Local, Near and Far: Our journey of exploring the world.

Tag: Monastery

Why You Should Visit Kosovo: Day Trips from Prishtina

Guest Blogger and my good friend John Seale bring us a four part series on his recent journeys, beginning with a brief layover in Vienna, a look at Kosovo’s capital city, and continues today with day trips from Prishtina into the countryside of Kosovo. John is one of my frequent travel partners, from across Texas to the other side of the world (2 trips to Kenya). From Texas to Beyond is excited to bring you his unique perspectives on travel, along with some fascinating locations in Kosovo and Albania.

Prishtina is where you will most likely begin your vacation in Kosovo, but it isn’t where your trip should end. Add some day trips from Prishtina to your itinerary! The rest of the country has plenty to see and do, perhaps even more than the capital city. While Prishtina is a very cosmopolitan city, where the culturally Muslim population looks and behaves much like the rest of Europe, as you get out to the smaller cities you’ll find great diversity.

Kosovo has beautiful sights and wonderful culture. While getting around to these destinations can be challenging (see the previous post), if you make these journeys, you will be rewarded handsomely.

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Český Krumlov Town Overview

After two full days enjoying Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic, Rebekah and I were looking forward to a change of pace as we explored a small portion of the Czech countryside!

We boarded a train at Praha Hlavní Nádraží Train Station in Prague’s New Town, and were on our way to Český Krumlov, a small town located in the Bohemian area of the Czech Republic.

With an early departure, we wanted to make sure we had everything prepared.  The day before our departure we purchased one-way tickets for 240 Crowns each, roughly $11.50.  Overall, we found the rail tickets  to be very reasonable as long as we did not cross country lines, which can escalate the prices.

The four hour train trip was comfortable.  Rebekah LOVES trains, and this leg of the trip was a highlight as we watched the Czech countryside pass before our eyes!  The only disturbance from the peaceful views was a large group of college-aged students having an overtly good time with alcohol.  We changed trains once in České Budějovice, where we found the locals extremely helpful in successfully making our connection.

At 1:00 PM, we arrived in the Český Krumlov! The main attraction of Český Krumlov is the town itself, dominated by its imposing Castle.  We loved exploring this UNESCO World Heritage Site!  Český Krumlov is situated on a double oxbow on the Vltava River, with the Castle Town occupying the larger oxbow, and the Old Town occupying the smaller oxbow.

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