Stunt Show

I didn’t make it to Poland on my last trip to Europe and I was a little disapointed to have missed out on Krakow. Matt and Wes were keen as beans so we organised a bus back from Cesky Krumlov and an overnight train from Prague.

The overnight trains are always an interesting experience; sometimes they’re fun and others a bit of a nightmare. Ours was fun despite a couple of those confusing/concerning moments that are occurring to frequently for my liking.

The first was that I’d managed to purchase couchette reservations but not actual tickets for the journey. This was despite making it abundantly clear (or so I thought…) to the lady at the sales desk that I wanted both. Luckily the gentleman managing the couchette car was understanding and Wes had enough Euro to cover the three tickets.

The second was that I woke up on the train at 7:30 despite the fact we were supposed to arrive at 6:15am. After quizzing the Canadian guy who’d joined us about whether he knew what was going on, I decided I’d better speak to somebody. Luckily there was a simple explanation (a 2hr delay we’d slept through) and we were still on route to Krakow.

Once off the train we walked straight down and checked into the “Good Bye Lenin – Let’s Rock” hostel (such a stupid name that I insist on using the full version…. like “Warner Brothers’ Movie Word – Hollywood on the Gold Coast”).

The common room was buzzing with people eating breakfast and getting ready for the day. I got talking to a girl who was recruiting people to take a trip to the Wieliczka salt mine.

The tour of the mine was definitely a little kooky which suited me just fine. A few other people said they thought it was lame so it’s obviously not for everyone. In essence, you end up ~100m underground where there quite a few interesting exhibits carved from salt. The salt varies in colour from snow white to quite dark due to impurities.

There is a bar at the very bottom so we had to have a beer underground, if only in to observe the effects in the name of science. It was a low point for some and I’m pretty sure a few others hit rock bottom that afternoon.

Other highlights in Krakow were the coffee shops and restaurants in the streets that radiate outward from the Town Square as well as the jazz and blues bars in Kazimierz (the old Jewish Quarter).

Of course, there is also Auschwitz/Birkenau where no words can really describe the experience. I have put up a small set of photos that might begin to give some indication of what a chilling and desolate place this is.

On advice from a number of friends, I had this small town in Southern Bohemia high on the list of places to see in the Czech Republic. It’s a quiet spot (pop. ~14,000) but despite it’s size there was plenty to do and a bunch of great people to meet.

We arrived early and after dropping our bags we headed for breakfast at Cafe 99. Being a Monday morning the town was pretty much void of people. Coming from the crowds in Prague made this even more noticeable. The numbers picked up throughout our stay but judging by all the restaurants and their empty chairs, the high season has definitely passed for another year.

One of the more interesting activities we undertook was a four hour rafting ride down the winding Vltava river. It was a leisurely trip without any real rapids or waterfalls in our way. The most excitement was navigating the three weirs on our course. A new friend from the hostel joined myself, Matt and Wes so we had plenty of paddelling power. Having a fourth person was also helpful when we ‘beached’ ourselves on the shallow rocky bottom.

With so many restaurants, we were spoilt for choice. Standout meals were a bean burrito from a homely vegitarian place and chick/pork/lamb skewers in cavernous underground restaurant.

The Krumlov Castle is an interesting attraction. It includes a rounded tower with elaborate paintwork, a large chalet, and a wide garden that’s perfect for an afternoon stroll. On our last day, we paid up and took a tour of the inside of the Castle. Unfortunately the guide was a little robotic with her script so I was keen to finish up and hit the road/tracks for Krakow, Poland.

I’m fairly sure the plan (if you could call it one) for Pilsen was hatched in the Lowenbrau tent on the first day of Oktoberfest. Andy and Tim had hired a car in Germany and said they had a great time driving down to meet us in Munich. I was sure we could have similar fun driving out to Pilsen and then on to Cesky Krumlov for a few days. It turns out I was mistaken.

We picked up the Renault from a rental agency in the middle of town. After arranging a GPS we chose Jane, an English woman, to be our guide.

This was my first time driving on the right and going from an old mini to a shuttle-like people mover made things quite tricky. The rain and congestion on the roads meant the difficulty level was pretty much set at ‘ludicrous’ right from the start.

The first merge into traffic took place in third gear. The second started out in first gear but when going for the up-shift I nearly opened my door. This was met with nervous laughter from the passengers but at least we were on our way.

