Page 9

Autumn walks

The viewing tower at Vlcí hora © Ricky Yates

As well as working on improving my garden, I’ve also been exploring more of the wonderful countryside in the surrounding area where I now live. I’ve enjoyed sharing several walks with my Czech friend Kát’a who, in turn, has been a great help to me in overcoming various Czech language issues.

Back on the afternoon of Wednesday 9^th September, we climbed to the top of Vlcí hora (581m), a prominent mountain about forty-five minutes drive north-east of Stará Oleška, near the town of Krásná Lípa. Like so many Czech hills and mountains, Vlcí hora is completely forested. But also like quite a number of Czech hills and mountains, there is a viewing tower at the summit, which overcomes the problem of the trees blocking the view 🙂

Vlcí hora is the result of volcanic action during the Tertiary period. In the neighbouring photo, you can see the columns of basalt rock beneath the base of the viewing tower. Amusingly, you can also see Kát’a’s mobile phone which she was using to take a similar photo to me at the same time 😉

The viewing tower was open and manned so, after paying the 20kc/£0.70 per person admission fee, we climbed the 64 steps to the top. We were rewarded with these magnificent views.

On Saturday 3^rd October, we walked from the village of Ludvíkovice, which lies halfway between Decín and Stará Oleška, to the Ružová vyhlídka viewpoint above Kanon Labe, which I have featured in a previous post more than two years ago.

View from Ružová vyhlídka viewpoint above Kanon Labe © Ricky Yates

I always think this view is spectacular. But what I particularly liked on this occasion, was the tinge of Autumn colours that you can see beginning to appear on some of the trees.

Me, contemplating the view from Ružová vyhlídka © Kát’a Burešová

And here is me, contemplating the view in the other direction, towards Decín.

Earlier this month, on Thursday 5^th November, we drove for about an hour, north and east of Stará Oleška, to the Lužické hory or Lusatian Mountains, as they are sometimes called in English. Parking the car in a small car park at the end of a narrow road, a couple of kilometres south of the small town of Jiretín pod Jedlovou, we set out to climb to the summit of Jedlová (774m).

We were blessed weather-wise, with the perfect day for walking with mainly clear skies and therefore very clear views.

View whilst ascending Jedlová © Ricky Yates

This was the view to the south on our upward climb.

Viewing tower on the summit of Jedlová © Ricky Yates

Just like Vlcí hora, Jedlová has a viewing tower on the summit, along with a small hotel and restaurant. But all three were closed because of the current lockdown restrictions to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Fortunately, good views are available without needing to climb the tower.

View north-west from the summit of Jedlová © Ricky Yates

This is the view north-west. Apparently, the lake in the centre of the photo is called Velký rybník, which translates as ‘big pond’ 🙂

View north from the summit of Jedlová © Ricky Yates

This is the view northwards with the border town of Varnsdorf in the middle distance, and Germany immediately beyond.

View when descending from the summit of Jedlová © Ricky Yates

A view when descending from the summit of Jedlová.

Walking the red waymarked route © Ricky Yates

Our return journey along the red waymarked route, (note the waymark on the tree on the right), took us between two lines of trees with an autumnal carpet of fallen leaves to walk on.

Two shadowy characters on the path 🙂

Across the road from where we had left my car, are the ruins of Hrad Tolštejn, situated on the top of a rocky outcrop. We both decided we still had just about enough energy for the climb, before setting out for home.

Jiretín pod Jedlovou as seen from Hrad Tolštejn © Ricky Yates

We were rewarded for our effort by more wonderful views. This is the small town of Jiretín pod Jedlovou.

View from Hrad Tolštejn © Kát’a Burešová

Whilst these two final photos capture some of the wonderful Autumn colours on display.

Summer 2020

Your Truly on 5th November 2020 © Kát’a Burešová

I must start by making a serious apology for not posting anything here for five and a half months 🙁 I will not make any excuses. Instead, here is a new post about what has been happening over these past Summer months and a promise to resume writing more regularly in the coming weeks.

In contrast to the Summer of both 2018 and 2019, this past Summer has not been so excessively hot and we have had far more rainfall. Across the Czech Republic in June, rainfall was double the average for the month. Throughout the Summer, the Labe/Elbe maintained a decent level, allowing the passage of commercial craft, unlike in the two previous years. My grass has also remained green and has immediately shot back up, each time I’ve mown it!

