During our last days in Slovakia, we decided to make some changes and repairs to our expedition vehicle. Since we are still in Europe and not too far from The Netherlands (where the truck has been assembled as it is), we left Slovakia and entered the Czech Republic (CR). From there we will go to Germany and then to The Netherlands. Due to the planning of the supplier of the truck, we can only bring the truck mid July. We had to plan around this period what to explore between now and mid July. So the Czech Republic it would be.
After saying goodbye to our daughter, we drove to the border. On the way we stopped at the castles of Trencin and Cerveny. Passing into the Czech Republic was the same as any other border within the EU. Aren’t we fortunate to live in these times? I can still remember the border post in France, Spain etc. Now you pass often derelict customs and immigration buildings, you see a sign that you enter another country and a sign with all the speed limits. An addition is the sign with the toll requirements. And although the EU strives towards uniformity, toll requirements and the collection of toll differ from country to country. So now also for the Czech Republic we had to figure that out and it was a bit more complicated as we had to purchase a special device for in the truck, with a pre-paid account. The road we used to enter had no sales points, so we drove without the device for a while looking for a gas-station where we could get these devices.
We were nearing a town we had to go through, to reach such a station. The main road was going under a railway bridge with a maximum go-through height of 3.90 and yes, our truck is 3.85. I was not sure, 5 cm is not much extra space to pass through but still possible. But what if the truck was still a bit higher or if the go-through height is less than 3.90. All that went through my mind in a split second, while driving on this main city entree road with lots of cars behind me. I could go left, but no trucks allowed, I could go right, only maximum truck weight of 9ton. I choose the last one, just to get of the road and re-think. I drove all the way through a residential area with speed-bumps, narrow roads, children playing on the street, definitly not an area for big trucks. What I didn’t notice, was that I was followed by a police car. I came back at the railway bridge and I decided to pass, but very slowly with my alarm lights on and on the middle of the road. Traffic in front and back held off and let me slowly pass through (don’t know if the motorists were waiting for something exciting to happen), luckily we passed easily and continued, but we had to enter 2 more roads with truck and weight restrictions and the road towards to gas station turned out to be closed due to road works (and all this because we want to comply with to toll requirements).
And then it was probably ”enough is enough” for the Czech police. They turned on their sirenes, flashed their lights and I knew right away then that I finally had run out of luck with ignoring the no truck or max tonnage signs. I parked the truck and walked towards the police car, where the officers stepped out as well. One started right way in Czech language to tell me what I probably already knew, before he could finish his whole story and told him ”me no speaky Czech, only English”. Now, then a very interesting conversation started, whereby he tried to explain me with arms. legs and hands (and even some simple drawings) that I had committed 3 traffic violations. I at the same time, was trying to ask him how I would get to the nearest gasstation to get my device for the road tax (toll). The other officer was in the meantime looking in the trunk of the police car for a dictionary or something else that would help his collegue to get the message across. He finally came with a little booklet, showing all the traffic signs, one of them with the maximum tonnage. So I was getting cornered now. I then showed the officer with the book, the production plate on the living unit, showing a weight of 3200kg and I told him (on a piece of paper) the truck was about 5000kg, so I would be under the max of 9ton. He quickly did the math and looked at me and then told his collegue about what I showed him. So I was gaining territory back in this ”fight”. Then I tried to tell both guys what a horrible experience it was when I came to the railway bridge and again that I was only looking for a way to comply with the toll requirements. Mind you, we were now standing for about an hour along the road, trying to communicate with each other. Now, they finally changed their attitude and from enforces of the law, they became the helpful guys. I gave them the roadmap and they indicated how I should drive to that particular gasstation. I think I saved myself a couple of hundred euros that afternoon. And on top of that, they asked if they could make some pictures of the truck. It really is becoming a habit, running into law officers, who at the end, want to make pictures of the truck. Wonder how that will go, once we get stopped by Taliban traffic police, when we pass through Kabul!
So, we already have an interesting “collection” of devices glued to the front windshield of the truck, now we added another one. A pre-historic black box with a lot of little lights, which makes sure we pay the toll. Not only that, all these devices need to be charged and that needs management too. The extra fridge, dash-cam, 2x GPS, I-pad etc. Its surprising to see how many devices we carry with us, especially if you compare that with, for example the backpackers who did the hippie trail. Besides the items mentioned, we carry cellphones, internet connection devices, satelite phone, laptops and then the household chargeable and non chargeable items like, shaver, mixer, blender, coffeemaker ect. Essentials?, that depends on what your needs are or how long you want to be without certain convenience. We decided to live as comfortable as possible as we decided to make our expedition vehicle our home
With the solar panels and lithium batteries we have ample energy, so to keep all these items running is not a problem.
