On Monday morning, I bought food for the week and left Martin at around eight. I was not due to unload in Plzeň until Tuesday, so I chose an alternative road through Pelhřimov and Tábor instead of my usual route through Prague.
An Evening That Felt Like a Holiday
Summer roadworks were everywhere in Czechia, and diversions made the journey longer than expected. Still, I was not trying to drive as far as possible. I wanted to park beside Knížecí Pond near Tábor, so the day would not be only about driving. I found the last available space and went straight to the water.
People were swimming and relaxing, while I prepared food and took a blanket and pillow outside. For a while, I felt as though I were on holiday. I also used Hory.app to find a hill nearby. I have used this app for almost five years, and I often check whether there is somewhere interesting to walk near by.
After reaching the hill, I read, ate and later walked around the pond. In the evening, I watched a film and went to bed feeling that although I had worked, I had also lived a normal day. I can recommend this place to anyone looking for somewhere peaceful beside the water.
During the week, I also added a few flags and personal touches to the cab. Small details can make it feel less like a workplace and more like a space of your own.
I Did Not Drive Under a 3.9 Metre Bridge
Tuesday morning’s drive to Plzeň should have taken about two hours, but it took three. The truck was fully loaded, the road constantly climbed and descended, and I had to drive carefully. I had also left without breakfast because I assumed I would eat at the customer. That was a mistake, because in trucking a simple plan can quickly fall apart.
My Garmin kept trying to send me back, so I asked local people whether I could continue towards Plzeň. They told me there was a 3.9-metre bridge ahead, but trucks regularly drove beneath it. My semi-trailer combination is four metres high. Perhaps I would have made it through, but if anything had happened, the responsibility would have remained with me. I turned around, accepted a forty-minute delay and took a safer route.
After unloading 27 pallets in Plzeň, I collected the empty pallets and finally ate during my mandatory break. I was then sent to Prague for another loading. Although I could have continued to Brno, I stayed at my favourite truck stop outside Prague instead.
Five and a Half Hours for Fifteen Minutes of Work
On Wednesday, I headed to Austria with 33 pallets of empty bottles. Traffic near Brno cost me about an hour, and my unloading slot was moved by another hour and a half. I registered at 1:25 p.m. for a two o’clock slot, but my number did not appear on the information board.
I waited for one hour, then two, then three. In the end, I spent five and a half hours waiting before they unloaded me in about fifteen minutes. It became my new waiting record and destroyed the day’s schedule. I reached the central depot around eight in the evening, after thirteen and a half hours of work in temperatures of about 30°C. I refused another loading, took a shower, had one small victory beer and went to bed.
My First Trip to Hungary and Delivery Number 100
On Thursday, I loaded 29 pallets of vinegar and drove a truck into Hungary for the first time in my career. I stayed on the motorway as much as possible, although part of the route still took me along Hungarian roads in poor condition.
At the customer, everything was checked thoroughly, including the registration plates, documents and the truck’s licence. During the unload, they found three damaged bottles of vinegar. I had already noticed the smell inside the semi-trailer, so I knew something had been leaking. I photographed everything, a claim was recorded, and afterwards I was told to return to the base empty.
On 16 July 2026, I completed my 100th freight delivery.
Only then did I realise that this had not been an ordinary delivery. Those numbers represent responsibility, loading, unloading, waiting and decisions in which safety mattered more than reaching somewhere at any cost.
This week showed me both sides of truck life: an evening beside a pond that felt like a holiday, and five and a half hours of waiting for fifteen minutes of work. Between those moments, the kilometres kept adding up until I reached my 100th successful delivery. And I am genuinely proud of that milestone.