Voyage of Exploration.

Wednesday 4th September 2024. Eat an Extra Dessert Day.

Kutná Hora to Nymburk – 42km.

First things first, the meal I had last night was….

Today started with a proper breakfast too but I didn’t need to stuff myself because the distance and terrain were easy.

My first town was Kolin. I thought it was going to be an industrial city but I was mistaken.

The cycling was utter pleasure. No hills, no rush and places to look at of interest. At Kolin I joined the great Elbe river….or as the Czechs call it, the ‘Labe’. It is a massive river of over 1000km in length. It starts in the Giant Mountains of eastern Czech Republic and finishes in the North Sea north of Hamburg. I will join it on various sections of my route.

My next town was Podebrady, which has its own Chateau!

I visited the local park to find an Emergency Services Day for local school children to attend (and me)! The Police were well represented by Police Horses, Riot Police, Police Drone and Traffic Police. I think I will join the Czech Police….

Not far to Nymburk. I had looked up the town on Wiki before I arrived. I gleaned that it had the best basketball team in the Czech Republic and in history it had a red brick wall to protect itself.

I had my first ‘zmrzlina’….ice cream when I arrived. I say first because you know what’s coming later, don’t you! Especially on this special day.

My arrival was bang on 12 noon and the church bells rang like mad and a loud siren blared over tannoys nearby for what seemed like 3 or 4 minutes. I wondered if the local populace were being warned of my arrival or the start of the Third World War or something else equally cataclysmic.

I called into the Tourist Information Office to get a map. The girl told me that the siren was a test on the first Wednesday of every month….nothing personal to me….phew. She then sought information from me about places to visit on her imminent holiday to Swindon (of all places). I checked out the town and walked by the river. It was all very pretty without being too grand.

I found my accommodation and got settled in….

The lady of the house was particularly quick to tell me that the town had a good basketball team and a local canoeist won a gold medal at the Olympics in Paris.

I checked out the church.

I wandered back through town. Had a video call with Janice (as I normally do) and settled back into my room. It has been a super day. For the first time I haven’t felt any cycling pressure and I have been happy to stop and start to look or sample whatever I want. This is not a holiday, it’s a voyage of exploration to places I have never seen and may never return to. Prague is my next stop. I have great expectations of it but I love the smaller places just as much but in different ways.