Saturday, June 6

On Saturday morning we woke up to the sounds of Stephen getting home from his adventure the night before. Having decided to stay at the club where he had made several new friends, Stephen had proceeded to get lost, and dance for money during his late night excursion. Unsure of what the day held for us, having only been told that we were going to the countryside, the gang prepared for the day. Unfortunately we did not get ready quite fast enough. It was only by speed walking through the city, and eventually sprinting through the train station, that we made it to our train, and even then only by the skin of our teeth. At this point we were all, except for Rostia, still uncertain where we were actually going. After a train ride through a gradually less urban landscape we got off at a rather nondescript train station. At this train station, as I was told it is with most stations in the Czech Republic, there was a small pub, and here we stopped for a beer. We all enjoyed our beers and after relaxing for a while in the shade of the pub’s patio we continued on down a woodland path. This short path brought us to another small local establishment; this one situated by the side of a beautiful river nestled between the hills. Bathers swam in the river, sunned themselves on the riverbank, and enjoyed food and beer on what was a perfect day. Despite our lack of proper swimwear we decided to go for a dip ourselves, diving into the cool refreshing water. After some time enjoying the water, we grabbed a beer and continued on our way. To cross the river we employed the help of a gentleman who lived on the river. He rowed us across the river in his little boat in two groups. The first group, in which I was taken, made the journey with little incident, however the second group was left alone with some troublesome children, and their departure from the shore was greeted with a hail of mud. Despite the children's attempt to spoil the experience, I think all of us would agree that the rustic charm of the old ferryman taking us across the river was an unexpected highlight of the day. After making it to the other side safely, and mostly mud-free, the ferryman walked us to the street, we thanked him and went on our way. We spent the rest of the day hiking on trails that ran through the woods alongside the river. To me, and most of the group, this was a joy, the beautiful natural scenery was pleasant to observe, and the fresh air and shade provided the ideal place to spend one of the hottest days I have experienced in a while. One member of our group had a slightly different experience with the hike however. As you may recall at the beginning of the day we were unsure of what lay in store, and due to this Pelin had worn shoes with high heels. This made her trek through the Czech hillside a little more arduous, but I hope she still enjoyed it overall. A day that began as a bit of a mystery turned out to be a wonderful surprise. I don’t thin anyone in the group expected to have such a nice day out of the city when we planned this trip.