When I was still a university student, a friend of mine invited me to visit his hometown in Switzerland. I was not used to travelling and this journey was something new to me. I spent three marvellous weeks in a small village in the mountains. We went hiking a lot and I had a chance to get to know the local traditions. We also went on various trips. One day my friend took me to a town which was famous for a small private library. The library was opened by a family who owned a huge collection of books that used to be banned in the past. Opening the library to the public was not easy and they had to sell some gold bullion that they had inherited from their ancestors. Then the Ministry of Education offered them their support so that they could renovate the place. The library looked impressive, although it"s just one small room. There were rows of all sorts of unusual books: poetry from the fifteenth century, rare seventeenth century publications, books banned during the communist times in eastern Europe. I immediately thought that the place must be often visited by students conducting their research on literature or history. I had not expected the library to be so interesting. I think selling the gold bullion was definitely worth it. And now, after several years the family are becoming famous all over Europe.