Cooler temperatures have encouraged and enabled me to make further progress in my garden. Even better, I finally found someone capable and willing to complete a number of tasks that have been beyond my capabilities – a man called František.

František lives with his wife Andrea and their three children, in the upstairs part of a house on the end of a public building, within sight of my house. Earlier this Summer, Andrea found me on Facebook and asked to be my Facebook friend. Through this link, I discovered that her husband has a Facebook page, which advertises his various building skills. Therefore one evening, when František, Andrea and I were all sitting outside at Bar-Restaurace U Soni, enjoying a few beers, I approached them, asking if František would be interested in doing some tasks for me, in particular, constructing a new path from the steps at the back of my house, to the woodshed on the far side of the garden.

The new path was to replace this untidy mixture of bits of rubber matting and roofing felt, left by the previous owners.

Our discussions were based on my pre-prepared Google translate text, asking whether he would be willing to do the work and if so, what would be his price? He clearly understood what I was asking and got out his mobile phone to show me a couple of photos of a path he had previously constructed. However, it did take a further conversation at U Soni a few days later, before I finally convinced František that I did want the work done.

Early one evening, a few days after our second conversation, František came round to look at what exactly I required. I told him that I wanted the path to be 70cm wide and he then measured the distance from steps to woodshed to work out the quantity of materials that would be needed. I also showed him the existing path through the front garden and agreed with him that my new path could be constructed in a similar style, using interlocking paving blocks.

A few further days later, František returned with my Google translated print out, giving me a price for materials, a price for his labour and saying that he would do the job the following weekend, 11^th-12^th July. In turn, I promised him that I would visit an ATM the next day and give him the cash for materials which I duly did.

Materials for the new path © Ricky Yates

Thus in the late afternoon of Friday 10^th July, this pile of materials appeared in my back garden, along with several bags of cement.

František & Andrea at work © Ricky Yates

The following morning, František arrived and started work, marking out the exact line of the new path and then digging two trenches for the supporting pieces of the sides of the path. An hour or so later, his wife and attractive assistant 🙂 Andrea, arrived to help.

New path under construction © Ricky Yates

In constructing the boundaries of the new path, František had a brainwave. He suggested the creation of an additional step at the top of the existing steps, which meant the new path would rise at a more gentle angle. Your can just see part of the new step at the bottom of this photo.

And here is how the new path looked at the end of the first day of construction.

The next morning, fine stone chippings were put into the channel of the path and then all the paving blocks were laid on top. Numerous blocks had to be cut into various shapes, in order to complete the path.

New path completed at the end of day two © Ricky Yates

However, a few hours later, this was the wonderful end result.

The new path properly landscaped © Ricky Yates

Fast forward to early October, and this is how the path looked after I de-weeded the disturbed ground on either side and then successfully grass seeded it.

My walnut tree

In my back garden there are three trees – an apple tree, a cherry tree and a walnut tree. You can see all three trees in this photograph, taken in early October 2019. The apple tree stands immediately to the side of the woodshed on the far side of the back garden. The cherry tree is on the left front in the photograph. Towering above both of them is the walnut tree, in the centre of the photograph, with its leaves rapidly turning yellow.

As you can see, the walnut tree stands quite close to my garden fence, with many of its branches extending over the adjacent public land, across which runs a driveway to the house behind my garden, the home of my neighbours Pavel and Vlasta. In the Autumn of 2018, the tree produced a large crop of walnuts, many of which fell on the public ground. More than one local lady came around and collected them, and example of thriftiness for which Czechs are renowned 🙂

Walnut tree leaves lying on my back lawn © Ricky Yates

However, in the Autumn of 2019, the tree didn’t produce any nuts at all. But what it did produce was a superabundance of fallen leaves.

Raking into piles, all of those leaves which fell into my garden and then transporting them by wheelbarrow to the bio odpad/green waste skip, was a major exercise.

The walnut tree minus nearly all its leaves © Ricky Yates

During October 2019, the walnut tree lost nearly all its leaves in little over a week. There was no more than ten days between when the photograph at the beginning of this post was taken and the one above. As you can see, large quantities of leaves also fell outside of my garden.

Whilst strictly speaking, clearing them up was not my responsibility, I did feel rather guilty being the owner of the tree from whence they had come. This was especially so after rain and cars being driven along the driveway, turned many of them into a squelchy mess. So one Saturday in late October, I raked the leaves from the grass strip along the outside of my garden fence, whilst Pavel used his leaf blower to clear the driveway.

