AN ENGLISHMAN IN MORAVIA

We are Roy and Pavla, an Anglo-Moravian couple. For nearly two decades, we have been exploring each other’s corner of the world.

We are both keen observers of the everyday, and much time on our trips is usually spent in a tucked away café, a bar or a pub, watching passers-by, chatting to locals and enjoying the ‘here and now’.

So much so that we occasionally miss the touristy bits and postcard snapshots. No regrets 😉

We are both capricorns, with our birthdays just one day apart.

Our shared interests vary from art, architecture, design, mid-century furniture and ‘everything 1920s’ to photography, cooking, and travel. We do love all things ‘retro’ and iconic objects with a story.

We live in Bedford, in a historic county of East Anglia, in a charming Victorian house bearing, perhaps unsurprisingly, many a Moravian clue. 

The idea for this blog came to us on a hot summer’s day back in 2019. We went on a day trip to the outskirts of Brno, Pavla’s hometown in Southern Moravia. We took a laid-back boat trip on the Brno Dam which spans some 10km from the edge of the city to the Veveří Castle, perched on a hill overlooking the dam and vast forests surrounding it. 

The list of the castle’s past owners is a parade of European aristocratic houses. Its last noble landlord until the 1930 was Baron Maurice de Forest, an early motor racing driver, aviator, and liberal UK politician. And a close friend of – Winston Churchill. 

What an unexpected discovery!

We decided then that we will start looking out for more links and traces the Englishmen left behind in the Czech Republic, and vice versa, Czech traces in Britain.

And they just keep popping up! People, events, encounters. Some are well-known, others are revelations – well, for us, at least.

We’d be delighted if you joined us on this journey, and if you enjoy it, we’d love to hear from you.

Cheers,

Roy & Pavla