Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Cover Your Knees!

This morning we bid "adijo" to Grandma and Grandpa Ebben, so now we are really on our own here.  It was special having them here with us and we can't thank them enough for helping with the move and putting up with jetlag, sick kids, and three days in their apartment with no heat or hot water.  However, they did survive (and in reasonably good condition, we think) and they have some war stories to bring home.

After seeing them off early this morning, I decided to go for a run up castle hill and around the paths on top.  About halfway through, I was stopped by an older gentleman who was out walking.  He pointed at my knees and said something in Slovenian.  I asked, "Is it too cold for shorts?"  He responded in English in a matter-of-fact, everybody-knows-this-but-you tone, "You must cover your knees or it will be very bad.  Very, very bad to leave them open.  You need to dress yourself fully."  And then he continued walking.

I can't fault him for scolding me because I truly believe he thought he was doing me a favor (and who knows, maybe he was!).  We had heard about some traditions like this that Slovenes are very adamant about, such as never riding in the car with the windows open because drafts lead to poor health, and never walking around the house in bare feet.  So, maybe I'll have to change my ways.  As they say, when in Ljubljana...

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