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Liberec - The town and the Region below Ještěd
The drive from Prague to Liberec takes about one hour. The highest peak of the Ještěd Ridge and the symbol of the town, Ještěd itself, can be seen gleaming from as far as Mnichovo Hradiště. Passing the Drábský rock formation and turning left at the motorway junction at Turnov, the Trosky ruin comes into view. These signals the beginning of the tourist region known as Czech Paradise. Do you want to see the Liberec region? Then there's is no better place to start than the southern part and the attractive area around Ještěd. Right at the top of the hill as you climb up the road from the Turnov junction you can leave the motorway and visit Sychrov castle. Sychrov is neo gothic manor house containing art collections, and has extensive rolling lawns. If you are not in too much of a hurry then from Sychrov you could continue up the motorway to Hodkovice (where an amateur airport is located) and turn left and head towards the heart of the area below Ještěd, Český Dub. It was here that the Johanites built a convent at the very beginning of the middle ages.

The curator of the Karolína Světlá Museum in Český Dub, Dr. Tomáš Edel, decided to devote himself to finding it, and not too long ago his dream came true. After visiting the Karolína Světlá museum in Český Dub you can continue westwards in the direction of the village of Osečná. There is an interesting natural formation known as the Čertova zeď (Devils wall) not far from here. A geological rarity, the wall got its name in an opportune manner. A black basalt vein broke through light sandstone and formed a wall that stretched for several kilometers. The Kundratice spa is in Osečná where part of the treatment involves organic peat. On the journey to Liberec from here, you can see the charming spire of the baroque St. Mikuláč church in Světlá pod Ještědem. Typical rustic buildings still stand in this antique village. The writer Karolína Světlá lived here.

Small wooden cottages can be seen around Křižany as you climb up and over the ridge and descend into the next mountain valley above which towers an iron viaduct. Here you will find Kryštofovo údolí with its small slate roofed wooden church, the well known pottery and the exhibition of Bethlehem in this former mining village. Going up the valley, the ruin of the Hamrštejn castle is hidden from view by a forested hill, around which the river Nisa flows. The oldest building in nearby Chrastava is not in fact the church which is neogothic, but the renaissance building on the square. Now a museum, the former pub is from where Franz Kafka wrote to his sister, Ottla. There is beautiful baroque statue on the square, and the one time family house of the artist Josef Führich now serves as an extension to the museum. For those who wish to travel a bit further you can head towards the border crossing to Germany. The domed tower of Grabštejn castle looks down upon the border town of Hrádek nad Nisou. Beyond Hrádek lies the crystal clear water of the Kristýna pond and further still you will see the towers of the German town of Zittau and the flatlands stretching out behind it.

Over the Czech border the town of Frýdlant should be your first port of call. From whichever direction you approach Frýdlant, you will see the 13th Century Gothic castle towering on the hill above the town. Following the river Smědá through Raspenava we get to the town which lies in the lap of the Jizera Mountains, Hejnice. The romantic spa village Lázně Libverda is not far from Hejnice. Above this village is the well known view point and restaurant Obří sud (Giant Keg). The Jizera Mountains are well known to walkers and skiers mainly by the paths that are followed by the Jizerská padesátka which is the annual fifty kilometer cross country ski race. In summer these paths are frequented by cyclists on mountain bikes, however, tofind the really romantic spots in the mountains its better to walk. And finally you can descend down into Liberec. The Liberec region is very diverse. You can experience the gentle Jizera Mountains, the sheer rock at Ještěd, the sandstone walls at Hrádek, the sweetness of the area around Ještěd and the ruggedness of the romantic canyons. To the west of the region is the well-preserved castle Lemberk and Jablonné v Podještědí with its Baroque church honoring the sacred Zdislava. To the east lie Turnov, Trosky and Český Ráj (Czech Paradise).

Liberec - A town of change
This town of one hundred  thousand inhabitants lies one hundred and ten kilometers north of Prague surrounded by the Jizera Mountains on one side and the Ještěd Ridge on the other. Its most prominent landmark is done justice to by the spirit of the town. The mountain hotel Ještěd, designed by the architect Hubáček, is an incredibly bold creation and in the sunshine it can be seen gleaming for many kilometers. One of the citys tramlines terminates directly below Ještěd from where you can ride up to the hotel by cable car. The mountain is a ski resort during the winter with several ski lifts and a ski jump. The other end of the same tram line is at the foot of the Jizera Mountains at Lidové sady. The paths which descend the mountains to the south meet at the tram terminus.

