Last day in Krumlov and some final words on Karlovy

I'm checked out of my hostel and basically ready to take the night train to Freiburg (via Zurich), one of Germany's leading eco-cities. Originally, I planned to spend a few days there and commute to Baden Baden for spa treatment. But Bertrand, a friend from the conference, will apparently be in Freiburg tomorrow anyway and has offered to pick me up, to entertain me, and his couch for me to sleep on. I feel very lucky with all the hospitality I have received from people I met at the conference.

During the past day or so I have been little other than wander around this lovely town. I wanted to make sure I explored every little winding street, and I believe i have covered the ones in the center at least. They are particularly nice in the evening when all the day trippers are gone but the light is still out and slanted against the tightly-packed buildings. I couldn't help but buy 10 postcards this morning, although I haven't seen very many interesting pictures to take myself. They do have a couple brown bears living in the castle mote who look pretty unhappy in the heat....

Last night my hostel provided a free keg of beer to its residents. I couldn't find my Aussie friends, so I hung out with my bunkmates instead. I would say 90% of my fellow travelers are Australian. Another thing I have noticed is that there are a lot of bone-skinny women travelers (not of any particular nationality). I see them eating and drinking beer, but for some reason their limbs could be confusing with those of a poster child on nutrician in Africa. On the other hand, almost no one is even lightly plump, which is good because weight tends to make people snore (yes, there have been one or 2), and we are all sharing a bedroom.

In Karlovy Vary, I was temporarily seduced by the privacy of my own room. I took an afternoon nap and woke thinking, "This is great. I am staying in this room forever." Later that evening the loneliness set in (exacerbated by the fact that I couldn't call home, no $ on the calling card, or get on a computer) and I wished I was in a hostel again. I mentioned the pedestrian ways throughout the city/parks in an earlier post, but I don't think I mentioned the complete lack of sidewalks. This isn't a serious issue, bc there aren't many cars in the town, but the ones that are there drive fast through the town. The paths are lines with extravagent begonias and impatients. As I headed out to dinner without my camera (it was re-charging), a huge red hot-air ballon, flame in center, rested in the sky next to the multicolored 19th-Century buildings. I ate my dinner in the park to silly american background music (a live Czech band at a nearby fancy hotel) and the smell of night jasmine wafting through the air.

My expensive room included breakfast from which I packed myself 2 huge sandwiches. So, that was cost-effective at least.