way, if I realize that I'm going to be my own best teacher, and people will tell me things, I can look at them, and I should look at them, analyze them, step back, internalize them or not, but use that information to grow, then that's what I really should do, and I would much prefer the positive approach of I'm my own best teacher over anything else.   David Mayernik ** 40:31 Yeah, well, I mean, the last kind of teachers, and I, you know, a lot of my students have thought of me as a critical teacher. One of the things I think my students have misunderstood about that is, it's not that I have a low opinion of them. It's actually that I have such a high opinion that I always think they're capable of doing better. Yeah, I think one of the problems in our educational system now is that it's so it's so ratifying and validating. There's so we're so low to criticize and so and the students are so fragile with criticism that they they don't take the criticism well, yeah, we don't give it and, and you without some degree of what you're not quite getting right, you really don't know what you're capable of, right? And, and I think you know. But being but again, being critical is not that's not where you start. I think you start from the aspiration and the hope and the, you know, the actually, the joy of doing something. And then, you know, you take a step back and maybe take a little you know, artists historically had various techniques for judging their own work. Titian used to take one of his paintings and turn it away, turn it facing the wall so that he couldn't see it, and he would come back to it a month later. And, you know, because when he first painted, he thought it was the greatest thing ever painted, he would come back to it a month later and think, you know, I could have done some of those parts better, and you would work on it and fix it. And so, you know, the self criticism comes from this capacity to distance yourself from yourself, look at yourself almost as as hard as it is from the outside, yeah, try to see yourself as other people see you. Because I think in your own mind, you can kind of become completely self referential. And you know, that's that. These are all life skills. You know, I had to say this to somebody recently, but, you know, I think the thing you should get out of your education is learning how to learn and like you're talking about, essentially, how do you approach something new or challenging or different? Is has to do with essentially, how do you how do you know? Do you know how to grow and learn on your own?   Michael Hingson ** 42:44 Yeah, exactly, well, being an architect and so on. How did you end up going off and becoming a professor and and teaching? Yeah, a   David Mayernik ** 42:52 lot of architects do it. I have to say. I mean, there's always a lot of the people who are the kind of heroes when I was a student, were practicing architects who also taught and and they had a kind of, let's say, intellectual approach to what they did. They were conceptual. It wasn't just the mundane aspects of getting a building built, but they had some sense of where they fit, with respect to the culture, with respect to history and issues outside of architecture, the extent to which they were tied into other aspects of culture. And so I always had the idea that, you know, to be a full, you know, a fully, you know, engaged architect. You should have an academic, intellectual side to your life. And teaching would be an opportunity to do that. The only thing is, I didn't feel like I knew enough until I was older, in my 40s, to feel like I actually knew enough about what I was doing to be able to teach somebody else. A lot of architects get into teaching early, I think, before they're actually fully formed to have their own identities. And I think it's been good for me that I waited a while until I had a sense of myself before I felt like I could teach somebody else. And so there was, there was that, I mean, the other side of it, and it's not to say that it was just a day job, but one of the things I decided from the point of your practice is a lot of architects have to do a lot of work that they're not proud of to keep the lights on and keep the business operating. And I have decided for myself, I only really want to do work that I'm proud of, and in order to do that, because clients that you can work for and be you know feel proud of, are rather rare, and so I balanced teaching and practice, because teaching allowed me to ostensibly, theoretically be involved with the life of the mind and only work for people and projects that interested me and that I thought could offer me the chance to do something good and interesting and important. And so one I had the sense that I had something to convey I learned. Enough that I felt like I could teach somebody else. But it was also, for me, an opportunity to have a kind of a balanced life in which practice was compensated. You know that a lot of practice, even interesting practice, has a banal, you know, mundane side. And I like being intellectually stimulated, so I wanted that. Not everybody wants   Michael Hingson ** 45:24 that. Yeah, so you think that the teaching brings you that, or it put you in a position where you needed to deal with that?   David Mayernik ** 45:32 You know, having just retired, I wish there had been more of that. I really had this romantic idea that academics, being involved in academics, would be an opportunity to live in a world of ideas. You know? I mean, because when I was a student, I have to say we, after we came back from Rome, I got at least half of my education for my classmates, because we were deeply engaged. We debated stuff. We, you know, we we challenged each other. We were competitive in a healthy way and and I remember academics my the best part of my academic formation is being immensely intellectually rich. In fact, I really missed it. For about the first five years I was out of college, I really missed the intellectual side of architecture, and I thought going back as a teacher, I would reconnect with that, and I realized not necessarily, there's a lot about academics that's just as mundane and bureaucratic as practice can be so if you really want to have a satisfying intellectual life, unfortunately, you can't look to any institution or other people for it. You got to find it on your own.   46:51 Paperwork, paperwork,   David Mayernik ** 46:55 committee meetings, just stuff. Yeah, yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 47:00 yeah. Yeah, which never, which never. Well, I won't say they never help, but there's probably, there's probably some valuable stuff that you can get, even from writing and doing, doing paperwork, because it helps you learn to write. I suppose you can look at it that way.   David Mayernik ** 47:16 No, it's true. I mean, you're, you're definitely a glass half full guy. Michael, I appreciate that's good. No. I mean, I, obviously, I always try to make get the most out of whatever experience I have. But, I mean, in the sense that there wasn't as much intellectual discourse, yeah, you know, as my I would have liked, yeah, and I, you know, in the practice or in the more academic side of architecture. Several years ago, somebody said we were in a post critical phase like that. Ideas weren't really what was driving architecture. It was going to be driven by issues of sustainability, issues of social structure, you know, essentially how people live together, issues that have to do with things that weren't really about, let's call it design in the esthetic sense, and all that stuff is super important. And I'm super interested in, you know, the social impact of my architecture, the sustainable impact of it, but the the kind of intellectual society side of the design part of it, we're in a weird phase where it that's just not in my world, we just it's not talked about a lot. You know,   Michael Hingson ** 48:33 it's not what it what it used to be. Something tells me you may be retired, but you're not going to stop searching for intellectual and various kinds of stimulation to help keep your mind active.   David Mayernik ** 48:47 Oh, gosh, no, no. I mean, effectively. I mean, I just stopped one particular job. I describe it now as quitting with benefits. That's my idea of what I retired from. I retired from a particular position in a particular place, but, but I haven't stopped. I mean, I'm certainly going to keep working. I have a very interesting design project in Switzerland. I've been working on for almost 29 years, and it's got a number of years left in it. I paint, I write, I give lectures, I you know, and you obviously have a rich life. You know, not being at a job. Doesn't mean that the that your engagement with the world and with ideas goes away. I mean, unless you wanted to, my wife's my wife had three great uncles who were great jazz musicians. I mean, some quite well known jazz musicians. And one of them was asked, you know, was he ever going to retire? And he said, retire to what? Because, you know, he was a musician. I mean, you can't stop being a musician, you know, you know, if, some level, if you're really engaged with what you do, you You never stop, really,   Michael Hingson ** 49:51 if you enjoy it, why would you? No, I   David Mayernik ** 49:54 mean, the best thing is that your work is your fun. I mean, you know, talking about, we talked about it. I. You that You know you're kind of defined by your work, but if your work is really what you enjoy, I mean, actually it's fulfilling, rich, enriching, interesting, you don't want to stop doing that. I mean, essentially, you want to do it as long as you possibly can. Yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 50:13 and it's and it's really important to do that. And I think, in reality, when you retire from a job, you're not really retiring from a job. You're retiring, as you said, from one particular thing. But the job isn't a negative thing at all. It is what you like to do.   