The Green Town of Springs

Getting on the train from Prague's Hlavni Nadrazi, I travel all the way to Marianske Lazne. This place is often described as a sister city to Karlovy Vary as they are both quite close to each other and their both spa towns.

In this small town, some popular attractions are the Kolonnade (seen on the left), the magnificent musical fountain, and the broad advancing lanes cutting through the parks and green meadow like areas of the town.

The beautiful buildings harbor many shops selling souvenirs and other what-nots. A common sight is watching the various tourists munching their creme filled waffles alfresco in the fresh countrish air.

Another attraction is the spa resorts. Generally speaking this town can easily be covered within a matter of hours, while ignoring the spas. Visit this green town for a refreshing experience!!

Prague's Abode of Animals

Sunday is reserved for the Prague Zoo. So with a yawn, we start out on a late morning. Taking the tram 14, we get down at Trojska and get the bus to the last stop, Zoological Zahrada (the zoo). The Prague Zoo is big enough to devote more than three hours. The ticket cost per person is 100 CZK.

Take your time to stroll around and see the aviary wing, the primates section, and the mammalia. The pride of this zoo lies with its famous gorillas, tigers, lions and giraffes.

Nearby sites to be recommended are the Botanical Garden, and the Wine Cellars/ Museum surrounded by Apple orchards. Makes a beautiful trip on a sunny Sunday morning.

TRANSPORTATION: Trams 14 or 17 can be taken upto Trojska. Getting down there, you can cross the road and reach the bus stop. There is only bus from that stop (112). Take the bus to the last stop.

Click on the post's title if you wish to visit the official website of the Prague Zoo.

The Town of Medicinal Springs

In the beginning of warm August, I decided to take a break from dawdling at home and instead spend more time sigh seeing. I caught the 8:30 bus to Karlovy Vary from Dejvicka. The bus actually originates from Florence main bus station. Buses taken from here can be either or CSAD. It takes about 2.5 hours and costs about 150 CZK (rates and time varies from origination point). For eg., the bus from Dejvicka, costed 99 CZK only. Students with ISIC card have a discount of 15%. There is also a small airport in Karlovy Vary, however flights from Prague are not that frequent. Direct connection trains are not available from Prague to Karlovy Vary.

Reaching Karlovy Vary at about 9:00 becomes a green feast for the eyes. This town is very charming with its beautiful buildings, famous spas and friendly atmosphere. Getting down at the Autobusy Nadrazi, one has to walk down the street till you pass the beautiful hall on the right. As you walk past the beautiful Colannade you start advancing into the territory of the hot springs. The hot water springs are famous for its content of sulphur. The water is said to have medicinal value. However it is advisable not to drink too much. Tourists usually hang around munching on the Karlovy wafers or with a ceramic pot filled with sulfur water.

Behind the large square, where the Grandhotel Pupp is present, on the hill lies the Diana Lookout Tower. You have a choice of either hiking to a certain level (up the hill) or take a 8-10 min journey on a monorail to the summit of the hill (different rates for students). Once you reach the tower, you have to still climb 5 stories/ take the elevator till the last level. Finally you can treat yourself to a beautiful view of Karlovy Vary, nestled among the Bohemian forestlands.

Other places that are not to be missed is the National Theatre, the Japanese Garden and the various Laznes (springs). The gardens of Karlovy Vary are bedecked with vibrant flowers and the forests with their trails make it a nice place for hiking.

TRANSPORTATION: Bus would be the cheapest mode of transportation., as explained above.

Click on the post's title if you wish to visit the official website of Karlovy Vary.

The Historical Town of Cesky Krumlov

It was a fine sunny morning. But most fine sunny mornings in Prague first turn out to be bleak, thus frightening the travellers/tourists like moi. So, hopping on to the 6:07 train to Cesky Krumlov from Praha's Hlavni Nadrazi, I reach around 10 am. It is actually a really short walk from the train station to the Centrum. Once you step out of the station just follow the road on your right till you pass several pensions and houses and then reach the forest/park. This overlooks the historical town. As you descend the steps or hike down the trail through the hill you soon reach the small town. Walking on the bridge with the river Vltava cutting its way through the sluices is a golden moment. The little alleys and streets are arranged with shops on both sides.

