| Jindrichuv
Hradec, Czech Republic |
| Number
Two vs. Number Three |
| Don’t be blinded
by the hype. Yes, it’s true. Cesky Krumlov is one of, if not the most,
beautiful places in the Czech Republic. Never heard of it? Ask any
Czech person to tell you about Cesky Krumlov and their face will light
up like a child on Christmas morning.
They’re certainly
not wrong as Cesky Krumlov has the second-biggest castle in the
Czech Republic (behind Prague’s of course), a spectacular garden to go
with it, and unique architecture throughout the town on top of that. And
that’s just the city limits. If you only have a week or so in the Czech
Republic, Cesky Krumlov is a surefire hit. But come on folks, we’ve been
down this road before. We go to a country and we go where the guidebook,
tourist office and the friendly locals tell us to go. Not this time. |
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| When you
come to the Czech Republic, you’re going to make a bold move. You’ll
be sitting at a restaurant with your traveling companion(s), wondering
why the server was so rude to you, if they have even come to the table
at all, and you’re going to stand up in the restaurant, peer through the
thick haze of smoke and declare "To hell with Cesky Krumlov, we’re going
to… to… Jindrichuv hradec!!! You probably didn’t pronounce it correctly
but there‘s no point going back now, as you don’t want to take away from
the effect.
The decision
has been made, albeit it was over one too many 25 crown ($1) Staropramen
beers ago.
The next morning
after your hangover has subsided and you’re having indigestion problems
from the free "breakfast" at the hostel, your traveling companion
looks for Jindrichuv hradec on a courtesy map at the hostel desk and asks
you why would we go to Jindrichuv hradec when Cesky Krumlov is closer and
easier to get to? You reply that Jindrichuv hradec is almost as beautiful
as CK but with cheaper prices and without the tourists. And just because
everyone is doing something doesn’t mean we have to also. Your traveling
companion rolls their eyes at you but doesn’t protest further because they
know your mind cannot be changed. |
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| So, before
you go, here’s some information you might find helpful as well as something
to beat off those CK diehards who will come after you with everything they‘ve
got.
First, tell
them that Jh is one of South Bohemia’s finest jewels. Prices are a
third of Prague’s and for those sick of crowds, everywhere we went seemed
to be empty on a Saturday with beautiful weather.
As I mentioned
before the castle in CK is great but Jh clocks in at number three and
doesn’t disappoint. If you’re a Czech resident, you know that it’s not
necessary to visit all the great places in the Czech Republic when the
weather is warm, but this is one to save for the late spring or summer.
While
some castles are open year-round, Jh is not one of them and most of
the beauty of the city is gone in the winter as the town sits between a
river and a lake with a castle garden, grounds tucked in between and Husovy
sady to the northwest. |
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Offshore
Resources Gallery
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| And no matter
where you go, flowers in bloom make everything better, especially
when they’re hanging over bridges and lakes. With as many bridges that
were in the city, I would think that the town name would have bridge in
it, as there are many names of places with the word for bridge (‘most’).
After you’ve
spent a few hours in Jh, you might not be able to tell that it’s the 21st
century, and I mean that in a good way. The problems of your life and the
world never make it past the old town walls and Nezarecka Gate.
The feel of
the cobblestone streets under your feet and the not quite restored buildings
keep the city from looking like a museum exhibit and maintaining a realness
that’s missing from many of the renovated places around the country. I
particularly liked the streetlights, which thrust out of buildings offering
each passer-by a piece of its brilliance. The feeling of time long past
is even apparent in the main square until your eye catches Bata, the shoe
giant. Now that you know where you are again and aren’t thinking the
Absinthe from last night is still affecting you, you can admire the
main square, namesti Miru, with its unusually impressive stone Plague column. |
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| The second
nicest building in the square, after the sgrattifoed Langruv dum, is the
police station that looks like it has freshly laid red and tan paint over
the Renaissance architecture.
The mirror
image lions holding a king’s crown over the arch to the entrance is
a nice touch. It might be worth getting arrested just to see the interior,
but good luck holding out for an interpreter. On a nice day I recommend
spending part of the day relaxing in the square, enjoying an ice cream
or whatever you fancy. There’s no shortage of sweet shops, or cukarnas,
right on the square itself.
To the west
of namesti Miru are the main churches of the town but they’re nothing
to brag about, at least in comparison to other Czech towns. The Gothic
church is quite nice as far as Gothic churches are concerned, although
it’s not dripping with gold, as many around the country seem to be. |
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Offshore
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| That’s okay
because the white pillars and the high arches stand out more, allowing
one to appreciate the architecture instead of wondering how much you could
get for a hawked gold-trinket.
A fresco
of Jesus on the altar and the long windows behind it round out the
attractions of the Church of Our Lady of the Assumption. If the doors are
open, you probably won’t be able to do more than stick your head through
the gate. But folks, this place isn’t about the churches. You came here
for the castle. This is the Mother Goose. The architecture is rapturous
in its Romanesque-gothic style and the Renaissance and Gothic buildings
snuggling against the castle will leave you only half a roll of film left.
