Romancing Digitalism in Medieval Times

Prague to Warsaw on Car 

A Digital Nomadic Road Trip 

Who would have thought it would be possible and almost effortless to see some of the most amazing medieval sites in four-and-a-half days. To be able to explore ten world heritage places, stay at unusual locations and have excellent food consistently would almost be a tall order without a little help from our digital counterparts. 

For our wayfinding, food, and lodging, we simply had to follow the highly optimised routes planned out with the aid of Google trip, Google map, Apple's Siri, Hotels.com, TripAdvisor and CultureTrip apps. We used PackPoint app to form a checklist of what to bring, and SkyScanner for the best flight deals. Google image translator helped us a lot with our translation requirements of signages in Czech and Poland. Our communications were handled by WhatsApp and Zello (who would have thought that an app primarily used now for Hurricane Harvey's disaster management efforts would fit so well in a travel trip). We accounted for expenses through the Splitwise app, relieving us from the cumbersome task of managing the split payments made by different individuals in our group. We were able to capture otherwise impossible-to-get footage of the remarkable monuments of history with our drone and share some of these incredible moments on Facebook, Instagram, WeChat, Telegram and blog on Linkedin and Medium. Simply put, you could say that our digital aids were almost indispensable. 

As compared to the days before Steve Job's ‘Smart Phone' revolution that led to the creation of apps on iOS and Android systems, today's world has changed vastly. I shudder to imagine having to drive our route with a physical map, where one wrong turn would mean a good 20-30 minutes setback. Ironically enough, it's times like these when we were traveling across the plains of medieval sites that one starts to marvel at the beauty of technology. One thing stayed the same as we moved from historical monuments to another. And that is the emotional experience felt in awe of the sweat and tears of the hundreds and thousands of people that had built these wonders ground up. I just wished that they could have only seen the drone aerial footage of their masterpieces.

And with that, this leads to the stories of our trip with the help of digital technology. A useful travelogue in case you are planning a similar drive itinerary with a group of friends. Only meals worth mentioning are noted below. 

Day 1 - Saturday 

Departing from Prague's old town (UNESCO 1) where we stayed, our trip to Kutna Hora (UNESCO 2) was a pleasant one-and-a-half hour's drive from Prague. This city has a rustic charm to it. Founded in 1142, Kutna Hora has many well-preserved buildings with beautiful architecture, and it grew as a city with the finding of silver within its earth. 

We got to the depths of an old mine (35 meters deep - 12 stories) and journeyed through its tight, claustrophobia-inducing tunnels. At certain points, I wondered how anyone bigger than me would fit through the passageways. This walk reminded me a little about my trip to the Cu Chi tunnels nearby Ho Chi Meng city in Vietnam, with the added comfort of air conditioning. One will perspire walking within Cu Chi tunnels, whereas these silver mine tunnels were chilled at 13 degrees. Next up was our walk to St Barbara church, an imposing building that looks a little like Notre Dame. With its picturesque setting, it's no wonder why so many wedding couples choose this location for their photo shoot. 

We had an excellent lunch at V Ruthardce through the recommendation of an elderly old local couple (always trust the old timers!). On the outside, the place seemed ordinarily quiet amongst the rows of shops, but on the inside, we were greeted with the lively hustle and bustle of the waiters hurrying from table to table with piles of local delights. After our fill of kulajda (traditional Czech soup), grilled salmon and trout, tender beef cheeks marinated in beer, homemade lemonade and a coffee chocolate mouse cake to round it off, we set off to our next destination.

We arrived at Zelena Hora's Pilgrimage Church of Saint John of Nepomuk, Poutni Kostel (UNESCO 3). A simple church that sits in the middle of a ten-pointed star cloister of ten other chapels and gates. On the first glance, one would almost be disappointed by the plain looking design of this world heritage site. However, with the current drone technology, it's true beauty was revealed from above.

From Poutni Kostel, we visited our last world heritage site, Villa Tugendhat, located in the second largest city of Czech, Brno. It is a modest house (UNESCO 4) perch on top of a hill. Known for its modern architecture in the late 1920s. Probably the least impressive of the UNESCOs we have seen, but it is what it is. 

