The Ian Allan locospotters log book*.. Czech Edition or "It's almost your second home then."
Once again it's time for my annual trip to Bilina in the Czech Republic to talk to the students in the Gymnasium (Grammar School) and enjoy a few days visiting another part of the country.
First a reminder of Bilina:
Bilina is a small town, about 16000 inhabitants, in Bohemia, between Most and Teplice. It has:
A very large coal mine which feeds..............
a power station which generates 13% of the countries electrical power.
We went to the power station and were shown a short film about electricity and were then given a "virtual reality" tour of the complex. The coal from the mine, the water from the River Laben, the power of the generators, the way the slag is converted into building material and how the exhaust from the boiler is cleaned. The steam, once it is through the turbines is used for a district heating system.
The town has a market square, town hall in the corner;
Bilina Town Hall,
Bilina Castle
and The Lion Hotel, where I stayed.
Boden, a basalt extrusion which looks over the town.
For four days I went into the Gymnasium to talk to the students about the United Kingdom. It was like a sandwich, two days in school, four days away and two days in school.
One evening before the trip Marketa took us on a tour of Teplice, a nearby town. An ancient spa town, the name means "warm water" and in the past the healthy baths were visited by royalty, Beethoven and Goethe. The latter two met at a point in what is now the town park, the very spot being marked ! We visited the castle and archaeological remains of a nunnery.
The Jazz club where Jimmy Boseman and the lazy pigs performed country music
A plague column in Teplice.
Bilina Gymnasium
You never really lose it.
And finally;
This is the "car park " shot of Bilina. Power plant from close to the town centre.
Having been in school for a couple of days Helena, Pavel and I set off by train for the town of Sazava on the river Sazavou. Four trains, from Bilina to Usti, from Usti to Kolin, Kolin to Ledeck and finally from Ledeck to Sazava.
Sazava is the home of the Kavalier glass factory, which specialises in manufacturing for laboratories.
Start of the journey, Bilina Station
One of the local trains.
The hotel we stayed in was close to the river. Apart from the hotel there was a camping ground, canoes and other boats. Sadly the season hadn't started so the river was quiet, apart from a flock of mallard ducks, woodpeckers and three goats in a very large pen.
Next to the Kavalier factory, but not related to it, is a glass museum and workshop. As it was a holiday weekend the place was busy and the main attraction was the demonstrations of glass blowing.
In the glassworks. I suspect that in the UK the audience would have been behind high screens or seated further away. Here some young children were invited to blow the glass. Can you imagine that at home?
The town's other attraction was a Benedictine Monastery. The guide spoke Czech, I was given a printed guide, which was fine. The best parts for me were the old wall paintings.
Sazava Monastery
Another day we meant to catch the train to Kutna Hora, but we missed it. Never mind, said the stationmaster, a lady, catch the bus with the same ticket. So we did. The bus halted in the middle of nowhere, the driver told us to walk round the corner at the cross roads and another bus would complete our journey. Spot on.
Dropped in the middle of nowhere!
Kutna Hora has a beautiful cathedral, but I have been there twice. Instead we went to the Italian Palace, once the royal mint of Bohemian kings. Apart from the cathedral, Kutna Hora was famous for silver mining and coin minting. A young man dressed in a medieval costume gave us a demonstration, placing an aluminium disc between dies and hitting them hard. It worked. Apparently a good minter could produce something like 12000 coins a day. Must have been a long day.
Entrance to the mint museum and statue of a medieval miner.
The journey back to Sazava was made on four trains.
One of the trains, a "double decker"
Next day we went, by train, to a small town called Tynec and visited the small castle there. The museum attached to the tower had a display of local artefacts, the town had made ceramics. The top floor of the tower was in darkness so as not to disturb the bats!
The locals were putting on an Easter exhibition. A lady was struggling carrying pictures up the steps so being a gentleman I helped. Something was said and she realised I wasn't Czech.
"Where are you from?"
"England"
"Whereabouts?"
"Newcastle upon Tyne"
"Is this your first visit?"
"No I've been to Czechia about fifteen times"
"Well it's like a second home for you!"
Could be right
An Easter tradition: Young boys and young men, touch a young lady with the beribboned willow wand. In return she offers an egg or chocolate to the boys and maybe a drink to the older chaps.
Tynec tower, it has bats.
