Hi Gram!
I had a good sleep last night. The bed was comfortable with a cool breeze blowing in the window. I’ve learned to pack my own pillow as I travel. It’s bulky, but I’ve found that it’s worth the familiarity and comfort. I woke with my alarm, had a small breakfast, and did my morning journal questions before walking over to the train station to meet my friend Eric. He showed me around the train station with some of the beautiful architecture, we grabbed pastries, then found our way to the train.

From seats on the top deck, we watched the station disappear, replaced soon by rolling hillsides and villages while we caught up on each other’s lives. Once we reached Karlštejn, we checking out the cute little shops on our way to the castle. They build castles on high points, so it was a gentle uphill climb that wove through some lush greenery. We were a little early for our tour, so we checked out the well tower and took in some of the views from atop the castle walls, then drank a little honey wine and chatted.

The tour started promptly at 11:05am with a mix of around 12 people from around the world. The tour guide took us up some stairs and wove through the castle structure and chapels on our 2 hour tour. We learned the history and stories from the first few hundred years of its existence, seeing lots of artwork and artifacts. We finished at the bell tower (and gift shop), then worked our way down the stairs to where we began. It was a crisp, beautiful sunny day that made the sights beautiful all day. We wandered back through the village when we were done, stopping at a nice cafe for lunch on the way back to the train. The train ride was uneventful, delivering us back at our origin. We said our goodbyes, then Eric caught a train home and I headed back to my apartment.