After a long day's journey of the world's historical wonders, what was left was a good night's rest. And our holiday home did just that. Arriving at our holiday home (this is the name of the villa) at Rosice was like a dream come true in the form of an 82,000 sq ft plot of land. From a pond, a mini playground, a cigar-smoking patio and a lawn that sits a 9-ton caravan, this home had everything and more. 

After a quick tour around the place by Daniel and his wife, Eva, we were ready for dinner - al fresco style. What started out as a simple dinner we had in mind soon became a lavish 6-course meal (wonderfully prepared by Eva) and a memorable night under the stars. And as the night got colder, what warmed our hearts were Daniel's hearty laughter and the love of his beautiful family.

I love their 9-ton caravan!! It comes equipped with all sorts of gadgets and technology. You could live and travel in it for weeks, months even. 

Day 2 - Sunday 

First stop was the Kromeriz castle (UNESCO 5). An ecclesiastical residence built to house the bishops of Olomouc. And for a historic architecture that dates back to the 16th century, it was remarkably well preserved. After a long winding ascent up the spiral staircase up to the chateau tower, we were welcomed with a breathtaking view of Kromeriz. I started appreciating the use of Zello app. With Zello, one will not need a walkie-talkie anymore if you have a connection on mobile or wifi. It's an instant communication tool for groups or between two individuals. One of the channels used via the victims of Hurricane Harvey has some 1,800 users on one of its channel. They are now not limited to the physical distance and number of Walkie-talkies that are available. We would use Zello to communicate where we are and how we are to meet. 

We set off on our journey to Olomouc (UNESCO 6), a beautiful city in Moravia, home of the holy trinity column. En route to the monument, we were stopped by a patrol police. It turns out; we had unknowingly driven into a pedestrian zone. But after a friendly conversation, we left with a near miss of a 2,000 kc fine, a warning and even directions to where we were heading to. Sadly my details were written within their electronic system (in their patrol car), meaning I cannot wiggle out of the next mistake I make (if any, anytime in future and anywhere in Czech). With digital technologies these days, crime logs can be communicated across the country instantaneously. 

For a quick break, we made a stopover at Ostrava, a steel city with its foundations rooted in its coal mining. With a bit of luck, we managed to catch the opening of a local farmers' market. From vendors selling wood-carved utensils, free roaming livestock and families marveling at gigantic tractors, this little Sunday evening out in a local farmer's market sums up the life of this peaceful industrial town.

To say that the bar was set high from the previous night's extravagant stay would be an understatement. Thankfully, our expectations were well satisfied with our next stay. Perched on top of acres of fields is an elegant chateau, Zamecek Petrovice, just by the edge of Poland. A resort of health and wellness that exudes a calm serenity with its winding pathways amidst the looming rows of trees and tasteful art deco throughout the manor. But more importantly… the gym was awesome.

Day 3 - Monday 

After a filling breakfast of homemade yogurts, grilled vegetables, and toast, we set off for day 3. We drove into Poland, which is located very close to the resort. It is hard to tell where the border truly is as the road does not have any signage or a border checkpoint and this border could only be seen digitally on our Google Map. A slightly anti-climatic manner to enter Poland as we wanted to take some selfies!

Our first stop across the Polish border was Auschwitz-Birkenau (UNESCO 7). Stepping into the grounds of Auschwitz-Birkenau felt heavy. Like a thick smothering blanket of solemness was laid upon us. Each block spoke of the gruesome horrors that millions and millions of victims had to undergo over a span of 6 months; the unfortunate average life expectancy of an inhabitant if they even managed to enter in the first place. But of them all, the rooms with the victim's personal belongings were the hardest to visit. Especially knowing that each pair of shoe, doll or lock of hair once belonged to someone moments before they were wiped out clean. Heading back, we saw a board charting out the number of annual visitors. To think that such a place with millions of visitors each year was also the very place where millions witnessed their death in a single day left us with a shuddering thought. 

With a heavy heart, we went ahead to our next site. On the surface, Wieliczka (UNESCO 8) looked like yet another city. But 1,000ft below, it holds a great marvel unlike any other. A massive complex of passageways and tunnels of salt. 

