Blogs from Central Bohemian Region, Czech Republic, Europe

I visited here on the advice of a fellow traveller when I was in my twenties (roughly the same age as Jacqueline). At the time, it wasn’t in my guidebook but it’s one of the only things that I truly remember well about my time in Czech back then. It is a very unique experience. The Sedlec Ossuary is a Roman Catholic chapel located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints (aka bone church). The ossuary is estimated to contain the skeletons of between 40,000 and 70,000 people, whose bones have been artistically arranged to form decorations and furnishings for the chapel. Four bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. A chandelier of bones, which apparently contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs in the center of the chapel. There ... read more

We drove our car 3,300 km from Minsk, Belarus where we are teaching to see the cities, Christmas markets and quiet snow covered countryside of Belarus, Poland, Czech Republic and eastern Germany. The majority of our 3 week tour was spent in friendly Czech Republic. A stop in Kutna Hora on our way from Olomouc to Prague was oddly interesting. Upon entering this unheated space you descend immediately into a crypt decorated with thousands of human bones (40,000) from plagues and wars. There are bone pyramids flanking the crypt, a large central chandelier, coat of arms, and more. It is a somber and reflective place, but that didn’t deter tourists with their constant thirst for selfies in every situation.... read more

A wonderful weekend outing to a small town near St John of Nepomuk pilgrim church. We have this church in our Czech village at home and wanted to visit it first hand. It is situated in the Central Bohemian Highlands, bordered by lakes and dense forests where Czechs like to ski cross country in the winter. In the summer, the trails are great for hiking. We found a perfect natural cathedral in the middle of a densly forested areas for our Sunday morning worship...interesting complement to last Sunday when we worshiped in an ornate gothic baroque cathedral built in the 1700s. Based on our walking pace, we think we logged about 10 miles on Saturday and 15 or so on Sunday. Good backpacks and sturdy shoes are proving to be valuable assets during this training phase! ... read more

Thursday 15th May 2014 Well, the day has arrived. We had our stuff at Okolo Bike Hire by 0900 as arranged. It took two trips to get it all there as our suitcases and the saddle panniers with what we need over the next fortnight were too awkward to carry together. It took a little longer than expected to get away, panniers and handlebar bags to fit, tools, spares and maps to pack, and generally to get used to the bikes. A wobbly start on the bike path alongside the river but we met Kev and Jan about 1030, 30 mins later than planned. The worst part of the day followed, winding our way through a bit of pedestrian traffic and following a map which didn't take new detours etc into account. We finally found ... read more

The daily routine of training camp can wear one down. Fourteen-hour days leave one knackered out and begging for bed. The day begins with breakfast, off-ice warm-ups, a 1.5 hour training session, and off-ice warm-downs followed by lunch. After lunch, there is chalk talk with the coaches--where each line reviews in a group the "team system" we will be covering during the afternoon training session. So far, we have covered D-zone coverage, breakouts, and forecheck team systems. After chalk talk, we have a one or two hour break. Some of the girls go for a walk to the town plaza, while others nap or read during their down time. Then it's time for warm-ups, a 1.25 hour training session, and off-ice warm-downs followed by dinner. The warm-up and warm-down routines add a considerable amount of time ... read more