So with the toll issue settled we were safe to drive around. First stop was a beautiful completely restored castle. After that it was time for our first camping night in the CR. A small park surrounding a large ruine of a middle age cathedral in a forest showed up on the map. A long dirt road lead us through recently mowed pasture land. It was also used as a parking area for visitors of the ruines. A foot trail through the forest brought us to a very scenic site, where the abandoned ruines of the cathedral were towering above a hill, overlooking the lands around it. It’s hard to imagine that hundreds of years ago monks and priests, decided to carve out a huge place of worship in the middle of nowhere. It’s also hard to understand, why such a huge structure became abandoned. Camping near such a site is always thrilling. The silence surrounding ruines like these makes you wonder, how the sounds were, when these places were busteling with people.
The next day we drove towards the second biggest city of The CR – Brno – where there is small National Park (Moravski Karst) known for its amazing cave systems and the deepest gorge of the CR. Visiting caves is one of the better things to do when the outside temperatures are hot! As in Slovakia, it is impressive to see how the elements of nature have carved out these labyrinths of tunnels, passage ways, channels through rocks and mountains which are ”decorated” with nature’s own ”artwork”, like the different sizes, shapes and colors of stalagmites and stalactites, or ”waterfalls” of ”frozen” crystals and minerals. Going from one cave system (Punkva) to another (Katerinska), you pass through deep forested gorges (some are formed by collapsing cave roofs). Leaving the cool and fresh ”underground” of mother earth, we climbed and hiked back towards the escarpment and moved on to find a place to camp. Like Slovakia, the CR is more developed, more habitation, so a difficult country to go real wild camping. We ended up at a small camping, where – luckily – there was hardly any other camper, so we still had a sense of private feeling. It was so private, that we were not even able to register or pay the camping fee!
The next few days, we had to stick to small campings (if we could find them, since they are also not in abundance). The CR has mountains with beautiful nature. However, in comparison with the Alps, Dolomites etc, the mountains are not that exiting. Besides that, during summer time, it looks like the entire population of the CR is wondering around in these mountains, which makes these places too crowded for us. However there was one place, an unique park, which we really wanted to see. The Rocks of Adrspach in Teplice are really worth a days visit.
It are actually remnants of a big pile of compacted sand sediment in what was once an ancient ocean. When the present day continents formed, the ocean disappeared and the ocean bottom became exposed to the elements. Millions of years past and the rain, wind and sand started to form an amazing labyrinth of wonderlands. The time it took to have nature craft this amazing landscape, makes you realize of how short a human life is on this planet. Also the fact that you walk in an area, which was once the bottom of the ocean, shows you the relativity of your surroundings. Nature’s “crafty hands” are constantly at work, day and night, year in year out. If we design and make a dike, nature can move a river or even create new ones. We can change a forest into a city, but nature can make a desert which makes a city uninhabitable.
The day we arrived we were shocked to see the huge crowds, touring buses and full parking lots. We decided to find a camping first (no way you could secretly hide in the park or near area). A big camping close to the main road, offered us a spot all the way at the end, where we had enough space and a bit of privacy. We found out that the Rocks of Adrspach had a far less visited part of the park, away from big parking lots and food places. It was a part of the rock formation which was discovered much later than the ”original” one. Next day, early morning, we packed our back packs and started a long day-tour through the park, which eventually ended up at the busy side of the park. Hours we wandered around and through this fairy tale landscape by ourselves. It was one of our most impressive walks in the CR and even from our whole trip so far.
It‘s always fun to see the difference between people when visiting certain nature sites. Most of the time you start with a large group of people consisting of people on high heels, older people, families with small children and people who – by observing – are not really fond of walking or hiking. Its like a knockout race. The further you get from the starting point, the more give up. You always end up with the ”die-hards”, those who are determined, are in shape and are prepared to go further. It makes us realize, to stay in shape in order to see beyond the crowds, to get that extra experience, others only talk about (or are simply not interested in).
On our walk back, a heavy rain shower with thunder, bursted above our heads and all soaked we returned to the truck. But we were extremely satisfied. We did a great walk, saw something amazing, beat the crowd and were looking forward to a good shower and a healthy meal.
