{"id":3283,"date":"2026-07-13T07:22:19","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T05:22:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/david-chmelik-looks-back-and-ahead\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T14:45:03","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T12:45:03","slug":"david-chmelik-looks-back-and-ahead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/david-chmelik-looks-back-and-ahead\/","title":{"rendered":"David Chmel\u00edk Looks Back and Ahead"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
David Chmel\u00edk during his presentation on July 6, 2026, at the Radduscher Sports and Culture Barn.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

David Chmel\u00edk<\/strong> and his courage to start over<\/strong><\/p>\n

Slawenburg’s bankruptcy is well known, but the name David Chmel\u00edk is synonymous with disaster in this tourist-oriented region, a region with centuries-old Slavic traditions. David Chmel\u00edk is aware of his responsibility\u2014and he faces it head-on. That, for starters, is a big plus for him. Earlier this week, he spoke at the Radduscher Sports and Culture Barn about his reasons for taking over the castle, his failure, and his plans for the future. About two dozen visitors had come\u2014creditors, interested parties, and curious onlookers alike\u2014and residents of Raddusch were also present, because with the loss of the castle, the town has also lost some of its appeal.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy companion and I would have loved to stop for a coffee at the castle during our bike tour, but a 13-euro admission fee for that is outrageous,\u201d interjected Daniela Werban, a resident of Raddusch, pointing out a problem that has existed ever since the castle was built. \u201cThe locals have known about the exhibition for a long time, but they just wanted to stop by,\u201d she adds in response to Chmelik\u2019s remark that too few locals were visiting the castle.<\/p>\n

David Chmel\u00edk explained in detail why the castle went bankrupt, backing up his explanation with facts and figures. He also spoke about his naivety in believing that he could \u201csomehow manage\u201d the enormous operating and labor costs, because a place like Slawenburg magically attracts visitors and generates enough admission fees to cover its costs\u2014or so he was convinced at the time. David Chmelik: \u201cIt was the first bankruptcy of my life, but it must not be the end of my story\u2014the story of my life dedicated to the Slavic people! It was my mistake to lose sight of the total costs; I focused too much on profitable events\u2014but attendance was just so-so, especially in the winter. Eventually, I became insolvent.\u201d<\/p>\n

David Chmel\u00edk promised to personally cover the outstanding debts that some people are still demanding he pay. Dr. Haschke, a wastewater treatment plant engineer from Preilack, called for this, as did Sylvia Domke from Briesen regarding transportation services. \u201cI need the money\u2014after all, it\u2019s 1,070 EUR for two months of shuttle service to the castle,\u201d she told her former client. The wastewater treatment plant contractor still had two of three invoices from May 2025 outstanding; they total 550 EUR. In front of an audience, Chmelik stated on several occasions that he would enter into legally binding agreements\u2014possibly including installment payment plans\u2014in order to satisfy all of his creditors.<\/p>\n

He had some advice on how to run a castle under new circumstances: The castle must be small, sturdy, expandable, and, above all, always Slavic. “I haven’t given up on the castle yet!” For bike shower advocate Bj\u00f6rn Birkhold-Jordan, this was an opportunity to ask his question: \u201cHow do you plan to win over the city council members again after all this disaster?\u201d David Chmel\u00edk expressed his conviction that his new concept, backed by solid guarantees, would be persuasive enough.<\/p>\n

David Chmel\u00edk also used the evening to present his latest project, which promises relatively low costs but potential profits. \u201cI am Slav at heart, and I want to do everything I can to bring Slavic culture\u2014especially that of the two Lusatias\u2014into the hearts of others as well. We Lusatians are the bridge between Western and Eastern Europe, and I am firmly convinced that this can, should, and will be reflected in increased visitor numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The \u201cSlavic World of Lusatia\u201d project is supported by the Slavonic Europe Foundation, based in Brussels, which serves as a network for global Slavic cooperation. At its core is an online platform that showcases cross-border activities in the Slavic region. It is intended to serve as a digital calendar of events, and products bearing a \u201cSlavic\u201d label will also be marketed there. (slowjanskiswet.eu<\/a>)<\/p>\n

After an hour and a half of what was more or less a monologue, the event came to an end. Some visitors left the room shaking their heads, some looking pensive, and some left before the event was over. David Chmel\u00edk was nevertheless satisfied, as he finally had the opportunity to settle the score and, at the same time, present his new project. \u201cCoincidentally, July 6\u2014the day of our event\u2014is a Czech national holiday: Jan Hus was burned at the stake on this day in 1415 because he stood by his beliefs and refused to recant them.\u201d That was left hanging in the air for the time being.<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>

Peter Becker, July 13, 26<\/em><\/p>\n

\n<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

David Chmel\u00edk during his presentation on July 6, 2026, at the Radduscher Sports and Culture Barn. David Chmel\u00edk and his courage to start over Slawenburg’s bankruptcy is well known, but the name David Chmel\u00edk is synonymous with disaster in this tourist-oriented region, a region with centuries-old Slavic traditions. David Chmel\u00edk is aware of his responsibility\u2014and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3284,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kb_optimizer_status":0,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","slim_seo":{"title":"David Chmel\u00edk Looks Back and Ahead - Spreewald\u00addorf Lehde","description":"David Chmel\u00edk during his presentation on July 6, 2026, at the Radduscher Sports and Culture Barn. David Chmel\u00edk and his courage to start over Slawenburg's bankr"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nicht-kategorisiert"],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":1,"label":"Nicht kategorisiert"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4605-060726C2A9PeterBecker-1024x800-RQEeTl.jpg",1024,800,false],"author_info":{"display_name":"sven-hofmann","author_link":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/author\/881ce4191d54ed84\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":1,"name":"Nicht kategorisiert","slug":"nicht-kategorisiert","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":257,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":1,"category_count":257,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Nicht kategorisiert","category_nicename":"nicht-kategorisiert","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3283","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3283"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3283\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3284"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spreewald-dorf-lehde.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}