Travelling in Eastern Europe takes a little longer...

Travelling in Eastern Europe takes a little longer than in the west. Leaving Kromlov to reach Zilina, Slovakia was always going to take a while....

We made the connections from Kromlov to Budejovice, from Budejovice to Telc - time for some sightseeing.

Telc is a pretty little town with a square, a castle and a tower. We considered staying, but i was keen to push on to Brno, besides, an hour or two was enough to see the sights and chat with a lovely czech waiter. A worthwhile stop.

We boarded the train to Kotelec (i have no idea where it is either), then made our connnection to Jihlava - but the trains were running late. On arriving in Jihlava, our connecting train to Brno had just left! It was around 7:30pm by this stage in regional Czech.... the train conductor just shrugged his shoulders. Looking at one another (and admittedly, me a little grumpy because i had somehow pulled some leg muscles the night before in Kromlov and didn't want to limp around anymore), we headed to look for the centre.... nup. No sign of anything from the train station - except local buses. Looking at the public transport map we figured the 'centrum' would be the best place to head. Got there okay - even dropped us off in the square:). It is now 8:30 and starting to rain. Looking around we see no hotels or maps.... Backpacks loaded, we start walking.... and walking.... now dark and getting a little worried, i asked an ice-cream man (literally) if there was a hotel. He pointed around a corner and we headed off, thankful that this little town in the middle of no-where did have a hotel afterall.

Feeling hopeful we headed in the direction given... then we realised we were meandering - no sign of a hotel. Seeing a local walking her dog, Dean enlisted her help and she showed us the way (love the Czechs). Arriving at Hotel Grand, we knew we were going to break the budget, but it was the only hotel we had seen. Speaking with the receptionist, she informed us they were full ("Schizer"). Thankfully, she directed us to another Hotel, conspicuously in the square about 10 metres from where the bus had dropped us off - Doh. Oh well, we were just relieved to have somewhere to stay.

A little wary the next morning we headed to Brno. Dean was instantly on pocket-watch. The station area oozes dodginess. Not much to report on Brno - only stopped there briefly afterall that. We got the next bus to Zilina, Slovakia. On the border, the guard took our passports and the bus driver started his engine (yes Dean and I shared an 'urghh' moment). The guard then thought it would be wise to let the driver know he should wait (whew).

At long last, we arrived in Zilina. It was dark and the town was beautifully lit, there was some dance presentation happening in the square, and Dean and myself instantly liked Zilina. The old buildings were gorgeous lit up at night and the food was delicious.

Why are we here? Because it is where Julia and many of our Dublin-based Slovakian friends are from. Yep, that was the only reason for the trek:) We've enjoyed our stay and this little taste of Slovakia. We'll be back in Slovakia next week to check out the rest of it. Tomorrow we're off to Krakow, Poland...