I went there in 1995 on a business trip, but I had a lot of time to be a tourist. The city is just freaking beautiful...the architecture...then there's the arts. It seemed every street corner had a reallly good artist. I went to see a play and all in all, it was terrific! I just took two days and walked around the city and still didn't make a dent. I would love to go back there with my husband.
It's more beautiful than ever now, as are surrounding areas. The clean-up continues, and as more old buildings are repaired, this little jewel sparkles ever more. I just returned yesterday from my latest visit with my Czech family ( and spent 3 hours on JFK's tarmac last night - Oh joy!).
One of our local friends remarked that the town squares throughout the Czech lands have probably never looked better. Over the centuries, homes were occupied by families and businesses, going through their normal cycles of wear and repair. At any given moment, some percentage of homes in an area would be occupied by elderly folks or those who had fallen on hard times. Those homes might not be in top condition. However, during the socialist era, all the properties declined, resulting in the dreary state of ill repair some of us remember. The result of nearly 20 years of freedom is that the most visible of these properties have been repaired and spruced up. The town squares are full of centuries-old homes and business in various shades of pink, yellow, tan, black/white, green, blue, etc. Some of them remind me of a wedding cake, with all the soft pretty colors and trimmings. Great place to visit; lovely people (of course I'm biased!).