Once you reach the castle complex, you cross the bridge flanked by a moat. The moat is however not filled with water, rather its a home for fat brown lazy bears. As you get into the castle square, on your left is the tall Tower (entry - 40kc). You can go on ahead to the main ticket office and choose your preference of guided tours (I/II) and languages. Walking up through the gateway/square, takes you to the parapets that overlook the town. Further lies the Castle complex's gardens where you can take a stroll.

TRANSPORTATION: I went with my family, so for me it was cheaper to go by train. By bus, which would be faster it is 177 Kc/- per head (one way). If you decide to take train, the journey is 4 hrs or so. If going in a group, take the sonne plus ticket (group fare), which is for 2 adults and 3 children (under the age of 15).

Click on the post's title if you wish to visit the official Cesky Krumlov website.

Town of Silver Mines

Being just one hour away by train from Prague, Kutna Hora is a nice destination for a day trip. Nestled in the snug central Bohemian region of Bohemia, it attracts many tourists worldwide to its Sedlec Ossuary, Barbara Cathedral and other magnificent buildings.

So, I travelled from Prague to Kutna Hora, and within walking distance I reach the Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady in Sedlec. The Cathedral is very beautiful from outside, as you see in the picture.

With the cathedral on your left and a road on your right, take the latter and follow till you reach a carved column, situated outside the Sedlec Ossuary. Like its name, this Sedlec Ossuary is a small chapel decorated with 40,000 human bones. It is NOT like walking into a topsy turvy cemetry, rather you are surrounded by various pyramids of skulls, chandeliers of bones, amusing sculptures and artwork.

Next stop would be the silver mining museum situated in an old fortress called Hradek. A five minutes walk from here would lead to the beautiful Barbara Cathedral. It is a five naved cathdral that stands atop overlooking the town of Kutna Hora and neighbouring Sedlec. Sadly, I couldn't take a picture of the massive building. Opposite the cathedral, is the Italian court with its beautiful gardens.

Since the town is small, it can be covered easily within a day. Other places to see here are: St. Jame's Church, Stone Fountain, Stone House, Chapel of Corpus Christi, and the Jesuit College. Also its worth admiring the beautiful narrow streets of this town.

As for transportation, train would be recommended. Hope you visit this beautiful town.

Hiking Natural Rock Trails

Taking a train from Prague to Jicin, and then a bus from Jicin to Cesky Raj, results to a glorious view of dolomite formations in the Bohemian Paradise. As you start with the original red trail, and follow on upto various viewpoints overlooking the paradise, one stumbles upon other trails - green, blue, and yellow. Both the red and yellow take you throw the narrow gorges betweeen the dolomite formations and into the cool and shadowed
regions of the rocky crevices. The trails range from 0.5 km to over 17 km and over.

So, it would be advisable to chose trails carefully. From the height you
overlook the camping grounds and also can see adventurous mountaineers climbing the rocky formations.

As you start making your descent from the trail, and reach the bus stop you pass a memorial which you would have seen during your ascent. The memorial is laid for the soldiers who lost their lives in the battle of 1866 between Austrian and Prussian troops.

An advise to be given , is: do NOT rely on the local buses (especially on weekends and on your return journy to Jicin). Ours practically didnt even turn up. Our only solution was to hike back to Jicin, via the yellow trail through farms, valleys, fields and forests and then switch over to the red trail. Sore feet was expected when we reached home!!! So, arrange the transportation carefully, in order to avoid backfiring of your plans and sore feet.

For transportations details and arrangements, visit : http://www.idos.cz/ , it' s in english as well. Just type in your destination, and departure and it will suggest all suitable trains/ buses whichever you choose.

Click on the post's title, which will lead you to the official cesky raj website. It is pretty useful as it gives info on trails, tours, places to see etc.

Temples of the South

Situated on the shores of Tamil Nadu, near the states of Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari, lies the Tiruchendur Temple. It is one of the six main shrines of Murugan (a god).

I got this photo of a gopuram of the temple. A gopuram is basically a prominent architectural feature present in South Indian temples, at the entrance of a temple.

In the next picture, you can see the gopuram of the Tirunelveli Temple (in Tirunelveli). Gopurams are beautifully decorated with intricate carvings, painted and decorated with characters (sages, deities, their incarnations and symbols) from Hindu mythology. The carvings often have to do with the particular deity that each gopuram is assosciated with.

In the first photo, you can clearly see a blue spear kind of weapons, which is known as the 'vel'. The 'vel' is the symbol/ main weapon of the deity Murugan.

Click on the post's title for more info on South Indian Temples, which I found really interesting!