September 3, 2019
Jindrichuv Hradec to Slavonice.
Sunshine Cycling as We Approach Austria.
September 3 Tuesday. 56Kms
Jindrichuv Hradec to Slavonice. Sunshine Cycling as We Approach Austria.
We start the day with a visit to the museum which resides in the building which was once the Jesuit College. The displays are what seems to us an eclectic mix, loosely related, but they are all of interest and the displays are beautifully presented.
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There are displays of traditional costume, furniture and household interiors. Among the more fascinating are the examples of wire working to make a variety of household articles. This is so fine as to resemble lacework.
Another room features WW2 aircraft archeological digs- parts of which had been dug from the ground. These included crashed German aircraft as well as parts from American bombers. The records of several Czech airman were displayed also.
Perhaps the most astonishing display is Krÿza’s crib. A local stocking maker spent his lifetime constructing most of the 1338 figures for the Nativity scene. He included a lot of “extras” -like the miners digging up coal, and soldiers walking the ramparts, farm workers - even two goats butting heads. 133 figures move. Originally manual, an electric motor is used now. The presentation we watch, accompanied by music is moving in every sense of the word.
The day’s cycling is very pleasant. Mostly over open country, with a couple of sections through forests. The gradients up are manageable and we are treated to some long gentle downhill sections. One section in particular before Nova Bystrice, is through a forest on a near perfectly smooth asphalt track, that descends for a good 10 minutes. It brings us to the border and the memorial to the end of the Cold War.
We reach Slavonice at about 4:00pm and decide to call it a day at Pension Rodinny where the manager/ owner welcomes us, shows us where our bikes go and to our room with a view of the church spire.
Over dinner we share the table and conversation with a chap about our age who lives in Vienna and cycles across the border for exercise and interest. He tells us of the joys of living in Vienna, shows us the pic of the Huntertwasser house while we dig out the Kawakawa toilets one from our bike trip. They both have the same pillar design. He also tells of bike trips to Scotland and what the border was like in the Iron Curtain days.
Today's ride: 56 km (35 miles)
Total: 1,682 km (1,045 miles)
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