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Tábor

Here are some touristy photos of Tábor, in the Czech Republic, that I took one evening and the next morning, on my way back to Prague airport and London (and thence Tokyo) in August 1998.

Tábor (Tabor in German) was founded in 1420 by the more radical wing of the Hussites (followers of the Protestant preacher Jan Hus); thus its biblical name. It was their headquarters and fortress against the Catholics till their defeat in 1434. These were the people who led the term "bohemian" to acquire its connotations of communal life and rejection of material possessions.

Murky views of Tábor. It wasn't so late when I arrived in the town, but it took a bit of time for me to find a place to stay, and then of course I succumbed to the temptation of a cool beer (not the first of the day, either), and a beer isn't something that should be hurried, so. . . .

And this is where I had my first Tábor beer: in a stall on the main square. This was a festival celebrating the anniversary of something or other, so there were people who'd started to take off their historic costume, cooling themselves down with beers.

After wandering around the crepuscular streets of Tábor, I found myself getting hungry. I went to a bar that had as many pictures of Švejk as Sanrio "Puroland" probably has of Hello Kitty. Did this signify terminal commodification and cutification of Švejk? Or did it just mean that the owner was a Švejk fan? Since I shared no language with the two guys there who chivalrously attempted to talk with me, I never found out.

A touristy view; the main square.

Views from and within the church tower. At the top, two bored-looking girls were selling rather charming kitsch (lapel badges, etc.) from the Communist era at attractively low prices.

First created: 20 June 1999. Last fiddled with: 6 May 2001.