The Car and Kutna Hora

Wednesday May 23.  We got going this morning at a leisurely pace as we had only one stop on our way from Cesky Krumlov to Prague and planned only wandering out to eat and the letting the kids swim for that evening.  After the kids ate more food for breakfast the they do in a single day (the pension has a breakfast buffet, English style) we set out.

The car experience has been for the most part good.  Highway cruising is the best, city driving is a little more stressful.  This all happened today while under four wheel propulsion; running a red light, proceeding to go straight through an intersection from a full stop when only the turn lane went green, getting honked at by the Prague street-bound rail trams for being in the way, starting down a one way street and countless times almost hitting pedestrians in cross walks.

It was tough.  I was the navigator but not at the helm.  I would shout out commands but my autocratic rule fails in the car.  I was constantly wondering what we would get first, a ticket or killed.  But God willing, we dropped this car off successfully and got a clean bill of health from the return agent after what seemed like an half hour inspection.

I am not sure I can say as much for the first car that we rented.  We picked it up in Italy and drove to Croatia, Slovenia and then back to Italy.  I think we are A-OK with Croatia, but we somehow failed to get the national toll permit in Slovenia.  Not sure how that all works, photos at the toll areas or what.  We probably passed through 50.  We are going to die if there is a €20 fine for each one.

While we were twisting and turning and bouncing our way through the rather rough Czech country roads I was typing away here and there on the iPad the various thoughts that I had.  It was not minutes after Patti that she did not think that was a good idea that I was almost threw up on the iPad.  Could not be the nutella (essentially a rich chocolate hazelnut pudding) that I spread on a piece of cake for breakfast??  When I took the picture I thought, now this is something I would never eat for breakfast at home.  I suppose I know why now, save it for lunch!!

Some of the roads felt like oversized golf cart paths but they seemed to do the trick.  When you would approach an oncoming truck there was a nervous few seconds followed by a victorious relief.  We were using our portable GPS with an EU maps card plugged, the second car also had an on board GPS.  While enroute in Czech our portable would take us places that the onboard did not recognize.  In fact, it was warning is that we were  'Offroad!'. That explains the rough ride.

Our next stop was the Ossuary Church, or the Bone church.  This is the most interestingly grotesque church I will certainly ever visit.  The remains of 40,000 people were exhumed and stored here during the 30 years war in the 17th century.  In the late 19th century the bones were used for decorating the interior.  The main idea was to create a reminder that death comes to us all and in the end we will all stand before God for the judgement.  The Bible says that all our thoughts words and deeds are recorded and the books will be opened in the final judgement against us.  Those who have given up on making themselves right before God and place their full trust in the judgement on Christ as paying for them will be with God for eternity.  Those who reject the payment of Christ will continue under the judgement of God into eternity.

The crown over this stack of bones is part of that reminder that some will be freed by Christ and some will not.

A very grotesque symbol of the reality of death and judgement that awaits all of us.

You can see all the picks in the Kutna Hora link up and to the right.