15- 19 august Prague

Short rides of 40 to 50 km for next few days means we get to our destination by lunch or just after. The cycle path is still being being built here, varying from smooth asphalt to gravel, dirt, stones, grass and stairs. Yes stairs! One set of stairs over a canal we avoided by taking the alternative route and going by ferry further upstream. The presence of the next town is heralded, not by a church steeple in the distance,  but by industry and chimneys, high rise apartment blocks and railway yards. Litomerice and Melnik are lovely places and the cobbled roads and open market square, churches etc. Away from the old town centre, the ‘burbs are pretty ordinary and in the rural areas it is difficult to decide whether the buildings are falling down or being built. A lot of concrete and render past its use by date. first night in our tent in a camp ground, next in a barrel!

We were warned not to take the cycle route beside the river but we did anyway. A single track MTB path over rocks and tree roots on the side of a cliff with the constant fear of dropping off the edge into the river 4 metres below. We survived and treated ourselves to caffeine and icecream where most other cyclists stopped for a beer. The Czechs outdo the aussies in drinking 153 litres of beer per year for every man women and child.

The last few km into Prague is like arriving in any big city without an adequate map: keep asking for directions, going in smaller circles until you get to the camp. The autocamp is basically a private house where the owner attempts to squeeze in as many huge RVs as possib le into the backyard.

Czech had a tough time in WWII: first to be invaded and last to see the end of it. Then they had a go at communism. We got the potted version with lots of humour and twisted stories from a free walking tour guide in Prague. The 15th century clock tells the time in hours, mins, days, zodiac months, and sidereal time (need this one for the equinox). Pretty clever ancient instrument. Yeah Prague is beautiful but we perhaps did not appreciate the splendid neo-romanic, rennaiscence, gothic, baroque and rococco bulidings.

 

Crowded with too many tourists here and tired of being tourists ourselves,  the next day was one of bike maintenance, watching a kayak slalom champs, reading, blogging and of course drinking beer.