For me, this day marked the highlight of the entire trip. I have wanted to see snow since I was born, and experiencing it the way I did made the wait worth it. The mountainous terrain we hiked to get to the caverns were draped in snow. There is a saying that “the world is your oyster,” and how magnificent it is to be in a place that shimmered like the surface of a pearl!
The way up was a pleasant experience as well. I talked for a while with members from the UK delegation who were all pleasurable to talk to. Prior to the trip I had a certain anxiety about interacting with people, and after it is all over I am proud to say my confidence really increased. Once we got to the entrance to the cave, our delegation had a huge snowball fight. We were having so much fun in our folly while the other delegations smiled at us, amused that we were enjoying snow as much as we did. As Floridians, an opportunity like this does not come by very often.
As for the caverns themselves, they were an adventure like no other. Stalactites and stalagmites tacitly spoke about a lengthy history of erosion. Our tour guide was insecure about her English, but she was doing perfectly fine. The most intriguing aspect about this cave was a formation that hung from the ceiling which looked like an elegant piece of drapery. A light shone upon it to illustrate that it was translucent. It is difficult to imagine such a masterpiece is the result of naturally-occurring geological processes.
Mesmerizing formation in the caves.
After we explored the caves, we went to Bouzov Castle, a castle made for observing the trade routes among Olomouc and other as well as a stronghold for protection and capture during periods of conflict. It looked like something out of a storybook. We were shown into the various rooms of the castle, seeing windows architecturally built in a way to convenience archers preparing for attack, a kitchen and dining room prepared in a way for the Christmas holiday, and rooms containing secret staircases. The Christmas mannequins stuck out to me as they were strange depictions of frightening monsters. On the chandelier in the dining room was a witch riding on her broom stick, something I have seen all throughout Prague as well. I never received a clear answer as to why there were so many witches, but later I found out that witches are a huge part of Czech folklore and that every April 30 a major holiday called “Walpurgisnacht” is celebrated involving festivals and the burning of witch effigies. For a brief few hours in the day, we strutted like royalty.
Later that night was the beginning of our first NMUN conference. I was extremely nervous for my first time, but with the help of my partner and by putting faith in my own abilities I managed to get things going for myself. The agenda was set to two to one as we hoped and Amy quickly began writing a paper while Russia, Brazil, Jordan, and I (China) began planning a paper as well.
