Cesky Krumlov - Part II

One of thing that amazed me about the Czechs was their appreciation for the Arts. Cesky Krumlov, in particular, seems to attract a good number of artists (for such a small town). A Slavic Sagada, if you will. You can tell from the breadth of art supplies (eg canvas, oils, acrylic paints, paintbrushes, pastels, etc) available locally, that there’s a strong artist community here. There were concerts twice a week - TWICE a week! And the locals seemed to patronize the concerts as much a the tourists.

One of the most fun I had was going to an open-air opera, held inside the enormous garden of the Cesky Krumlov palace. Now, I’m not a big fan of Opera. In fact, prior to this, I’ve never watched Opera in my life. And I’m certainly not the sort of person who enjoys listening to a play in a foreign language. But, first of all there is the stage - or more precisely, the theatre. The whole theatre revolves around the garden! There were 5 sets in the garden, and everytime the story would switch from one scene to another, the whole theatre would revolve! What a novel concept. And there was the setting - it was a bit chilly in this “theatre”, and many of the locals brought blankets. When you looked up above, you could see the stars. If you looked above the sets - there were magnificent trees (which I preferred to stare at some times). And the girls - some of them were really gorgeous. (really helps when you don’t understand a word they’re saying! They say the Czech Republic is the porn capital of the world - now I know why). A really enchanting evening - all for P100 per ticket!

Oh - and the music wasn’t bad either! (But I’m no fan of Dvorak)