David Mayernik ** 50:31 Yeah. I mean, there's, yeah, there's the things that you do that. I mean, I guess the job is the, if you like, the thing that is the, you know, the institution or the entity that you know, pays your bills and that kind of stuff, but the career or the thing that you're invested in that had the way you define yourself is you never stop being that person, that person. And in some ways, you know, what I'm looking forward to is a richer opportunity to pursue my own avenue of inquiry, and, you know, do things on my own terms, without some of the obligations I had   Michael Hingson ** 51:03 as a teacher, and where's your wife and all that.   David Mayernik ** 51:06 So she's with me here in LUCA, and she's she's had a super interesting life, because she she she studied. We, when we were together in New York, she was getting a degree in art history, Medieval and Renaissance studies in art history at NYU, and then she decided she really wanted to be a chef, and she went to cooking school in New York and then worked in a variety of food businesses in New York, and then got into food writing and well, food styling for magazines, making food for photographs, and then eventually writing. And through a strange series of connections and experiences. She got an opportunity to cook at an Art Foundation in the south of France, and I was in New York, and I was freelancing. I was I'd quit a job I'd been at for five years, and I was freelancing around, doing some of my own stuff and working with other architects, and I had work I could take with me. And you know, it was there was there was, we didn't really have the internet so much, but we had FedEx. And I thought I could do drawings in the south of France. I could do them in Brooklyn. So, so I went to the south of France, and it just happens to be that my current client from Switzerland was there at that place at that time, scouting it out for some other purpose. And she said, I hear you're architect. I said, Yeah. And I said, Well, you know, she said, I like, you know, classical architecture, and I like, you know, traditional villages, and we have a campus, and we need a master plan architect. And I was doing a master plan back in Delaware at that time, and my wife's you know, career trajectory actually enabled me to meet a client who's basically given me an opportunity to build, you know, really interesting stuff, both in Switzerland and in England for the last, you know, again, almost 29 years. And so my wife's been a partner in this, and she's been, you know, because she's pursued her own parallel interest. But, but our interests overlap enough and we share enough that we our interests are kind of mutually reinforcing. It's, it's been like an ongoing conversation between us, which has been alive and rich and wonderful.   Michael Hingson ** 53:08 You know, with everything going on in architecture and in the world in general, we see more and more technology in various arenas and so on. How do you think that the whole concept of CAD has made a difference, or in any way affected architecture. And where do you think CAD systems really fit into all of that?   David Mayernik ** 53:33 Well, so I mean this, you know, CAD came along. I mean, it already was, even when I was early in my apprenticeship, yeah, I was in Chicago, and there was a big for som in Chicago, had one of the first, you know, big computers that was doing some drawing work for them. And one of my, a friend of mine, you know, went to spend some time and figure out what they were capable of. And, but, you know, never really came into my world until kind of the late night, mid, mid to late 90s and, and, and I kind of resisted it, because I, the reason I got into architecture is because I like to draw by hand, and CAD just seemed to be, you know, the last thing I'd want to do. But at the same time, you, some of you, can't avoid it. I mean, it has sort of taken over the profession that, essentially, you either have people doing it for you, or you have to do it yourself, and and so the interesting thing is, I guess that I, at some point with Switzerland, I had to, basically, I had people helping me and doing drawing for me, but I eventually taught myself. And I actually, I jumped over CAD and I went to a 3d software called ArchiCAD, which is a parametric design thing where you're essentially building a 3d model. Because I thought, Look, if I'm going to do drawing on the computer, I want the computer to do something more than just make lines, because I can make lines on my own. But so the computer now was able to help me build a 3d model understand buildings in space and construction. And so I've taught myself to be reasonably, you know, dangerous with ArchiCAD and but the. Same time, the creative side of it, I still, I still think, and a lot of people think, is still tied to the intuitive hand drawing aspect and and so a lot of schools that gave up on hand drawing have brought it back, at least in the early years of formation of architects only for the the conceptual side of architecture, the the part where you are doodling out your first ideas, because CAD drawing is essentially mechanical and methodical and sort of not really intuitive, whereas the intuitive marking of paper With a pencil is much more directly connected to the mind's capacity to kind of speculate and imagine and daydream a little bit, or wander a little bit your mind wanders, and it actually is time when some things can kind of emerge on the page that you didn't even intend. And so, you know, the other thing about the computer is now on my iPad, I can actually do hand drawing on my iPad, and that's allowed me to travel with it, show it to clients. And so I still obviously do a lot of drawing on paper. I paint by hand, obviously with real paints and real materials. But I also have found also I can do free hand drawing on my iPad. I think the real challenge now is artificial intelligence, which is not really about drawing, it's about somebody else or the machine doing the creative side of it. And that's the big existential crisis that I think the profession is facing right now.   Michael Hingson ** 56:36 Yeah, I think I agree with that. I've always understood that you could do free hand drawing with with CAD systems. And I know that when I couldn't find a job in the mid 1980s I formed a company, and we sold PC based CAD systems to architects and engineers. And you know, a number of them said, well, but when we do designs, we charge by the time that we put into drawing, and we can't do that with a CAD system, because it'll do it in a fraction of the time. And my response always was, you're looking at it all wrong. You don't change how much you charge a customer, but now you're not charging for your time, you're charging for your expertise, and you do the same thing. The architects who got that were pretty successful using CAD systems, and felt that it wasn't really stifling their creativity to use a CAD system to enhance and speed up what they did, because it also allowed them to find more jobs more quickly.   David Mayernik ** 57:35 Yeah, one of the things it did was actually allow smaller firms to compete with bigger firms, because you just didn't need as many bodies to produce a set of drawings to get a project built or to make a presentation. So I mean, it has at one level, and I think it still is a kind of a leveler of, in a way, the scale side of architecture, that a lot of small creative firms can actually compete for big projects and do them successfully. There's also, it's also facilitated collaboration, because of the ability to exchange files and have people in different offices, even around the world, working on the same drawing. So, you know, I'm working in Switzerland. You know, one of the reasons to be on CAD is that I'm, you know, sharing drawings with local architects there engineers, and that you know that that collaborative sharing process is definitely facilitated by the computer.   Michael Hingson ** 58:27 Yeah, information exchange is always valuable, especially if you have a number of people who are committed to the same thing. It really helps. Collaboration is always a good thing,   David Mayernik ** 58:39 yeah? I mean, I think a lot of, I mean, there's always the challenge between the ego side of architecture, you know, creative genius, genius, the Howard Roark Fountainhead, you know, romantic idea. And the reality is that it takes a lot of people to get a building built, and one person really can't do it by themselves. And So collaboration is kind of built into it at the same time, you know, for any kind of coherence, or some any kind of, let's say, anything, that brings a kind of an artistic integrity to a work of architecture, mostly, that's got to come from one person, or at least people with enough shared vision that that there's a kind of coherence to it, you know. And so there still is space for the individual creative person. It's just that it's inevitably a collaborative process to get, you know, it's the it's the 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration. Side architecture is very much that there's a lot of heavy lifting that goes into getting a set of drawings done to get

