Day 14 - A late breakfast and a Long Drive to Gasthof Hillebrand

 

We were up early and got everything packed and started loading the car before breakfast. It was a good job as Zdislava had overslept and packing the car probably woke her up. She apologised when she brought us our breakfast 15 minutes after the time we had asked for. We each had an omelette with peas and shared a plate of cheese some of which was saved for a picnic on route. We left around 9:30. 

The first stop was the Tesco in Chodov for Czech beer and wine. 

We then went round the corner to Libl and finally filled up with petrol. We headed north to the border town of Zweibach around a 40 minute drive. We needed to avoid the motorway as we had not purchased the required permit. A post office was located in a small village we passed through and postcards posted. 

We will see how long they take to reach their designation. As soon as we crossed the border Kates displayed a map and was programmed to take us to our destination of Gasthof Hillebrand just outside Buren. We followed the route she suggested but might have been better heading across country to Gera. A Brexton lunch was taken on route.

 There were only a couple of minor incidents on route. A lorry had shed a tyre and left large remnants and a mud guard all over the road which Lyn had to avoid and roadworks at Bad Hersfeld cause a long delay We had to avoid this by leaving the autobahn and going through the town. We arrived at the Gasthof at 18:10 in time for a cup of tea before our evening meal. We each had the same 2 specials from the board, onion soup followed by pork medallions in black pepper sauce accompanied by several glasses of Warsteiner the local beer.

Day 13 - Loket and Karlov Vary

The weather forecast of the day was much improved. A shorter ride and some sightseeing planned, visiting picturesque small town of Loket and the Spa town of Karlov Vary. We left the car at the apartment and followed a bike path to Loket. The word Loket  meaning “elbow” in Czech. The town owes this name to the fact that it is surrounded from three sides by the Ohře river and the shape of the river resembles an elbow. The town is dominated by the 12-century castle. 

The route took us on bike paths and minor tracks and included on long step ascent.

We approached the town from the river had had to climb up the step cobbled streets to get to the main square. After some sightseeing and photos and Italian was finally selected for an early lunch of soup and half a pizza.

After lunch we cycled along the bike path following the river to Karlov Vary. This time we were following the path of the river downstream and the path stayed close to the riverbank. On reaching Karlov Vary we cycled to towards the centre and followed the directions towards the tourist information Some of the roads had been pedestrianised and cycling was not allowed so Lyn scooted her bike whilst Robert walked. The tourist information was located, and map obtained of the centre obtained. We last visited the spa over 20 years ago and could remember very little of it.

The town is famous for its spa and mineral springs. There are 13 main springs which range in temperature from 30 to 72 degrees centigrade. To sample the water special cups can be purchased where the water is cooled by drinking it thought the handle. We managed with a plastic cup from the Brexton set, although Lyn would have like to have bought a cup, and sampled most of the springs.

Hot Spring Colonnade 72 degrees C

It was starting to get cooler so we went into a cafe for a coffee and shared 3 small mararoons. 

Lyn phoned her mum from a quiet spot before we started back to the apartment. We stopped at Lidl again on our way out of town to buy Salmon and gnocchi for tea. 

We were back in time for Lyn to log into her French class whilst Robert cooked tea and wrote the postcards.

A round trip of 27 miles

Day 12 - A 45 mile cycle ride avoiding the rain

 

We awoke to rain but as the forecast was for it to clear up after 10:00 we decided to do the 38 mile ride I had planned the previous evening.

 Breakfast was brought to our room on a tray at the time we had selected and left outside. We each had a pea omelette and shared a plate of sliced cheese and basket of toast.

 The car was moved off the drive to a parking spot just round the corner and despite the dark clouds we set off. 1.2 miles later the rain started and we sheltered by a church under a tree before moving across the road to a block of garages that provided better shelter.

 

After around 30 minutes it was dry enough to continue. The Garmin had difficulty find the path but we eventually found the marked trail and followed it. We thought we were making good progress until we arrived in Karlov Vary and realised we had been cycling in the wrong direction! We retraced our steps but just before we got back to where we went wrong the rain started getting heavier and we had to seek shelter again by a different garage block. 

When the rain stopped we located the correct path. The numbered bike trails were excellent. They were clearly signed (once located) and were on dedicated cycle tracks or minor roads.

We had not taken any food for lunch. When we got to Hroznětín we had hoped to find a cafe but there was nothing suitable. The post office was open and I took the opportunity to purchase some stamps. I was the only customer and it took two members of staff and 15 minutes. It was raining when I came out and we had to seek shelter in a bus stop. The larger town of Ostrov provided more options for lunch. We could not find a café to get something savoury so had to settle for a cake for Koruna Pralines. The cakes looked good but were disappointing and not a patch on the ones we had had in Plana. Lyn made the wrong selection and should have had the one with fruit on the top.

It was 15:30 when we left the café and we still had 22 miles to go. It was a 300 feet climb before we dropped down to the river which we would follow back to Karlov Vary.

 

Cup Storage Rack?

 The cycle path initially followed the road but diverted off it before the point I had mapped and rather than follow the road in the valley climbed on a pleasant track though the woods adding another 300 feet of climbing.  It was then back down to the river were the undulations continued until we reached Karlov Vary. A Lidl we passed provided ingredient for a prawn stir fry.

 

We were back at the apartment at 18:55. A round trip of 45 miles with 2343 feet of climbing.

