Living in the Mountains

In my conversations with friends, I often find myself saying "When we lived in the mountains" and realizing just how much that experience changed me. In 1998, we decided we had enough of the bright lights of the big city and moved to the mountains in Northern Bohemia, about hour and a half away from Prague. I've spent a decade there and that's a significant portion of my life ... significant enough to mention it here.

The Dul - Part 1

The decision to move out of Prague was quick and simple - we just wanted to escape the city. My sister suggested her favorite area, we drove through the mountains, posted a note that we were looking for a place to rent and, almost miraculously, found one. A brand new house in the village of Josefuv Dul, which is at the end of the road. Beyond us, there was only the water reservoir and deep woods. Each Spring brought a burst of wildflowers in the meadows, each fall splendid colors and winters were fairytale white. But if there is someone who really appreciates the outdoors, it was our Labrador Barkley and our two cats. And, yes, there was gardening too.

But access to nature was not the only thing that turned out great. We've gained meaningful time with our friends, they actually joked that their quality of life went up just because now they had a place to go on the weekends. Instead of seeing them at parties where everyone talks a small talk, we got to to really spend time together - share meals, take long walks, relax in front of the fire. We have around fifty such visits a year - regular weekends, long holiday weekend, sometimes a week or two. Ken Nash holds the record - he lived with us for three months and I was sorry when he moved to Prague.

Batman's Cave

After five years, we moved to a very fancy house on the other side of Liberec our friend's nicknamed the Batman's Cave. It was built by a Dutch-based Czech architect for himself and he wasn't quite ready to leave Holland. The house sat isolated on a hill, overlooking a huge property and mountain vistas. Unique in its design, it sported nine-meter high ceilings, glassed walls, extensive roof covered by slate and grass great equipment. I watched incredible sunsets from my office and often a herd of elk walking around the house. We only stayed there a little over a year, but we got married in this house - what better place, it had its own cathedral look.

The Dul - Part 2

We returned to Josefuv Dul for another four years in a different house. This one was in such horrible state that we had to do a lot of scrubbing, painting and repairs before it was ready to move in. But once we settled in, we realized that its normal "human scale" really worked for us. It was cosy, simpler and had an open fireplace ... the real thing! We added a splash of colors on the walls to keep us happy through cold winters and I think that if I were to build my own house, it would be very much like this one.

The Experience

The experience of living in the mountains was not just about nature and homes. It was about the people, the overall slower lifestyle, the difficulties of getting simple things done when you are a long way away from the closest service or store. Shoveling snow is a serious part of it, something that may be exciting for the occassional guest, but gets pretty tiresome if you live there. But if you are a lonely old lady, it's likely that your neighbors will do it for you. They will also bring you groceries and take your dog to the vet ... that is, if the vet didn't just stop by to check.

It was interesting to live in a small community. Just seeing how important the small achievements were to people - any events, school trips, sport matches were subject for the local paper ... all these things are meaningful to people and they are celebrated. If you live in the city, your neighbors don't get to know that your kid won a math contest. Actually, they probably don't know your kid's name. In a village, that kid gets congratulations. There is time to stop by your neighbors house and talk over the fence. There is time to build a huge pyramid of logs for the community bonfire during "Witches night". And there is no problem getting firemen to oversee its safety - they are the ones who cut the trees for it.

There is authenticity to all this and the experience feels very real. Sometimes too real, when you realize most people there are unemploeyed, that the ski lifts barely make enough to pay off loans or look at the rates of alcoholism. But I generally found the mountain people to be friendly - tough and friendly. The weather is the king. Being stuck someplace in a car can be dangerous and they just wouldn't pass you without asking whether you need help. We quickly learned to do that too.

Living there changes you. I can't say I missed the city. We came to Prague about 4 times a month, usually for some cultural event. Then we went back at night, putting on tire chains at 2 a.m. just to get home, all dressed up from the theatre... it just changes you.