The Swords to Slovakia bike team rode into Bratislava to raise funds and awareness for Down syndrome centers in both countries. Ben Pascoe talked with them about their trek across Europe. Kulturne Leto or cultural summer in coming to an end, Ben talked with the Director or BKIS, Katarina Hulikova about what we can look forward to this August.

A tribute to Slovakia's golden voice — in life, in legend, and now on the big screen. As excitement builds around the new film about Karol Duchoň, we bring you the story of one of Slovakia's most beloved singers — a powerful voice and gentle soul who touched generations. Through rare archival recordings, new film interviews, and heartfelt memories from those who knew him best, this special traces Duchoň's meteoric rise, his private struggles, and the timeless legacy now revived for a new generation. Featuring voices from film director Peter Bebjak, actor Vladimír Plevčík, lyricist Ľuboš Zeman, longtime collaborators Marcela Laiferová and Pavol Hammel, his first wife Elena Duchoňová, Karol Duchoň himself – and more. The new episode of Slovak Sound Check dives into essential vocabulary for getting around and asking for directions in Slovak.

Sam Macey joins Jake Smith to review Pompey's 1-0 victory over PEC Zwolle at Fratton Park, where new loan signing Florian Bianchini hit the ground running with a debut assist to set up Tom Waddingham's late winner! Chief sports writer at the Portsmouth News, Neil Allen also features to go through his biggest stories from the summer, including the Blues' pre-season trip to Slovakia, Matt Ritchie's impending departure and the future of trialist Nathan Ferguson.

