World travelers that we are..

..we took a 4 hour train ride to the beautiful village of, Český Krumlov. I had gone there once before, but in very different conditions. Last time I was there, it was sunny, warm, and invaded by tourists. This time around it was cold, icy, and abandoned. And you wanna know something? It was equally pretty both times...just in different ways.
Český Krumlov is located in southern Bohemia. Since it was a tad farther, mom and I chose to make it an overnight trip. The town has attracted a lot of tourists in recent years, but for good reason. It is easily (probably..) one of the prettiest towns in the world. After all, as Kerry once said, "I love going off the beaten path, but it's true that things become touristy for a reason."
Now, since we decided to take our time and spend an extra day there (so as to not feel rushed), it only made sense to get up at 4:30 am to catch the train there. (Right?) But it added something more. It meant that amazing feeling of getting on a train when it's pitch-black, falling fast asleep, and then waking up to the sun rising over the Czech countryside. I'm ok with that.
We booked a room at the hostel Merlin since it was only about $12 a night and it worked out so well. All we really needed was a heater, some beds, a bathroom, and a shelter from wind. They added a small Christmas tree in the hallway along with the necessities as well.
Well, in our crazy traveling, we forgot to eat more than a couple rohliky on the train, so we stopped for lunch at a small restaurant. As we walked in, they greeted us in English. One thing I (and mom) have made very sure to do, is to always reply in Czech, even if they intiate the English. It's only fair that you attempt to get by on as much as you know...and then, when it falters, you can fall back on the fact that they do speak your native language. Not to mention, after we spoke Czech, we got sent the "Czech waiter." You know: kind of burly, seemingly void of emotions, etc. A very stereotypical waiter in the CR. The food was incredible and I lucked out by choosing the duck/ham/pork/sauerkraut/bramborak plate.
Apart from that, our day was just filled with wandering (and ducking into random shops when we got too frozen.)
Overall, we also learned 2 major lessons:
1. When sitting in the cafe, and you order horká čokoláda (hot chocolate) and the waiter asks you if you want it "s šlehačkou", nod and say "ano." Even if you don't remember what that is at the moment. Note to self: when you finally remember what "šlehačka" is, don't loudly exclaim "whipped cream!!"
It doesn't give off a Czech persona....
2. If the returning train to Prague, does not match the time that you wrote down, it is not the correct train. In fact..it is very possibly going a different route. Case and point: (I drew you something)

The train ride was beautiful though. And it was only an extra 45 minutes or so. The conductor didn't make us pay extra, and mom saw rocks (and other pretty stuff!) so I'd say, sometimes, it is completely worth it to mess up.
And now that I have sufficiently shared my Český Krumlov shortcomings with you: here's some pictures!

Be grumpy like the waiter.

Poor sheep..