Radyne is both the closest and one of my favorite castles. It's still classified as a ruin, but a lot of work has been done to fix it up. The inside rooms are quite solid and pleasant. They feature a display of childrens art. Also the rooftop offers some great veiws of the Northern part of Pilsen and Stary Plzenec.
 

	These are some recreations of pottery made by children under the direction of Eva Whitelaw. She's a good friend and Michelle's pottery teacher as well.
	The Windows in the castle offer some wonderful views. The castle is on the highest hill in the valley and on a clear day (which this wasn't) you can see forever. Here Greg, a Canadian friend on a visit, looks out.
	The inside of Radyne is radically repaired. It's very nice, with benches and mostly period furnishings. The castle has an earthy and woody smell like a village lumber mill. It's quite relaxing.
	Here is a Czech Knight. It's more or less mythological as the arms bear a number of more modern heraldric features, but they are colorful and from the area at least. Again this was done by children in Stary Plzenec.
	This is the first of several rooftop photos. In the distance you can see bright yellow flowers. These colorful plants are used in making vegetable oil (linnet seeds?) Closer, you can see flowers growing on the wall of the castle.
	This is an overhead view of Stary Plzenec (Lil' Ol' Pilsen) which has both a castle and a Romanesque Rotunda that's over 1000 years old. The pizzeria is much newer, but also exciting. It's also home to our friends Gordi and Eva.
	Here you can see Plzenec again, but also the trees on the hill leading up to Radyne. The hike up is a vey pleasant one. It's not at all difficult and there is a pub near the castle which is what all good hikes need.
	Here you see the rooftop platform of Radyne. It was (and is) used as a weather station and was very practical due to it's lofty location and isolation. You can see the raincloads gathering and Gordi lurking behind the apparatus.
	This photo looks a little like a motivational message poster. It soon started to rain, so it gave us the motivation to get the heck to a pizzeria and then enjoy a lightning show.
	Here is what the rest of the castle looks like. You can see that it's a well-preserved ruin and some work is being done on the second building. It should ne very interesting when they restore this wonderful castle.

After the trip to Radyne we got to see two shows from Gordi and Eva's flat. First there were some nice fireworks over the castle (despite a steady rain) and then there was a lightning show that was very nice as well. All in all, it was a fine reopening. Here's to many more!

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