Wobbling Winos: Day 5. Cycling from Roudnice to Louny via Terezin along the Eurovelo 7 and Ohre Cycle Route.

Day 5. Roudnice to Louny via Terezin. 79km. 5.10 hrs.

Czech breakfasts are great. After vacuuming the buffet, and picking up a cycling map at the TI we set off on Cycle Route 3102 along the left bank of the Elbe River (Route 2 or Eurovelo 7 follows the right bank). A beautiful paved flat cycle path, a still clear morning, fish jumping in the river, terns fishing - cycling at its best.

After about 12 km we turned off to Terezin where we spent the next three hours visiting this walled town and fortress which was the most infamous of the Nazi concentration camps in the Czech Republic. The walled town was converted into a Jewish ghetto, which the Nazis used as a propaganda site to film movies to show the Red Cross how well Jews were being treated, but actually it was a transit camp for the extermination camps in Poland. The fortress where dissidents of all types were held, including anti-fascist students, gypsies, Jehovah's witnesses, many Jews, homosexuals and also prisoners of war from many countries. The majority did not survive the horrendous conditions, dying from numerous infections, cold, execution, and malnutrition. Our Philippine guide gave us a graphic description of the history on a tour through the cells, and this was followed by one of the Nazi propaganda movies with artists' depictions of the actual conditions in Terezin. All in all, a harrowing but valuable experience.

From Terezin we followed the Ohre River upstream on Route 6. It started as a paved route through villages, but within an hour we were on muddy tracks through forests reminiscent of the Storms River Traverse - very pretty but quite challenging on loaded touring bikes.

We arrived in Louny quite late, but in time for a shower and excellent dinner at our Hotel Merlot, accompanied by the house unwooded Chardonnay (surprising pleasant, but anything would have been good as we were pretty tired). Louny has a very elegant Gothic cathedral, St Nicholas, in the main square.