On Tuesday, March 14, 2023, we took a journey from Brno to Lednice. We took a 45 minute bus ride through the countryside to Mendel Faculty of Horticulture. We saw some beautiful scenery and a lot of horses and cows along the way. Upon arrival at the faculty, we were greeted by one of their horticulture professors who showed us around the Thematic Gardens. The Thematic Gardens are part of the university campus, and they feature 11 different themes, including the silver garden, the water garden, the herb garden, and much more.
Unfortunately, the weather was not on our side on this day, and we roamed around the garden with clouds looming over and rain trickling down, but that did not stop the flowers from shining through. With it still being quite cool in the Czech Republic, we did not get to see the garden in its prime blooming state, but at the entrance of each section there were pictures showcasing how beautiful it looks in the summer.
After our tour around the garden we headed to lunch. We walked through the town of Lednice until we came across Pivovar Lednice. Our guides joined us for lunch, and we all discussed many cultural differences between the Czech Republic and America. We learned about some very different traditions, including how they celebrate Easter! For lunch, everyone ordered a variety of dishes, including Carp frites, meatloaf, chicken croquette, and pork. All of which are prepared differently than what we are used to in America!
After a fulfilling lunch, we arrived at Mendel University’s Department of Viticulture and Enology. Once we arrived, a student in the department led us down into the wine cellar, where he explained the various research projects and experiments underway. He walked us through how they created the wine, and what new technique they tested with each bottle. After learning about the amount of work that goes into each bottle of wine, we got to taste it for ourselves! We tasted several different wines, from whites, to reds, and even amber wine. My personal favorite was the white wine called “Bubbles,” made and sold by the students at the university. The Czech Republic may be known for their “pivo,” but Moravia (the region where Brno is located) is considered the wine capital!
We continued on our adventure to the Lednice Chateau, or the Lednice Castle. The castle was breathtaking and had many sights to explore, including lakes and a greenhouse. Our guides from Mendel University told us it would take two hours to walk around the whole thing! So, instead, we all spread out and explored nearby while snapping many pictures. Along the way, we made a couple friends, two stray cats that followed us for the rest of our exploration around the castle, and enjoyed lots of cuddles.
The cloudy day did not ruin the beauty of the castle, and we all enjoyed investigating every corner. During the tourist season, you can even go inside the chateau. Here is a link to learn more about visiting the chateau.
After exploring the Castle, we had to call our journey in Lednice to an end and head back to campus. On the bus ride home, many of us were worn out by the big adventure and dozed off until we made it back to our dorm rooms.
Once we got home, we quickly freshened up and headed out for a free night in Brno. On our free night, we split into two different groups, one group (Joy, Andrew, and Ashton) headed into the town square to try McDonalds in Czech, and go back to the dorms early. While the other group (Myself, Mattie, Josie, Elena, Zachary, and Joseph) headed to the local grocery store to try different local goods. At the store, we purchased various foods only found in Czech, like different chocolate bars, cheeses, chips, sodas, and more. I bought a chocolate bar infused with raspberries, and it is the best chocolate I have ever had - I wish I could have more! After checking out the store, we decided dinner should probably come before dessert, so we hopped on public transport and went to the town square. Once we arrived, we walked around and window shopped for a while, before deciding on an Italian place for dinner. To wrap up the day, we all tried our sweets from the grocery store and headed to bed until the next adventure!
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