You can’t always have an amazing day. The danger of traveling as we do, is that you expect an amazing day, every day you wake up. Well, it is hard very hard to repeat or have better days following the good days. So, you have to be prepared, to be disappointed and be unsatisfied. The sun is not shining every day and you need a rainy day, to appreciate a sunny day. The day we left the Rocks of Adrspach, we drove further into the mountains of the CR, bordering Poland. It was weekend, so many Czechs on the road (day trippers), and other holiday makers. We made a stop at the little town of Spindleruv Mlyn, the CR most luxurious ski-town (and due to the lack of high mountains, actually the only real ski-town). We lunched at the up-scale Savoy hotel, the play ground of the Czech upper class in winter time. Due to the lack of nearby camping options, we drove through many little forested mountain roads, but were not successful. We decided to jump over the mountains of the Giant Mountain range, back into Poland (third time into Poland). Also there we couldn’t find a camping or campsite. As I said, it cannot always be a great day. The end of the day we ended up at a truckparking near a roadside restaurant. (Something Marja always wanted to experience).
What for us – and thousands of other camper travelers – is leisure, for truckers its part of their daily life. In the old days, truckers slept and ate in motels, hotels and hostels, now (for economic and security reasons) they sleep in their own truck cabin. There is a great variety in comfort for these truck drivers (depending on the routes and distances they drive, what they are accustomed to at home and what their boses are willing to spent). Sometimes these truck cabins are like little campers. A good comfortable bed, coffee maker, micro-wave, satellite TV and a storage compartment for water jerrycans and other items. Being between those truck drivers, you hardly see the difference between work and pleasure. They wash themselves in the evening and morning, make diner and breakfast, watch TV and go to sleep. Then, like us, they start the engine and hit the road to make the next couple of hundred kilometers with the speed between 80 and 100 km/h. The big difference is, they keep the logistic network of our society alive and go from warehouse to warehouse, shop or even the beach bar, where we end up that same day, to enjoy that beer or that steak, they have delivered.
With some web-research, we found a small campsite nearby the next day. Driving very narrow, very low tonnage roads, we ended up near a small village, where an old farm-house had been transformed into an amazing guesthouse by a Dutchman from Amsterdam, who also haa a few camping spots. It was a sunny Sunday and the farm-house was overtaken by local artists, who had spent a couple of weeks, practicing their painting skills, utilizing the famous hills in this part of Poland. The tranquil silence was heavily disturbed by our ”grand entree”, the truck hardly fitted on the cobble stone drive way, where overhanging apple trees, had to make way for the nose and fore head of the Zetros, causing a shower of apples coming down on the truck and driveway. However, once parked at the best spot of the farmground, peace returned and the artists – with some new inspiration – continued with their works.
The owner (Naut) of the farmhouse, was one of those personalities, you always hope to encounter when traveling around the world. Besides producing the life story of his venture into Poland and bringing back to life a beautiful historic farmhouse and has the most interesting information of the surrounding area, he is and was active in areas which have our interest and concern. The peace-fullness of this place, enhanced by Naut’s visits to our ”camp”, where we had talks till late, made us stay longer than planned. We made some nice trips (on foot and by bike) in the surrounding area. Large bolders are scattered around a large forest in the area. A hill topped with these bolders, was once transformed into a castle, whereby the rocks (and they are huge), formed the base of the lay-out of the castle. The remains of the castle are now covered with large trees and as a whole, the decor now created as such, could be the back ground of movies like Lord of the Rings. Another interesting site nearby is the lost town of Kupferberg. Once a striving little Selesien mining town, with beautiful German style buildings, now just a dot on the map. An old worn-out map on a signpost, shows the lay-out of what the town looked liked, some foundations are still visible as well as the town’s church. During Soviet times, the town was evacuated and demolished. The true reasons for this are still unknown. What is known is that Kupferberg was once a town in Silezie. Silezie for nearly 700 years was part of German speaking empires (Holy Roman Empire, Habsburg, Pruisen, German Empire). Germans lived in this part of Europe for many generations. The German influence in this part of Poland is very much visible, especially the architecture.
A forgotten not much talked about event is the ethnic cleansing of German speaking inhabitants of the former easter provinces of the German Empire after World War II (of which this part of Poland was part). Germans as a whole were not welcome anymore in countries/areas, where they had lived for over 700 years. Also the CR – where the original Czech speaking people – were not fond anymore of the German speaking Czechs. In total 12 million Germans were deported from their home ground to the west part of the old German Empire. During the deportation an estimated 2 million people lost their lives. Mind you, these were mostly common people (women, children, the elderly) and often they were not in support of the war at all. A small town, telling a forgotten big story. And history keeps on repeating, because we forget these stories.
