Found this while wandering around Prague
That’s the Letna Park Metronome in the background.
All they do is listen to Kid Cudi and Lupe
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Monthly Archives: April 2013
Camping along the Vltava
First night under the stars (well, clouds and full moon). Probably could have found a cheap hotel, but this campground was right on the route. Part trailer park inhabited by several Czech women and their army of feral cats and part self-service campground. But, down by the water, I have a great spot with my own view.
And, yes, I’m posting this sitting in my tent in the rain tethering my laptop to my phone. What a strange world we live in…
Day 6: Litoměřice, Czech Republic to Veltrusy, Czech Republic
Start: Litoměřice, Czech Republic
End: Veltrusy, Czech Republic
Distance: 68.6km
Elevation Gain: 844ft
Elevation Loss: 866ft
Time: 6h10m
Reading Material: The Unbearable Lightness of Being – Milan Kundera
Audio Material: Diane Rehm’s Friday News Roundup (Domestic & International); On the Media
Description
Follow the yellow #2 signs, follow the yellow #2 signs. Sometimes they make sense, like long stretches right up against the Elbe. But, then sometimes they veer off into through fields of unpaved ruts. One time I dead ended and had to do some improvised hand gesture communication to determine the location of nearby private ferry (e.g. a smelly man with a small boat attached to a wire who will take you across the river for 20 Czech Koruna (about $1).
The day started a bit late as I hit up the O2 mobile store in Litoměřice for a Czech data sim card. If my mobile data addiction didn’t already feel bad, I had to endure 25min of an MTV show in English about the difficulties of preparing for the big homecoming dance while several older Czechs bartered with the salespeople. Maybe to them the show was soothing with its shots of school gymnasiums and lots of crying teenage girls, but to an English speaker in was grating.
In Mělník, the Elbe and Vltava converge and I bid farewell and follow the Vltava. Only about 35km more until I hit Prague tomorrow.
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- I was tempted to put this little guy in my panniers
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- Private ferry
kofola and a hamburger
Fast food Czech style. Legend has it the kofola soft drink originated in communist Slovakia when food scientists were trying to figure out what to do with the caffeinated sludge byproduct from brewing coffee. I think it tastes like a less sugary coke with a little bit of herbal anise flavoring.
Day 5: Děčín, Czech Republic to Litoměřice, Czech Republic
Start: Děčín, Czech Republic
End: Litoměřice, Czech Republic
Distance: 56.0km
Elevation Gain: 1062ft
Elevation Loss: 1121ft
Time: 5h08m
Reading Material: The Unbearable Lightness of Being – Milan Kundera
Audio Material: Off The Air Podcast (eps 41 w/ Maron); APM’s Marketplace
Description
Today’s bicycle goal was pretty easy. Travel 50km along the Elbe and reach the Terezin Concentration Camp with enough time to fully explore before the exhibits closed at 6pm. A full report on Terezin is forthcoming but I needed the full 3.5hrs and still couldn’t grasp the enormity (emotional & physical) of the place. I don’t really enjoy timeboxing the ride, since I get antsy and am more inclined to pedal head’s down instead of taking in the ride. The Elbe is very curvy in this section making the final approach feel asymptotic.
While well-signed, the Czech-side of the route is more variable with multiple unpaved sections and lots of short climbs off the riverbed to meet a nearby road only to plunge back to a new section of bike path several 100m ahead. Being a Sunday, many families were out enjoying the day and, at one point, I had to deal with a headwind of 5k race runners.
I reached Litoměřice (one of the oldest Czech cities) by 2pm. Stashed my gear in a hotel and then pedaled across the river to Terezin. Had to forgo lunch but touring a concentration camp on an empty stomach is probably preferred.
