Autumn meeting of members and supporters of Children’s Mensa – September 2013
On September 28th, 2013, I participated for the first time in a joint weekend meeting of members and supporters of Children’s Mensa in Sokolov, near Karlovy Vary.
On Friday, we stayed at a hotel in the middle of a beautiful castle park, and it was equally nice inside. Two rooms were equipped with optical illusions and puzzles, a lot of people were sitting in the meeting room, and board games were spread out on the tables. Within a few moments, the hall turned into a paper chaos - because we were cutting, gluing, and discovering the magic of Möbius strips, which have only one side and one edge. When we had enough and were sufficiently decorated with these strips, a pleasant organizer, Dana Havlová, introduced us to each other. Soon I found myself in a group of players who were willing to give me an induction into the game. One of the teenagers was a Brazilian boy, Rangel, who spoke to us in English. In the evening, we had an opportunity to visit the wellness centre. It was not too big, but we warmed ourselves in the sauna, and cooled down in the whirlpool. These were places where we could get to know each other better.
We were welcomed in the morning by the sun, and we went out willingly in teams to set out off on a journey full of mysterious messages. We kept deciphering them, and walked slowly until we got to a picturesque Bernard farmhouse. To our disappointment, we found no peace to roam through the individual buildings with a show of folk crafts. The reason was that we were not the only group in the farmhouse – besides us, a meeting of 300 motorbikers was in progress, so there was rumbling on the farm, tumbling, playing... Some teams did an uncommissioned task, and counted 300 motorcycles – crazy! We gradually left the farm and walked towards the view of the George mine. Even this view had its poetry in the form of coloured layers of soil, and illustrated the mining to us, which is inherent in the Sokolov region.
In the afternoon, games and lectures for adults followed, and everything went on until the late night hours - so much were we absorbed in the games. For a few enthusiasts, a presentation of the skills of one of the organizers, Mr. Čavojský, followed in the form of a great night treasure hunt, with a great reward. We returned completely exhausted...
In the morning, we played again at will, discussing, some of us taking IQ tests. My first time with cool and playful people passed too quickly, leaving only final decoration ceremonies, goodbyes, and a “schnitzel” for our journey home. See you again! And many thanks to the organizers!
Radka Janků
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5.10.2013