After spending some good times in this part of Poland, we jumped back over the mountains into the CR. We drove into the direction of Prague. We decided not the visit Prague this time. Its a very big city, hard to drive in with a big truck and to see the city, we would need a good couple of days. However, there were 2 interesting castles nearby Prague we wanted to see. First we went to Konopiste Castle. The castle which was once the home of Franz Ferdinand the heir of the Empire of Austria and Hongary. His murder in 1914, was the spark in the powder keg, causing the start of WWI. He was also known of being one of the most active hunters of our times. With almost 300.000 animals killed during his life time, no other hunter on record, has broken that record. The castle is literally covered with hunting trofees. His other passion was his collection of weapons. The castle harbors the second largest antique armory collection in Europe. The murder of Franz Ferdinand itself was more a coincidence than well planned. He had a meaningless life of killing as many animals he could and he was positioned to become the next Emperor of the Austrian/Hungarian Empire (the ruling Emperor – his uncle – was not so much in favor of him, seeing him as incapable). After his death, WWI caused the dead of 20 million people. Walking through this castle, I couldn’t make sense of it.
We spent the night at the huge parking lot of the castle after we had a great diner at the restaurant on the castle grounds. The castle and the surrounding park is still home to people who cherry the memories of Franz Ferdinand (as a hunter). Every year a large hunters gathering is taking place, were hunters hunt birds and celebrate old traditions under the watchful eyes of St. Hubertus, the protecting Saint of the hunters. A very traditional hunters lodge full of relics, hunting trofees and paintings of Franz Ferdinand has been transferred into a cozy restaurant, were game meat is the main dish.
The other castle we wanted to visit before leaving the CR, was Karlsteijn Castle. Built by one of the most influential Emperors of the Holy Roman Empire, Karel IV as a ”safe house” for the crown jewels, holy relics and state treasures. In those days Prague (which is nearby the castle) was the center of Europe. To reach the castle you pass through a Disney like old village (full of restaurants and tourist shops) and feel the old style tourism of the sixties and seventies. Downer was the argument I had with the parking attendant, who charged me a parking fee based on the hight of the truck instead of the length (mind you it was an open parking lot). Didn’t make sense. Left it for what it is, not everything is logical in life.
The last city we wanted to visit in the CR was Plsner (Pilsner in German times). Famous for its invention of Pilsner beer and its brewery. A night at a busy campsite was chosen, since we wanted to make it a full day visit to Plsner. We had now entered the summer vacation period of the CR and we realized that. One space was left for our truck to park, between many other campers, caravans and tents. When the neighbors were making a campfire or bbq, we had to close to windows and the door, not to be smoked out. This was so not our thing! The camping was on a lake and we found ourselves a quiet little spot to have a sundowner/happy hour moment on our chairs with a good glass of Grand Bari from Slovakia. The night was short with camping entertainment at our doorsteps (a local band with the most random repertoire), keeping us up until midnight.
We entered Plsner in the early morning and parked in the heart of town on a busparking, near the brewery (Urquell Pilsner). When leaving the truck a group of older German male tourists were admiring our vehicle and we entered into a nice conversation. They were on their way to the brewery to do a tour. Since these tours had to be pre-booked, they advised us to go and make a booking. Entering the premises of these huge old brewery was impressive. The brewery has been brewing pilsner beer since 1842 and 80% of all pilsner beers in the world, finds its origin here. The city itself is brewing beer since the end of the 13th century. Tours through the brewery are the main attraction in this city. We were lucky to have the last 2 places for the long tour. Our German friends found out that they only booked for the short tour at the end of the day! So, they advised us for the tour they thought they had booked……
During the 3,5 hour tour we learned about the history, the process of making beer, saw the old brewery and the new brewery, walked through the long underground tunnels were in the old days the big wooden barrels with beer were stored, to keep the beer cool. And of course there was the beer tasting. The tour was closed off by a ”beer-tapping” course. One of the CR’s best bar-tenders was showing our group the best way to tap a beer. And I must say, its not that easy and it’s a skill which needs practicing. I will look different at beer tapping from now on. We had a nice group sharing the table in ”class” and a lot of beer to drink. It was not a good idea to drive out of town, so we decided to have a diner in town and jump back in the camper. We were in the middle of town, all tourist buses had left and we were the only ones left at the parking. The feeling of having our 5 star room on wheels in the middle of town and nobody knowing we were inside, made us happy like little children. Besides a couple of runs to the restroom, we had a peace full night. Tomorrow, we would be heading for Holland.
Though it was only about 800km to reach our staging point in Holland, we did cut the trip back in 2. Driving on the fast highways of Germany is boring and tiring (although the scenery was nice). Mind you we only have a speed of 80/90km/h. Based on internet info we found a little town (Idstein) with a campsite where we would spent the night. Turned out to be a most beautiful historic town with well preserved buildings (at least the facades were amazing). We considered this a little bonus on our first part of our world tour and an attempt by Germany to say ”he, we are also a beautiful country to visit”, and agree with that.
Reaching the Netherlands the next day, our focus now was to prepare, repair and enhance our truck, prepare paperwork and start working on the route planning of the Arab peninsula trip.
