Ceské Budejovice - Budweis Czech Republic 100.000 habitants - The well preserved medieval town of Ceske Budejovice developed at the confluence of the Rivers Vltava and Malse. The town was founded as early as 1265 by order of the Czech King Premysl Otakar II. The original layout of the medieval town survived until today with very few modifications. The focal point of the town is a large square out of which runs a symmetrical network of streets vertical to each other, dividing the area into a chess-board arrangement of blocks. The surviving architecture in the town center is a mixture of Late Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque. An interesting point in the history of the city was the construction of the first horse-drawn railway line on the European continent (1824), linking Ceske Budejovice with Linz. Among the privileges granted by the King Premysl Otakar II was the right to produce beer. Over the centuries, Ceske Budejovice exercised these brewing rights with skill and the resulting BUDWEISER beer became so renowned, that the royalty were soon amongst its customers. The famous brewery Budejovicky Budwar (Budweiser) offers guided tours of and beer tasting.
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