Day 49, Wednesday, Tabor to Ceske Budejovice...Phil

After ignoring the alarm for yet another lie-in, I roll out of bed for a quick blog before loading up the bikes and heading off for breakfast. Our ever-helpful hostess, Olga, watches with fascination as we load the boys up, offering tips on cycle routes out of town, breakfast locations and weather. Following her advice, we head across the road to Recycle cafe where we have a "superb" (Alice) cooked breakfast. No luck at the local bike shop with regard to new pannier racks, we head on out of town....


The hills continue, and we,re feeling the cold at altitude. Its the potholes that are doing my head in today. As we bounce along the uneven tarmac that paves most of the roads today, I cannot help glancing down expectantly at my front pannier racks, anxiously awaiting the crack that will see me sprawled in the middle of the laneway with a buckled wheel and innumerable bruises. Luckily, its not to be and my panniers survive yet another day. The bouncing is also making me thankful I chose my more supportive sports bra, and Im sure Hazel must be glad she,s opted away from the single layer cotton, strapless bandeaux (previously purchased for sunbathing purposes but not seeing much use recently) which she was wearing a couple of days ago...


The wind is also gusting again, and Ali and I fall behind Hazel who seems to not be affected.... "I just don,t think about it".... I try not too, but am not very successful at keeping up... We stop for coffee in a bus stop, where there is enough room for us, and the bikes!!! Ali announces her new favourite sandwich is poppy seed roll, with banana, sultanas, cranberries and salty peanuts, with a Mister Choc for desert.


We carry on, and it feels like a long day when we finally roll in to Ceske Budejovice. We stop at a strange touist information in the square, which is more of a map shop - not a bad thing, as we really have no idea where we§re going once we cross the border into Austria. I§m left on my own in the shop, and walk out with a map of northern Austria to Linz and instructions on how to get to a local pensione. We head out of the main square, but find ourselves standing at what appears to be a decrepit apartment building with no signage to differentiate it from any other local residence. I check and re-check the details given by the tourist info girl, but the look on Hazel§s face says it all..... we return to the square, and after refusing to pay exorbitant prices, find ourselves at the lovely Hotel Klika, with a little apartment complete with mezzanine floor, much to Hazel§s delight! A delicious 3 course meal for less than 30pounds, bikes are undercover behind locked gate (although to Ali§s consternation the gate tends to open and close at will), there are warm tiles in the bathroom and a radiator to dry clothes on. Happy little campers, we§re all tucked up by 9pm....