After a few months off (that turned into almost four years), I've got back into the swing of things....
After a few months off (that turned into almost four years), I've got back into the swing of things... concentrating mostly on travel reviews this time around.
Member since:28.07.2000
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That says it all really - this is one of the quietest and most sedate towns I have visited! I went to Marianske Lazne (also known sometimes by its German name, Marienbad) on the way back from a trip to Karlovy Vary, as these two towns are both famed for the revitalising powers of their famous hot springs. It is situated in western Bohemia, just 50 kilometres from the German border and about 30km to the south of Karlovy Vary.
It is not on any main roads, so the journey will be quite slow and bumpy if you are travelling by car, and if you are really lucky you'll have a cement mixer block the entire road for 20 minutes while some workmen throw rocks into the river. Strange but true. The approaches to the town from the main road are not particularly welcoming, a feature that appears to be common to many towns in the Czech Republic - shoddy jerry-built housing spreading out into the countryside, trolleybus lines strung across the streets and tatty shops by the side of the road. The town centre is nowhere to be seen and isn't signposted either, but the station is easy to find, and we used the map there to work out just where to go.
When you do eventually find the town centre, things begin to look up a bit – basically, it consists of one long street with some beautifully restored houses and hotels, and at the end you come to the spa itself. This is housed in a large glass atrium, where you can taste the water from the various springs. You can buy a traditional beaker (shaped like a milk jug, except that the handle is hollow and you suck up the water from the base through this, presumably ensuring that none of the minerals in the water go to waste) as a souvenir, or just fill up your own receptacles with the extremely salty and metallic water, which can be taken either hot or cold. I did give it a try, and all I can say is that something that tastes this bad must be good for you! The locals certainly seem to think so, as most people take the waters on a daily basis.
Other than that, there is not much to do in Marianske Lazne. You can wander around the park, admiring the scenery and the architecture, but you’ll be hard pushed to do that for more than an hour. There are plenty of restaurants and cafes along the main street, all very reasonable priced – a decent lunch will set you back 250 crowns (about a fiver) at the most, and you have a good chance of making yourself understood here, as many people speak English and everyone speaks German (Bohemia was formerly part of Germany, and most places have a German name in this area, although it’s not a good idea to make this your topic of conversation with the locals, for obvious reasons). One thing you must remember to do is to buy a packet of oplatky, as this is the local snack of choice – thin, sweet circular wafers with either hazelnut or chocolate paste in between – and there is a shop in Marianske Lazne that sells nothing but oplatky!
Essentially, this is a very quiet, very soothing place to visit – come and try the waters, have a meal and then head off to Karlovy Vary, Loket or elsewhere. It’s very nice, but very limited, as the town is the spa, and vice versa – but that’s no bad thing I suppose, and I wouldn’t bet against this place being ‘discovered’, exploited and changed beyond all recognition in a few years’ time. Take an afternoon out on your way through to Prague, and check it out before everything changes.
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I wouldn't call Eastbourne quiet anymore, certainly not Gods waiting room !! good and Interesting Op though I enjoyed reading it, a new place for us to consider ..Thanks Andrew
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