Czech Republic

I haven’t traveled in recent years. My mental health has collapsed into a black hole, from which I am slowly climbing back toward the light and something that at least somewhat resembles normal functioning. Again and again, I practice seemingly simple things, such as riding the tram, being in a crowded shopping center, or sitting in a busy café. And now I’ve decided that it’s time to try traveling again. Very carefully. I decided to try going somewhere for one night, somewhere I could quickly escape from if necessary. I chose Beroun, which is half an hour away by train. I arranged with a friend to come with me. We chose a date when we were both available. I looked through the apartments on Booking.com and very carefully chose one that was guaranteed to be pleasant and quiet. And then it was time to go. On the day of departure, my friend texted me that she had come down with the flu. Panic. I was already packed, ready to go, and mentally prepared to test whether I could handle traveling, at least on a small scale. None of my other friends was available that day. The accommodation could not be […]

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Good travel stories usually start with a mishap, from which point of view I fail you. This time wedidn’t forget anything, we didn’t miss any transport, all five days were sunny with the exception ofone short thunderstorm, the accommodation was absolutely fabulous and the streets of ČeskýKrumlov were nearly our own. What else can one wish for? Maybe for a little more time. Český Krumlov is a beautiful town. While visiting though, I felt on occasions that I was in a ghosttown. The ground floor of every house was a shop with clothes or souvenirs, or alternatively arestaurant. The part above of nearly every building is a guest house. This isn’t a town organized forordinary life. The crowds of tourists streaming through its arteries are its blood. Without themKrumlov seems abandoned. I asked Ben, how many people he thought lived here, truly lived here.He answered: “Fifty to a hundred.” Český Krumlov is not a place for living but, it seems to me, a beautiful theatre stage prepared for aperformance about to start. I liked it this way rather than having to push through crowds. The historical centre of Český Krumlov spreads within two loops of the river Vltava. In Latrán, […]

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Last summer, when the spring lockdown temporarily lifted, we engaged in a bit of an ‘empty Prague tourism.’ It’s surprising how little I get to see the city’s historical parts — I mostly avoid them because they are full of tourists. Prague is wonderful (so I understand that people want to see it), and the distinctive landmarks like Charles Bridge or Old Town Square are usually packed. And so that’s where we decided to go. We started our stroll at the beautiful Kampa island. With its maze of tiny streets and an old watermill, it’s one of my favorite places in Prague. We didn’t go as far as the famous Lennon wall, but we enjoyed the poetry booth on the edge of the park instead. This invention is one of the indigenous ideas of Ondrej Kobza, who is also behind the Prague street piano initiative and is always looking for ways to make the city more interesting. Needless to say, I am a fan. From Kampa, we headed to the Charles Bridge. I was curious about how many people would be there — after all, we were not the only ones on the empty city sightseeing bandwagon. As it turned […]

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