Walking through Brno

The class in front of their dorm building:

After we arrived and dropped our luggage in our dorm rooms, we went to lunch at a local beer pub eatery --

 

Below, Maggie, Brian (class tutor) and Zack, one of the students:

Monica, our tour guide,

. . who took us for a walk through Brno right after lunch.  Here are photos I took -- I will try to remember some of the names of these places . . .

Monica shows us a 3-D representation of Brno in the 1600's when it was completely surrounded by a "fortification" -- walls to protect it from the Swedes, Austrians, Germans, and any other tribes and countries trying to take it over.  Apparently, despite all of the attacks over these centuries, Brno was never successfully captured.  "Brno" means "muck" or "mud" which were the conditions of ancient Brno, I guess.

 

 Throughout Brno, there is a mix of very old, very new/block style (Monica called it "efficient" construction by the Soviets), cafes, squares, and alleys:

 

St. Peter & Paul Cathedral:

 

 

 

Below is the train station -- they are in the middle of a debate about how to upgrade it --