Did you know I like horror movies?

 

Yeah? What gave it away? The quotability of Edgar Allan Poe? The taxidermy crow? My letterboxd top four? Okay maybe not the letterboxd thing, because that would mean you somehow have it and its not attached to my name – but you’ve got the gist.

 

Anyway, there is a point to this – recently I went on a learning tour with Wonkhe, wherein me, Jiji, and our lovely SU aunt/mum Charlie travelled across the Visegrad group of Europe to learn about what they do better on the mainland, and how we can bring this home. At one of these Universities, there was a gorgeous building dedicated to film studies, which was positively BEJEWELED with horror posters – a great love for me and Wonkhe’s own charming Mike Day. It even included my favourite iteration of Nosferatu vis a vis the 2012 Polish release poster!

 

 

Now, these are gorgeous posters right? So I thought, in order to try and give you a short(ish) and sweet oversight of the trip, I would deliver it to you through the power of cinema – more specifically, their posters!

DAY ONE – BUDAPEST – THE HAUNTING (1963)

WHAT IS THIS MOVIE?

In a nutshell, The Haunting (1963) is a slightly dressed up version of Shirley Jackson’s iconic The Haunting of Hill House – if you haven’t read anything by Jackson, this is an iconic place to start. It follows a group of people coming together to a house to investigate paranormal going ons, and you’ll have to watch it to find out what happens next!

 

ITINERARY & WHY THIS MOVIE?

We started off the day all meeting in the hotel lobby – a grand house where we all anticipate what is yet to come – just how the characters in The Haunting gather at Hill House.

 

We then walked across to Budapest University Library, where we met Eötvös Loránd University HOK (SU) and HOOK, the Hungarian national union. A bit of a stretch here, but delving into the unknowns of a new SU – including their major summer festivals- could echo the characters uncovering the secrets of Hill House – though of course, we were intrigued and had plenty of tea, while our movie protagonists were frankly suffering.

 

We then crossed over the river to Corvinus University – crossing from one space to another, like how the characters in Hill House attempted to cross from the world of the living to the dead.

 

While on that side of the river, we also visited the Budapest University of Science and Technology – and just how our movie characters gradually explore the house, we continued to explore the many Universities in the city.

 

DAY TWO – BRATISLAVA – DRACULA (1958)

WHAT IS THIS MOVIE?

The 1958 version of Dracula isn’t the first – but it does kickstart the Hammer Horror series for the eponymous antagonist, and also stars both Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee – what more could a girl ask for? I’m gonna assume we all know the story of Dracula though – even if it isn’t true enough to the novel to include a murderous cowboy who delivers Drac’s comeuppance.

 

ITINERARY & WHY THIS MOVIE?

We started off the day bright and early getting on a coach to Gyor – wading through the dark of an unfamiliar place to travel to a new one, just how Johnathan Harker did. In Gyor, they started students off with small tasks in their faculty before building up to larger roles, as well as dreaded mandatory sport.

 

We then set off to Bratislava to meet the Slovakian National Union SRVS, as well as meeting students from STU – which is one of the Universities in the city.

 

Finally, at about 7pm, we set off once more to Mlyny – a self-contained student city housing twenty-five thousand people – it being dark, the city being isolated, and continuously getting lost in the many corridors could easily give the vibe of Dracula’s castle, but the gorgeous cosy fairy lights of the dorms really drew you away from it – not to mention, the pizza we had there was also loaded with garlic in the best way possible, which wouldn’t be Drac’s fave.

 

If we have to draw it back to Drac though, I would have to argue that the lack of a centralised SU in Slovakia (instead going for faculty based unions) adds a unique twist – and can be tied to how Dracula’s power spread across multiple places and people.

DAY THREE – PRAGUE – THE WICKER MAN (1973)

WHAT IS THIS MOVIE?

A far cry from the Nick Cage remake you might be well acquainted through due to that TERRIBLE bee scene, the original Wicker Man is a true cult classic – from the magical musical stylings of Magnet, another appearance from Lee, and a looming sense of doom that you can never stop the ending, it is a charm. Fun fact – the band Magnet was actually set up and named for this movie as they thought they would sell a tonne of records – they didn’t, as the movie was actually originally a flop, but Lee flew its flag relentlessly.

ITINERARY & WHY THIS MOVIE?

Getting up bright and early for a 6am bus ride into Prague means that we were making a long and unfamiliar journey into a new land – just how Sergent Neil Howie made his way to Summerisle.

