Český Krumlov – A Step Into the Past

The best part of Český Krumlov was the castle and its spectacular bear moat. One of the most amazing features of the castle was the huge ornamental tower sticking out like a giant toothpick in vibrant shades of green, red, and yellow. Another incredible feature is the huge garden at the top of the hill. These gardens are an excellent place to take in and photograph the city below. Arguably the most unique part of Český Krumlov’s castle is the bear moat (instead of water they have a bear enclosure in a trench protecting the castle). The bear moat has been there since the middle ages and has always had bears in it.

Possibly my favorite thing in Český Krumlov was the refurbished blacksmith shop. This shop, the castle smithery, was actually the middle age’s blacksmith shop for Český Krumlov’s castle and surrounding areas. It is now part museum, part store, and part experience. The museum portion contains a farming scythe, a vintage sword, and a chariot wheel, among other things. The experience was that you could make either a nail or a coin using a wide variety of hammers and molds to whack it into shape. I made a nail under the instruction of the blacksmith and it turned out quite well (I think you could actually use it for a construction project). Making my nail was hard work, but it turned out amazingly well. Although it has a slightly lopsided head, I think it turned out great. The hammer was surprisingly heavy so this meant that lifting it was a lot harder than swinging it. It took around 30 well placed whacks all around it to completely mold it into shape. The blacksmith actually said that it was a great first attempt. As we were leaving the blacksmith’s shop, I bought the points of fire and standard arrows made right there in the forge. The fire arrowhead had long metal shafts that could be coated in tree sap and set ablaze enabling it to burn most wooden substances on contact.

Our hotel in Český Krumlov is actually a historic medieval tower from 1505, meant for the knight who protected the logs on the Vltava River. Out of three floors, we had 1/3 of the whole tower to ourselves (aka one floor). The third floor, which is where we stayed, consisted of: two bedrooms, one bathroom, and a central hallway. My bedroom had an antique crossbow and two deer skulls as wall hangings, however, my mom and dad’s room had a beaver’s skin rug. On the ground floor, there was an entire suit of armor with a sword and shield attached. My recommendation is to book well in advance, go early in the summer, and take the Hunter’s Room, the highest of the three floors. I recommend this because I did it, and I was very pleased. Click here to learn more and book your reservation.