Ralph and the crew spend the whole hour with Omer Bartov, professor of Holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University, who grew up in a Zionist home, lived the first half of his life in Israel, served in the I.D.F. as a soldier and officer and is the author a New York Times op-ed entitled “I'm a Genocide Scholar. I Know It When I See It.” Plus, Ralph pays tribute to legendary Washington Post reporter, Morton Mintz.Omer Bartov is a professor of Holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University. He has written widely on modern Germany, France, the Holocaust, and representations of war and genocide. He is the author of the Mirrors of Destruction: War, Genocide, and Modern Identity, and the forthcoming book, Israel: What Went Wrong?, and he's penned a New York Times op-ed entitled “I'm a Genocide Scholar. I Know It When I See It.”I published an op-ed in November 2023, and I said there were war crimes, clearly, crimes against humanity, and this will become genocide if it's not stopped. And the Biden administration at the time did nothing. President Biden could have stopped that within two weeks. The Israeli military machine cannot function for more than two or three weeks without constant supply of munitions, without constant supply of financial help, and most importantly, without a diplomatic Iron Dome, especially in the Security Council.Professor Omer BartovIf you say that you are shutting down speech because of anti-Semitism, who are the people who are pushing that? It must be all kinds of Jewish interests that are pushing that. And in that sense, this false campaign against anti-Semitism – some of whose leaders are people with pretty good anti-Semitic credentials themselves – is the best way to raise, to promote and incite anti-Semitism.Professor Omer BartovThere's no moral responsibility, there's no empathy being shown, and much of the population shares that view. To me, as someone who was raised in Israel, spent half of my life there, served four years in the army, to see my own society (including some of my friends) show this kind of moral callousness is frankly quite heartbreaking. And I have to say, it's the result of a long process. It's not only a response to October 7th, it's the result of six decades of occupation, of thinking of Palestinians as not really people who have any right to have rights or any right to health, to security. And in that sense, that long-term occupation has corrupted much of Israeli society. And maybe the most surprising thing is that there's still extraordinary people there who are fighting against that, but their numbers are diminishing, not growing.Professor Omer BartovMorton Mintz was hands-down the greatest consumer reporter of his generation. He opened up one field after another because he had a special sense of newsworthiness that other reporters and editors didn't have. He opened up the coverage of the pharmaceutical industry. He opened up the coverage of the auto industry. And he did so with such formidable documentation and research that other reporters started following the same subject area. So he was a pioneer.Ralph NaderNews 8/1/25* Crusading environmental lawyer Steven Donziger has published a new report in the left-wing outlet Orinoco Tribune on the undercount of the dead in Gaza. In this piece, Donziger uses the statistical model laid out by the prestigious medical journal The Lancet in their 2024 study on the Israeli military campaign, which found the direct and indirect death toll could be as high as 186,000. The Lancet study found that as many as 732 Gazans died every day from these direct and indirect causes. Multiplied by the 594 days the conflict has dragged on, this would equate to a death toll of 434,800, or 20.7% of the enclave's population. As Donziger notes, “If the same level of killing and indirect death that took place in Gaza…happened in the United States proportional to population, roughly 70 million Americans would have been killed.”* In more Gaza news, the Guardian reports that, “On Saturday night, the…IDF…intercepted and boarded the Handala, an aid ship that attempted to reach Gaza as part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition…According to the coalition, IDF soldiers beat and choked…labor activist Chris Smalls.” The severity of the attack on Christian Smalls – founder of the independent Amazon Labor Union (ALU) – caused international outcry. From the Guardian report, “Smalls was physically assaulted by seven uniformed individuals. They choked him and kicked him in the legs, leaving visible signs of violence on his neck and back.” The incident also drew criticism for another reason: Smalls was the only Black person on board the Handala. While 21 members of the Flotilla group were detained, in their words ”abducted,” “This level of force was not used.” It is unclear why this level of force was used against Smalls and Smalls alone, other than the color of his skin.* Yet more tragic news from Gaza concerns the death of Odeh Hadalin, the 31-year-old Palestinian activist and English teacher featured in the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land. Al Jazeera reports that footage taken by Israeli human rights group B'Tselem “appears to show [Israeli settler Yinon] Levi opening fire on Hadalin during a confrontation in the village [of Umm al-Kheir, south of Hebron].” Levi, already sanctioned by the European Union and the United States over past attacks on Palestinians, reportedly told witnesses he was “glad about it.” Despite all of this, an Israeli court has released Levi on house arrest. Basel Adra, who co-directed No Other Land with Yuval Abraham, wrote “This is how Israel erases us — one life at a time.”* One positive development is in progress however. According to the Embassy of France in the United States, "France is prepared to fully recognize the State of Palestine, and will do so in September." French recognition of the Palestinian state, will If it ultimately comes to pass, have major ramifications on the world stage. While 147 member states of the United Nations have recognized Palestine, only 10 out of 27 EU countries have done so, mostly former Eastern Bloc states like Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, and Romania, along with the former country of Czechoslovakia. The modern country of Slovakia has reaffirmed their recognition; Czechia has not. In 2024, several more European nations extended recognition, including Norway, Slovenia, Ireland and Spain. France however would tip the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council to a 3-2 majority in recognition of Palestine, along with Russia and China. Moreover, AP reports the United Kingdom is now saying they will “recognize a Palestinian state in September unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire in Gaza,” among other conditions. If this happens, The permanent members of the Security Council would be split 4-1, with the United States as the lone holdout. This would be nothing short of an international relations sea change on the question of Palestine.* In some more positive foreign policy news, Jeremy Corbyn's new party in the U.K. is getting started with a bang. According to the man himself, over 600,000 people have signed up to register with the new party, which describes itself as “a new kind of political party. One that is rooted in our communities, trade unions and social movements. One that builds power in all regions and nations. One that belongs to you.” Polls show this new party in the lead among Britons aged 18-24 and Corbyn leading Labour Party leader Keir Starmer by “Almost Every Metric,” among members of the rightwing populist Reform Party. That said, the Reform Party is still projected to win an overwhelming victory compared to all other parties in the next elections, though those are not expected to be held until 2029.* In Congress, Bernie Sanders forced a vote Wednesday on two new Senate resolutions to block arms transfers to Israel. Resolution 34 would “prohibit the U.S.-taxpayer financed $675.7 million sale of 201 MK 83 1,000-pound bombs; 4,799 BLU-110A/B General Purpose 1,000-pound bombs; 1,500 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) guidance kits for MK 83 bombs; 3,500 JDAM guidance kits for MK 83 bombs; and related logistics and technical support services,” while Resolution 41 would “prohibit the sale of tens of thousands of fully automatic assault rifles.” These resolutions got the support of 27 Senators, a new record and a majority of the Democratic Senate Caucus, but still far, far short of even a simple Senate majority. Perhaps a more portentous development is that Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene this week became the first Republican in Congress to call the crisis in Gaza a “genocide,” according to the Hill. It remains to be seen whether this will help break the dam on that side of the aisle.* In New York City, new polling shows stunning results for Zohran Mamdani. The new poll conducted by Zenith Research and Public Progress Solutions shows Zohran dominating the 5-way race, earning 50% and beating out the other four candidates combined. Mamdani does even better in head-to-head matches against disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo and corruption-dogged incumbent Mayor Eric Adams. The crosstabs are even more astonishing. Despite the breathless and baseless accusations of antisemitism, Zohran is winning 67% of Jews under age 45 and a whopping 85% of men ages 18-34. This second number is key as Democrats struggle to attract young men. One warning sign: a recent Pew poll shows Republicans with an 18-point lead among men in the Gen Z cohort.* In an ominous challenge to the separation of church and state, the Hill reports President Donald Trump released a memo Monday allowing federal employees to “attempt to persuade co-workers about why their religious beliefs are ‘correct.'” This memo cites “crosses, crucifixes and mezuzah,” as displays of religious indicia that should not result in disciplinary action. This bizarre and constitutionally dubious policy seems likely to lead to workplace discord.* In more Trump news, CBS reports Trump has ousted “Two top Justice Department antitrust officials.” According to sources, two deputies to Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater, who leads DOJ antitrust efforts, were “placed on administrative leave last week and fired on Monday for insubordination.” These two figures are Roger Alford, principal deputy assistant attorney general, and Bill Rinner, deputy assistant attorney general and head of merger enforcement. It is not clear why exactly Alford and Rinner were pushed out, but there has apparently been substantial strife within the administration over the antitrust cases against T-Mobile and Hewlett Packard Enterprise. AAG Slater is also overseeing antitrust lawsuits against Capital One, Apple, Google, and other major companies.* Finally, Wired reports the small Pacific island nation of Tuvalu is planning the first migration of an entire country. Tuvalu, which could be completely submerged by rising sea levels within the next 25 years, is seeking to resettle 280 Tuvaluans in Australia each year. This climate-driven mass migration is a stark sign of things to come if the international community continues to dither or deny the reality of the oncoming climate catastrophe. Today Tuvalu, tomorrow the world.This has been Francesco DeSantis, with In Case You Haven't Heard. Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

We take a look back at the week's headlines and some of our best stories from the past week.