 

Once we made it to Prague, our first stop was Kampus Hyberska – a gorgeous, open, and artsy space where we were hosted by a positively comedic duo who were rightfully proud of the blend between student and city culture and community therein. The link here are the gorgeous cakes they served up along numerous fruit teas that would easily rival the works of May Morrison’s sweet shop/post office.

 

As well as this, we had a glorious foot tour that showed off the city’s 1989 Velvet Revolution which was spearheaded by students – if I absolutely wanted to stretch the comparison here, I would try to link the collective memory of the Velvet Revolution to the collective knowledge of the Summerislers, but maybe that’s a bit too far.

 

Then, we broke off to go look for food and have a tiny bit of tourism time before making our way over to Kampus Dejvice for the afternoon via the tram/underground. Now, while I am normally an absolute sucker for rail-based transport and therefore adored this journey, we unfortunately blindly trusted google maps for the platform number and ended up getting on the wrong platform and going the wrong way. We had got completely disorientated – kinda like how Howie does when he is trying to find out how to interrupt the May Day celebrations.

 

Finally, we went out to Skoda University, where we had a flying visit before we were back on the coach to Wroclaw. Luckily, unlike Howie’s boat as he tries to leave the island, the transport worked perfectly, and we all stumbled into our beds for just one night before we started off again tomorrow.

 

DAY FOUR – WROCLAW – GREMLINS (1984)

WHAT IS THIS MOVIE?

The most modern movie on this list, Gremlins is a comedy horror that follows a boy who receives the cutest animal you have ever seen as a gift, and then proceeds to completely ignore its care instructions – with disastrous consequences. I swear this day went well – it was just a little chaotic.

 

ITINERARY & WHY THIS MOVIE?

Although there was the option of a lie-in, 6am buses had absolutely messed with my sleep pattern, meaning I was up bright and early to start the day with a wonder around the Old Town where our hotel was – this meant discovering that Wroclaw is full of quirky gnomes littered all throughout the streets – hence why Gremlins takes the spot.

 

Following this, we went on to meet a group of student scientific circles and an SU called Samorzad Studencki before going on to eat as fast as we could at a student cultural centre. I had some gorgeous home-made pierogi (ordering in absolutely butchered Polish), which made me feel like the Mogwai trying to give off their initial charm – I’m trying right?

 

We then got on our beloved coach to Katowice, where we had a glorious stew/soup concoction, as well as real proper coffee and sweet treats at the University of Silesia’s Samorzad Studencki. If you have ever seen someone who has been travelling for over half the day get near a decent cuppa, then the comparison is obvious here.

 

We don’t arrive into Krakow until pretty late, but then we have finally arrived at our final destination – chaotic timings are gone just how the Gremlins calm down, and all is well. Maybe the gnomes left their mark on the day, just how the Gremlins leave their mischievous trail in their stead.

DAY FIVE – KRAKOW – THE SHINING (1980)

WHAT IS THIS MOVIE?

Truly a jewel in Kubrick’s crown, The Shining is a glorious adaptation of the eponymous Stephen King book – and is known for Jack Nicholson’s iconic smile and “here’s Johnny!” line alongside the all practical effects of the bleeding elevator, and the stunning (and sadly, quite real) breakdown of Shelley Duvall. It follows a couple and their son live in a remote hotel for the winter as the father takes on the role of caretaker – with the idea that the isolation will give him time and focus to write.

 

ITINERARY & WHY THIS MOVIE?

As we were in our final destination, we no longer had the coach – this meant that instead we were back on public transport – a routine journey on a tram to the University of Economics to learn all about their student parliament echoing the Torrance’s drive to the Overlook. Easy journey, destination filled with layered histories and intricate dynamics.

 

Following this we had a rushed lunch (are you spotting the theme here?) in a cottage-esque restaurant, full of wooden features and rustic, lodge-like charm - just like The Overlook.

 

After this, we made our way across to Jagiellonian University – which had the most impressive council room I have ever seen, all decked out in velvet and inscribed and gilded chairs, as well as a painting of Copernicus I have looked at via the beauty of the internet every day since. A grand empty room of splendor and a picture I’m obsessed with? Sounds just like the Outlook ballroom and the infamous ending photo, no?

 

With this, we were officially done with our visits, and as the cold set in and the evening darkened further and further, we were told to meet at the grand Christmas tree in the Old Town square to be taken on one final surprise trip – a long and winding journey mirroring Danny’s tricycle rides through the Overlook’s corridors (though we instead were travelling via tram and foot, and through both highly populated streets, as well as some residential, and even some wooded areas). Where did we end up dear viewer? Well, even though the snow started to fall, we were not stuck in a freezer nor a hedge maze – but instead at a student brewery, which did magnificent pizza to boot. Maybe theres a happy ending after all!