It’s not quite as big as CK but they both offer three different tours.
As you can
probably guess, the tours in Jh are cheaper. We went on Tour "A", which
covered the baroque and neoclassical sections as well as a piano once played
by Mozart and one of Napoleon’s beds. They’re not so interesting in themselves
but compliment that part of the chateau nicely. Even if you only go
on one tour, you’ll need at least a few hours to explore the castle grounds.
If you have some time to kill before the tour starts or for a final goodbye
of the town, there’s a tower you can climb. However, because of the beauty
of the castle, I’d recommend going up one of the church tours so you can
get the castle in the shot. But don’t press your luck with your traveling
companion who isn’t quite sold on Jh yet.
That’s okay
because there’s still much to be seen. There are two courtyards to stroll
through, with arched floors and bricks aligned so tightly you feel as safe
as in a bomb shelter a kilometer below ground. There is a small entrance
in the second courtyard that leads to an Italianate garden pavilion, fountain
and rotunda. I believe all tours take you this way and it’s better to go
with them because you’re able to go inside Rondel. If your companion is
still harboring any animosity towards you for refusing to go to CK, those
thoughts will evaporate in moments.
As many tours
do, they saved the best for last. The Rondel sits on a circular
stone tower that’s one of the most apparent parts of the chateau. In the
interior, gold ornaments and decorations run all the way to the ceiling
in an intricate network that works its way around narrow frescoes, stuccos
and circular windows embroidered with pink flowers. There are regular windows
at eye level that, on one side, look out over the chateau into the river
down below. Everything on the wall leads to a coat-of-arms in the center
of the domed-ceiling. If you stare at it long enough, you may imagine it
pulsating, pumping life into veins of gold running down the wall. And the
purpose of such an expensive room? Why, classical music concerts of course.
They happen much more frequently than in the past and it puts a smile on
my face thinking that the aristocrats who paid for its construction are
spinning in their graves as common people such as myself can stroll through
freely and take photographs.
Now your traveling
companion is on your side and your better judgment has secured a victory.
The ball is in your court so you can move in for the score once you have
had enough of the interior of the chateau because outside the walls there
is beautiful scenery to walk through. On the west side of the castle grounds
is a river to walk along which I don’t want to imagine during winter without
the lovely trees and flowers and the warm breeze helping me in my stride.
To the east of the castle is maly Vajgar and there is even more enchanting
places to walk around. What makes it so nice is all the bridges, especially
the little ones (mustek) I passed over anticipating the sound of boards
knocking against each other underneath my feet.
By now you’re
excruciatingly hungry from all the time spent in and around the castle.
Jh offers an array of eateries so you might spend some time narrowing down
your options. While your stomachs are growling, your traveling companion
can’t believe how insanely inexpensive some of these restaurants are. If
you live in the Czech Republic, you know that you must be weary of Asian
food and if you don’t know, this is your warning. I remain as skeptical
to unknown Chinese restaurants as the average Czech person is to
the European Union. I was sold when they had tofu in stock and I paid a
measly 85 crowns for vegetables, tofu, and rice (less than $4) and not
only was it okay, but it was pretty damn good. It had a little bit of kick
to it and was more filling than most Chinese food I’ve had before.
A lucky find.
Those wishing for pizza, on the other hand, better put their Italian cravings
in check unless they want to have the worst pizza I’ve had ever had in
the Czech Republic. This was the only negative of the whole trip. The crust
literally crumbled on the first bite and tasted like there were two or
three missing ingredients. The toppings were vegetables that tasted
like they’ve been in cans for two decades. Thankfully, I had plenty of
Krusovice beer to wash it down with at only 15 crowns a pop. The cukarna
in Masarykovo namesti was a rebound that had excellent cinnamon and ginger
cake. The day is almost gone but if you’re in no rush to leave, stay a
night in Jh at one of their great pensions. Pension U Tladlen is situated
along the Nezarka river but you better book a room in advance.
If it’s full,
go to Hana Klub which overlooks Vajgar lake and is quite cozy whether it’s
hot or cold. If you still have time in the evening and don’t want to do
anything on your feet, go to Strelnice cinema in Masarykovo namesti. North
of the city center, this movie theater was the best I’ve seen in the
Czech Republic. And the price? Seventy-three crowns ($3). That’s less
than HALF the cost of one of the multiplexes in Prague and this theater
was an ancient relic of a time when you could sit in a balcony, the wooden
arm rests wouldn’t let you get too comfortable and the theater held more
than thirty people.
All this should
have warmed over your traveling companion and they’ve conceded that you
were right and the next time you demand visiting somewhere, they’ll probably
heed your advice. That is, unless they’re in the mood for a good pizza.
The following
are Matthew's previous articles for the magazine:
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