Day 06 - Sunday 31st May

Last night at dinner, our guide told us we would be getting a wake up call at 7am and we would have to have our bags outside our room for collection at 7:45am. The bus leaves for Prague at 8:30am.

It turned out that we woke up early and we were down in the restaurant having breakfast at 7am.

David, our guide, had previously explained that we would be rotating our seating positions in the bus on every day of the tour. So Suzy was keen for us to get down to the bus early to get a good position. As it turns out, we were the first there and we sat on the seats directly behind the driver.

Everyone was on time and the bus left the hotel at 8:30. First we drove around the ring road which apparently was built where the ancient city wall used to be. It is lined with magnificent buildings - many of which we'd seen yesterday when we walked around the old town before the tour started.

We hadn't gone very far when my plan to take photos through the front of the bus window came unstuck because the widow suffered a direct hit of bird poo.

When we got out of the city, we admired the pretty countryside as we travelled along motorways and highways. After a while, we left Austria and entered the Czech Republic. David pointed out the change in the buildings - they looked poorer than in Austria.

At our first rest stop at a service station, I asked Ference, our bus driver, to clean the windscreen to help with my photos.

Our next stop was the town of Cesky Krumlov which is a town protected by UNESCO as a world heritage site. David described it as the most beautiful town in the Czech Republic and it was easy to see why.

There we were met by a (very attractive) local guide called Ollie ?? who took us down the cobblestone streets to the river, across the bridge and up the other side, stopping regularly to allow us to admire the view and take photos.

We hadn't gone very far when a little girl with tears running down her face ran up to us followed by an older lady with a walking stick. It turned out they were Ollie's daughter and mother. The daughter had been delighted to run into her mother by chance.

After the tour we were free to explore the town and find somewhere for lunch. Suzy had an eye on a particular restaurant on edge of the river but when we got there, all the tables outside were taken. As we stood there looking disappointed, a man at an adjacent table, who was dining alone, invited us to sit at his table.

We were very grateful - partly because of his kindness and partly because he was a very interesting man to talk to. It was a most enjoyable meal. I took the opportunity to take more photos of the river and the town.

Across the river we noticed a couple come out of their house and set up a barbecue on the grass next to the river. What a great setting for a meal - on either side of the river. There were also lots of people travelling downstream in small boats.

This town is not on a direct route from Vienna to Prague. Obviously it was well worth the detour.

Back on the bus, we travelled to our hotel in Prague, the Majestic Plaza Hotel. This was an old hotel and probably needs some refurbishment and repairs. For example, the room had old timber doors and it was really hard to work out how to open them with the key card.

For dinner, we walked down the street to Wenceslas Square and had dinner at Starbucks with another couple from our tour.

In the evening we went on a waking tour of Prague followed by a cruise on the Danube. David came with us but he left most of the guiding to a local guide called George who was very entertaining. One of the highlights of the walking tour was going over the Charles Bridge which dates back to the 14th century.

During the walking tour, George warned us repeatedly to watch out for pickpockets - especially on the Charles Bridge.

The sun was going down by the time we started our river cruise and so I was able to take photos as the sun set and after dark. It was a good test for my new camera with its capabilities in low light situations.

The tour finished at 10pm and we walked back to our hotel.