Page 9 of mr mink Travel Blog Posts


Europe » Austria » Upper Austria » Linz June 13th 2011

Lads and lassies – now in Linz in Austria for the night before off to Salzburg. Got a VW shuttle bus here from Cesky Krumlov in about 1hr 15mins. I was in fact the only passenger, but he picked up 2 Japanese to take back to Krumlov at the station when he dropped me. Gave him the rest of my CZ crown coins as a “tip” since I was the only passenger down. A relatively simple walk to the hotel Schillerpark – right next to a casino so difficult to tell where the hotel entrance actually was. Sorted out the wifi and booked my next 2 nights in Salzburg before I went out. It is close to a lot of shops on Landstrasse and could not work out why it looked like Sunday and virtually none, ... read more
Lentos & Gilbert&George
view to Ars Electronica
Lentos @ night

Europe » Czech Republic June 12th 2011

Well it’s the eve of 12 June and this is the 3rd and last day in Cesty Krumlov (CK). I feel fortunate that I have had the time and space to quite randomly decide that I would spend a whole 3 day weekend, Friday to Sunday nights, here. You sometimes have to be aware/become aware that you are heading into a weekend at a place and that hotel choices might not be so easy etc as people tend to take weekends at such places – such as the couple I met at breakfast , he an American web designer in Prague and his Czech girlfriend. There was only one (single) room at this place the hotel St Hubertus, which was very highly rated on Booking.com, namely 9.1 which is almost unheard of (unless it is super ... read more
St Vitus and the river
castle tower
Krumlow cobbles


I already said that Plzn/Pilsen was not very exciting – and the main attraction (the Synagogue) closed – so it was a real delight to come to Ceske Budejowice with no expectations at all and to be very pleasantly surprised by the town as a whole. Although I stayed nr the bus station at Plzn, there seem to be no buses to C. Budw. at all and only a train every 2 hours or so – and the train station was on the other side of town. So had scoped that out by taking a walk over in that direction the previous evening – and realised that a horror intersection near it with the old stairs down to subway under the road – i.e. 2 lots of stairs with heavy bag, to be avoided! So a ... read more
U Tri Lvu nouveau
Cabaret Happy
the big new bus station

Europe » Czech Republic » Plzen Region » Plzen June 8th 2011

this may well be the shortest blog (by me) in history. Got bus from Karlovy Vary to Plzn/Pilsen as said before – this took about less than 2 hrs. Hotel close to bus station – and had one of those open faced sandwiches for about 90cents at the station – such good value/idea. The town of Plzn proved to be rather boring – and I thought the characters wandering the streets often seemed a little ‘chancy’ so you had to keep an eye out. Scoped out where the station was – along Amerika avenue – Gen. Patton and the Yanks liberated this place at end of WW2 so I guess that is why – there is a Patton memorial here somewhere. Otherwise not much to report. Had a cheap dinner – no cards ttaken so used ... read more
a concert hall?
Church of St Batholomew
Great Synagogue


This is started on the bus out of Karlovy Vary (KV) to Plzn (pron. Pilsen as in beer! – as if we need more). Better compact this or we will be here all day. (and posted at 4.30pm 8 June from the Best Western in Plzn) 6 June – got bus from Prague to KV which took 2h15min or so. Unfortunately on the way there were some very heavy downpours and when I arrived it continued to dribble form time to time, so I had to take shelter while walking to the hotel. This seemed to take an hour around the curving hillside way, with rain stops and false turns as LP map not that complete. This morning on way back to bus station with no stops and very brisk (and knowing where I was going) ... read more
Grand Hotel Pupp KV
Quisisana Palace something
Spa No.1

Europe » Czech Republic » Prague » Vinohrady June 5th 2011

I am writing this in Karlovy Vary so do not expect me to remember all that much – apart from the fact I did not do much other than eat very fine Italian food (later). There comes a point, and I am a very lazy uninspired traveler and lack considerable ‘get up and go’ in that regard, where you can’t be bothered making much more effort in running around everywhere. If I did not get to see it, that;s my fault and I never have “must do” lists (other than the absolute basics). My “accidental tourism” rules OK? – maybe I saw it, maybe I should have etc. Anyway today was hopelessly late start – with trip to Florenc 3 metro stops on to check out bus situation to Karlovy Vary – out of metro went ... read more
Hotel Pariz
wine/food fest
olde clocks

Europe » Czech Republic » Prague » Malá Strana June 4th 2011

This is sort of a day late due to coming home after pivo (beer) consumption, having a bit of a lie down and then waking up at 2am, so “nothing” (like blogging) gets done. So lets start with: Friday 3 June. Usual late start and got the metro down to Staromestska which is the closest stop to Stare Mesto (the Old Quarter) and also the river and the famous Charles bridge. So decided to head over in that direction which is not far. There seemed an alarming number of blokes (mostly black it seemed – and French?) dressed in sailors unfiform and flogging river cruises – which barely seem to go anywhere on the river much due to the weir just above the Charles bridge – but no idea how far up/downstream they go. The bridge ... read more
Charles bridge musos
view to Mala Strana
city grapes

Europe » Czech Republic » Prague » New Town June 2nd 2011

After the touristic washout that was yesterday, today could only get better! Started with breakfast in the Alton basement. The hotel is 5 floors and I am in 502 on top and over the back rather than over Legerova main street out the front TG. The usual continental selection of cold meats and cheeses that I definitely do not do for brekky. But there were cereals and some fried eggs so had a couple of them on bread etc. Out of the room around noon and headed along to the National Museum which is just down the hill and at the top of Wenceslas Square. Despite the name this is not really a large continental square as one might think but rather a long 1km or so mall with shops and banks and fast food and ... read more
National Museum
St Wenceslas statue
perverse Cerny statue of Wenceslas

Europe » Czech Republic » Prague June 1st 2011

To quote Seinfeld, this might be the most “travel blog about nothing” you have ever read. The fact it is located in Prague has nothing to do with this – it just reflects my obsession about keeping up to date – with Nothing. Left HEL at 9.30 for 2 hr flight to Prague. The Finnair plane (see pic) looked so retro colours that I thought it might have been a DC3 as came closer on the bus to tarmac location! Sitting next to a masters economics student from Eastern Czech republic who had just done an exchange semester in a university in the centre of Finland – in the middle of the lakes – not hard in Finland. Best thing he had ever done he said (had also put in for Ljublana). Pilot had told us ... read more
Hlavni Nadrazi station
Hlavni station
Hlavni detail

Asia » Hong Kong » Hong Kong Island » The Peak May 31st 2011

and the travel merry-go-round begins (again) NOW in the Hotel Alton in Prague - arrived here (slowly - my choice in case hotel not ready) at 2pm Wed. 1 June Pix would not load at Vantaa-HEL (hence below) and had to dash to other end of airport to (new) gate AT the TIME (this morning) In a sunny nook (so to speak) at Helsinki Vantaa airport – its 8am 1 June – I lose track of what day of the week it is, date more important. I arrived here a little after 6am after my flight on Finnair from Hong Kong. It left after 12.30am, 5 hr time diff and a 10 hr flight. Ignored food when on board until hot brekky this a.m. as had eaten in Mong Kok in HK last night. So what ... read more
HK hotel roof to Right
hotel roof daytime
HK ding ding tram




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