First of all lets have a quick look at the history of Liberec. Whereas most other large towns in the Czech Republic were founded by the Czech kings in the fertile lowlands from around 1270, the first mention of Liberec is from the year 1352. In 1577 Liberec was recognized as a town and became a clothing center. Around this time the Redern family began work on the renaissance wing of Liberec castle. The first expansion in Liberec came with Albrecht Waldstein houses in the well preserved  Waldstein houses in the centre. These houses were used when equipment for Albrechts army was being produced locally. There has always been "conflict" in Liberec between Czech and German elements, as well as a conflict between the wild, rugged countryside and man's efforts to control it. Working people fight with harsh mountain conditions and glass works fan out from the foothills of the Jizera Mountains. The streams running down the mountains powered the simple machines needed for the fledgling textile industry. Gradually Liberec became a textile and glass center in the Austrian Empire and its economic and political significance grew such that by the year 1830 it was the second largest town in Bohemia. Together with neighboring Jablonec, which lies only 13 kilometers away and produces jeweler as well as glass, Liberec exported products abroad to all corners of the world. A railway through Liberec was built in 1859. Theatre performances have taken place here since 1820, and the new theatre was built by the town's citizens in 1883. The town hall resembling that in Vienna was built to replace the old renaissance building. The tower from the old building was moved to the museum. The chamber of commerce, the savings bank, the town baths, the secession hotel Praha, the monumental hotel Zlatý Lev (where traders from across the globe stayed): all of these buildings were able to confidently stand beside the centrally located castle. The town contributed to the outlying forested areas with the opening in 1904 of the botanical gardens and the zoo. The zoo was the first in Bohemia. The first great industrial exhibition was held in Liberec in 1906, and this tradition for holding exhibitions continues to the present.

Towards the end of the 19th century around the exhibition halls, the botanical gardens and the zoo (which today houses white tigers and giraffes) there emerged a residential zone of great villas of which the town could be proud. Just above this zone sits the culture park with its tremendous hall and pseudo-gothic tower. In the period between the wars the lower part of the town center was build. Buildings of note include the Adria and Dunaj Palaces, the NISA coffee house, the Baťa shopping centre and, below the railway station, Shoe-export and the Hotel Imperial. Liberec was even endowed with an airport at the same time. In the years following the war Liberec was connected to Jablonec by tram, and in 1953 the University of Engineering and Textiles was founded. Liberec was regional capital only until 1960. In 1968 Liberec citizens fought against the invading soviet red Army with their bare hands and the names of 9 victims are engraved in two sections of copper tank tracks in the masonry of the Cityhall. During the first week of the occupation the future Czech President, Vaclav Havel, made an illegal Television broadcast to the nation from Liberec. What makes Liberec unique is its wide variety of architectural styles - the mirror - like facade of Kommerční Bank reflects the Neo renaissance town hall and the modern palace center which resembles a ships hull looks down on the wooden Šolc's house build in 1771. In its modern face the richly decorated obchodní bank is reflected. Thanks to the building boom that Liberec has seen since 1990 it's possible to see historically valuable architecture from the turn of the last century standing side by side with the modern architecture of the 21st century. The last decade has changed the appearance of the town significantly. In addition to those already mentioned. The Syner palace, IPB Bank, the new art school building (which was awarded building of the year in 1996) and whole host of smaller buildings have sprung up in the previously vacant lots over the last few years. The recently completed library stands on the side of the old synagogue and is intended to be seen as a symbol of peace, hope and reconciliation. many foreigners firms have come to Liberec, indeed the possibilities to invest in Liberec have been expended by the building of two new industrial zones. Visitors to Liberec from Germany and Poland generally make their way to the Zoo, the Botanical Gardens, the Indoor 50 meters swimming pool with its 107 meter flume as well as visiting the theatre to watch the opera and the ballet. Other popular attraction are the district gallery which houses and extensive collection of 17th century Dutch art, French landscape paintings from the 19th century and a quality collection of modern Czech paintings and the small exhibition rooms (Photo gallery) generally for photographic works. Concerts and balls take place in the civic center as well as in PKO, which also plays host to the experimental studio. Here you can see country, Folk and Jazz music aswell as fringe theatre. For the rock music scene head to the RC Golet, club located in a former bomb shelter. The Babylon center, an all-round family entertainment complex, recently opened on the side of a former factory hall. You can hear live music here as well as Disco. Music Unit nations is the Motto for Czech, German and Polish pupils and teachers at the Euro region NISA Music-school in Liberec. And they take their motto seriously. The formed an International orchestra and regularly perform. The Liberec born, world renowned author of "You beautiful Gypsy girl", Karel vacek would definitely praise them.

Otto Hejnic