My Travel Adventures

A few days before I returned to Oxford, my dad and I made one last trip around Bohemia. Our first stop was in Kounov, the fields above which are home to a mysterious collection of stone rows. It is unclear when or why these rows were built, with hypotheses about their use ranging from ancient observatory to new-age boundary stones. The former theory is supported by their apparent alignment with some astronomical phenomena, but the site lacks a regular structure and standardised stone sizes, which are typical of such ‘calendars’ elsewhere.

Caving in before my sister’s foolhardy insistence, I agreed to go on a trip with her on the most inauspicious day possible. The interesting thing about my sister is that somehow, she always finds a weather forecast that says it will be sunny when all other forecasts predict rain. If prompted, she would no doubt be able to find a weather app that would tell us there isn’t a single cloud in the sky during a downpour.

Not long after my solo trip south of Prague, my dad took me to see Kutná Hora, a UNESCO-listed town to the east of the capital. As its name (which roughly translates to Mining Mountain) indicates, Kutná Hora gained prominence and made a fortune thanks to the discovery of silver in the thirteenth century. This fortune, in turn, enabled the financing of some truly impressive architectural projects, among them the Church of Saint Barbara (the patron saint of miners), with its three peaks and prominent pillar frame.

I decided to spend three weeks at home before going back to Oxford. The original hope was that this would provide me with just enough time to enjoy my family’s company without getting tired of it. In reality, by week three, I was already itching to start getting work done, which was simply impossible with so many people around.