Interesting times
We have had such a long run of good weather, mostly warm and sunny lately, that it's no surprise that I am feeling a little fed up that for a couple of days we have had a few showers and a colder spell. however, we have still had fun. On Friday night we decided on spending the evening cheering on Slavia Praha ice hockey team at their home ground in Prague, it's the newest stadium (Sazka) and is very comfortable both for watching the hockey and catching any shows or concerts that are floating through Europe. We chose a good match to watch, because they thrashed Vitkovice 7-0. I know nothing about the rules of the game, but it doesn't stop me from enjoying the match and competition.
Saturday night we sat down, after a trip to the cinema to watch Jodie Foster in her latest movie 'The Brave One', to cheer on England in the Rugby World Cup Final against South Africa, the game was great, but I can't help feeling that this time the better side did NOT win, It's my view that England played the stronger and more interesting game, however, we lost and South Africa took the cup.
Sunday we went on a trip with Radek and Jana to visit the Konepruske Jeskyne, which is the longest caves or tunnels in Europe. The caves are situated in Central Bohemia, 7 km South of Beroun, in the middle of the nature reserve of Czech Karst, not far from castles Křivoklát and Karlštejn. The caves were discovered in 1950 and made accessible for the public in 1959.
The caves are developed in 400 million years old Devonian limestones, and consist of three levels 70 m underground and over 2 km long. The accessible part is 590 m long and sightseeing tour lasts one hour. The top level housed, in the 15th century, a secret workshop of money forgers. The cave can boast unique opal-bearing decorations, as well as numerous paleontological excavations, documenting the history of the earth for the past 1,5 million years.
You can have a look yourself at the website http://jeskyne.cesky-kras.cz/english . After finishing here we went to another place of interest Svaty Jan Pod Skalou (St. John under the Cliffs) http://www.svatyjan.cz/index_eng.htm with its abundance of natural scenery and historical landmarks, is one of the most picturesque villages in the Cesky Kras natural protected area. The history of the village dates back to the end of the 9th century when, according to legend, the first Czech Christian hermit, Ivan, settled down in a cave under a large cliff. The hermit Ivan was the son of the Charvatian duke Gostimysl. Legend has it that he turned away from secular life and retreated to this silent landscape where he lived for 42 years. He liked the local valley so much that he decided to live there. God sent him a doe to feed him with milk. The hermit was tempted by demons and decided to leave the area. On the day of his departure, however, St. John the Baptist appeared on the hillock under the St. John Cliff and gave him a wooden crosslet, which helped Ivan expel the demons. The legend further narrates about the hermit’s meeting with the first Czech Christian duke and leader Borivoj during his hunt for bears in the local deep forest. The duke accidentally wounded Ivan’s doe. The injured doe brought Borivoj to the hermit’s cave where she later died. The duke was sorry for killing Ivan’s provider and invited the hermit to Tetin, his nearby castle, where he offered him a place to live. Ivan, however, refused the generous offer and returned back to his cave. Before his death, he sent the duke tidings from St. John the Baptist: ‘It was you whom God ordered through St. John the Baptist to consecrate this place after my death as a church in honor of the Virgin Mary and the St. Cross, and to designate St. John the Baptist as its patron saint.’ According to the legend, after Ivan’s death, Borivoj built a chapel which in the 11th century fell under the administration of the Benedictine monastery (the Ostrov Monastery, located on an island in Vltava River, south of Prague).
So what an interesting weekend we had.
Saturday night we sat down, after a trip to the cinema to watch Jodie Foster in her latest movie 'The Brave One', to cheer on England in the Rugby World Cup Final against South Africa, the game was great, but I can't help feeling that this time the better side did NOT win, It's my view that England played the stronger and more interesting game, however, we lost and South Africa took the cup.
Sunday we went on a trip with Radek and Jana to visit the Konepruske Jeskyne, which is the longest caves or tunnels in Europe. The caves are situated in Central Bohemia, 7 km South of Beroun, in the middle of the nature reserve of Czech Karst, not far from castles Křivoklát and Karlštejn. The caves were discovered in 1950 and made accessible for the public in 1959.
The caves are developed in 400 million years old Devonian limestones, and consist of three levels 70 m underground and over 2 km long. The accessible part is 590 m long and sightseeing tour lasts one hour. The top level housed, in the 15th century, a secret workshop of money forgers. The cave can boast unique opal-bearing decorations, as well as numerous paleontological excavations, documenting the history of the earth for the past 1,5 million years.
You can have a look yourself at the website http://jeskyne.cesky-kras.cz/english . After finishing here we went to another place of interest Svaty Jan Pod Skalou (St. John under the Cliffs) http://www.svatyjan.cz/index_eng.htm with its abundance of natural scenery and historical landmarks, is one of the most picturesque villages in the Cesky Kras natural protected area. The history of the village dates back to the end of the 9th century when, according to legend, the first Czech Christian hermit, Ivan, settled down in a cave under a large cliff. The hermit Ivan was the son of the Charvatian duke Gostimysl. Legend has it that he turned away from secular life and retreated to this silent landscape where he lived for 42 years. He liked the local valley so much that he decided to live there. God sent him a doe to feed him with milk. The hermit was tempted by demons and decided to leave the area. On the day of his departure, however, St. John the Baptist appeared on the hillock under the St. John Cliff and gave him a wooden crosslet, which helped Ivan expel the demons. The legend further narrates about the hermit’s meeting with the first Czech Christian duke and leader Borivoj during his hunt for bears in the local deep forest. The duke accidentally wounded Ivan’s doe. The injured doe brought Borivoj to the hermit’s cave where she later died. The duke was sorry for killing Ivan’s provider and invited the hermit to Tetin, his nearby castle, where he offered him a place to live. Ivan, however, refused the generous offer and returned back to his cave. Before his death, he sent the duke tidings from St. John the Baptist: ‘It was you whom God ordered through St. John the Baptist to consecrate this place after my death as a church in honor of the Virgin Mary and the St. Cross, and to designate St. John the Baptist as its patron saint.’ According to the legend, after Ivan’s death, Borivoj built a chapel which in the 11th century fell under the administration of the Benedictine monastery (the Ostrov Monastery, located on an island in Vltava River, south of Prague).
So what an interesting weekend we had.
posted by Tyler at 3:50 pm
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