We said good-bye to our leafy green view in Prague…

Today was a travel day to get from Prague to Český Krumlov. We rented a car (that no one could miss!) and headed southeast toward the historic town of Telč. This would be a mid-day stopover along our route and a way to see even more of the Czech Republic.

…and hello to our lime green Skoda Rapide – a Czech derived automobile that is now owned by Volkswagen.
Ryan did a fantastic job of maneuvering among some of the narrowest lanes and fastest traffic we’ve ever driven in! The map shows our route from Prague to Český Krumlov with our mid-day stop to visit Telč.
Traffic on these toll roads was moving along at around 85 mph in the fast lane. (We guess not knowing how to read Czech didn’t hurt us too much – we made it!)
Through areas of construction, there is no shoulder on either side of the road and the outside lane is never wide enough for larger vehicles to stay inside their own lane completely. With traffic moving along so quickly, it was often hair-raising!

Telč was a settlement as early as 1099 and by the 14th century it had been developed to be a royal water fort because many merchants passed through the area. The colorful houses and buildings that front the town square were mostly built in the 1500s, in the Italian Renaissance and Baroque styles, and are very well preserved. This part of Telč is designated as an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The entrance to Telč for pedestrians coming from this side is a footbridge across the river. It is just out of sight behind the weeping willow tree on the left.
The shops and homes along the square were built mostly in the 1500s in the Italian Renaissance and Baroque styles. They reminded us of similar buildings we’ve seen in Copenhagen and Amsterdam.
The detail is incredible, including ornate, plaster adornments, hand-painted frescoes, and painted blocks giving the illusion of depth and shape.
Easter egg colors,
newspaper colors,
and multiple, individual, detailed paintings are what you’ll see as you walk around the town square.

We found some take-out food from a shop on the square and took our time exploring Telč while we ate. This included going up in the bell tower of the Church of St. James to get a bird’s eye view of the surrounding area.

We had to have someone else in line help us order the kebab wraps due to us not being able to read or speak Czech. Everyone was very friendly about it.
The tower at the Church of St. James. We were able to climb up the 200 narrow, winding, steps to the lookout seen here.
The views of the town and the square were well worth the effort!
Telč from ground level and from above in the tower.
The entrance to the tower steps was inside this lovely arched passageway. The town square and it’s quaint buildings can be seen through the wrought iron gate.

Taking leave of Telč, we drove west along narrow, rural roads past agricultural areas and through tiny villages with roads barely wide enough for cars to fit. We were not far from the Austrian border at this point. After about two hours we reached our destination of Český Krumlov, which we’ll be exploring more fully tomorrow, our last full day of this vacation. We’ll be sorry to see it end but glad to be back nearer to our family and friends.

Beautiful countryside along rural roads for much of the drive between Telč and Čheský Krumlov.
We saw so many cornfields and only a few farms where white poppies were being grown. By the time I realized I should be taking a picture of these fields, the ones nice and close to the road side edge were long gone. The only one we came across again can be seen, especially by zooming in on the photo, as a “white line” along the top of the corn. They were much prettier than this image conveys. We don’t know what they grow the poppies for.
We end our blog by showing you our new hotel room view of Český Krumlov’s Old Town area and its castle tower. We’ll let you know all about this scenic and whimsical area when we write our final blog post for this trip, tomorrow.