Český Krumlov is supposed to be one of the best preserved medieval towns and we headed there for a day trip. It was a 2 hour bus journey from Prague and in the morning the trip was quite pleasant. We learned that the town of Pilsen is the source of Pilsner beer and the Czech Republic is one of the largest consumers of beer. Hic!
World's highest annual consumption of beer @ 158 litres per head
The castle at Český Krumlov is the main attraction and it has a chequered history, having passed from the hands of the Krumlov family, to the House of Rosenberg, to the Habsburg royal family, to the House of Eggenberg and and then to the loyal supporters of the Habsburgs, the House of Schwarzenberg, which owned it till the Nazis came along in 1939. After the war, it was returned to the government of Czechoslovakia.
Town square, Český Krumlov
The town itself is quite beautiful, with buildings dating from the 16th and 17th centuries. We had lunch at a restaurant along the river that gave a good view of the castle. I tried out Pilsner Urquell, one of the more famous Pilsners…. quite good.
Next was a tour of the castle, where we got to see some of the staterooms and learned a lot about the history of the families that owned the castle at various points in history. The view from the top of the bell tower was really breath taking, and worth the tough climb to the top via a narrow staircase.
View from the top of the bell tower
The bus ride back to Prague was not very enjoyable as we ran into very heavy traffic and it took more than 3 hours. But the day spent at Český Krumlov was well worth it.
