Back to Austria – 29 August 2010

Leaving Cesky Krumlov we moved a little northeast to Cesky Budejovice as we thought we needed to fill in some time before our next intended stop although this proved to be a faulty assumption. Budjovicr translates as Budwies and the Budvar (Budweiser) brewery is nearby.

We had just walked into one of Europe's largest town squares when some of Europe's largest raindrops began to fall so we retired to a cafe for our morning coffee while the heavens opened. The downpour did not last long so we set off to explore the square and the rest of the town. However, it was only a temporary lull so we beat a hasty retreat to the car and headed south towards the sun and the Austrian border.

Just a little north of the Austrian border is the town of Vyssi Brod and the Rozmberk nad Vltavou Castle. The Rosenberg (Rozmberk) family were related to the family that owned Cesky Krumlov and at one stage when the male line died out, the same family owned both of these castles and estates.

The Buquoy family turned a number of rooms into a “museum” in the 1900s and the tour of this area is supplemented with a tour of the staterooms in another part of the castle and a climb to the top of the “English” tower.

It is most interesting that the locals copied the English styles while the English were busily emulating the French who were probably copying the Italians who .... What is it about the grass on the other side of the fence?

Having spent our last Czech krona it was time to slip back into the Euro zone and take a look at Freistadt, a little south of the border. Although founded in 1220, most of that which remains in today's charmingly compact historic Altstadt was built in the 14th and 15th centuries. We decided to stay here for the night and did the city walk through the old quarter, again dodging the rain showers.

With the walk completed and the sky clear and blue we had just enough time to retrace our inbound route back towards the boarder and Kershbaum where a small section of the horse-drawn railway remains in working order. We arrived just as they were about to finish for the day but in time to see them move the horse from one end of the coach to the other, there being no “front” or “back” and take the horse and carriage back to the museum.

This railway which originally ran 120km from Linz to Cesky Budejovice, was the first ever railway in Continental Europe. Now only fragments of the original tracks from1828 remain but the coach was been beautifully restored or maintained and the coachmen were wonderfully decked out in their period costumes.

Cesky Krumlov – 28 August 2010

Many years ago Russell & Jill told us of a great spot they had discovered in the Czech Republic, Cesky Krumlov. When we visited Prague the connections were not suitable for a side trip so the brochure languished at the bottom of the drawer until recently when, upon re-reading, the fact that the nearest airport was Linz rang a little bell as Ryanair now fly to Linz.

Putting two and two together and a long weekend, we flew on Friday to Linz and drove across the border to Cesky Krumlov. There was little time to do anything on Friday, apart from enjoy a really excellent dinner at Mastal.

Rain was forecast for the whole weekend as a front moved over the central European area, so we were not surprised to wake up on Saturday to a grey day. This seemed an excellent time to visit the castle complex near our hotel. We were able to do an English castle tour in the morning, although it turned out we were the only ones on the tour, for whom English was our first language (including the guide). The castle is huge and the tour a fascinating insight into the history of the area, including one owner who only had a son and heir after 13 years separation from his wife up until the time when the castle was confiscated by the Nazis.

By the time we finished, we were amazed to find the sun shining. This set the theme for the day, sun and clouds alternating, but not the promised rain. As a result, we enjoyed strolling around this very well restored medieval town. About half the town appears to be accommodation, and the remaining half is restaurants and cafes. While the town is extremely well presented at present we did see a display in a shop window of its condition before the restoration work began in the 1960s; it certainly would not have attracted the streams of tourists as it was back then.

In the afternoon we booked to join an English tour of the castle theatre. This is only one of two original baroque theatres left in the world, and it is really quite amazing. The original stage sets, interiors, costumes, music scores and behind the scenes mechanical contraptions to create sound and lighting effects still survive. They do have about six productions here a year, and that would be wonderful to attend. As it was, we found the tour really interesting, and would recommend it. Using only hand-powered wooden machinery the stage-hands could change the complete scene in 10-15 seconds and to this day they have no idea how the stage-hands under the stage controlling the sets and the stage-hands above the action, controlling the back-drops and curtains, coordinated their actions.

Our final tourist activity was to climb the castle tower to enjoy a great view over the castle and town. From many points in the Castle and Tower as well as vantage points along the river, one can watch the brave souls shoot the weir in rubber rafts or canoes. Most enjoy the thrill but every so often some take a spill. There did seem to be a pattern today, canoes with two guys were much more likely to end up upside down than canoes with a male-female crew. It is probably a gung-ho testosterone thing with the all male crews compared to the more cautious approach for those who are likely to be in serious trouble for dumping their female partner in the river. Whatever the reason it provided great entertainment for the land-loving spectators.


Friday's restaurant was recommended by the hotel receptionist; Saturday's restaurant – Krcma Barbakan - was highly recommended by travellers on Trip Advisor. Unfortunately we disagreed with visitors who said it was the best meal they had had in the Czech Republic. They obviously didn't sample the really excellent food we had last night at Mastal.