The return journey to Sazava took two trains. The first to a town called Cerkany where we had to wait. The train from Tynec was a local one. All trains have a driver and a conductor. The conductor checks and sells tickets. Members of the public are allowed to open the doors to get on the train and to get off when the train has stopped in a station. Before it pulls away the driver closes the door. On the first train, a local one from Tynec, an announcement in Czech and then in English advised passengers that if they wanted the next stop they must ring the bell. The system works, why all the fuss about closing train doors in England?
In Cerkany we had a wait of an hour, an opportunity for duck and dumplings in the local pub, washed down with a fine half litre of Czech beer. On the journey to Sazava we saw buzzards and deer in the fields by the track.
Ring the bell for the next station
The following day we returned to Bilina, travelling on five trains.
Double Decker train, inside and out. Very comfortable.
The following day we went to Prague, capital of the republic. I think I have seen most of the tourist sites, we went to the City of Prague Museum, exactly what it says. A number of rooms displaying old pictures showing how the city developed, and a large model, made in the 19th century, showing the layout of the towns that make up the capital. A movable camera allowed viewers to home in on any section and enlarge the picture on the screen.
The statue of Sir Nicholas Winton on Prague station. He saved 669 Jewish children by sending them to Britain. His activities ended on September 3rd 1939.
After lunch in the delightful Czech Kitchen where traditional Czech food is served in a system almost like lining up for school dinners, we headed for the Pater Noster. This is a type of lift. The cages are open, you simply step into them as they pass, but you need to be quick. The cages are in a vertical loop, they move continouosly but are perfectly safe, going "over the top" in an upright position and turning again at the bottom of the building.
On the Pater Noster
Going down.
Back in Bilina I was back in school for two days. One evening Helena's brother Mirek took us out to a small restaurant in a winery., Lovely place with a small stage and seating for about 250 people to enjoy outdoor shows in summer. The second, and last day just happened to be my birthday. The teachers gave a little party in the staff room with an amazing salad, bread and cakes and glasses of Bohemian fizzy wine. It was not expected at all, the head teacher presented me with a painting of the guardian mountain Boden and thanked me for coming over. I was embarrassed! I enjoy it. It's fun and possibly informative for the students.
Too nice to eat.
The last evening we went to dinner with Helena, her husband, her brother and his wife who had brought their young grandson and Blanka, Helen's daughter. A traditional meal with lots of conversation, particularly with the young Adam who spoke German, Czech and English. Interested in Doctor Who and Harry Potter, we chatted most of the evening.
Staff Room tea
Evening meal.
And next day I came home. Hope I can go back next year.
And some pictures
*Note for aliens.
Ian allan produces books for locospotters in Britain. In the days of steam, when trains were interesting, most boys collected train numbers, and some girls too. The books contained a list of numbers assigned to engines, and their names if they had one. When you saw, or "copped" an engine for the first time you underlined it in the book. It was great fun but we didn't know better. Interest seemed to wain with the introduction of diesel and electric trains.
Once again it's time for my annual trip to Bilina in the Czech Republic to talk to the students in the Gymnasium (Grammar School) and enjoy a few days visiting another part of the country.
First a reminder of Bilina:
Bilina is a small town, about 16000 inhabitants, in Bohemia, between Most and Teplice. It has:
We went to the power station and were shown a short film about electricity and were then given a "virtual reality" tour of the complex. The coal from the mine, the water from the River Laben, the power of the generators, the way the slag is converted into building material and how the exhaust from the boiler is cleaned. The steam, once it is through the turbines is used for a district heating system.
The town has a market square, town hall in the corner;
For four days I went into the Gymnasium to talk to the students about the United Kingdom. It was like a sandwich, two days in school, four days away and two days in school.
One evening before the trip Marketa took us on a tour of Teplice, a nearby town. An ancient spa town, the name means "warm water" and in the past the healthy baths were visited by royalty, Beethoven and Goethe. The latter two met at a point in what is now the town park, the very spot being marked ! We visited the castle and archaeological remains of a nunnery.
A plague column in Teplice.
And finally;
Having been in school for a couple of days Helena, Pavel and I set off by train for the town of Sazava on the river Sazavou. Four trains, from Bilina to Usti, from Usti to Kolin, Kolin to Ledeck and finally from Ledeck to Sazava.
Sazava is the home of the Kavalier glass factory, which specialises in manufacturing for laboratories.
The hotel we stayed in was close to the river. Apart from the hotel there was a camping ground, canoes and other boats. Sadly the season hadn't started so the river was quiet, apart from a flock of mallard ducks, woodpeckers and three goats in a very large pen.
