Czech Republic: August 28, 2009

We started the day doing separate things. I was my mom’s alarm clock at 5am because she was going to be picked up at 6.15 by her driver to take her to Uhersky Brod for her first dialysis treatment at 7am. She said that the clinic is in a modern hospital building. The patients each have lockers and most change into pajamas or something comfortable while they undergo treatment. There were about 9 chairs and a few beds and each had their own television, etc. she said the doctors spoke good English and the nurses were trying their English on her. She had her translator and tried to speak Czech back to them. They provided her with a sandwich (a large chicken sub) and cookies She said that it was a pleasant experience and much better than she expected. She is quite happy with the facility and the experience.

Aidan began his day fighting (again – but in our room this time) with the Garmin (the GPS). He decided to upgrade the European maps since there are so many new roads in the Czech Republic. This simple task took all morning and the maps are still not updated. He was able to do a software upgrade and a communications upgrade but every time he went to download a map he received a compatibility error. He finally contacted customer support and they said it was a problem o their end. So right now we’re still stuck with Czech maps from 2006.

I decided to try Thai Massage. Aidan dropped me off at Zlin’s main square – namesti Miru (translates to Peace Square) and I took the elevator to the 5th floor and entered bai mai. I had Masáž hlavy (Head Massage) because I had been carrying a lot of tension in my neck and shoulders from the last few hectic weeks. I was taken into a room with a brightly coloured orange mattress on the floor and green pillows and towels. I wore a sports bra and sweat pants because I had been warned about the physicality of Thai massage. The therapist was just about 5’ tall and did not speak any English. She had me lie down and covered my chest and shoulders with the towel. She began with my face and moved to my neck, shoulders, scalp and back. In the 60 minute session, she ultimately included my arms, legs and feet because I was so tense. The massage hurt at times but was also blissful. It was like a massage with yoga with a partner. My aching neck felt much better afterwards and I was amazed at how relaxed I felt. It was very inexpensive so I am going back for another session on Monday.

Once we all came back together we decided to visit Kromeriz for the afternoon. The town includes an Archbishop’s castle and phenomenal gardens that are registered as a UNESCO World Natural and Cultural Inheritance monument. We first visited the town square as there was a crafts sale. We saw everything from pottery to animal pelts to wood carvings. We were craving shade as it was over 90 degrees so we headed to the Archiepscopal Chateau. The historical rooms were closed so we visited the galleries. There were perhaps 10 rooms with artwork from the baroque up until the 19th century. Additionally, there were amazing sculptures throughout the rooms. We then visited the gardens. They were truly breathtaking. While my mom sat in the garden café, Aidan and I walked the perimeter of the gardens. There was a small lake, a children’s zoo with deer, donkeys, goats, chickens, etc, rose gardens and other garden features. Little kids were able to puttering around in electric cars and bikes. We also saw a number of red squirrels in the gardens.

Once we left the Chateau gardens we walked around the town. We saw the Church of John the Baptist and the Church of St. Maurice, before heading back to the car. We then decided to visit the IKEA near Brno. It was my mom’s first IKEA experience and she appeared to really enjoy it. After walking around the showroom floor, we had dinner in the cafeteria. Aidan and I could not pass up the Swedish meatballs while my mom had fish. The food was amazing, as always. We then headed back to Zlin and ended the night checking emails and looking for a B&B in Prague for Saturday night.