Trip to Hodkovce castle

I wanted to take a close look at this manor for a while now, but I never got around to it. I know that it has a beautiful garden and that it is maintained by rather unconventional caretakers.

It’s a lovely summer day, and today is my mom’s name day. She invited us to a restaurant for a celebratory lunch. We drove for about half an hour to Salaš, where the kids can see farm animals. They raise sheep, chickens, and rabbits here. We spent about an hour feeding the sheep before moving on. We are heading to the nearby village of Hodkovce. This is where the manor we will visit today is located.

I park in the area. As soon as I parked, a man approached us. He explained where we could go, what we could see, and where we could have coffee or something else to refresh ourselves. It was a nice welcome.

We head towards the garden. It’s the middle of summer, and all the flowers in the French garden are beautifully in bloom. It’s an enchanting sight.

The old manor in the background adds a unique atmosphere to the scene.

This Baroque-Classical manor was built by Štefan Csáky in 1702. Later, his descendants renovated it and created a magnificent French park. They had furniture and equipment transferred to the manor from the nearby Spiš Castle, which they owned.

The castle was not comfortable enough and no longer served its purpose as a representative residence. The lords sought comfort and luxury, which the manor in Hodkovce provided. Additionally, Spiš Castle burned down in 1780. Some theories suggest that the owners may have set it on fire themselves to avoid paying high taxes on it.

We continue our walk along the path to the old ruins in the middle of the grove. The remnants of the walls are overgrown with old trees. It has a peculiar, mysterious character. It contrasts with the colorful garden behind us.

These goats take care of mowing the grass. It’s very clever. The goats graze on the grass, so people don’t have to mow it, and they also get healthy goat milk.

There is also a chapel and a cemetery for the Csáky family in the park. It’s a pleasant walk. A quiet place where there aren’t many tourists.

Today, the manor is used as a social services facility. There is social tourism here, which I really like. People with intellectual disabilities are integrated into society to the extent possible. They take care of the manor, guide visitors, sell products they’ve made, and serve in the cafe.

At the end of our walk, we stopped for coffee. My mom, my two children, and I. My mom ordered coffee and picked out some candies to give to the kids. Just then, the waiter brought our coffee. He was a resident of the facility. He smiled and waited. He was waiting to see if we would offer him some candies too. We offered him, and he was very pleased. After a while, he came back to the table and asked if we still had any candies. It took so little to make him very happy.

I believe that projects like this make a lot of sense. They help bridge the world of people with intellectual disabilities with real life and with healthy people. It’s not just that they learn from us; I believe we also have a lot to learn from them. They have a different perspective on the world and life. It’s definitely simpler, and as the saying goes, “there is beauty in simplicity.” Sometimes, very little is needed to be happy, and there’s no need to complicate life unnecessarily.

Thank you.