- Czech Republic -
15 days around
(realized with art&vie travel company)
On this 15 day trip around the Czech Republic, I discovered that this country is much more than just going to Prague and back. It is hundreds of years of culture, mixture of architectural styles, different mentalities, colorful villages, families with a thousand stories and simplicity. The first thing I did as in every country, to learn to say the basics in Czech (language impossible to learn!).
Hello: dobry den!,
thank you: dekuji
A beer please: pivo prosim
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1. MARIENBAD
The most important thermal town. There are a total of forty water sources, all of which are cold and have different chemical compositions, but all contain carbon dioxide. It deals with diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract, metabolism, respiratory tract and skin. During the nineteenth century, King Edward VII of England, Kafka, Goethe, Chopin and many other prestigious guests took the waters in the cups of the palace to relieve their ills and afflictions. Between showers and baths, they wandered, sipping the spring water in a beaker. A ritual always recommended by the doctors of the station, to improve the assimilation of the minerals 💦 my personal experience : such a disgusting iron taste water! 🤢 But beautiful landscapes
2. Karlovy Vary (or Carlsbad)
The second THERMAL town in the Bohemian region of the Czech Republic. Its numerous HOT 🔥 thermal water have made it popular since the 19th century. The area is home to several colonnades. The hot water comes from the Pramen Vřídlo geyser, whose water rises 12 meters high
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3. Ceske budejovice
Here, apart from a beautiful night walk where the moon becomes a woman, I tell you the story of the most important drink in this country: beer! Visiting Budweiser's brewery is an experience! It is time to clarify the meaning of these names, when you order a beer here, there give you always a : 10 °, 11 °, 12 ° ... and some brands even produce 16 °, 19 ° or 21 ° for gourmets! In fact, it's not about the alcohol level of the beer (goodness! 😂) , to make it simple, beer is produced by mixing three main ingredients - water, hops and malt. Basically, we create a liquid with malt & hops, and this substance is mixed with water to ferment it. In most Czech beers, 10% of this substance is mixed with 90% water.
It is the third brewery that I visit with Calsberg in COPENHAGEN, HEINEKEN in Amsterdam and local breweries in Argentina, but it is the first time that I observe the process until the bottling and labeling! The strong yeast smell, the strident sound of the glass bottles, the tasting in the cellar at 4 degrees, "piva!c as they say in Czech
4.Holašovice (unesco village). 🏡 🏡
The village has twenty-three protected houses or farms out of a total of 120 buildings (including barns, sheds, barns, etc.) that make up the historic ensemble. The farms are located on both sides of a rectangular village square 70 by 210 meters.
5.TELČ
Small city full of colored houses with typical Moravia architecture. Each house has two numbers, the one of origin and the official of the town hall ( complicated for the mailmen 📮 ✉ !) And each facade different symbols or sculptures according to the profession of its owner of origin. Beautiful ancient castle 🏰 in the city center
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6. Třebíč.
The Jewish cemetery ➕ in Třebíč is one of the largest with more than 3,000 tombstones. Surrounded by its Jewish ghetto, in which 120 houses have been preserved and are now housing citizens. Anecdote: put small stones on the graves as a symbol of rest in peace (because in the desert, the dead were covered with large stones to prevent animals from coming)
7. BRNO.
Second most important city after Prague. Night walk 🌃 after 10km walked today and 3oo km through three cities. I've always preferred cities at sunset or at night. The white lady watches us from the sky and silence occupies the streets. More Gothic Renaissance churches here and piano concert at the hotel by my father =).
8.Olomouc.
Second largest city of Moravia. The architecture is similar to that described before and its baroque churches 💒 . My anecdote? Entering the university 🎓 where Mendel, father of genetics, and scientist so admired by biologists ! (the pea laws of chromosome segregation , do you remember? 🥬)....
9.KRUMLOV. 🏰
Its "dolls houses", its interior island, its meander, two intact castles, English gardens, kiosks of Czech waffles, a marvel 14km of visit walked today full of anecdotes and explanations under the burning sun. The perfect place to do kayak on the river.
I have seen about 30 royal castles in my life and I must say that this is in first position with that of Sintra in Portugal. Dozens of rooms and doors covered until the last square meter of incredible carved marquetry 🏰 . 40 years of work for each detail and more than 15 differents woods. The symbol of patience....