Over this past winter, I decided that I must do something to avoid a similar or worse experience in 2020. In simple terms, the tree has grown far too big for where it is situated. So I asked Mirka, whose English conversation class I help with, if she or one of her friends knew of a tree surgeon who could come and give it a ‘hair cut’.

Mirka kindly found someone suitable who, in turn, asked to see photos of the tree. I sent several, including some in this post. Having seen the photos, the tree surgeon, Johan Beneš, gave me a quotation of 5500Kc/£180.00 to reduce and thin out the tree, together with taking away all the resultant debris. I accepted his offer.

Johan Beneš cutting the walnut tree © Ricky Yates

On the morning of Wednesday 20^th May, Johan Beneš and a colleague, arrived in their van, towing a small trailer, in order to carry out the work. By a series of ropes and pulleys, Johan hauled himself up into the tree and commenced cutting branches, whilst his colleague collected them from the ground and started stacking them into the trailer. Johan did all the work with a simple hand saw being very careful where he cut in order to conserve the health of the tree.

The walnut tree following its ‘hair cut’ © Ricky Yates

After about four hours of Johan being up in the tree and with many branches and smaller twigs, lying on the ground, this is the end result.

Tree debris loaded to be taken away © Ricky Yates

And here is all the debris, either loaded on the trailer or stuffed in the back of the van. I remarked that they should really have brought a larger trailer with them. In reply, Johan admitted that the tree was far larger than he had envisioned from looking at my photographs 🙂

Winter 2019-2020 and progress with my front garden

This past winter, which is hopefully now over, has been my third spent in Stará Oleška. Yes, I’ve now lived here for two weeks short of three years.

The view from my front door on the morning of Saturday 29th February 2020 © Ricky Yates

One of my regular commenters asks for me to post snowy winter photographs. Well this one – the view from my front door on the morning of Saturday 29th February 2020, is the best I can do, as this past winter has been remarkably mild. And within a few hours, all the snow in this photograph had melted.

A combination of it being a mild winter, together with my new wood-burning stove, has meant that I’ve had no problem at all in keeping warm this winter. I’m also very pleased that the hope I’ve expressed a couple of times previously, that the logs delivered in mid-January 2019 would last until the end of this winter, has been fulfilled.

This is the inside of one end of my woodshed where my logs were once stacked, right up to the roof.

Split logs, ready for my wood-burning stove © Ricky Yates

But in mid-April, when this photograph was taken, I still had this supply of logs that I’d previously split, sitting on a table in the other half of the woodshed. These have enabled me to have the wood-burning stove going for a few hours each morning which is all I’ve needed the past few weeks.There are still some left if we do have few more cool days like today. The stove is burning merrily as I write 🙂

Although I pruned the vine on the front of the house in the Spring of 2019, I failed to give a serious ‘haircut’ to several of the bushes in my front garden.

My front garden in mid-October 2019 © Ricky Yates

This photograph, taken in October 2019, shows the result of my inaction 🙁 Therefore as well as pruning my vine, as explained in this post, in early November 2019, I severely cut back all the bushes in my front garden.

My front garden in early November 2019 © Ricky Yates

In the photograph above, you can see the result of my labours. As you can also see, because the bushes grew too large, they killed off the grass underneath, leaving bare patches of earth. Re-seeding these areas is one of my tasks in the coming days.

My front garden on 22nd April 2020 © Ricky Yates

But with the arrival of Spring, green shoots are appearing on all of the bushes reassuring me that I wasn’t too severe 😉

As I outlined in my previous post, since the middle of March I have been living in splendid isolation because of the measures taken by the Czech government, to counteract the Corona virus. However, this has given me the opportunity to do a lot of work in my garden, aided by dry, fine weather throughout April.

Along with dead-heading and pruning all my roses, I have finally managed to repair this trellis alongside my front door, which was damaged on 10th February by Storm Ciara (UK), Storm Sabine (Czech Republic & Germany).

Once DIY shops, (or Hobby shops as Czechs call them), were allowed to re-open just before Easter, I was able to obtain a replacement metal bracket to re-attach the trellis to the wall of the house. You can see the new bracket in the photo. I also screwed a new wooden baton, (which you can’t see), across the base of the trellis, and resurrected the roses.