Hawaii - Havaj - revisit with us a place in the USA and in Slovakia

In today's program, Gigi Green explores the ambient narratives of resistance, rights, and visibility that resonated through the 15th Dúhový – Rainbow – Pride in Bratislava. Later, Romana Grajcarová examines how these same values echo within Slovakia's Vietnamese community in an interview with artist Kvet Nguyen.

Radio International - The Ultimate Eurovision Experience is broadcast from Malta's Radio 105FM on Tuesday evenings from 2100 - 0059 hours CET. The show is broadcast live on Wednesday evenings from 1900 - 2300 hours CET on the Eurovision Radio International Mixcloud Channel as well as on the Facebook Page of Eurovision Radio International with an interactive chatroom.             AT A GLANCE - ON THE SHOW THIS WEEK  Interview with Björn Holmgren (Melodifestivalen 2025, Heat 3 Västeros) Interview with Miguel Bonello (Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025) FanVision Song Contest 2025: Interviews with Francisco Ribeiro (OGAE Switzerland) FanVision Song Contest 2025: Interview with Mikal Johansen (OGAE Denmark) FanVision Song Contest 2025: Interview with Claus Michael Fasting (OGAE Norway)  Eurovision Spotlight: Eurovision's Magical Numbers (Vol 2) with Alasdair Rendall Eurovision News with Javier Leal courtesy of www.escXtra.com Eurovision Birthday File with David Mann Eurovision Cover Spot with David Mann Eurovision Calendar with Javier Leal National Final Update for Junior and Eurovision Song Contest with Alain Forrotti  New Music Releases by Eurovision Artists  Your music requests   Björn Holmgren (Melodifestivalen 2025, Heat 3 in Västeras, Sweden) Interview with Björn Holmgren (Melodifestivalen 2025, Heat 3):  Melodifestivalen 2025: Sweden's national final is called Melodifestivalen and is the biggest one in the world of the Eurovision Song Contest. KAJ won Melodifestivalen 2025 and represented Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest in Basel coming 4th. Radio International went to some of the heats of Melodifestivalen and conducted interviews with the artists which all have been broadcast on the show but one. Björn Holmgren did not advance out of Heat 3 with the song "Rädda mig". You can see the Complete Coverage of Melodifestivalen 2025 - Heat 3 by clicking here. This also concludes the series of Melodifestivalen 2025 Interviews on Radio International.  Miguel Bonello (Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025) Interview with Miguel Bonello (Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025): On Sat. 08 Feb 2025 Miriana Conte and her song "Kant" (now "Serving") was selected by the jury and Maltese public to represent Malta at the Eurovision Song Contetest 2025 in Basel in May. Miriana successfully placed Malta in the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest ranking 17th at the end of the voting sequence. Earlier on in February 2025, Radio International conducted interviews with all the contestants at the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025 and more. This week, Radio International will broadcast an interview with Miguel Bonello who took part in the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025. The song he competed with in Semi Final 2and is called "Breaking the Cycle" which unfortunately did not advance into the Grand Final of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025.  You can watch all the interviews Radio International did at the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025  by visiting the Radio International YouTube Channel - or check out our complete coverage of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest - click here.       Eurovision Weekend - FanVision Song Contest 2025:  The Eurovision Weekend 2025 took place in Malta from 11 - 13 July 2025 following the victory of Martina Fennech in FanVision 2024 representing Malta. The FanVision Song Contest is part of the Euroision Weekend, where artists representing different Eurovision Fan Clubs, the OGAEs) performing covers of the Eurovision Song Contest. Artists from 11 Eurovision Fan Clubs from across Europe tooks part in the contest: Austria, Denmark, EC and OGAE Germany,  Italy, Malta, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. Over the next few weeks Radio International will broadcast the interviews with the participating artists and their songs.    Congratulations to David Schuler who represented OGAE Germany winning the FanVision Song Contest 2025 with the song  "Tous l'Univers" which was the Swiss Eurovision Song Contest 2021 entry by Gjon's Tears coming third.   Eurovision Weekend 2025 - The FanVision Song Contest Scoreboard 1.    (160)   OGAE Germany - David Schuler - Tous l'Univers (CH 2021) 2.    (157)   OGAE Switzerland - Francisco Ribeiro - Roi (FR 2019) 3.    (128)   OGAE Malta - Krista Sujak - It's my time (UK 2009) 4.    (118)   OGAE Poland - Baby Danka - Rim Tim Tagi Dim (CR 2024) 5.    (118)   OGAE Italy - Jessica Lipari - Tattoo (SWE 2023) 6.    (118)   OGAE Slovakia - Blazey "Bado" Fabian - Miss Kiss Kiss Bang (GE 2009) 7.    (117)   OGAE Slovenia - Zorica Prtovic - 1944 (UKR 2016) 8.    (107)   OGAE Austria - Elisabeth Sutrich - Mon Amour (FR 2024) 9.    (092)   OGAE Norway - Claus Michael Fasting - Amar Pelos Dois (POR 2017) 10.  (083)   EC Germany - Jonathan Perez Esquinas - Sugar (MOL 2021) 11.  (070)   OGAE Denmark - Mikal Johansen - Higher Ground (DEN 2018)     Radio International already broadcast the interview with the winner David for OGAE Germany and this week listen to the interviews with Francisco representing OGAE Switzerland singing "Roi" (France 2019 performed by Bilal Hassani). Then an interview with Mikal Johansen representing OGAE Denmark performing his cover of "Higher Ground" original by Rasmussen and  Claus Michael Fasting represented OGAE Norway with the winning song of the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 "Amar pelos dois" originally performed by Salvador Sobral.    The Eurovision Spotlight: The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 - Eurovision's Magic Numbers:   With  the start of the Summer 2025 the Eurovision Spotlight Team Members decided to continue where the left off last year at the end of summer with Eurovision's Magic Numbers. Enjoy this unique way of featuring the songs of the Eurovision Song Contest on the show. The Irish Master of Speech Dermot Manning will be continuing the series this week.  Eurovision News, New Song Releases, Birthday File, Coverspot, Eurovision Calendar:Also JP will be joined by David Mann for the Eurovision Birthday File and Eurovision Coverspot.  Javier stands in for Nick and will be presenting the Eurovision News courtesy of escXtra.com. There will be a lot of the great new releases of Eurovision artists on the show as well as great Eurovision Classics. Javier will be updating us on the upcoming Eurovision events in the Eurovision Calendar and Alain Forrotti gives us already some updates of the National Finals regarding the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2025 and the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 and and....     For full details of this week's Show Content and Play List - click here

July is Pride month. Ben Pascoe visited Bratislava duhovy pride and reports from there. He also talked with the organizers of the pride in the family march (Hrdi na rodinu).