As we passed through chambers after chambers carved out from monolithic blocks of pure salt, the marvels of the Polish miners slowly dawned upon us (over 700 years of it). 

To carve out an entire subterranean complex of salt was already an amazing feat, but to maintain it from collapsing from a myriad of factors such as temperature, humidity and water was a whole different marvel itself. Plus, the miners were great artists themselves, as seen from the many lifelike sculptures and majestic cathedrals that they have carved - on their free time.

As the overcast sky loomed closer, we headed to Krakow for our night's stay. With sheer luck, we managed to stay right at the heart of Krakow's old town square (UNESCO 9). Personally, of all the old towns we've been to, this was easily the most charming of them all. With significant historic buildings in the midst of neoclassical townhouses of the coolest restaurants, it was an eclectic mix of the town's old and new beauty.

Now stacked up with great photos and videos, we got busy with photo and video editing, reflectively recollecting what we experienced and having this documented on our digital notepad. 

Day 4 - Tuesday

Day 4 started out gray and gloomy. Armed with our umbrellas, we made our way to the Wawel Castle. Despite the dreariness of the wet weather, we managed to experience the Castle basked in wet splendor as puddles of water reflected its grandeur.

To escape the rain, we decided to move on to our next stop: Ch?ciny Castle. A royal castle in Ch?ciny that was left untouched ever since it fell into ruin in the 18th century. 

Unfortunately, the rain was relentless and so decided to stop by a charming little bistro called Poziom Smaku along the way. Initially, it started out as a quick coffee break, but thankfully we decided to have lunch instead, and we were wonderfully rewarded. The food was absolutely fantastic. Poziom Smaku's food looked simple, yet it packed such full-on flavors and taste. It was certainly a pleasant surprise. It was then that I realized that I could have recalled some of the memorable restaurants we have visited had I been diligent in rating these places on Google Maps. 

With the incessant rain that seemingly covered the whole of Poland, we headed for Warsaw. Entering Warsaw was apparent. After days of heritage buildings, Warsaw was like a new system patch update that Poland had installed. With its towering skyscrapers, it reminded us of a much, much bigger version of Singapore's Raffles Boulevard.

We checked in at the Polonia Palace hotel and did our expense housekeeping using SplitWise while the rain continued to pour. 

Day 5 - Wednesday

The first stop on our last day was to Warsaw's Old Town. Warsaw's Old Town was destroyed during the world war and largely reconstructed. The Royal Castle that stood at the entrance of the Old Town was beautiful, but you could tell that it lacked the oomph factor as compared Krakow's Wawel Royal Castle. Krakow's medieval old town remained undamaged after the war.

As our last meal in Poland, we contemplated whether to have another go at Polish cuisine, seeing as we had been sorely disappointed with previous night's hotel recommendation. Thankfully we did as it was the best of meals we had for the entire journey. Stepping into the restaurant felt like we were stepping into someone's house. It was filled with memorabilia of olden days and pictures of guests that had dined here. And one of them was Dalai Lama. A sure sign that we're in for a pretty darn good meal. 

With a satisfied tummy, we headed to our final destination at Lazienki Palace, a magnificent palace that sits by a lake. Unfortunately, we were running tight on time, so we could only see the beauty of the palace through the eyes of a drone. Thank God for the drone. 

We conclude our short, yet fulfilling trip from Prague to Warsaw. A rather poetic journey seeing that we have traveled from a "land of mysterious legends" (Czech) to a city that has begun to step into a modernized version of itself (also known as the land of poles). As technologies become smarter and cheaper, cities old and new will embrace new forms of digital technologies to increase its safety, convenience, and accessibility for citizens and tourist traveling and living in it. For individuals adapt with the use of digital tools and apps, made available by remarkable entrepreneurs, they stand to gain cost savings and time to explore what's meaningful to them, be it history, art, culture, in places they visit. Because no matter we go, we are still connected and a part of the digital network interwoven into our lives.

And perhaps this digital omnipresence might be what we need to blur the line between work and life. A powerful tool that allows you to tune in or out of being connected. To have the time to think out of the box. To work while having a life or live while working. To be what they call, a digital nomad.