Wannabe writer/critic currently selling PCs - and my soul - at PC World. Spent a lot of time crashi...
Wannabe writer/critic currently selling PCs - and my soul - at PC World. Spent a lot of time crashing intellectual parties in Prague. Now being nice on Ciao! UK.
Member since:13.12.2000
Reviews:116
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Pick ten guide books on the Czech Republic before your trip. Flick through each one until you reach Kutna Hora, and chances are, each one will highlight the ossuary as the main reason to visit this picturesque town.
The ossuary. You will feel a sense of foreboding as you descend the stone steps into the crypt, passing beneath decorations made out of human bones. This will not quite prepare you for what awaits you with in. Vast pyramids of skulls. A chandelier that reportedly contains every bone of the human body. A coat of arms constructed entirely of bones. The man responsible for all this has even signed his name - in bones - by the entrance.
The story has it that during the plague years, there wasn't enough room for all the bodies in the graveyard, so this ghoul decided to create a monument to human mortality. Grim, chilling, and thought-provoking...but you'll rather be walking around more pleasant surroundings, such as Kutna Hora's gently sloping streets.
Far more laid back than the picture book charm of Prague, Kutna Hora nestles in a valley and provides an excellent refuge for tourists who just want to take it easy. There are many small cafes and bars to sit and enjoy a beer and snack in, and lots of unusual sights to take in. The highlight is St. Bara's cathedral, a bizarre looking edifice constructed with manic gothic energy. It looks like a vast insect crouched on the edge of the village.
An ideal place to stay - cheaper and more mellow than Prague, but within easy striking distance of the capital. You can live like a king for a week on fifty quid.
Be warned though - in the summer, Czech Republic gets unbearably hot. Landlocked, it has no sea breezes to relieve the temperature, so it will feel hotter than anywhere you've been for your summer holidays - be it Greece, Florida or Turkey.
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Dec 27th, 2000
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