by Justin
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 …
Our first day in Český Krumlov was spent on the river. We rented a three person raft and rode down the river to avoid the tourist-packed hours of the day. The rafting company told us to go on the more rural route because it was …
On the road from Prague to Český Krumlov we saw two amazing castles. Their names are Zvíkov and Hluboká, and they are almost completely different… aside from one thing, they are both spectacular in their own ways.
Zvíkov was at the point where the Otava river fed into the Vltava river. Its remote location on a freshwater peninsula is only accessible by boat or a narrow walking path. Zvíkov was also home to lots of unique wildlife, including brightly colored bugs (like the firebug) and birds (like the pied wagtail). Zvíkov was mostly ruins of a medieval castle, but some of this made it even more enjoyable. I personally like castle ruins a lot because it teaches you about the history of the castle, including that castle ruins are usually the sign of a strong castle because they are still functional in their current state without being rebuilt. It also teaches you a lot about what potentially happened to the castle because different weapons and natural dangers leave different marks on the castle in the same way that a mountain lion and a stork leave different footprints. Zvíkov, Prague, and Český Krumlov all made the the Vltava river the best river in the entire Czech Republic (in my opinion).
Hluboká was mostly incredible because of its grounds, including an amazing flower garden with clusters of neon flowers exploding from every place that you’d expect them and more. Another great part of the grounds were the woods just outside of the castle, housing large amounts of lesser bluethroats (spectacular mahogany birds with amazing blue/grey throat feathers) and the Eurasian nuthatch (a small yellow/red/grey bird that is usually seen on or around trees). The view from the castle over the town was incredible (if you manage to get to the top of the tallest tower that would be a totally epic panorama). All around the main courtyard of the castle, we saw tons of old hunting trophies positioned all over the walls like gargoyles with real horns. The atmosphere of the castle was amazing, aside from one thing: a hotel that is a fake castle replica halfway up the hill to the actual castle (built way after the real castle was made) that looks, in my opinion, like it should be in Las Vegas!!! Hluboká also had an archery tryout station a short distance from the main building complex. The building itself reminded me a lot of Trakošćan (click this link to see my photos and experience at Trakošćan: My Trakošćan post). These were only some of the very memorable experiences on the way to Český Krumlov. In my opinion, these two castles are must visits for anyone driving from Prague to Český Krumlov (or the other way around).
Our second walking tour day was mostly on the hill where Prague Castle and Strahov Monastery are situated. I think the best part of our tour was the monastery on the top of the hill. The Strahov Monastery on the hill overlooking Prague Castle is …
The first stop on our recent trip was Prague, a city overflowing with fun and history. Both of our days were super-fun private walking tours around the city. Our guide Lucka made sure that we had a great time on both of our tours and …
I just went on a completely super terrifically incredible trip to Austria and the Czech Republic! On this trip, I went to Prague, Cesky Krumlov, Salzburgerland, and last but not least, Vienna. In my upcoming posts you will hear about all of the incredible things we did and saw over this amazing trip, and some of the funny moments (spoiler alert: Mom getting hit by a cow). Keep checking and reading my blog for more posts coming soon!
The island of Lokrum is packed with peacocks, salt water pools, ancient monasteries, and fun! We came here on a ferry boat leaving the Old Port of Dubrovnik. When you get there, you will find that the island is infested with peacocks! There are also …
Our private boat tour let us snorkel all around Dubrovnik to places that we chose. We were on this tour for the whole day, speeding around the islands in our guide Loren’s Cap Camarat. We went to three different islands: Šipan, Lopud, and Koločep. On …
The walled city of Dubrovnik is a must-visit for travelers going to Croatia. The walls around the city are huge (6,365 feet long by 83 feet high) and were built in the 13th century! Dubrovnik is entirely enclosed by these huge stone walls. You can walk along the entire length of the walls because it is so intact. There were (and still are) tons of small forts and towers to attack from if the city was invaded. From one tower, you can see the entire city spread out below you and the sea beyond. You can tell which roofs were damaged in the war (brownish and yellowish = old roofs and red = new roofs). Because it is such a popular travel destination, walk the walls early. Instead of getting the worm, the early bird gets the sights and the best temperatures (which in my opinion is better than getting a worm… worms are too slimy for me). Because most of the tourists are from cruise ships, they have to wait for the tender boats, allowing you to get a head start on the crowd. These walls are probably the most well known and spectacular part of Dubrovnik.
Dubrovnik was probably the food capital of the trip, and in my opinion is also a food capital of all of Europe and maybe even the world (in my opinion, it definitely is). It is a place of many sights and even more flavors. The cevapi was so good that I almost expanded like a blimp by eating too much of it. Cevapi is a traditional Bosnian meat and pita dish that is super juicy that I had one night at dinner at Taj Mahal (in the Old Town of Dubrovnik). Though completely different, the fish is just as good as the meat in Dubrovnik. The seafood at Forty-Four (though it was expensive) was just as scrumptious as the Cevapi, and I learned a seafood trick there that continues to make an impact on how much I love whole fish today. Spoiler alert: the cheek meat of a whole fish is the best part! I also had lobster tail another night, but I like Forty-Four a lot better. By far, the most awkward meal was at Lady Pi-Pi where we had to eat under handheld bright green umbrellas when it starting raining. Lady Pi-Pi had a canopy of grapevines instead of a roof so you can’t blame it for leaking on our heads.
Korčula is one of my favorite places to be. It is actually thought to be Marco Polo’s birthplace. Korčula is an island located off the Dalmatian Coast. By the way, we got there on an express catamaran ferry from Split. This place has ancient origins, …
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