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11. JEAN NEPOMUCENO Church.
St Jean was the confessor of the Queen born Sophia of Bavaria. John had criticized the king and refused to betray the confessions of the queen, who was suspected for adultery. He was tortured and thrown into the Vltava River, the legend sais that in the place where the river returned the body of the saint, a five-star 🌟 crown miraculously appeared in the sky each year. For that, several carved red tongues are on the wall of the church. As a symbol of silence 🤫
Prague: the capital
Hotel Kampa Stará zbrojnice - SIVEK HOTELS.
My favorite hotel of the entire trip, Kampa Hotel. Medieval hotel decorated with armors, ⚔ swords , medieval objects, and a beautiful restaurant room with Gothic vaults and wooden furniture that welcome you each morning with piano concerts.
My favorite meal of the day when I travel is as simple as the buffet breakfast 🥣 . Why? Because in my day to day I never dedicate time or importance to it, but when I have so many options it is the best way to start the day happy 😊 ! boiled egg 🥚 , hummus, bread 🥖 , chickpeas , 🍄 mushrooms omelette , cheese 🧀, muesli, mushed potatoes 🥔 , tomatoes 🍅 and my tea. Who said breakfast cannot be rice or potatoes? Breakfast is whatever you want it to be.....
My PRAGUE souvenirs:
1.Its cathedral, its castle and the "golden street", small street full of small houses not of small dwarves but of people of the medieval era who lived at the base of the castle in 7 square meters 🏡
2. The famous Czech art nouveau artist F. MUCHA , exhibited throughout the world and painter of very original posters (the first with a rectangular and long shape instead of the normal A0 shape) especially in France. This time I discovered that he had also made paintings! The most interesting is to know the anecdotes behind each drawing, theatre poster or actors and artists (as Gauguin) related with him
3. Prague is one of the European cities that has the most Art Nouveau (or Art déco) or jugendstil achievements. Color, green, gold leaves. A style that makes cities colorful and happy (very good examples also seen in Riga last year!). With a pleasant cake break 🎂 in one of the most unusual cafeterias in the city: coffee orient --> The only example in the world of cubist architecture (and not painting). Even the tables, piano and desserts are cubist!
4. ✡ Jewish quarter and synagogues of Prague. To not describe the suffering of the people felt in each Jewish memorial I do, Today I tell you the Jewish legend of Golem, magical creature. Rabbi gave him life by inscribing EMET (אמת, one of the names of God) on a scroll and introducing into his mouth. To stop or sleep it, it was necessary to erase the first letter because MET (H) (מת) means dead. The golem had become too big for the rabbi to erase the letter , so Rabbi Loew asked him to tie his shoes, which he did. The creature bent down and became again what had served to its creation: clay (argile)
5.Lennon Wall. "All you need is LASKA".
In 1988, the wall was a source of irritation for the communist regime. The liberalization movement these students followed was described as "Lennonism". Even when the wall was repainted by some authorities, by the next day it was again full of poems and flowers. Today, the wall represents a symbol of global ideals such as love and peace. On April 22, 2019 - Earth Day - the action group Extinction Rebellion repainted the entire wall with slogans demanding action from the Czech government on Climate Change. In July 2019, artists painted a memorial on the wall for Hong Kong democracy
It's time to eat!
The Czech cuisine, the contrary to light. Apart from a lot of meat, from the experience of a vegetarian is based on a lot of pasta, rice, potato 🥔 and kilos of thick cream 🥛 , cheese and flour in everything. Restaurants usually make their own beer. I have tried a typical one that mixes blonde beer with black beer! 🍻
Last dinner in the Czech Republic in a beautiful baroque restaurant, with the best menu of all. And with the taste even in the mouth of caramelized pineapple, I take the opportunity to talk a little more about Czech cuisine. As I said, it is based on potatoes, flour, a thousand things in milky soups, sweet sauces and lots of meat. Last night I have taste huge soups, the knedlikys (floury bread, spongy, yeast and egg sometimes stuffed with potatoes which is the bread here), all the strudel cakes, and several cheese and cream rissotos of rice and kinoa. And beer of course! (90 cent of euros the pint!)
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