Day 11 - A short drive and a tour of Cheb

 

We awoke to rain. It was forecast but to unfortunate as it was too heavy to enjoy a bike ride. The car was packed, bill paid and Google Translate used to inform our hosts of the small wet patch that had developed on our ceiling.

 

We decided to visit the city of Cheb, our route took us close to Mariánské Lázně a spa town we had visited 20 years ago but the heavy rain meant we decided to continue rather than stopping to explore the town. On arriving in the town finding somewhere to park was a problem. Most of the parking seemed to be limited to 1 or 1.5 hours and was full. After exhausting the options on Google Maps we eventually found a space. It turned out to be only a short walk from the town square. 

The Tourist information provided us with a map of the town and we also got and excellent free 1:75000 cycling map of the area. The rain cleared as we explored the centre but started again just before lunch which was taken in Botenik Bistro on the main square. The turned out to be an excellent choice and we ended up having 3 courses. Fish soup, a spaghetti with a black pepper sauce and small dumplings filled with soft cheese served with stewed prunes and cream. 

We would normally share a desert but were told the portion was small. It was not.

 After lunch we walked to the castle which was closed on a Monday and then to the monastery gardens. We returned to the main square but did not make it back to the car before a heavy shower.

 

Google Maps directed us to Karlovy Vary and despite ticking the options to avoid Motorways and Toll road tried to take us the shortest route onto the motorway. As we had not purchased a permit for the Motorway and as we did not want to be fined, we made a quick U turn before joining the motorway and with the help of the cycling map we had been given navigated a route using more minor roads. We needed food for tea and stopped at the local Tesco’s. We arrived at Violets at 16:45. Our host Zdislava lives below and we have the top two floors.  She wanted us to park alongside her car but a telegraph pole in the middle of the drive and the length of my car even with the bike carrier taken off made it an almost impossible task. We gave up before any damage was done and parked in front of her car for the night. A tea of vegetable curry was prepared and we watched the footage of the Queens funeral on Czech TV.

Day 10 - Beer Spa, lunch and two towers

 The forecast for Sunday was rain again so on Saturday evening we looked at some options of where to visit on Sunday. One of the Vlogs we follow Jits into the Sunset had visited the Czech Republic and tried out a beer spa. There were a couple of options in Plzen but a search on the internet revealed the original beer spa was in Chodová Planá only a 25-minute drive from our Pension.

 

Despite the issues with their online booking form which initially directed us to a site to buy a voucher we eventually managed to email a request with a provision time of 11:00 am Sunday but asking about availability on the Monday as well. At 8:00 am the next morning our booking was confirmed for 11:00am. This was a pity as the weather was better than expected and we would have had time for a short ride before the rain before going to the spa.

We arrived at the spa early and went to the hotel reception, paid and waited in the lounge. After10 minutes we told to go downstairs and ring the bell by the large wooden door. A lady eventually appeared open the door spoke us in Czech and then  closed the door with us still outside. We were too early. When we were let inside we had to remove our shoes. We had looked online before we went, and the photos showed models wearing costumes, so we had taken ours. These were not required and we were given a sheet to wrap ourselves in and shown to the changing room. Having changed we were then escorted to a large bath filled with warm bath beer. 

We should have taken a camera with us.

“The real beer bath is prepared in a rehabilitation tub from water and mineral water IL SANO® and have a temperature of 34 °C. The special ingredients consist of dark Bath Beer, which is produced in a traditional way based on the original copyright method and made by the main brewer of the family brewery Chodovar, active beer yeast, hop draff and a mixture of dehydrated crushed herbs. The bath level is covered by the distinct beer foam of a caramel colour and the area is scented by the fragrance of freshly brewed dark beer.”

Chodovar Beer Spa

We had a 20-minute soak with a glass of fresh beer provided to drink. The bath was then drained, and we were shown to the relaxation area. We laid down and were cocooned in a blanket and left in a darkened room for another 20 minutes with another glass of beer. Robert’s feet stuck out the end of the bed so they were separately wrapped. After 20 minutes relaxing it was time to change back into our cloths. We were instructed to get maximum benefit we were not to shower for 4 hours.

The regenerative effects of the spa can be seen in the before and after photos above.

We asked at the reception where we could go for lunch and were given a couple of options. We opted for restaurant Chodvar a short walk from the car. 

The restaurant was set inside a cave. An internet signal could not be obtained so Google Translate could not translate the menu for us. We worked our may though the German and picked beef ragu stew with sliced dumping. Very tasty if a little expensive by Czech standards.

 After lunch and a short walk round the town we drove to Plana and visited the coffee shop we found the day before where we had a coffee and shared a slice cake. 

Robert then decided to walk up the tower we had tried to get to yesterday. This time parking a short distance away and walking up the hill. 

The second tower of the day was in Tachov. A modern steel and wire construction. We had to park around 2km and Lyn stayed in the car whilst Robert walked up the hill in the rain to find the tower.

We he eventually found it after initially walking past it there were good views of the surrounding countryside from the top.

We returned to the Pension in heavy rain. There were only two tables eating tonight.  We passed on a coffee but decided to try some Stock Fernet, so bought a small bottle from the honesty bar. 

A dark Czech liquor made with a blend of 14 secret herbs, an acquired taste. The bottle will not be finished and taken back to England with us so some lucky readers may get the opportunity to sample it. We returned to the room to update the diary and blog and have Skype call with Roberts parents.