Prague - Monday and Tuesday (train trip, Mlynsky Domov)

Monday 9 July 2018

Well, here I am: Prague!  But of course I didn't get here by magic, I used the train. ;-)

In Vienna Peter arrived early, when I was still finishing off some ironing, but he had to do some work in his study.  That worked out well.  And then it was time to say goodbye to Vienna.  Some places are easier to leave than others, but mostly I am quite reluctant.  That's part of the game, I guess.  Vienna will stay in my memory for a long time, not in the least because I made some friends who I may meet again in the future, if or when they will visit Australia.

Peter dropped me off at central station in plenty of time and the directions to the train were quite clear.  Actually, it's becoming a lot easier to get around on public transport nowadays, because everything is electronic and the names and/or numbers of the mode of transport are clearly displayed as well as the time of departure and arrival.  Often on the train, tram or bus you see screens that display the next stop or station, which takes a lot of guesswork out of your travels.

The train arrived on time and I had an excellent seat, even though I had not received an allocated seat number like others had. I could choose from whatever seat that was left, and they were plenty.  I took pictures on the way of all the stops, so I will remember the route we took.  This time, because the train wasn't horribly expensive, I travelled first class.  I don't know if it was standard, but we were presented with a 'happy hour' menu besides the normal one, which meant that the prices were only half of the regular ones.  I had a cup of coffee and a consommé, but this time not with liver but semolina dumplings. Nice, but not as tasty as the liver.  In first class we also received a complimentary newspaper (not in English though!) and a bottle of water.  With free wi-fi on the train the trip was done in no time.  However, I had taken my Kindle and read a lot during the trip anyway.   And I played a lot of  Wordfeud games as well!

The landscape in Czechia

Lunch

First stop: Breclav

Next stop: Brno

Why not a selfie on the train ;-)

Stop no. 3: Ceska Trebova

General overview of our carriage.  Much like an aeroplane, but more leg room!

Colourful walls on the toilet

Comfortable seating

Stop at: Pardubice

The helpful little monitor on the train

We arrived in Prague right on time.  The only thing that wasn't working was Whatsapp!  We had tried it out before I left, and it worked fine, but when we most needed it the messages didn't arrive.  The station has many exits and of course both Ales and I were each at a different one.  Finally I resorted to just ringing him, and good heavens, that worked.  I don't know what I would have done otherwise...

I knew I hadn't really arrived yet, because Ales was only picking me up to help me with my luggage and the complicated public transport (for a new arrival).  We caught the underground to the next station, switched trains to a different line and after that caught the bus to Jinocany where Ales and Lenka live.  It was about 6pm when we arrived and I was welcomed by Lenka with a cup of coffee and a glass of wine.  After that we had dinner and a quiet evening to get acquainted.

By the way, this is a hospitality exchange, meaning that I will be hosted by Ales and Lenka and they will come to Australia at some point in time to be hosted by me.

Tuesday 10 July 2018

The wine from last night must have worked wonders, because I slept in this morning!  Usually I wake up between 5 and 6am, but today not before 7am.  It didn't matter, because there was no need to get up early.

Ales was working from home, and was quite chatty, so I didn't get to do a lot in the way of responding to email messages and the like.  On the other hand, I didn't want to undertake much on my first day here, so that worked out alright.

For lunch Ales wanted to go to the pub, which seems to be a normal way of life, so we walked through the village to the pub, which was nearby. Mlynsky Domov
it is called.  I just had a simple meal of salad as I don't really like two big meals on a day and it is hard enough to loose weight (as I am still wanting to do) when you're on holidays.

Lettuce, Mozarella and tomatoes with bread on the side

Ales' schnitzel and fries (very western European I would say)

Ales showing off his meal ;-)

The way back lead past this recreational lake.  I will try and take more pictures of the village and the house later.

Recreational lake for the locals.  Beautiful clear water for swimming.

At 'home' I had a chat with Kevin and a surprise video call from Johan, who I met in Poland last year.  Great talking for a while.  Of course about geocaching and his life in Poland. Nice to have friends all over the world!