Slovakia

Our train from Krakow to Budapest made one stop in Slovakia. We sat at the station for a while before it occurred to me that I was missing a big opportunity to plant a magnet in yet another country. I fished one out of my pack and hurried to the open door of the train. The platform was almost empty already and I was afraid to go outside the train. I leaned out and saw a woman walking my way with her babushka and shopping bag, obviously local. I motioned her to come my way and she did. I asked if she spoke English and she shook her head so I put my hand out, palm up and pointed to hers. She put hers out, I put the magnet in it, turned and ran back to my seat. My son asked if I'd given her a magnet. He said he saw her look at it in a puzzled way then drop it into her bag.

I don't know where Poland ended and Slovakia began other than the stop at the border. We passed through mountainous land and wide green valleys much like the eastern part of the United States. There were fields with lots of orange poppies and some purple flowers that added a nice touch of colors. There were lots of large gardens along the tracks that were being worked manually by mostly older people.