Konopiste

We are going to make our way to Prague today. The locals call it Praha. Many places in Europe are pronounced and spelled differently than we say them. I am not sure why that is. But if you are looking for Prague on the train board, you will not find it. Another example is Venezia in Italy which is how they say Venice. Back to our day.

Whoo are You Looking At

We get up, have our last egg sandwich breakfast, and head on out the door. We will miss our attic apartment. The walk to the train station is all uphill. We make it through the old town, then up a steep incline, and finally a slow grade to the station. We are about a half hour early but I do have to buy our tickets. There is no line and it takes all of two minutes. Now we sit outside and wait trying to avoid the yellow jackets which seem to be in abundance in this city. The train arrives and we are on our way back to Ceske Budejovice where we have a connection for the train to Praha. It all goes very smooth and the other train is waiting when we arrive. We are not going all the way to Praha to start with as we have decided to get off at Benesov and take a tour of Konopiste Castle. One thing I like about the Czech train system is that you can buy a ticket between cities and get off in between and then back on within 24 hours, as long as you keep going in the original order. This makes things very easy for travelers.
We arrive at Benesov and I ask at the ticket booth about luggage storage. She leaves and comes back and points around the corner. We pay a lady to store and watch our luggage in their storage room. She kindly points the way towards Konopiste when I ask.

Konopiste Castle

It is supposed to be about a mile and a half walk so we are glad to shed the big packs. The walk starts over a bridge and past some construction. Then we find a walking path which keeps us off the roads and takes us right below the castle area. There is a ticket booth and I ask about the next English tour which is about a half hour. Then I remember that they have different tours and we had written down that tour 3 interested us so I ask if it is tour 3. It is tour 2, tour 3 in English is not for another two hours or so. We decide to do tour 2 now, rather than wait. Each tour shows you different parts of the castle.
While we wait, we read a little history. Konopiste is most famous for being the residence of Archduke Franz Ferdinand who was the nephew of Emporer Franz Josef and heir to the throne. He fell out of favor when he married a low ranking Czech countess named Zofie ( Sophie). Franz Ferdinand moved here as a type of way to distance himself from the Emperor. The big deal about Franz Ferdinand is that he did not support the German Kaiser Wilhelm in plotting a war against Russia. In 1914, Franz Ferdinand and his wife were assassinated in Sarajevo by a Bosnian Serb and his assassination is was used as a spark by Germany in starting World War 1 against Serbia and its Russian ally.
The tour of the castle( no photos allowed) is very interesting and Franz Ferdinand was not lacking in financial means.

Hunting Trophies

He collected many things including artwork of saints, armor, swords, and guns from all over the world. The collection, of which we just see a small part, is amazing. He also traveled all,over the world and spent most of his time hunting animals, and they are all displayed, with the date and place shot, throughout the castle. He had over 274,000 documented kills. That just boggles my mind that one person could shoot so many animals.
When we finish our tour, we walk into the small St Jiri ( for my new Czech friend) ( Jiri means George in Czech) museum which is a collection of St George pictures, carvings, and sculptures from all over. When we are done, we walk back to the station. Along the way, I find a colorful feather, and when we pass a little boy walking with his father and grandfather, I give it to him and he gets all excited. Even though I could not understand a word his grandfather and him were saying, his smile said it all. My good deed for the day.
By the station we go into a small deli type place and get two calzone looking breads filled with spinach and a beer to have while we wait for the next train to Praha. They are very good and should tide us over until dinner. Our train comes and has air conditioning ( not all do) which makes for a pleasant and comfortable ride. Reaching the Praha main station, we look for information about the trams and find a ticket place. There is a about a 15 minute wait on line and inexpensive tickets bought, along with directions to the tram stop, we are out the door. We would normally walk the 1.8 miles to our place, but it is pretty hot out and we already have put in some miles. Basically, Carol wimped out, so we ride the tram. Actually, she wasn’t feeling that great so it was the right thing to do. We get off the tram stop close to the Hotel Julian and figure out which way to go. It is literally around the corner. The girl who checks us in is super friendly and nice. We go up to our room to unload our things and figure out where to eat. We do not feel like walking far so I search for places nearby and find one with good reviews.

Nice on a Hot Day

It is only a block away and the tables outside are full. We sit inside and order our food. While waiting, it becomes apparent how hot it is as there is no A.C. and not even a fan. We sweat a bit, sip our beers,and when the food comes, it was worth the warm wait. Carol has beef goulash with potato pancakes and I have Svickova, a traditional Czech dish, with sirloin in a vegetable cream sauce and dumplings. It is really amazing. I don’t want to share but per our pre order agreement, I am obligated to do so. After finishing our meal, it is too hot to even consider dessert here, so we head back to our room for the night. Looking forward to discovering Praha tomorrow.
Expenses
Train from Cesky Krumlov to Praha 481 CZK
Luggage Storage at Benesov U Prahy 80 CZK
Konopiste Castle Tour 440 CZK
Spinach Bread and Beer Lunch 113 CZK
Tram Tickets 48 CZK
Dinner at Vidlicky A Noze 408 CZK
Hotel Julian 79.5E
Walked 8.8 Miles