3 June 2011

Go West

Not all of this trip will be about eating and drinking and watching bike racing.  There will be local sights, folklore and culture!!!

On the way home from Brno we have a stop in Prague. As it is really about 160 miles that day we have a stop in Prague. I have two cultural stops on the way back.

The first at Žďár nad Sázavou to pay a visit to the Pilgrimage Church of St John of Nepomuk on Zelena hora Hill. This was built in the shape of a star in 1719.


The other place on the Brno-Prague route is the Church of Bones at Kutna Hora.  I first saw it in a travel book many years ago and then it was featured in the "Long Way Round" TV series with celeb actor luvvies Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman.

This is a bizarre church where skeletons of the long deceased are used as decorative materials!  It must be worth a half hour to visit.

More info on Church of Bones - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedlec_Ossuary


After a day or maybe an evening in Prague the longish trek home start in earnest.

Although the original plan was to stay in a few youth hostels in both directions, it is simply not always possible.  Either because they don't have the kind of room we like, private double with wc, or that they are full.

With the spread of budget hotel chains such as Accorhotels Etap and Formule 1 across Europe, it is now much cheaper to stay there than at a youth hostel, and not be too far away geographically.


As a result of wanting to see the Sinsheim Techical Museum (http://sinsheim.technik-museum.de/en) I looked locally fort somewhere to stay.  The nearest youth hostel is in Heilbronn and they have a double room with private wc/shower and I have booked it.


As for the museum, it  looks pretty much worthwhile and we'll see when we get there what there is on offer.

From here, the road home takes a northwards turn to follow the Rhine towards Cologne, so on the last night we have an Etap near Dueren as the alternative hostels weren't that good or available.

The last day is the run back to Calais for the boat home....

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