After two days of hitchhiking, we’ve been with Jiri Pacinek in Lindava since the day before yesterday. Hitchhiking in a country where we don’t understand the language at all is a new experience for us, therefore we have to be prepared to walk with our big rucksacks. However, a ‘Dekuji’ (‘Thank you’ in Czech) puts a smile on the drivers’ faces. In Jiri’s studio and in all of Lindava it’s the calm before the storm as tomorrow the International Glass Symposium begins, both here and in the neighbouring town, Novi Bor. So we’ve been scrubbing the floor in the studio and with the help of the broom making the courtyard shine. Upon arrival we were given a beautiful clean guest bedroom with a large bed. The next morning we slept in and then helped Jiri and his men. The three men, one in dungarees the other with cigarette in mouth and the boss Jiri, produce large and heavy sculptures in this small but very nice glass studio: horse heads, torsos, fish and masks with strange facial expressions. The two dogs doze in front of the furnace while the men enjoy a little flirt with us girls and teach us a few new words. Today we visited Ajeto, a glass company just around the corner. There is so much going on, that it takes a long time of standing and watching to take everything in. The furnace has six openings, where four teams of five people produce piece after piece, while always having time for a joke. Everyone grooves to the music coming from the big hi-fi. We found the atmosphere in the big Ajeto-studio really captivating and we discovered so many new things.