Next to the Kavalier factory, but not related to it, is a glass museum and workshop. As it was a holiday weekend the place was busy and the main attraction was the demonstrations of glass blowing.
The town's other attraction was a Benedictine Monastery. The guide spoke Czech, I was given a printed guide, which was fine. The best parts for me were the old wall paintings.
Another day we meant to catch the train to Kutna Hora, but we missed it. Never mind, said the stationmaster, a lady, catch the bus with the same ticket. So we did. The bus halted in the middle of nowhere, the driver told us to walk round the corner at the cross roads and another bus would complete our journey. Spot on.
Kutna Hora has a beautiful cathedral, but I have been there twice. Instead we went to the Italian Palace, once the royal mint of Bohemian kings. Apart from the cathedral, Kutna Hora was famous for silver mining and coin minting. A young man dressed in a medieval costume gave us a demonstration, placing an aluminium disc between dies and hitting them hard. It worked. Apparently a good minter could produce something like 12000 coins a day. Must have been a long day.
The journey back to Sazava was made on four trains.
Next day we went, by train, to a small town called Tynec and visited the small castle there. The museum attached to the tower had a display of local artefacts, the town had made ceramics. The top floor of the tower was in darkness so as not to disturb the bats!
The locals were putting on an Easter exhibition. A lady was struggling carrying pictures up the steps so being a gentleman I helped. Something was said and she realised I wasn't Czech.
"Where are you from?"
"England"
"Whereabouts?"
"Newcastle upon Tyne"
"Is this your first visit?"
"No I've been to Czechia about fifteen times"
"Well it's like a second home for you!"
Could be right
The return journey to Sazava took two trains. The first to a town called Cerkany where we had to wait. The train from Tynec was a local one. All trains have a driver and a conductor. The conductor checks and sells tickets. Members of the public are allowed to open the doors to get on the train and to get off when the train has stopped in a station. Before it pulls away the driver closes the door. On the first train, a local one from Tynec, an announcement in Czech and then in English advised passengers that if they wanted the next stop they must ring the bell. The system works, why all the fuss about closing train doors in England?
In Cerkany we had a wait of an hour, an opportunity for duck and dumplings in the local pub, washed down with a fine half litre of Czech beer. On the journey to Sazava we saw buzzards and deer in the fields by the track.
The following day we returned to Bilina, travelling on five trains.
The following day we went to Prague, capital of the republic. I think I have seen most of the tourist sites, we went to the City of Prague Museum, exactly what it says. A number of rooms displaying old pictures showing how the city developed, and a large model, made in the 19th century, showing the layout of the towns that make up the capital. A movable camera allowed viewers to home in on any section and enlarge the picture on the screen.
After lunch in the delightful Czech Kitchen where traditional Czech food is served in a system almost like lining up for school dinners, we headed for the Pater Noster. This is a type of lift. The cages are open, you simply step into them as they pass, but you need to be quick. The cages are in a vertical loop, they move continouosly but are perfectly safe, going "over the top" in an upright position and turning again at the bottom of the building.
On the Pater Noster
Back in Bilina I was back in school for two days. One evening Helena's brother Mirek took us out to a small restaurant in a winery., Lovely place with a small stage and seating for about 250 people to enjoy outdoor shows in summer. The second, and last day just happened to be my birthday. The teachers gave a little party in the staff room with an amazing salad, bread and cakes and glasses of Bohemian fizzy wine. It was not expected at all, the head teacher presented me with a painting of the guardian mountain Boden and thanked me for coming over. I was embarrassed! I enjoy it. It's fun and possibly informative for the students.
Too nice to eat.
The last evening we went to dinner with Helena, her husband, her brother and his wife who had brought their young grandson and Blanka, Helen's daughter. A traditional meal with lots of conversation, particularly with the young Adam who spoke German, Czech and English. Interested in Doctor Who and Harry Potter, we chatted most of the evening.
And next day I came home. Hope I can go back next year.
And some pictures
Ian allan produces books for locospotters in Britain. In the days of steam, when trains were interesting, most boys collected train numbers, and some girls too. The books contained a list of numbers assigned to engines, and their names if they had one. When you saw, or "copped" an engine for the first time you underlined it in the book. It was great fun but we didn't know better. Interest seemed to wain with the introduction of diesel and electric trains.
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