It is thought there could be the remains of a settlement nearby A local man has found a unique Bronze Age dagger on the banks of the Slanec stream in Hriňová The dagger is probably between 3200 and 3600 years old More specific data will be available after more detailed research by preservation offices “It is the oldest finding from the area around our town and may reveal significant new historical connections to the region,” said the Hriňová project manager Roman coins from the first century have been the oldest discoveries from the area The bronze dagger was particularly well preserved and was handed to the Regional Monument Board in Banská Bystrica Archaeologist Ján Beljak from the Zvolen department of the Archaeological Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Nitra said that the finding is unique because nothing from this time period has ever been found in the mountain area of Hriňová before “We are assuming that in the future we will also discover a Bronze Age settlement in the same vicinity,” he said June 17 (TASR correspondent) – Catholic bishop of Slovak origin Capuchin David Bartimej Tencer consecrated a unique wooden church in the Icelandic town of Reydarfjordur on Saturday Foreign and European Affairs Minister Miroslav Lajcak and Finance Minister Peter Kazimir in attendance The wooden church is in the shape of the San Damiano Cross and is 16 metres long and 12 metres wide It was made in the Slovak town of Hrinova (Banska Bystrica region) out of wood from the Podpolanie area It was subsequently dismantled and transported to Iceland as wood is very precious on the rocky island is the bishop of Reykjavik and the top representative of the Catholic Church in Iceland The local parish in Reydarfjordur is administered by a community of three Capuchin brothers from Slovakia led by Peter Kovacik “We had a very strong reason to stay here one day longer after Friday’s (June 16) working meeting with Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson The reason is that a Slovak bishop has been working in Iceland He’s made enormous efforts to build a wooden church for a small Catholic community that represents around 3.5-4 percent of the Icelandic population,” said Fico following the consecration ceremony “Following communications with the bishop we’ve helped somewhat via the Slovak Catholic Church I’m happy that such a piece of Slovakia from Hrinova is representing our country in Iceland,” stated Fico They stand in an extremely attractive location that lures thousands of domestic and foreign tourists every year and they are the result of the work of volunteers The Poľana and Javorinka shelters in the Poľana massif near the town of Hriňová, central Slovakia, are open to everyone, writes the website My Novohrad together with young volunteers from abroad immediately restored two stone chalets on the Javorinka ridge They named them Poľana and Javorinka," said the Regional Tourism Organisation Novohrad and Podpoľanie adding that it is possible to stay in both facilities during a trip around the Podpoľanie region Poľana is a large extinct volcano in the heart of Slovakia It is considered to be one of the best preserved in central Europe The Poľana shelter has capacity for 12-15 people with their own mat and sleeping bag in the attic The price for the entire place for the weekend is €10 A helping hand in the heart of Europe offers for you Slovakia travel guide you need to register for an overnight stay at the Hriňová Tourist Information Office (TIC) and take the key to the chalet during opening hours as the chalet is locked," said the organisation The capacity of the Javorinka shelter is eight people on the bed with their own sleeping bag and mat began to serve tourists in the summer of 2021 after approximately a year of renovation work a table and a stove where tourists can quickly prepare something to eat There is a well with drinking water nearby The slope on Kešovka offers a panoramic view of the Hriňovské Lazy rural area and the wide area of the educational trail leading to the Bystrô waterfall particularly attractive in the vicinity of the shelter The location is on the ascent route to Zadná Poľana Katruška and Zbojnícky Tanec The shepherd's hut turned into an attractive tourist shelter thanks to an eight thousand euro grant which the Banská Bystrica county provided through its Development Agency and OOCR Novohrad and Podpoľanie the Javorinka shelter was already serving tourists in the area for several years It was also originally a shepherd's hut Tourists can use it for inexpensive accommodation all year round A helping hand in the heart of Europe thanks to the Slovakia travel guide with more than 1,000 photos and hundreds of tourist spots A detailed travel guide to the Tatras introduces you to the whole region around the Tatra mountains Lost in Bratislava? It's impossible with our City Guide The bishop of Reykjavík who is also the top representative of the Catholic Church in Iceland consecrated a unique wooden church in the Icelandic town of Reydarfjordur on June 17 the church was made in the Slovak town of Hriňová (Banská Bystrica Region) using wood from the Podpol’anie region the church was dismantled and transported to Iceland “You will not find a single house or church of this type in Iceland” Tencer said The 12-metre tall wooden church is in the shape of the St Damian Crucifix is the bishop of Reykjavík and the top representative of the Catholic Church in Iceland The local parish in Reydarfjördur is administered by a community of three Capuchin brothers from Slovakia led by Peter Kováčik Iceland is mostly an Evangelical country; out of about 350,000 Icelanders “The Catholic community is not very big and in this rests its charm,” said Tencer “I know many of its members in person.” Foreign and Affairs Minister Miroslav Lajčák and Finance Minister Peter Kažimír also attended the ceremony “We had a very strong reason to stay here an extra day after Friday’s (June 16) working meeting with Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson,” said Fico following the consecration ceremony as cited by the TASR newswire “This reason is a Slovak bishop who has been working in Iceland he has made enormous efforts to build a wooden church for a small Catholic community that represents around 3.5-4 percent of the Icelandic population “Following communications with the bishop we’ve managed to help somewhat via the Slovak Catholic Church,” said Fico I’m happy that a piece of Slovakia from Hriňová are representing our country in Iceland” The temperature was higher than 25°Celsius in multiple locations for the first time Many towns across the country have enjoyed their first summer day this year The Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute (SHMÚ) reported that the highest temperature recorded on the first summer day this year was 28.4° Celsius in Moravský Svätý Ján in the westernmost district of Senica on May 3 the maximum temperature did not drop below 25° Other places recording summer days were Banská Bystrica SHMÚ has warned about upcoming higher temperatures even reaching peaks high enough to call it a tropical day Slight drops in temperatures are expected later this week A summer day was recorded around this time last year It was even sooner in 2021 when the temperature reached the degrees of a summer day on April 14 Further development of the area is planned Waterfall Bytrô or Bystré in central Slovakia near Banská Bystrica is a favourite spot for many local hikers but also those who travel to see its beauty The national natural monument Bystrô Waterfall belongs among the largest waterfalls in the Western Carpathian volcanics; the rock wall exceeds 23 meters in height The waterfall is located on the southern slopes of Poľana on the upper reaches of the Bystré stream You can start out from Detva and Hriňová pod Poľanou and the road to it by car and bus leads through Hriňovské lazy An educational hiking trail leads to it through the valley of the Bystrý potok stream from the bus stop Bystré - Vrátka The educational trail is approximately 2.5 kilometres long and tourists can reach the waterfall in less than an hour The surroundings of the waterfall have recently got a facelift but Banská Bystrica Region plans further development according to the region’s spokesperson Lenka Štepáneková The work carried out here mainly included the construction of durable they are also planning to install new information boards with operating procedures and rules for visitors it will also include a dry toilet at the interception point at the beginning of the hiking trail to the Bystrô waterfall in the Vrátka section "In addition to the activities of the project we are thinking about building a simple shelter from the remaining lumber," she added currently hikers already use exiting steel stairs and railings with steel handrails filled with steel cable The railings are also directly at the viewpoint above the waterfall They have also built a via ferrata training chain for children "They also installed a wooden statue of the bear Miško in the rock niche New resting places were created under the waterfall," she summed up for TASR Lost in Bratislava? 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