Loket

So I have been trying to get back to Cesky Krumlov. Last Saturday I made an attempt. I took a 6:00 AM bus into Prague and then a metro ride to the designated bus station. I arrived 45 minutes before the bus left, only to be told that all buses going to Cesky Krumlov that day were full. Awesome. Unfortunately, the adventure did not end there. I had to get back to my village, but the buses are infrequent at best on weekends, and the internet sometimes lies about the schedule. I went all the way back to Zlicin, about a forty minute metro ride, only to find out that the transportation site had indeed betrayed me and there is no 9:30 bus to Nove Stracesi. There is a 10:30 from Hradcanska, a stop by Prague Castle, though, so I hopped back on the metro, cursing just a little, and rode about forty five minutes to that bus stop. That bus actually did exist so I arrived back at my village at 11:40. It was a six hour trip that took me nowhere. I was terribly frustrated. On the bright side, I did get to wander around Prague very early on a Saturday morning. Here is Old Town Square with its adorable autumnal festival stalls. Not quite open yet.

Fortunately, I did get to see a castle that afternoon. Eva and the baby and I (boys were with grandparents) went to Loket, a tiny town with a small castle to the west of Nove Straseci, just past Karlovy Vary. Loket means elbow, and the name refers to the shape of the river.

Here is the castle. It is 800 years old and is one of the oldest stone castles in the country.

Nice, right? I was going to go on a tour, but there weren't any more English tours since the season is over, and we got there thirty minutes before it closed so there weren't any more tours in Czech. But it all worked out, because they handed me a sheet of paper with facts about the castle and I got to wander around. There were a few other people wandering, too, but it felt like it was my private viewing session. It was sort of fun to walk around aimlessly without having to follow a tour guide. I was able to linger in the archaeological room and skip the torture chamber altogether. The castle is pretty teeny so it wasn't like I was going to get lost.

From the handy fact sheet I learned that the castle was originally built in the 12th century, that Queen Eliska and her kids used to hide there from her husband, John of Luxembourg, and that their three-year-old son was imprisoned for several months in the castle dungeon after John conquered the castle. Eliska was imprisoned in a different castle. Sounds like a sweet family.

The Hussites (they are everywhere!) tried to conquer Loket twice but failed. In the 15th century the castle was mortgaged away by the royal family to an aristocratic one, the Sliks. They had the castle for about a hundred years and finally in the 16th century it became the property of the town. It was used as a town hall and a prison, among other things. In the 20th century it was restored and now we are up to date.

In the first courtyard, old old old tombstones were leaning against the wall.

There was one Jewish tombstone, Rabbi Benjamin's, from a now extinct Jewish cemetery that was nearby.

Part of the castle is used as a porcelain museum. I am not very knowledgeable or fascinated by porcelain, but I did like the designs beside the glass cases of dishes and tea sets.

After browsing through the porcelain I wandered up some stairs and found myself by the big tower. It seems like all the Czech castles I go to have one big tower and then little wings all around it. They are a bit, I don't know, haphazard feeling. You can tell that they were added on to and torn down and rebuilt and then this part burned down but this part didn't, etc.

This was a passage to the tower. You can see the town beyond the roof. Everything felt miniature at this castle. And you know how I love miniatures!

I climbed the little tower steps...

up to the little tower top...

Bare but functional.

This scary dragon sculpture was waiting for me at the bottom of the tower. But, according to the plaque (everything was very well labeled at this castle! The English was nicely written and informative) this dragon was nice and used his fire-breath to light the women's stoves.

This is the tower I climbed. I think during the summer they have vendors in the courtyard, but now the stalls were all closed up and empty. Sort of sad. It seems as though archeological research is still going on at the castle. There were three or four rooms filled with bricks and timbers with plaques announcing where they were found in the castle and what will happen to them. Most of the materials will be reconstructed and replaced. There was a headless angel sculpture, some twisted metal bits, roof tiles, and other random things on display, as well as before and after pictures and even a skeleton lying on some sand. There was no English plaque for him/her, so I have no idea what the significance of that person is. Here is some very old wood.

I think it is neat to be able to see the different phases of the castle: the reconstructed part, the touristy torture museum, the rooms of random objects waiting to be fixed and replaced...

Here is a lovely window on the outside of the castle. It was a gorgeous day.

Down the hill from the castle is a red and white candy cane church. A bit garish on the outside, but the inside was wonderful.

I wasn't sure if it was open to visitors, but the door was open...so I walked in. I was the only person there. It was silent and much cooler inside. A small carnival like the one in Nove Straseci a few weeks ago occupied the small town square and the noise from the rides and the children was quite loud. "Eye of the Tiger" was blaring as I entered the church but it all faded away once inside the massive structure.

I expected the inside to be as bright and heavy as the outside but instead it was pale and light.

I like the ceiling. I don't think there was any real marble in the church, just "faux finishes."

The altar was a bit dark. A small sign at the entrance said that the painting on the altar had been damaged by "overpainting." What does that mean? Did someone literally put too much paint on it? Was it painted over?

Unlike some of the churches I have wandered into recently, this one seemed to be still in use. Look at the cushions on the beautiful carved wooden pews.

It was lovely to be able to walk around the church by myself. Castle tour by myself, church tour by myself--I like being able to observe unobserved.

I met Eva and the baby below the castle by the small river. A big creek, really. There is an outdoor amphitheater that boasts a rather stunning backdrop.

Eva has been to some operas performed on this stage. She said it was incredible to see the castle in the background, all lit up. There are huge boulders and various outcroppings around the amphitheater where the singers perch. That would be something to see!

There is a pit for the orchestra and everything. The national opera company comes here during the summer. I am sorry I missed them!

Another view of the castle...

Another view, but with me in it.

Guess who is walking now?

Last weekend he still liked to have a hand, but yesterday and today he strolled around all by himself and loved it! Very exciting!

He has also been playing peek-a-boo with my sister Sally over skype and saying "huff! huff!" (what dogs say in Czech) when one of my dogs is held up to the webcam. Awesome.

We walked around the tiny town some more and I saw this interesting house. A little dreary, but I love the colored doors and window frames! Maybe it is a hotel or something. It is pretty big.

I also saw an elderly woman walking with two elderly friends. They were probably in their 70s. She had on a teal sweatshirt that said "Spring Break 2009" across the chest. Hilarious. But you see a lot of incongruous English here. Sometimes the slogans on the shirts make absolutely no sense.

And this is the coolest gate ever. Ever.

My day started out poorly with my attempt to go to Cesky Krumlov, but it ended well. We stopped in Karlovy Vary for dinner and returned home late that evening. The baby did not wake up during the transfer from car seat to crib. Victory.