Go take a walk!

The Czech Republic has some of the most extensive public walking trails in the world. These trails are well marked and mapped. Going for a walking day trip is as easy as picking two villages, finding the available trails on www.mapy.cz or buying a walking map of the area at the local book store and setting off.

My money is always on the Berounka River area. The train goes from Prague's main train station about every 30 minutes and the would-be-walker can hop off at nearly any of the towns or villages between Prague and Beroun and find great walking trails connecting to another village where a train going back to Prague will pick you up and take you home.

That's just what I did on a beautiful Saturday. My friend MD and I hopped on a train to Karlstejn. What better way to start a trip then with a view of a fairytale castle? Then we walked our way through about 8 kilometers of forest and fields to the village of Srbsko, where we had some soup and a beer to get our strength back before walking back to Karlstejn and catching a train home. The whole journey took about 5 hours. Delightful!

Kutna Hora

I like weird stuff. I think it is the nerd in me. One of my favorite weird travel sites that I like to seek out is crypts. And for a girl who enjoys a crypt, Kutna Hora is a gold mine.

Actually, I should say silver mine because Kutna Hora made its wealth through the mines that once flooded the town with work, visitors and interest. The legacy of that one time wealth is the beautiful Saint Barbora Cathedral that sits on the highest point, overlooking the city.

Now to crypts! Outside of the center, about 2 kilometers, there is a church where a semi-blind monk once lived. The town had experienced wars and plagues and many people had been buried in the church graveyard. So many, in fact, that the bones began to pile up. So the semi-blind monk began his life project: to transform the pile of bones into art in order to remind the worshipers that life is short and we will all be only bones one day so we must do good while on this earth. A chandelier of bones, a coat of arms from bones, a candle holder of bones, and as odd as it sounds it isn't one bit "icky". It does really remind us that this life is temporary, but the works we do live after us.

So, if life is short then get out there and see Kutna Hora before you are turned into a chandelier too!

SP: Came, Saw, Conquered Prague

I have vague memories of high school, most of them involve studying. I was a bit of a nerd. (I guess nothing has changed.) But some of my favorite memories involve my friend SP. She made me laugh, a lot.

And nothing has changed in 13 years! SP came to Prague and we laughed. A lot.

Having a visitor is what I like best about living abroad. I can show off what makes me tick: travel. The plan was to give SP a glimpse into the real Czech. We headed down to wine country in southern Moravia, a little town called Mikulov. It is my little France. Vineyards spread as far as the hills allow you to see. The people have that joviality that comes with uncorked bottles. We spent an evening in a wine cellar with a lovely bottle of Vlašsky Ryzlink (Riesling).

We took a little detour south to Vienna and took in the imperial sights for a few hours. Then on the way home we slept and supped in Český Krumlov, a fairy tale of a city. We toasted to Bohemian beers as a traditional Roma (Gypsy) band played in the corner of the pub.

I hope SP comes again soon. My stomach hadn't been treated to so many Czech dishes and so much Czech beer in years.