One of the joys of this Spring has been to have these daffodils and tulips flowering, directly in front of the house. The bulbs were given to me by my daughter Christa at Christmas 2018. Last Spring, only the daffodils flowered, no doubt due to being planted too late. This Spring, they flowered beautifully.

Flowerbed & panels treated with wood stain © Ricky Yates

A couple of weeks later, just as the tulips were past their best, I also completely weeded and delineated the flower bed, and then applied wood stain to the panels below the enclosed verandah. This and the previous photo, show how dry everything is. The whole of the Czech Republic is currently experiencing drought conditions. Fortunately, this weekend as I write, we have had some most welcome rain.

I have also done plenty of work in my back garden. But that deserves another post 🙂

I am effectively a prisoner in my adopted country

The closed border crossing at Hrensko – Schmilka © Ricky Yates

On Thursday 12^th March, the Czech government declared a ‘state of emergency’ which would come into effect at 06.00 the following morning. This was in response to the rapid spread of the Corona virus, in particular, what was happening in northern Italy. Under the state of emergency, most border crossings to neighbouring countries were closed. All foreigners in the country at the time, would be able to leave – and tourists were actively encouraged to do so. But no foreigners would be allowed to enter, or re-enter the country, even those like me who hold permanent residency.

This had an immediate impact on me as I was due to officiate and preach at the monthly English-language Anglican service of Evening Prayer in the Frauenkirche, Dresden, on Sunday 15^th March. I had to rapidly compile and send an email, saying that I couldn’t travel and the service was consequently cancelled. Although the Frauenkirche authorities had originally planned to still hold their own 11.00 German Lutheran service, on the morning of Saturday 14^th, that too was cancelled, as the German government closed all places of worship.

Since that weekend in mid-March, I have been living in splendid isolation. All my regular activities – helping three young ladies from the village with English, and helping with an adult English conversation class in Decín, have been put on hold. With all bars cafes and restaurants closed, there have been no evenings in Bar-Restaurace U Soni or visits to Coffee & Books in Decín.

Restaurace U Soni is closed © Ricky Yates

I have tried to confine my shopping to a weekly trip to the Kaufland supermarket in Decín. However, once outside of my house and garden, I, like the rest of the population, am required to wear a face mask.

Whilst my once every six weeks appointment to see my GP, was cancelled in late March, at my request, the surgery did issue me with repeat E-prescriptions for the three tablets I have to take each day, meaning that I do now have sufficient medication to last me until the end of June.

Seven weeks on from when this all started, where are we now? Well, courtesy of the Czech government acting early and decisively, the virus outbreak in the country has been contained. Hospitals have not been overwhelmed and the number of new cases is declining. So a programme of slowly lifting restrictions over the next several weeks, has been put in place.

Just before Easter, DIY shops, (or hobby shops as Czechs call them), were allowed to reopen. This was something I was most grateful for, as I was finally able to purchase the correct florescent tube for my main kitchen light which had gone kaput nearly four weeks earlier. And hopefully in about two weeks time, bars, restaurants and cafes with outdoor seating areas, will again be allowed to function.

However, there has been no announcement yet as to when I will once more be able to freely travel over the border into Germany and return home at the end of the day. Some days ago, the Czech government did announce that Czechs and foreigners with temporary or permanent residence, can now leave the country via the crossing points that are open, or by air. But in order to re-enter the country, each person must have a test certificate no more than four days old, saying that they are clear of the Corona virus. Otherwise, they have to be quarantined for fourteen days.

Some restrictions on public worship in Germany, are just beginning to be lifted. The Bundesland of Freistaat Sachsen, of which Dresden is the capital, are now allowing Church services for up to fifteen people in certain circumstances. Today I received a four page letter from my diocesan bishop and his suffragan, setting out all things we should and shouldn’t be doing when re-starting public worship. But it does mean that our monthly Family Communion service in Dresden, could possibly be held as we normally only have a congregation of 10 -12. I doubt however, if there will be large services in the Frauenkirche until June or July.

But the problem is, I cannot cross the border to officiate. It is most unlikely that I would be able to find somewhere to be tested in Dresden on a Sunday afternoon or evening. Any test would also be at my own expense 🙁 And I have no intention of being put in completely isolated quarantine for two weeks! So as the title of this blogpost says, at the moment, I am effectively a prisoner in my adopted country.