Day 14: Biking in the Czech Countryside (A guest post by my travel buddy, Julie)

Hello internet!

Julie here. After two whirlwind weeks of travelling, Linh and I have finally settled into the rhythms of our Central Europe Summer Abroad program. It is strange to no longer have to consider where to go next, learn to navigate foreign transit systems or be responsible for food and accommodation. At the same time, we now have the opportunity to explore each of our locations in more depth, and be provided with greater historical context from our course.

The reason I'm guest-posting today is so that I can share a little side adventure I went on today biking through rural Moravia (the south-Eastern region of Czech Republic). 

If you've never been, or have never seen the Czech countryside, let me tell you right now that it is incredibly beautiful. Extending in all directions are overlapping fields of brilliant green and gold, hazy blue hills and the occasional clusters of sun-faded red roofs. Growing up in an urban metropolis where nature is sparse, being surrounded by such infinite and vast natural beauty is a thrilling experience.

This afternoon, one of our local on-site coordinators as well as our professor, Robert Austin, took a dozen of us on a bike ride to Roštejn Castle, about 10 km away from Telč. Admittedly, the trip was a bit grueling, as the trajectory to the castle was a continual uphill, and, as with most castles, Roštejn was situated at the top of a large hill.  However, the scenery was completely worth it (as well as the speedy downhill ride back).

Roštejn Castle, built in the 14th centre had a seven-sided tower, which we got to climb. From the narrow windows, we could see Telč among the highlands. But in addition, a sign hung up in the tower informed us that a dark dot in the distance was the next destination for our program, Brno. Linh will be back tomorrow, writing to you from that very city!

Until next time!

Julie

Photos by Julie Zhang.