Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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Self-Guided Tour:
Here are some highlights of the parks.
he
Palm Greenhouse,
located near the castle entrance, takes
you from Moravia to the tropics (50 Kč, similar hours as castle but
open even during winter). Notice the construction above you: one
of the oldest examples of a cast-iron roof in Europe. Created in
England in the 1830s, this innovation was one of the great tech-
nical marvels of the 19th century, gradually spreading to create
spacious train stations and market halls throughout Europe.
From the greenhouse, it's a five-minute walk to the predator
bird show; en route, you'll see a small
archery stand.
If you've ever
dreamed of being William Tell, stop here and try your skill on the
medieval and modern crossbows. No need to bring an apple or a
son—they provide the target discs and instruction (60 Kč for five
shots, daily in summer, weekends only in spring and fall).
The 45-minute show of live
predator birds
features more
than 20 kinds of birds from all over the world. The falcons, mer-
lins, marsh harriers, buzzards, and
goshawks demonstrate their hunt-
ing skills on simulated rabbits and
quails. Some are breathtakingly fast,
others comically slow. You can leave
whenever you want (35 Kč for short
visit, 70 Kč for whole show, pick up
English brochure in ticket tent that
describes every bird; July-Aug daily
at 11:30, 14:15, and 16:30; May-June
and Sept weekends at 12:00 and
15:00, plus occasional shows during the week; call 608-100-440 for
details).
My favorite part of the park stretches north, from the castle
to the minaret. The
minaret
is an impressive bit of Romantic-era
garden planning that copies the kind of Muslim-style minarets
that flank the Taj Mahal in India. Those climbing its 302 wind-
ing steps (60 Kč) are rewarded with a grand view. Locals say that
Count Alois Josef I intended to build a new church for the village
of Lednice, but no plan seemed quite right to the villagers. Their
pickiness finally irritated the count so much that he decided to
build a mosque with a minaret instead of a church. The mosque
never materialized, but the minaret did (completed in 1804). Since
the ground around the Dyje River is made up of moving sands,
the 200-foot-tall tower had to be anchored almost as deep under-
ground, on beech and oak pilings. The minaret's architect, Josef
Hardtmuth, was a versatile genius. The most successful of his pat-
ents was the idea of mixing graphite and mud, and coating it with
wood. he pencil factory he founded (and which bears his name) is
still one of the largest in Europe.