We take a look back at the week's headlines and some of our best stories from the past week.

Pohoda, Slovakia's largest multi-genre festival, reached new heights in 2025, with director Mišo Kaščák calling it the best edition yet. The Slovak band Tolstoys recently performed at Glastonbury for the second year in a row. Listen to the interview with Tolstoys about what it takes to get to the top European festivals. Rappers Video Dave, US, and Bene, SK, presented their bilingual rap in Trenčín.

Automotive enthusiasts, buckle up for a three-course journey through the cutting edge of electric vehicles, the rarified world of elite car collections, and the rugged charm of an off-road icon reborn.We start by examining Volvo's latest electric offering—the 2025 EX40 Twin Motor Ultra AWD. Built in Belgium on the framework of last year's XC40, this all-electric crossover brings 402 horsepower and advanced pixel headlight technology to the premium EV segment. However, not everything about modern technology improves the driving experience. The EX40's touchscreen-centric control system requires four separate taps just to power down the vehicle—an unnecessarily complex solution to a problem that never existed. Despite these interface frustrations, the EX40 delivers competitive performance against rivals from Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and Genesis, though at a premium price point starting at $62,045 for the Ultra trim.We then explore automotive passion at its most extreme with a tour of the world's most impressive car collections. From Dmitry Lomakov's Soviet-era treasures in Moscow to Ken Lingenfelter's performance-focused American muscle cars, these collections represent deep dedication to automotive preservation. The Sheikh of Abu Dhabi specializes in off-road vehicles including a massive Mercedes monster truck, while the Sultan of Brunei reigns supreme with approximately 7,000 vehicles valued at $5 billion—including 600 Rolls-Royces, 450 Ferraris, and numerous one-off custom creations that exist nowhere else.Finally, we take the wheel of the 2024 Land Rover Defender, Slovakia's boxy tribute to off-road capability. With its distinctive silhouette and doors that "shut like an old Norge refrigerator," the Defender combines rugged charm with modern luxuries. The mild-hybrid powertrain delivers 395 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque, propelling this 5,000-pound fortress with surprising efficiency. While the $81,923 as-tested price positions it against premium competitors like the Lexus GX and Jeep Wagoneer, current import tariffs present challenges for Land Rover's supply chain.Whether you're fascinated by electric innovation, dream car collections, or capable off-roaders, join us for these automotive explorations that showcase the breadth and depth of today's automotive landscape. What would you choose: cutting-edge technology, historical preservation, or go-anywhere capability?Be sure to subscribe for more In Wheel Time Car Talk!---- ----- Want more In Wheel Time car talk any time? In Wheel Time is now available on Audacy! Just go to Audacy.com/InWheelTime where ever you are.----- -----Be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast provider for the next episode of In Wheel Time Podcast and check out our live multiplatform broadcast every Saturday, 10a - 12noonCT simulcasting on Audacy, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Twitch and InWheelTime.com.In Wheel Time Podcast can be heard on you mobile device from providers such as:Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music Podcast, Spotify, SiriusXM Podcast, iHeartRadio podcast, TuneIn + Alexa, Podcast Addict, Castro, Castbox, YouTube Podcast and more on your mobile device.Follow InWheelTime.com for the latest updates!Twitter: https://twitter.com/InWheelTimeInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/inwheeltime/https://www.youtube.com/inwheeltimehttps://www.Facebook.com/InWheelTimeFor more information about In Wheel Time Car Talk, email us at info@inwheeltime.comTags: In Wheel Time, automotive car talk show, car talk, Live car talk show, In Wheel Time Car Talk

Meryl chats with A.J. Sidransky about his new memoir, Plums, Paprika & Ghosts. It's a chronicle of the trip he took with his 27-year-old-son Jake to Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic, to discover their family roots. This “life changing” journey provided answers, as well as new questions, about their ancestors' experience there for 300 years, and their fate during The Holocaust. AJ Sidransky is the author of numerous mystery, thriller, and historical fiction books, including Forgiving Maximo Rothman, The Interpreter, and Incident at San Miguel. His newest work, Plums, Paprika & Ghosts, is a memoir about his pilgrimage with his son, Jake, to his grandfather's homeland in Hungary and Slovakia. He lives in Washington Heights, NY with his wife. Website: https://ajsidransky.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ajsidranskybooks/ People of the Book is a copyrighted work of Meryl Ain and Authors on The Air Global Radio Network. Website: merylain.com/ https://www.facebook.com/PeopleOfTheBookWithMerylAin facebook.com/MerylAinAuthor/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/455865462463744 Twitter: @DrMerylAin Instagram: meryl_ain #AuthorsOnTheAir #AuthorsOnTheAirGlobalRadioNetwork #AOTA #AJSidransky #Plums,Paprika&Ghosts #Hungary #Slovakia #AustroHungarianEmpire #Jake #CzechRepublic #TheHolocaust #Memoir #Grandfather #JewishIdentity #HungarianFood #ChickenPaprikash #PersonalResponsibility #Epiphany #FamilyResponsibility #FamilyTies #PeopleoftheBook #MerylAin #TheTakeawayMen #ShadowsWeCarry #RemembeToEat #ShortStories #LetsTalkJewishBooks #JewsLoveToRead

Spanning 770 kilometres from the Dukla Pass in the east to Devín Castle near Bratislava in the west, Slovakia's SNP Trail — Cesta Hrdinov SNP (Path of the Heroes of the Slovak National Uprising) — is more than just a long walk. It is an immersive experience that blends historical depth, physical challenge, and the raw beauty of Slovak landscapes. Whether you are a seasoned hiker or a motivated beginner, the SNP Trail offers a unique opportunity to test your limits and connect with both nature and history. Guest: Peter Kvačkay Host: Oscar Brophy

