How far is 6km anyway??

On Wednesday, Tom and I rented a car and headed to the northern area of the Czech Republic, near the border with Germany.

We left on a beautiful sunny day and were tooling along the 4 lane highway when... uh, the road just came to an end, and we were forced to exit. As our GPS unit kept squawking "turn right in 250 meters", (we nicknamed her "the nag") we exited the highway near the town of Terezin. We knew Terezin had been a holding area for Jews on their way to death camps during WWII, so we turned off "the nag" and toured the area. What we hadn't realized is that when the camp was created, the Germans forced ALL the native Czechs living in the town to relocate, and then turned the entire town into a Jewish ghetto.

The entire experience was a little depressing, so we didn't post any photos here.

We had reserved a hotel room in a town called Teplice. We had researched the area around Teplice and Usti Ben Labem, and we knew there was a river (always a plus) as well as several castle ruins and interesting rock formations.

Well. After arriving in Teplice and doing a walking tour of the town (it is a very nice small town with lots of fountains and parks - oh, and a castle in town and ruins on the mountain) I looked on-line for directions to some rock formations and was quite taken with one in particular located near the town of Hrensko.

So. Day 2, the weather forecast called for rain all day. Not so good for walking about among rocks, but we took off anyway, and by the time we arrived in Hrensko, the skies were clearing.

The town, what little there is of it, is built along both sides of a stream that flows down off a mountain. The heavy rains that we had a week or so ago apparently wreaked havok with this stream and the trails, as the road was 1/2 washed out, the bridge was a temporary militay-style solution, and one trail was closed due to collapsed walkways.

But that didn't stop us, and we proceeded to the parking area where the jolly attendant pointed out the trail head for us and mentioned that it was a 6 km hike. He said this in Czech and Tom didn't hear him, so I kept that bit of information to myself.

A map of the trail, whch we didn't study carefully before we left.....


Don't know who did this or why, but we saw a few posts like this along the way that had been carved in this fashion.

As we walked, (you might notice it was UP), the sun came out and it was a beautiful day.

One of the magnificent views...

The rocks in this photo don't end at the top of the photo - they were massive and towering over us in places on the trail.

At about this point, we were cursing our stupidity in not bringing any water with us. I told Tom not to worry, because knowing the Czechs, there would be a beer garden at the top.

We laughed.

Did I mention that this is all wilderness, with no roads, just this trail going UP?

Awesome!

Nature at its best. Too bad the elf disappeared just before the camera clicked...

Just as we began thinking that we could go no further, I looked up through the trees and began laughing hysterically. Not only a beer garden at the top, but a full-fledged restaurant!

We were suspicious that perhaps a road (with cars, or buses, or maybe a cable car) was on the other side, and that many of the other folks we encountered on the trail had not actually WALKED there, but no. The only cable car was a very rickety contraption used to bring supplies to the restaurant from the town below.

This natural sandstone bridge is called Pravcicka Brana, and finding it was the whole reason for our hike.


It was worth it.

This way to the restaurant....

The only problem with walking 6 km into the wilderness is that the only way to get back to your car is to walk - another 6 km.

It sure was pretty.....

And remember that forecast?? The MINUTE we got into the car and closed the doors, there was a deluge! I think our guardian angel worked overtime that day!

Below are two videos that will show some of the beauty we encountered as we hiked along.

Botanical Gardens and Troja

Last Saturday, we were trying to think of something different to do, and we decided to visit Prague's botanical gardens.

Well - first, let me say, we picked one of the hottest days of the year to go hiking up there - and I mean up! They are located at the top of a pretty high hill, and the bus didn't go all the way up.

We were surprised by the extent of the acreage that is planted with various types of flora, and even more surprised (and pleased) to find wooden chaise lounges scattered about, as well as benches placed in wonderfully shaded glens.

The view from the top is pretty amazing too. This is the view looking down on the chateau or villa known as Troja. The Prague zoo is across the street from Troja, so all these wonderful sights are within walking distance of one another.

Formal gardens at Troja.

This chapel used to be part of the villa's estate, but is now in the botanical garden's grounds. There's a vineyard too...

A wildflower garden....

Erika, Diane, and Susan - you would love it here.....

There is a huge, and I mean HUGE, greenhouse that is devoted to tropical plants. It has fish ponds, and you can go down a level to see the fish in an aquarium-style display. There are also beautiful butterflies fluttering about, and of course - plants!

When we left the gardens, we did tour Troja, since we were right there.

This is the view from Troja's courtyard, looking back up at the vineyard and chapel.

The cellars - these were black as pitch and we didn't know what this looked like until we saw the photo taken with flash.

Part of the maze...

Troja villa....

Troja was designed to be approached by the river. This is the view from the river side. Imagine riding in your carriage, or on on your saddle-horse, up this magnificent approach to this beautiful villa!

Birthday party on a boat

Our friend Joanna has told her husband several times that she would like to celebrate a birthday with a boat trip on the Vltava River. This year, Mark was able to make that happen, and we were invited.

You all know how we feel about boats, and so we were the first aboard! It was a perfectly scrumptious day - hot and sunny, and we were so ready to be out on the water again!!



Birthday girl Joanna and her husband Mark.

Notice the photo above - Mark is on the phone.... Some of the guests did not make it to the dock at the time specified, and the boat had to leave in order to go through a lock before it closed for the evening. No worries, though, we picked them up at another point upstream.

Chris' business partner Mathias and wife Carrie....

All aboard, enjoying the sun!

Mark made the cake (with a little help from Joanna I heard)....

Cyndy and Mathias - checking out Rudy's paw injury...

(OK, Rudy is Mathias' dog, and we were talking about vet services.... )

Partying into the night.....

