Charles bridge, Prague, The Czech Republic / Photo by admin

One way in which one can live in Prague and earn money, is through becoming a TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) teacher. Anyone can become a TEFL teacher, as long as they can speak English and have completed a TEFL course. There are various TEFL job locations throughout the country, and many in Prague, the capital city. Castles and towers galore, Prague is a truly beautiful place and one of the most highly preserved medieval destinations in Europe. It’s a UNESCO world heritage site, but despite the rich historic influence there is a deeply modern and cosmopolitan feel, attracting tourists and travellers both young and old. There are plenty of other TEFL locations however, for example one popular area is Liberec – the once ‘Second city of Bohemia’ – which is nestled in the Jizera mountains.

Summer can be very hot, and winter can be very cold – you get the best of both worlds. For those who love winter pursuits, high levels of snowfalls in mountain areas means there is no shortage of outdoor activities such as skiing. Summer is perfect for hiking and exploring the many beautiful regions that the country has to offer. There are hundreds of famous sights to visit year-round, and plenty of potential tours and trips to keep you busy. As a TEFL teacher, there are varying contract durations with varying wage rates and various benefits. You could be teaching children in a public or private language school, or find a position teaching adults in a business or university context. Employers will support and guide you throughout the experience too, meaning you can really ease in to your position as an English teacher.

The Czech people are friendly and welcoming, and very eager to learn English, so as a TEFL teacher you will be greatly received. After becoming TEFL qualified you will have a valuable commodity that is in high demand across the globe – the ability to teach English. This allows you not only the opportunity to experience the world and its many cultures in the most cost-effective way, but to make a real difference to those you are teaching, providing them with a skill that they can carry with them in to future endeavours.

For more information about TEFL courses and the hundreds of TEFL jobs available worldwide, visit: https://teflengland.co.uk/.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Janos Korom Dr.

I am talking about Vlkolínec, which is now a part of the city of Ružomberok. It lies at an altitude of 718 m in Revúca Valley, south of the rocky mountain massif Sidorovo, also called Žiar (1099 m asl), which belongs to the mountains of Veľká Fatra.

Vlkolínec is in fact a reservation of folk architecture, a kind of outdoor museum of medieval village with wooden houses, that are typical for the mountain areas. This is the best preserved, most complete and most original collection of folk buildings in the Slovak Republic, spreading on an area of ​​797 hectares.

Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Janos Korom Dr.

Archaeological findings confirm the existence of a fort on the hill Sidorovo already 2,500 years ago. The name of the village is supposedly derived from the ancient presence of wolves in the area (these animals can be still seen here). The first written mention of Vlkolínec dates from 1376, where is mentioned as one of the streets of Ružomberok. Originally, there were just a few houses, although the number of houses and population gradually increased.

Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Janos Korom Dr.

At present, there are 73 listed buildings, 55 residential houses. Of these, 18 are now permanently settled with 35 inhabitants. Owners of other houses are here just seasonally. Everything is built of wood, including a local landmark – a two-storey wooden belfry from 1770.

Interesting is also a timbered well from 1860, previously the only source of drinking water for the whole village. One of the few brick buildings is a local Classicist-Baroque Church from 1875. Also the local cemetery is worth a visit.

The whole complex is rare also due to the fact that it was not affected by any new constructions. Already in 1977 the village of Vlkolínec was declared the Reservation of Folk Architecture Monuments, and in 1993 inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

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Area of Gennargentu National Park includes Gennargentu mountain that is mainly represented as the largest mountain complex in Sardinia, which peaks reach maximum heights of up to 1834 m above sea level (Punta La Marmora). During the brightest days you can see the entire coast of the island from those peaks. Other highest peaks of the mountain are Bruncu Spina (1.828m), Punta Florisa (1.822m), Punta Paolina (1.792m), Punta Erba Irdes (1.703m), Bruncu Allasu (1.701m), Monte Iscudu (1.676m) and Monte Spada (1.595m).

View Gennargentu National Park – mountains, meadows, rocks, canyons, valleys, forests, shrubs, beaches, cliffs and crystalline sea Sardinia, Italy in a larger map

Gennargentu mountains are connected to the mountains della Barbagia and extends to the sea where forms the bay of the Golfo di Orosei, wildest place over the Mediterranean.

The original idea of ​​establishing a national park in this area relates to people rather than nature itself. Recent local research has indicated that the area starts to slowly deteriorate and devastate and there was a noticeable decline in population. Unemployment also reached alarming values, the traditional sources of livelihood are dying and lack of employment alternatives.

Already in 1962 a plan to restore Sardinia was established, knowing that this exceptional region contains all the elements that clearly indicate the specific nature: richness of vegetation, flora, fauna, strong traditional economy (grazing) and also a very important historical and cultural aspects.

The climate of the national park is Mediterranean, with rainfall mainly concentrated in autumn, winter and spring. The higher mountain areas are characterized by a cool Mediterranean climate, which contributed to the maintenance of a typical high mountain vegetation. The snowfalls are frequent during the winter season but the length and thickness of snow cover is low.

View Gennargentu National Park – mountains, meadows, rocks, canyons, valleys, forests, shrubs, beaches, cliffs and crystalline sea Sardinia, Italy in a larger map

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