Unexpected surprises in Czech Switzerland

A year and a half ago, my daughter and I decided to drive them to Czech Switzerland. This nature reserve, located in the low, but very picturesque Elbe Sandstone Mountains on the very border of the Czech Republic and Germany, attracts thousands of hiking enthusiasts. We were no exception. However, due to the proximity of Germany, prices for accommodation in the park itself are very high.

In search of a cheaper option, we ended up in the town of Česká Kamenice, 20 kilometers from the entrance to the park. At first glance, nothing interesting was there, but still this place managed to surprise us, and even more than once. I’ll tell you about these surprises, about which there is almost no information on the Russian-speaking Internet ...

The way from Vilnius to Ceska Kamenice is not close. Had to spend the night in Lodz. But not just like that. The city turned out to be interesting. But Ceska Kamenice, where we arrived by the end of the next day, at first glance seemed a boring provincial town.

It was a deceptive impression. This city in the historical region of Bohemia for more than seven centuries, filled with all sorts of historical events from the Hussite wars to presenting him with an award in 2005 for preserving the historical center.

Between these events, much more has happened. So in the XIX century there was a boom in the textile industry, and immediately after the Second World War, almost all the inhabitants of the city, like ethnic Germans, were deported to Germany.

Traces of those turbulent times can be found on the streets of Ceska Kamenice. Here it really turned out to be interesting to walk, look at old mansions and drink cheap Czech beer. Only here I did not succeed in a full-scale report.

But in the urban district, I found some very unusual sights. Of course, if fate brings you here, you should definitely visit a rock formation called Pusty Zamek.

This very unusual rock formation is located a few kilometers from the town in the valley of the local river Kamenice. Despite the convenient walking route and unusual views, we were completely alone here.

The rock itself vividly reminded me of the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland - a mega-untwisted natural landmark that I saw about six years ago.

Here also the rocky surface is a multitude of hexagonal columns connected to each other. True, their diameter is much smaller than the Irish.

A similar structure has a clearly similar volcanic origin. There are many such formations in the world, and all of them cause special interest in people. Recall, for example, the Fingal Cave in Scotland, Cape Stolbchaty in the Kuril Islands, the Devil's Tower in the US state of Wyoming or the Garni Gorge in Armenia. Conspiracy therapists and lovers of mysticism probably feel in such places in a special way, like investigators who found some important evidence.

Of course, by the power of the impression of the Empty Castle is inferior to its competitors. But getting here is much easier, and most importantly crowds of tourists here will not be guaranteed.

We did not limit ourselves to this rock and decided to take a walk around the district. The local landscapes here can be called pastoral.

True, some concrete structures towered in the forest with strange concrete. Apparently, it was the legacy of the last war.

But we discovered an even more interesting object a bit later. At the footpath, we suddenly noticed an abandoned hotel building.

The front door was open, and my daughter and I decided to look inside. There was nothing interesting there, and we were ready to get out, but suddenly my attention was attracted by an advertising poster lying in the corner.

In it, in English and Russian, a certain Pub of the Campaign invited tourists to visit. The opening of the pub was scheduled for June 2014. But the most interesting thing is that this announcement was signed on behalf of a certain civil association "Traces of Green Men"! What was it - subtle trolling or provocation - we can no longer find out, but, apparently, things were not working out at the pub.

Well, as it turned out, the Czech Republic in its open spaces is fraught with many more surprises. The main thing is not to be lazy to get here and explore everything personally.