En esta muy variopinta edición de Mundofonías, viajamos desde el Bósforo hasta el Amazonas, pescando músicas por Gran Bretaña, Países Bajos, Eslovaquia, Bélgica, Corea, Portugal, Brasil y Perú. En nuestras #Mundofonews, presentamos algunos interesantes festivales que tendrán lugar próximamente: World Music Festival Bratislava; Hide & Seek, en Bruselas y Jeonju International Sori Festival, en Corea del Sur. In this very diverse edition of Mundofonías, we travel from the Bosphorus to the Amazon, fishing for music through Great Britain, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Belgium, Korea, Portugal, Brazil and Peru. In our #Mundofonews, we introduce some interesting festivals that will take place soon: World Music Festival Bratislava, Hide & Seek in Brussels, and Jeonju International Sori Festival in South Korea. - Chettini and the Turkish Trio - Mr Mahmoud - Oriental soul - Steven Kamperman - The chase - Prince Achmed - Páni Času - Bogurodzica - Zelené sihote - Anmoor - Dryade - Spire - Piri Band JC Crew - Sing Sing JC - Bonanza - Sofia Leão - Não seria tão triste - Mar - Maria João - Papalaty - Abundância - Sergio Krakowski - Elebara - Boca do tempo - Luca Vaillancourt y Los Pescadores - Cuerda semilla y velo - Cantes transatlánticos - Wayku - Por la Marginal - Selva selva - (Chettini and the Turkish Trio - Bagdad - Oriental soul)

In this episode of Hey Everybody, It's Fr. Edward, I take you along on my recent pilgrimage to the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine in Oklahoma City. I share how I first came to know his story, my regret in missing his martyrdom site while studying in Guatemala, and what this modern-day priest-martyr teaches us. Along the way, I recount an unsettling moment when I followed a car boldly advertising satanism—and reflect on the emptiness such a path offers. I also tell of a fascinating encounter with a Mormon missionary at the grave of Joseph Smith in Nauvoo, Illinois, and offer a quick look at the little-known Marian apparition of Mount Zvir in Slovakia. Finally, I wrap things up with a fun reflection on how the story of Superman mirrors the mission of Christ. You won't want to miss this spiritual road trip of reflections, encounters, and unexpected grace.

As many tourists and foreign residents have discovered, Slovakia is much more than its charming capital, Bratislava. From villages adorned with mysterious folk symbols to castles perched above deep valleys and trails leading into the rocky heights of Slovakia's many majestic mountains, the country is full of hidden gems. For those curious to explore beyond Slovakia's well-known destinations, we present our travel series called Country Roads. In this second episode, we journey to Muránska Planina National Park in central Slovakia. Here, we uncover the unique flora, fauna, and geology that make this relatively new national park so special. We also delve into the region's fascinating history and culture—once known as “the iron heart of Hungary.” Along the way, you'll get practical travel tips, discover how Slovak literature can enrich your trip, and even learn how feeding a ground squirrel might just make your adventure unforgettable.

This is the story of a small  Carpatho-Rusyn woman, who became know as Andy Warhol's mother. Ulia Zavacka ( pronounced Zavatski), was one of a very large farming family whose homeland today is in the North Eastern Slovakia. Today the general Rusyn population stretches across what is five European countries, including Ukraine, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary and Poland. Officials say that at the turn of the 20th century, approximately 250,000 Ruthenians, as they were known to US Immigration officials, emigrated to America where they worked in coal mines and steel mills of the northeast. Many settled in the Pittsburg. PA area. Rusyns spoke east slavic dialects that used the Cyrillic alphabet. Elaine and I spoke a lot about the similarities of both women. Julia followed her husband to America eventually having three sons and not speaking much English.  Nancy, Elaine's mother, had a huge advantage and was born in the United States and spoke two languages at a young age. Both women had Carpatho-Rusyn backgrounds. It was a tough time to raise a family especially in the Pittsburgh area yet Andy's father was a good business man and was able to put some money away for Andy  to go to college. Elaine shares stories of her mother moving to New York City at age of thirteen in order to help her family financially as a housekeeper/nanny/servant, as you'll hear Elaine tell the story. By moving to NYC, Nancy met her future husband who has a similar background as she. Keep in mind, that making money to help the family put food on the table was way more important than any kind of education.  Nancy eventually married a coal miner from Pennsylvania and fellow Rusyn which was comforting to her. Both of these families had lingering effects of being immigrants and children of immigrants. Of parents parenting similarly as to how they had been parented.  They had a lot to overcome and it can take decades if not generations to assimilate.Elaine's academic studies where shocking to her parents. They couldn't really understand why she continued with higher education because that was very foreign to both of them.And course, Andy went to what's now known as Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and completed a Bachelor of Fine Art Degree in 1949.Julia was an artist of her own right. She was very creative especially when she was younger and in her home country. So much of her artistic talent influenced Andy and they worked closely together on projects for many years as she lived in Manhattan with Andy for almost twenty years. Julia was featured in his artistic projects with his coworkers on a regular basis.https://www.warhol.org/andy-warhols-life/ SHLTMM YOUTUBE CHANNEL LINK:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_BmWJpLNvAElaine Rusinko INSTAGRAM: rusinko17 Other Carpatho-Rusyn Related Social Media: FB: Carpatho-Rusyns Everywhere, The Lost Warhols by Karen Bystedt, Carpatho-Rusyn Society, Carpatho-Rusyn Society's Heritage Radio Program, Carpatho-Rusyn Research Center, The Andy Warhol Museum, rusyn.sk/Rusini Slovenska IG: rusinko17, warholfoundation, carpathorusynsociety_, rusynart, carpatho_rusyns_of_pa, thewarholmuseum For more information about Elaine Rusinko and her Book "Andy Warhol's Mother, The Woman Behind the Artist, contact Lesley Rains at "The Pittsburgh University Press Email: LRAINS@upress.pitt.edu  "Should Have Listened To My Mother" is an ongoing conversation about mothers/female role models and the roles they play in our lives. Jackie's guests are open and honest and answer the question, are you who you are today because of, or in spite of, your mother and so much more. You'll be amazed at what the responses are.Gina Kunadian wrote this 5 Star review on Apple Podcast:SHLTMM TESTIMONIAL GINA KUNADIAN JUNE 18, 2024“A Heartfelt and Insightful Exploration of Maternal Love”Jackie Tantillo's “Should Have Listened To My Mother” Podcast is a treasure and it's clear why it's a 2023 People's Choice Podcast Award Nominee. This show delves into the profound impact mother and maternal role models have on our lives through personal stories and reflections.Each episode offers a chance to learn how different individuals have been shaped by their mothers' actions and words. Jackie skillfully guides these conversations, revealing why guests with similar backgrounds have forged different paths.This podcast is a collection of timeless stories that highlight the powerful role of maternal figures in our society. Whether your mother influenced you positively or you thrived despite challenges, this show resonates deeply.I highly recommend “Should Have Listened To My Mother” Podcast for its insightful, heartfelt and enriching content.Gina Kunadian"Should Have Listened To My Mother" would not be possible without the generosity, sincerity and insight from my guests. In 2018/2019, in getting ready to launch my podcast, so many were willing to give their time and share their personal stories of their relationship with their mother, for better or worse and what they learned from that maternal relationship. Some of my guests include Nationally and Internationally recognized authors, Journalists, Columbia University Professors, Health Practitioners, Scientists, Artists, Attorneys, Baritone Singer, Pulitzer Prize Winning Journalist, Activists, Freighter Sea Captain, Film Production Manager, Professor of Writing Montclair State University, Attorney and family advocate @CUNY Law; NYC First Responder/NYC Firefighter, Child and Adult Special Needs Activist, Property Manager, Chefs, Self Help Advocates, therapists and so many more talented and insightful women and men.Jackie has worked in the broadcasting industry for over four decades. She has interviewed many fascinating people including musicians, celebrities, authors, activists, entrepreneurs, politicians and more.A big thank you goes to Ricky Soto, NYC based Graphic Designer, who created the logo for "Should Have Listened To My Mother".Check out our website for more background information: https://www.jackietantillo.com/Or more demos of what's to come at https://soundcloud.com/jackie-tantilloLink to website and show notes: https://shltmm.simplecast.com/Or Find SHLTMM Website here: https://shltmm.simplecast.com/Listen wherever you find podcasts: https://www.facebook.com/ShouldHaveListenedToMyMotherhttps://www.facebook.com/jackietantilloInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/shouldhavelistenedtomymother/https://www.instagram.com/jackietantillo7/LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackie-tantillo/YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/@ShouldHaveListenedToMyMother