Despite a few other minor difficulties, we eventually made it to Pilsen. Since it was already early evening we grabbed a meal and set about finding some nightlife. The Italian restaurant was noteworthy for the unchilled Pilsener Urquell. The night, mainly spent in a local karaoke bar, was memorable for a short Czech guy belting out What a Wonderful World.

The only item on the agenda for Thursday was the Pilsener Urquell brewery. On arrival we noted that the malting aroma, and the site itself is much nicer than the XXXX factory at Milton.

The tour was fairly involved, with a guide, bus rides, lots of stairs etc. As it was my fourth brewery tour, I knew pretty much what to expect. Aside from tour staples like the “how beer is made” video, the kettles, and bottling, there were a few unique things to keep me interested. We were taken down into the winding cellars that have been around since the early days of the brewery. An old video of the Coopers at work constructing the traditional timber beer barrells was another.

The trip out to Pilsen was a mission but we survived. And I’m certainly glad we did it!

Cesky Krumlov went on hold but I eventually made it. There’ll be more on that South Bohemian gem later.

Prague was excellent. I was a little apprehensive before arriving because the last time I was here (a 36 hour train stopover in reality) wasn’t such a great experience.

We split our time in the city into two parts. For the first two days we stayed on the eastern side of Nove Mesto at a hostel called Marabou. The second stint was the weekend and we were at Miss Sophie’s on the southern edge of the inner city. A day trip to Pilsen slotted in between but this was an adventure that deserves a separate post.

I took the first day at a very leisurely pace; wandering the cobble stone laneways of inner city Stare Mesto and across the Charles Bridge into Mala Strana, the Prague Castle and Hradcany. The streets and architecture are brilliant. The crowds at this time of year were much more manageable than what I experienced on my last trip which was at Christmas time.

Andy arrived for the second day and I gave him a lightening fast tour that took in a lot of what I’d seen the day before. This was necessarily so we could head off for Pilsen by mid-afternoon.

Returning to Prague on Thursday, we gatecrashed a friends Contiki pub crawl which turned out to be fun. It started at a pub called the “Beer Factory” where the attraction was a glass chiller and your own beer tap at each table.

The weekend was jam packed and all good thanks to a visit from a friend who’s living in London. We woke up and watched the AFL final at 6am which was a bag of fun and a major dissapointment at the same time. After going back to bed for a few hours sleep we made it to a walking tour in the afternoon. Dinner was a very tasty traditional Czech meal of goulash and potato pancakes. Sunday was a similar affair with a walking tour in the morning and stops at the Sex Museum and the Torture Museum.

It’s hard to believe it’s been a whole week since my Oktoberfest experience. I’ve been super busy on tours and travelling so there’s not been much time to write. Although in truth, it would have taken me almost a week to arrange my memories and collect my thoughts. Regardless…

The festival was mostly everything I expected plus a lot more. The tents were jam packed but things were relatively civil inside when you consider the circumstances. We did Lowenbrau on the opening Saturday and then Augustiner on Sunday. I get the impression from friends that some of the other tents, like the Hofbrau, were a little more out there.

What I wasn’t expecting were all the rollercoasters and family fun rides. There were plenty to choose from and they added nicely to atmosphere while giving a less booze/food oriented entertainment option.

As we arrived at approx. 8:45 on the first morning to find litterally thousands of people flooding into the Theresienwiese grounds. After switching queues, we jumped in behind about 40-60 people at a side entrance and managed to be sucked inside with the crowd. Once under the canvas, it was a bit of a stampede as people tried to rally around friends and claim a table. I ended up on a table with two mates and four kiwis. We were later joined by three young Germans from Cologne who added some local flavour and rounded out the ten person table.

From there, the wait began. We traded stories about the previous night, recent travel and our different backgrounds. I made a tactical move to eat a tasty pretzel at around 11:30 in preparation for the first round. After some pomp and ceremony, the first set of frothy ones were dispatched to us at about 12:15 and it was party time.

Some of the highlights:

• Pretzels;
• Riding the dodgem cars (the only time I’ll ever drink and drive);
• Realising my tour company had pitched my camping tent on a metal man-cover hole;
• Sitting at a table with a German family and hearing what Oktoberfest means to the locals.

I have to admit I was quite glad to see the back of Munich when we checked out on Monday morning. It’s a beautiful place but there is no way I could maintain the Oktoberfest lifestyle for more than two days. It really is that much fun!