Our Sunday plan was simple – we were going to church in Jicin and then going to see the village of Terezin.  This little town was used as a concentration camp during WWII and since it looked and functioned with a bit more normalcy it could be used as an example to the Red Cross.

However when we got to church there was no one there!  We were only ten minutes early.  There was a sign confirming the time so I think it was stake conference and this is not the stake center.  So we listened to conference talks and spent a good portion of the day watching videos, etc. from the church website.  

As for visiting Terezin – we had thought it would be a nice restful activity, but instead we decided to have a truly restful activity and just stay in Hruba Skala at the hotel.  A good reminder that a “day of rest” is a gift from God.  If He needs a rest then certainly we need a rest!

Another itinerary item that we deleted was Trosky Castle – but we drove past on the way home from church.  We had seen it from many miles away as we approached yesterday.  It must have quite a sight in its day – it looks like two giant horns protruding from the mountain.  By the way Czechia has the highest concentration of castles in Europe, and there were a lot in Poland also.  It seems that every few miles there is another sign for a Zamek (castle).  Today we did walk through the castle next door to our hotel.  We found out it was free because we were staying there.  It is just so fun to explore on our own.

Right across the parking lot from our hotel is a series of hiking/walking trails.  We chose a walk and it was stunning!  We’ve never seen anything like it.  All that I knew is that there were big rocks here – and this is the one location I have been looking forward to more than anything else… but I had no idea how grand it would be! We walked for over an hour and it was one breath-taking moment after another.

You would laugh or roll your eyes to know how many photos I’ve taken as we drive through these forests – especially when the rocks began to appear yesterday.  Now we have been into the forest and it is fantastic!  I’ll try to include photos with Mark in them so you can have a better scale of the rocks.  You know how I love nature and how I honor our Creator – of all the castles that we have been seeing this is the most impressive – God’s Castle!

Dinner at the hotel was translated as “deer ragout with gnocchi” – I was wary but it was delicious.

Photos – Lots of massive rocks – if there are no people in the photo look at the trees which are very tall. Check out the Easter Island rock and that last one is a good example of size…