Written by Lila Frost, (Cornell University), CET Prague, Spring 2024
Several weeks ago, my whole CET class traveled together to Český Krumlov, a beautiful city in South Bohemia. Several of my peers had already traveled outside Prague, but at this point in the semester, it was my first venture outside the city. We woke up early, took the tram to a bus station near the dancing house, boarded a double-decker bus, and rode off together through the country. I fell asleep on the bus but awoke periodically to appreciate the green fields and natural landscape.
Český Krumlov is best known for its sprawling Medieval castle. The tower itself is not very tall but it is built into a hill, such that from far away it seems to watch over all of the surrounding areas. We started off the visit with a walking tour. Despite the scale of the castle, Český Krumlov is a very small and secluded city.
Our tour guide had grown up there; he pointed out his family houses, the cobblestone streets where he used to ride his bike, and the pub owned by his friends (which I was pleased to hear about, as I had already gone there for lunch). We ran into his high school English teacher and his wife and baby on a walk. It was fascinating to learn about the history from his perspective. He explained that although it is now a popular tourist attraction, it hadn’t been so for many years. It has become a recognized historic sight in more recent times, and many of the buildings have undergone restorations. This helped to explain why such old buildings at once seemed otherworldly and pristine. Český Krumlov seemed uncannily untouched by time, but this effect was the product of much research and precise craftsmanship.
Although many of the castle buildings were closed for the winter, someone kindly made an exception to allow us to enter the old Baroque theater. The seating area was dark and cold, but the stage itself glowed gold. It had been used for a royal wedding, equipped with all the modern technologies of its day (including a complex pulley system to change scenery in seconds), and then lay in disuse for many years. The interior we saw was almost completely original; it really felt like we had stepped through time.
All of us had dinner together at a beautiful restaurant. I had schnitzel, which I have been dreaming about since my first time watching The Sound of Music. A very fun band played and produced such a lively atmosphere that several friends and I got up to dance.
I was surprised to find that there were live bears in the moat. Apparently, someone had tried to smuggle them through an airport at some point. After being found at security, they were brought to the castle for rehabilitation. I couldn’t see them because they were cuddled up together in their den, but some of my peers spotted them roaming around. I am taking an Art and Architecture class, in which we have concentrated on Medieval Central Europe. It was fascinating to see the subjects we have discussed in person, like ways of fortifying a castle, and Český Krumlov has continued to come up in class examples.
Too soon, it was time to go home. At one rest stop, my friend and I saw a single piece of litter. It was startling to see and seemed out of place; we hadn’t noticed until then how little litter we had seen in Prague. I wonder what other culture shocks I will piece together as the semester unfolds. I fell asleep on the bus home, next to my roommate Cady, and awoke just as we crossed the Vltava river towards New Town. I was glad to see the familiar architecture, like the golden peaks of the National Theater. I have come to appreciate how much traveling has made Prague feel like home.