How to awaken sleeping beauties

English version below.

What makes traveling a special experience? Probably not so much the places you visit or the food you try, but rather the people you meet. That is the most valuable experience we had in Mirna. We shared many home-cooked meals there, nights of thunder and lightning inside and outside the castle walls, and we played and sang together more than once (with the Native American prayer flute, the dulcimer, or the hang drum).

For our hosts Kailash and Lukaya, it is extremely important to live in harmony with nature. Both are rooted in the traditions of Native Americans. For example, there were small prayers and ceremonies when lighting the first campfire or planting trees. Everything was done with great respect for the earth and the ecosystem. We may not share the same belief system, but we also believe that it would contribute a lot to a better world if more people showed greater appreciation for their environment.

The castle itself was destroyed by partisans in 1942 to prevent it from falling into the hands of the Nazis, and it was restored by Marko Marin between 1962 and 2015. However, the place is still a construction site. Accordingly, the work there was not always easy, but we felt like we were contributing to a project for future generations. We cleaned up, cleaned rooms, carried things in and out, but also built a fireplace, planted trees, cooked apple sauce, and created an improvised cooking shelter that was already being used actively. The castle was not only a place where we worked, but also a place where we lived. In between, there was always time for conversation and jokes, so we quickly felt like a big family. Therefore, saying goodbye to this unique place and the special people here is a little difficult for us. But we will definitely come back one day to see how the project has developed by then.

If you want to learn more about the castle, you can visit its website: https://lukafeldt.wixsite.com/wismetar

In addition, we will soon post a link to the fundraising page as soon as it is online.

What makes travelling special? It's less about the places you visit or the food you try, but mostly about the people you meet. This is probably the most precious thought we take with us as we leave Mirna, the castle and its people behind. We shared with them many, delicious, home-cooked meals, nights of thunder and lightning spent inside and outside the castle, played and sung music (on the native American prayer flute, the dulcimer or the hang drum).

For Kailash and Lukaya, our hosts, it was extremely important to do everything in unity with nature. They are strongly rooted in Native American culture. There were little prayers, for example, when we lit the first campfire or before planting trees. Everything happened with a lot of respect towards the earth and the ecosystem. We may not share the same belief system, but we think it would help a lot to create a better world if more people started to pay more respect to their environment.

The castle itself was destroyed by partisans in 1942 so it wouldn't be taken over by the Nazis and was rebuilt by Marko Marin between 1962 and 2015. However, the whole place is still a construction site and there is still a lot of work to be done. The tasks were not always easy, but we felt we were contributing towards preserving the castle for future visitors. Thus we cleared, cleaned and carried things, but also planted trees, made mashed apples, built a fireplace and the little seating and cooking area we established has already been used frequently. The castle wasn't only a place where we worked, but also a place where we lived and in between everything we always had time for chatting and joking. We felt like a big family after a short time.

So thanks to this very special place and the many great people we have met and worked with we are even a bit sad to leave.

If you want to read more about Mirna Castle check out their Website: https://lukafeldt.wixsite.com/wismetar

We will also include a link to their funding website in one of our next posts as it goes online.