Things to Do in Monterey & Carmel

Sitting 45 miles (73 km) east of Prague in Bohemia, Kutná Hora is an intriguing town immersed in history. Its origins stretch back to 1142 with the foundation of a Cistercian monastery at Sedlec, and after the discovery of silver in the hills around the region, the town quickly became a wealthy enclave and competed with Prague in the Middle Ages for political and economic power.

Much of the town center is now a UNESCO World Heritage site, filled with gently dilapidated Baroque buildings. Visitors should see the Roman Catholic Cathedral, glimpse the exterior of St James’s Church with its mishmash of Baroque and Renaissance architecture and landmark 282-foot (86-meter) tower. Additionally, the Italian Court, which started life as the Royal Mint to the kings of Bohemia and eventually became their palace, has a small museum of coins.

The Gothic St Barbara’s Church (Barbara was the patron saint of silver miners) serves as the city's proud symbol. The flamboyant architecture, complete with bristling spires, flying buttresses and eight chapels, reflects the wealth and power of the mining city, while the interior is richly decorated with a series of Renaissance frescoes featuring mining and the minting of coins. The medieval mine shafts way below the present-day city at Hradek Castle also house the Czech Museum of Silver.

But it is the ossuary at the monastery in Sedlec that really grabs attention in Kutná Hora; allow at least an hour for your visit and a 20-minute walk each way from the town center. The chapel is partly below ground, lit only by candlelight and entirely decorated and furnished with human bones. The candelabras, coats of arms, monstrances, pillars and wall decorations are all made of bone; skulls adorn dark corners of the chapel, and leg bones hang in garlands from the vaulted ceiling. The remains of more than to 40,000 people have gone into the macabre, but strangely beautiful 19th-century decorations were created here with the use of thousands of victims of the Black Death and the Hussite Wars in the 14th and 15th centuries.

Home to some of the last remaining forests of the endangered Chilean Wine Palm, La Campana became a national park in 1967 and contains over 17,000 acres of settlement ruins, hiking trails, and exotic wildlife.

Naturalist and explorer Charles Darwin himself paid the spot a visit in 1834, hiking to the top of the scenic hill that gave the park its name. With various types of hawks, alligators, eagles, snakes, owls, and giant frogs, it´s no wonder UNESCO has recognized the area as a Biosphere Reserve for its high number of unique species.

Those wanting to recreate Darwin's journey can take the El Andinista Trail (Sendero El Andinista), which lasts the average hiker around five hours and is quite a difficult climb. Enthusiasts will be rewarded at the summit by a plaque commemorating Darwin's accomplishment and, more importantly, a panoramic view of the Andes and surrounding coastal valleys – even a sliver of the Pacific Ocean, if the day is particularly clear. Just don´t forget to register at the checkpoint for more detailed advice and important guidelines to follow while trekking.

The Museum of Fine Arts, or Kunsthistorisches Museum, houses the fabulous art collection of the Habsburgs, the royal dynasty of Austria for over 600 years. Emperor Franz Joseph I commissioned the building as part of his expansion of Vienna in 1858, and it took 20 years to build, opening in 1891.

Beloved Chilean poet and politician Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto – otherwise known as Pablo Neruda (1904–1973) – helped design this quirky, nautical-themed home for himself and his third wife, Matilde Urrutia, for whom La Chascona (“tangle-haired woman”) is named.

Bursting with Neruda´s odd collections and romantic personality, the house serves as unique insight into one of the most important figures in the country´s recent history. Music boxes, exotic artifacts, original chinaware, toys, antiques, and an overwhelming library with thousands of books are only part of the appeal; also on display are a replica of his Nobel Prize (presented in 1971 for literature) and a portrait of Urrutia by the famous artist Diego Rivera, which holds a secret of its own.

Though later vandalized by dictator Pinochet´s men, La Chascona has been restored and is now open to the public via tours (English included). La Sebastiana in Valparaiso and Casa de Isla Negra in Isla Negra, Neruda´s other two homes, are also preserved and maintained as museums revealing his life and obsessions. Although Pinochet outlawed the observance of Neruda´s funeral, thousands of loyal Chileans filled the streets in his honor nonetheless. After a walk through La Chascona´s bizarrely enchanting chambers, visitors will easily understand how the passionate writer and dedicated communist could continue to inspire people for generations.


Photo courtesy of Pekka Parhi via Wikimedia Commons.