Relax Hotel Grand Jindrichuv Hradec

... went to the castle and the tower, to some little museums and finally to the underground tunnels. We didn't realize the only way to see the tunnels is to be on a tour and they were filled up for the rest of the day. So...we did what has proven to work for us the most - pretend we have no idea whats going on and look really sad when it doesn't work out. We walked in with the group and when we went to put on our hard hats they stopped us because we didn't have ...

beer straight from the brewery, hurrah. ceske budejovice is such a pretty town = nice to spend more than an afternoon here this time.

slightly more exciting is the appearance of a washing machine and finally we have clean clothes.

going for an indian tonight as neither of us can eat any more dumplings or fried cheese.

... typical meal here in Bohemia is some type of meat cooked with a sauce, some dumplings which are cut like slices of french bread and everyone here is walking around with a 50 cent ice cream cone. They also have a french-like crepe that they make. We had it yesterday with strawberries and whip cream. MMM. It was nice and hilly yesterday. The hills have been relentless. But, as our English friend Ian said: you always get to go down the other side.

... And as most of you know, not the type of environment I feel most comfortable in. The surroundings are beautiful. The resort is located in forest, it even has its own water spring on the premises. And a great meditation spot right under a 3-forked lime tree! Wild fruit everywhere, mushrooms to pick and eat, great forest trails to go running. A thing I do now that I am not cycling daily. Very quiet here, and green as far at the eye can see! Even ...

... the students were no longer so happy with him, and we were now left friendless and stranded in Veseli nad Luznici. When the strike was over there was still no train for us to take to Brno, so we waited some more. It was not until the sun was beginning to set three hours later that a train finally came chugging along the tracks to take us to Brno. I began to realize that transportation was half the experience when traveling through Eastern Europe.

... handed over the money. We made our way to our seats at the back of the bus and, holding our daypacks and a bag of food on our laps, we tried to get comfy and fall asleep. It was freezing on the bus. Our feet felt like blocks of ice. We wore gloves, scarves, hoods, whatever we could to warm up. We dozed a bit during the 3 hour ride but it was very crowded and people kept bumping past us with their bags. As we neared Cesky ...

... and think of that fat funny guy in Hogan's Heroes. Then after what seemed like a lifetime of silence between us, he reaches down and wipes off some footprints off the seat. At this point we can only assume he is very directly telling us to get our damn feet off the damn furniture. We of course comply. Upon his leaving we discuss how ironic that all was, considering that what appears to be ...

... But we then couldn't stop and crashed (& I mean crashed) into the bank of rocks, went over board. flipped the canoe and discovered our "water proof tub" really wasn't that water proof! And we almost lost the canoe down stream coz we both fell out, and we were so close to the rocks on the back, our feet got cut and we have a few war wounds! Thank goodness a couple of other guys we knew were there and they helped! Don't even want to ...

... hankering for this particular brand of potent ****. The yanks left at some point, as the rest of us hit up the Gorilla Bar, getting a pint in before closing time. With the chicks keen to head home, Mike persuaded me to stay out with him, and we went back again to the Horror Bar for some additional metal, beers, a shot and a meal of sausage. At 3 in the morning. I'm sure it's better for you than a greasy Souvlaki, but bugger me it felt like it was permanently ...

... and I tried to catch up in my journal and keep my tooth from hurting. We went out in the evening trying to locate some Lonely Planet-recommended restaurant, then it started to rain a little, so we said, "What the heck - let's go back to the place where we had lunch." The same waiter greeted us. We told him we only wanted small beers. The ones at lunch were much too big. So he kept joking about our "baby beers." I had a veal cutlet stuffed with ham, cheese, potatoes and cabbage and ...