We went for a family day out to Marianske Lazne in the Czech Republic during August, just for a bit of a look around really, and to meet up with a distant relative of Korina's. I have been there a few times before, but it is always nice to revisit the Bohemian Spa Towns, whether it be Marianske Lazne (Marienbad), Karlovy Vare (Karlsbad), or Frantiscovy Lazne (Franzesbad).

Colonnada

The Spa and the Ivan Concarov Plaque

Cailan

Mariánské Láznê (German: Marienbad) is a spa town in the Carlsbad Region of the Czech Republic. The town, surrounded by green mountains, is an exquisite mosaic of parks and noble houses. Most of its buildings come from the town's Golden Era in the second half of the 19th century, when many celebrities and top European rulers came to enjoy the curative carbon dioxide springs

Although the town itself is only about two hundred years old, the locality has been inhabited much longer. The first written record dates back to 1273, when there was a village of Úšovice. For most of its history it belonged to the nearby Teplá Monastery. The springs had been known since the beginning of the valley's settlement, yet they were first examined (for salt content) in 1528 on the order of the Austrian Emperor and Czech King Ferdinand I. They only found sodium sulfate which didn't start to be used but at the beginning at the turn of the 18th century, after it had been examined by Jan Josef Nehr, the abbey's doctor of the Teplá Monastery. The water from the Cross Spring (Krížový pramen) was evaporated and the final product was sold as a laxative under the name of sal teplensis. The modern spa town was founded by the Teplá Monastery abbots, namely Karel Kašpar Reitenberger, who also bought some of the surrounding forests to protect them. Under the guidance of gardener Václav Skalník, architect Jirí Fischer and builder Anton Turner the inhospitable marshland valley was changed into a park-like countryside with colonnades, neoclassical buildings and pavilons around the springs
 

The name Mariánské lázne first appears in 1786, since 1865 it has been a town. Then a second period of growth, the town's Golden Era, came. Between 1870 and 1914 many new hotels, colonnades and other buildings, designed by Friedrich Zickler, Josef Schaffer, and Arnold Heymann, were constructed or rebuilt from older houses. In 1872 the town got a railway connection with the town of Cheb (then town by its German name Eger) and thus with the whole Austrian-Hungarian Empire and the rest of Europe

The town soon became one of the top European spas and it was very popular with celebrities and rulers who often returned there, among them were such names as Johann Wolfgang Goethe, Frédéric Chopin, Thomas Edison, Richard Wagner or Prince Friedrich of Saxony, English king Edward VII, the Russian Czar Nicholas II, and Emperor Franz Joseph II and many others. At those times, about 20,000 visitors came every year

It remained a popular destination between WWI and WWII, but after the communist coup-d'état in 1948 it got sealed from most of its foreign visitors. After the return of democracy in 1989 a lot of effort was put into restoring the town into its original character. Nowadays it's not only a spa town but also a popular holiday resort thanks to its location among the green mountains of Slavkovský les and Ceský les, sport facilities (the town's first golf course was opened in 1905 by the British King Edward VII) and the proximity to other famous spa towns, such as Carlsbad (Karlovy Vary) or Františkovy Lázne

The top attraction of the town are its 100 mineral springs (53 of them are tapped) with high carbon dioxide content and often also higher iron content, both in the town itself and its surroundings. Most of them are orderly kept and often pavilions and/or colonnades are built around them
 

Cailan's feeding time and Maxim Gorkij

Robert with Cailan

Zpívající fontána (Singing Fountain)

Marianske Lazne is an elegant Neo-Classical and Art-Noveau spa town with a wide spectrum of natural therapeutic resources and excellent climatic conditions, set among the amazing natural scenes of mountains. The spa area is a network of paths, parks and 39 therapeutic springs, centered on the Colonnade and surrounded by streets of hotels and pensions. The guest book present celebrity names like Johan Wolfgang Goethe, Fryderyk Chopin, Richard Wagner, Anton Bruckner, Gustav Mahler, Johan Straus, Henrik Ibsen, Franz Kafka, Fridrich Nietzsche, Albert Schweitzer and many others. Edward VII, King of England, came back nine times

Caroline's Spring
In 1870, the spring was named in honor of the wife of Emperor Franz I, Caroline Augusta. In 1817, it was roofed by a cupola standing on eight Corinthian columns

The waters of Caroline's Spring were drunk by patients directly from the outflow until the beginning of the 20th century, when the New Baths were established and the water began to be used for baths. The Caroline's Spring colonnade has been open to the public since 1869. Caroline's Spring flows out of the ground beneath the former colonnade below the church

Picturesque

A Grand Day Out

It's all up hill from here...

Church

It's all yellow

Goethe

Robert

From above

On a Roll

Cross Spring
Historical records of the Tepla Monastery, dating back to 1749, were the first to mention the Cross Spring, describing it as a "salty" spring producing "salty acidulous water"...In 1749, the apothecary Damian Schulz from Tepla had a tall carved cross erected near the Salty Spring, with stones laid around the location. Since that time, it has been referred to as the Cross Spring

The spring was used for drinking and bathing. Later, the spring had been roofed with an impressive pavilion standing on 72 Ionic pillars and decorated with a cupola and a golden cross. The former building was made of wood, bricks and stucco in order not to damage the spring with its weight. The original building was preserved until 1912. Then a completely new pavilion was built, copying the original style
 

Robert & Korina at the Colonnada

The Pseudo-Baroque cast-iron Colonnade from 1889 is the main promenade of the spa and an important architectural monument. The water from the Cross, Caroline's and Rudolph's Springs is piped to the Colonnade for the drinking cures. The Singing Fountain, located in front of the Colonnade, also captures the attention of visitors. The Ferdinand's, Forest and Ambrose's Springs are among the best known springs in Marianske Lazne

Paintings

Robert & Cailan

out about town

Monumental

World Famous Kolonnada Spa Wafers

Krížový pramen (Cross Spring) - is the most famous spring of Mariánské lázne. A monumental pavilion with a copula bearing a patriarchal cross and 72 Ionic columns was built over the spring in 1818-1826. Today's concrete building is a copy from 1911-1912, originally it was a light wooden and brick construction. The water from the spring is high-mineralized with a strong laxative effect, it has been used for both curative drinks and baths
 

My Little Angel

Hats Off

Dadda

Dummy's Out

Picture Boy

He's Laughin

Playtime

Mummy's Colour Co-ordination

Local Specialities

Rudolfuv pramen (Rudolph's Spring) - with a wooden pavilion built over the spring, some water is tapped and piped to the nearby colonnade and some is bottled. Its water is low-mineralized with high calcium content and has been used to cure urinal problems

Karolinin pramen (Caroline's Spring) - named after the wife of the Emperor Franz I., Caroline Augusta. The nearby colonnade was built in 1869, the pavilion is a reconstruction from 1989. The water is low-mineralized, with higher magnesium content

Ferdinanduv pramen (Ferdinand's Spring) - the water from the spring, similar in composition to Krížový pramen, is bottled under the Excelsior label

Ambrožovy prameny (Ambrose's Springs)

Lesní pramen (Forest Spring)

All strapped in

The Journey Home

Directions

All photographs were taken in Marianske Lazne - Czech Republic from the 26th August 2006.