Český Krumlov

We arrived quite early at the beautiful historic town of Český Krumlov, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and what a wonderful day we had exploring this fascinating place! With its winding medieval streets, colourful Renaissance and Baroque buildings, castle perched high above the town and the Vltava River meandering through it all, Český Krumlov really is as pretty as my photographs suggest.

I had originally planned for us to explore the town on our own, but after the successes of our walking tours in Prague, I'm so glad that I decided to check whether there were any tours in Český Krumlov as well. Our Wiseman Free Tour with Jan was excellent. He was great fun, but also told us so much about Český Krumlov and its history, making this beautiful town even more interesting to us. Over the course of about two hours, we explored the historic centre, learning about its medieval and Renaissance past and seeing some of the town's most important sights.

We walked through the five courtyards of Český Krumlov Castle, one of the largest castle complexes in Central Europe, and crossed the famous Cloak Bridge, a remarkable multi-level structure built in several stages between the late 17th and 18th centuries, with wonderful views over the old town. We also saw the castle's famous bear moat, where the 11-year-old bears Vilém and Polyxena, rescued in 2017, are kept, while the female bear Marie Terezie lives on the other side of the bridge. We passed the Gothic Church of St. Vitus, the Renaissance town hall and the houses of wealthy townsmen. Along the way, Jan brought the history of the town to life, explaining how its architecture developed through the Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque periods and telling us about the people who lived here.

The tour ended at the castle complex, close to the extensive castle gardens, so we continued exploring on our own. We spent some time in the castle grounds and gardens, admired the views over the rooftops of the old town and looked around the exterior of the castle complex. We also had plenty of time to stroll through the narrow medieval streets, Mister Handmade in Israel waiting outside while I checked out the little shops!

Once again we came across Stolpersteine installed in front of the house at Latrán No. 41, commemorating former residents of the house, Marta Žaludová and her daughter Ilse Breuerová, who were murdered in the Holocaust. We visited the beautiful Český Krumlov Synagogue too, built in 1909 as a pioneering reinforced-concrete structure blending Neo-Romanesque and Art Nouveau architecture. It was one of the first buildings in what was then Austria-Hungary to use a reinforced-concrete structure. Following the Sudetenland crisis and Nazi occupation in 1938, the local Jewish community, numbering around 100 members, was devastated, with many sent to concentration camps. The Nazis looted the interior, and after the war the building was used for various purposes, eventually becoming a warehouse. The property was returned to the Jewish Community of Prague after 1990 and the synagogue was completely renovated in 2012. Today it serves as a cultural centre and memorial to the Jewish community that once lived in the town. The former rabbi's apartment now houses a café, and we enjoyed a short break over cold lemonade there.

By late afternoon, many of the day-trippers had left, and the town became noticeably quieter. We stayed on into the early evening, eventually having dinner beside the river and enjoying Český Krumlov at a much more peaceful pace.

It was a long day, but a fabulous one, and I'm very glad we arrived early and stayed until the evening. Český Krumlov is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful towns we visited in the Czech Republic, but learning about its history made it much more than just a pretty place to photograph, though that was of course fun too!

* This post has been shared on Thinking Out Loud Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things, Skywatch Friday