Prague to Cesky Krumlov - Day 3

Today, we decided to travel to Cesky Krumlov, a small town about 3 hours from Prague. Of course, we were very well-prepared and went early to the bus station. We bought our tickets several hours before the trip. However, we didn’t arrange enough time to get back to the bus stop. When we got there a few minutes before our bus was supposed to leave, we realized that our platform was empty. There was no one around. We asked a couple walking by and they just looked sorry and told us we were at the wrong bus station.

For some reason, this always happens to us. We get to the wrong bus station too late. We did it when we were supposed to go to Venice. You’d think we’d learn our lesson. We were able to take a later bus at a different station, though. Luckily, Joe was able to use a bit of Russian when we got to the new bus stop. He was able to ask and find out where our bus left from.

We rolled into Cesky Krumlov around 8:20 pm, and the pension where we had reserved rooms was closed. It was really dark and cold, so Joe went from pension to pension until we found an older lady who ran a pension out of her extra rooms. She was very nice. Although the heater didn’t really work, at least we had a place to stay.

That night we walked around the town, and it was amazing. Cesky Krumlov is as close to a medieval town as you will find. Of course, there has been a lot of repair to the old buildings so that they look authentic and well-kept. The Vltava River encircles the old town center and in the center there are shops, restaurants, and hotels. You can just mosey through the winding streets and duck into shops and restaurants. There are lanterns hanging outside the doorways. I told Joe it reminded me of the old pub that they go to in the Lord of the Rings. A castle sits above the city, so it provides a beautiful backdrop to the medieval town. Of course, if you look out from the castle tower, you can see the orange, clay rooftops nestled in the town center. It’s completely picturesque.

I think Joe and I decided it was like a Disney movie, only it was real. Kind of like if there were a set design for Sleeping Beauty. The first night we just saw the town by nightfall and then went to a cozy restaurant. The back of the restaurant menu had an entertaining story about the town. It claimed that a crazy prince or archduke was forced to live at the castle in the city by his father. He fell in love with a peasant girl from the village and forced her to live with him. Unfortunately, he was erratic and crazy, so one day he threw her from the window. Luckily for ther there was a pile of horse dung and rubbish beneath the window so she lived and ran off to her parents' home.

When her parents wouldn't return her to the crazy prince, he had her father imprisoned. Finally, when the father had been in the dungeon for many months, they relented and sent the girl to live with the prince again. Misfortunate must have been the peasants' lot, however, as the prince, in a fit of insanity, threw himself upon the girl with his sword and killed her. The village counsel, thankfully, had the authority to lock him away, which they finally did upon this act.

That is the story that the restaurant claims about the castle. We don't know the real truth, but this story was entertaining enough for us. The restaurant was very cozy and medieval feeling, and while we sat there snow began to drift down. It didn't last long, but we got to have the feeling of winter. We didn't want the snow to stop. Everything felt very peaceful, gentle, and serene. It almost had that feeling you get at Christmas when you're tucked inside a warm place on a cold night.