Perfect ending to a perfect trip - no less than three sets of fireworks were visible this beautiful evening!!

Pozor! crossing the street in a construction zone

One thing we love about living in Prague is that there is no "nanny state" mentality here. You are responsible for your own welfare here, and must keep your wits about you while
traveling around, as you can see in the following photos.

Our new tram tracks - scheduled to go operational Sept. 1.

We are so excited!

These tracks and accompanying roadways lie in between the Metro station and our street. There is a lot of foot traffic across this construction site, and the walkway has been temporarily moved more than a dozen times as the construction of the tunnel and the reconstruction of the tram lines and roadway on top of the tunnel went forward.

Note the ramp, and the proximity of the paving machines.

And the walkway is where now??


Hold on while we dump this hot asphalt!

Ah. There's the walkway.......

Lennon Wall - we finally found it!

The Lennon wall, as it is known, is listed as a tourist attraction in Prague. Once a normal wall, since the 1980s it has been filled with John Lennon-inspired graffiti , pieces of lyrics from songs, and poetry.

In 1988, the wall was a source of irritation for the communists and eventually led to a clash between hundreds of students and security police on the nearby Charles Bridge.

The wall continuously undergoes change and the original portrait of Lennon is long lost under layers of new paint. Even when the wall was repainted by some authorities, on the second day it was again full of poems and flowers.

This wall is not on a main street, and we went looking for it a few weeks ago. Of course we didn't have a map, and so did not find it. But - yesterday we were in that neighborhood and decided to try again.

After leaving the wall, we found this interesting sight.. Not sure of the significance of the locks on these bars, but it was kind of pretty, and as the ledge beneath it says "It's a kind of magic."

Daddy wins

Good sport Owen!

Trip to Ulm

Tom and I love roadtrips, so when we received a call from Chris and Laura asking us to rescue them from the city of Ulm, Germany, we were ready to go. Oh - why did they need rescuing? They had driven with the kids to Legoland in Germany, and their car gave up the ghost right at the front gates of the theme park. So they made the best of the situation by enjoying their stay, and they asked us to drive down to get them on Saturday in Chris' partner's van.

It was a wonderfully scenic drive through countryside that reminded us so much of NY and PA., except that there were castles and fortresses on the tops of many of the hills we passed.

Crossing borders now is very uneventful, just like going from one state in the US to another. The border control checkpoints and buildings are still standing, and it is rather eerie to see them empty and unused. Sorry that we didn't think to take a photo.

After crossing into Germany, I noticed an exit for what I took to be a rather large city, but I couldn't spot it on my map. At the next exit, the same sign was there, and about 3 exits later I noticed that you could still get off the highway and go to Ausfahrt. I said to Tom, "How big is that city anway - there are so many exits for it!"

Eventually it dawned on us that Ausfahrt is German for exit. We had a good laugh over that. It is amazing what amuses you as you get older. :-)


Another sign that had us completely baffled was the orange "thing" below. Is it an arrow? A rocket? We never did figure that one out.

We arrived in Ulm in time for lunch, and we did a little sightseeing. The church there is the tallest church in Europe. The main spire is so tall that Tom couldn't photograph it. Click here to see the entire structure.

There were many beautiful , old buildings and interesting architecture. Definitely a place I would visit again.

Ian and Emily's last dinner in Prague

Tuesday evening was bittersweet for us. We gathered at Chris and Laura's house for a dinner that marked the last time we would enjoy Emily and Ian's company at such a meal. At the same time, we were able to meet Emily's Mom Vivian (in purple next to Laura) and her good friend Debbie, who are now in Prague.

Many thanks to Laura for hosting all of us, and for cooking such a great meal. Especially the dessert, which was a meringue tart filled with whipped cream and topped with strawberries!!




Wednesday was sad as we said goodbye to Ian and Emily, but school is calling, and we wish them well this next year at Cornell.

Best dryer ever!

Since Erika has been reporting the difficulties she has been having with her clothes dryer, we thought we should provide a photo of ours. :-) It holds TWO large loads of laundry, and if it doesn't rain, drys in about 4 hours!!

40 Years of marriage - August 8, 1970 to 2010

Tomorrow we are celebrating our 40th anniversary. I'm at a loss for words :-)



Below is a link to a slide

show of random photos from the past. Enjoy!

40 Years of marriage

Walk in the park

Ian and Emily left this evening for a few days in Paris. The bus to the airport leaves from our area, so we showed them the stop and rode along with them to their departure terminal. Once they were set standing in a LONG check-in line, we headed back into the city.

Seasoned travelers!

On our way back from the airport, we stopped at a park called Divoka Sarka. We blogged about this park last year. It is a huge wilderness area on the edge of the city, not far from our flat.

Today, we followed the path past some beautiful wheat fields...

We found the sheep that normally run wild in the park loosely corralled on top of one of the cliffs.

Tom's enjoying the scenery below....

Now where did that path go?.....

We enjoyed the beauty of many wildflowers, and I discovered some heather! I have never seen it growing in the wild before.

We decided that this must be a Czech trail marker....

but this is the trail we followed. About half-way down a steep cliffside, we decided that this trail was actually for the sheep, and we headed back up to the top and the safety of a wider, gentler trail.

One thing we really appreciate about the parks here. Trails are well-marked, and garbage cans are provided in many strategic locations, so that the area is fairly litter-free.

We wandered about as the sun sank lower in the sky, and decided we had better head for home before dark.

Just as we rejoined the road to head back to the bus stop, I heard rustling in the underbrush beside us. This little guy was out looking for his dinner. What a treat to finally see a hedgehog in the wild.