Ben Pascoe reports from the 17th Biela Vrana (White Crow) awards which recognize courageous civil actions in Slovakia. (rerun)

We take a look back at the week's headlines and some of our best stories from the past week.

Three and a half years into Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, European Union countries have agreed to slap yet more sanctions on Moscow. Slovakia had been blocking the package over concerns regarding a separate EU proposal phasing out gas imports from Russia. This is the EU's 18th package of sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine.Also on the programme: we hear from a British surgeon working in Gaza about what he calls a concerning pattern of injuries in patients being brought to hospital from aid centres; and the North Korean defectors making their debut in a new K-pop boy band.(Photo: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks during a press point on 18th package of sanctions against Russia in Brussels, Belgium, June 10, 2025. Credit: REUTERS/Yves Herman)

Pohoda, Slovakia's largest multi-genre festival, reached new heights in 2025, with director Mišo Kaščák calling it the best edition yet. Iggy Pop delivered an unforgettable show, while Africa Express took the stage not only in solidarity with their fellow musicians from Massive Attack—who couldn't attend this year—but also as a gesture of deep respect for the audience. The legendary Queens of the Stone Age from the U.S. ignited a wild mosh pit, as did local punk powerhouse Fvck_Kvlt from Trnava. Renowned American jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington and Slovakia's own jazz icon Peter Lipa each received standing ovations for their sets. Other standout live performances included female performers Skye from Morcheeba, Anoushka Shankar as well as Slovak musicians Jana Kirschner, and Katarzia, all of whom captivated the crowd. The Czech band Dukla surprised fans with a duet alongside Ela Tolstova, lead singer of the Slovak band Tolstoys, who recently performed at Glastonbury for the second year in a row. The festival's atmosphere and unforgettable moments were captured over four days in a special report and series of interviews by Martina Greňová Šimkovičová.

In this episode, Chris McCurley is joined by Jordan Arnold, preaching minister at Falls Church Church of Christ in Virginia. Together they explore one of the most foundational and personal questions in faith: Who is God? Drawing from his background in narrative theology and years of ministry both in the U.S. and Slovakia, Jordan offers a rich and thoughtful perspective on God's nature, character, and how we can truly know Him.   Connect with Us: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dearchurch_podcast/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564673680147 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DearChurch   Website: https://www.rippleoflight.org/ ROL Facebook: http://facebook.com/rippleoflight ROL Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rippleoflight ROL YouTube: http://youtube.com/rippleoflight ROL Rumble: http://rumble.com/rippleoflight   Have a question? Email Chris at chris.mccurley@rippleoflight.com.   #WhoIsGod #DearChurchPodcast #JordanArnold #ChrisMcCurley #ChristianPodcast #FallsChurchCOC #NarrativeTheology #KnowingGod #FaithInCulture #HardingUniversity

In this edition of the Slovakia Today programme, we continue with the interview with professor Julieta Rotaru, a contract lecturer of Romani and Sanskrit at the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO) in Paris, who attended the annual conference Aktuálny stav rómskych štúdií (Current State of Romani Studies) organised by the State Scientific Library in Prešov, eastern Slovakia. Next up is Roman Čonka, the editor-in-chief of the only Romani print newspaper in Slovakia, about its past, present, and future.

Ben Pascoe sat down with Slovak-Americans Thomas Skladony, Katarina Skladony and Jan Surotchak to discuss how American Slovaks see Slovakia today. We also discussed the Friends of SLovakia organization, of which Thomas and Jan are board members, what it does and how it brings Slovaks and Americans together.

In today's episode of Slovakia Today we head to the historic mining town of Banská Štiavnica for the sixth round of our Mysterious Slovakia competition, exploring its underground tunnels, cultural treasures, and poetic legacy. Then, we celebrate a small milestone — the 10th episode of Slovak Sound Check — with reflections, recaps, and a look at how far our learners Sean and Lubna have come on their Slovak language journey.

This week's show is sponsored in part by EPIC-MRA Public Opinion Research MIRS News