Eastern Europe Travel Part V(Brno)
Eastern Europe Travel Part V(Brno)
Day 5 Saturday, 17 October 2015
Brno
At 9 a.m. we left Vienna in Austria and headed north for Brno, the second largest city in Czech Republic, which is 134 km away to see an old neo-Gothic cathedral known as Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul located on a hill, Petrov Hill.
Map showing coach-route from Vienna to Brno and Prague
Supermarkets
On the way we made two stops for tea and shopping, Billa Supermarket at Poysdorf in Austria and Lidl Supermarket at Mikulov in Czech Republic, before we reached Brno at about 1 p.m..
Billa Supermarket in Poysdorf, Austria
Large variety of food and drink for sale at Billa Supermarket, Poysdorf, Austria
Tour-members shopping at Billa Supermarket, Poysdorf, Austria
Billa and Lidl Supermarkets
Established in 1953, there are over 3600 Billa stores in Europe. Over 1000 of them are found in Austria. Lidl Supermarket was founded in 1930 and now there are over 10000 stores in Europe including 220 in Czech Republic.
Lidl Supermarket in Mikulov, Czech Republic
Bread for sale at Lidl Supermarket, Mikulov, Czech Republic
Lidl Supermarket, a well-stocked store, in Mikulov, Czech Republic
Mikulov Castle
At Mikulov I saw a castle on a hill. It was constructed in the 1950s replacing the old one that was burnt down by the retreating German troops at the end of WWII(1939-1945). It is now a museum housing art and historical collections related to the history of wine production.
A castle becomes a museum in Mikulov, Czech Republic
Lunch in Brno
On arrival at Brno at about noon, we had lunch at restaurants of our choice which were along a busy street, Nadrazni Street. My wife and I had to change some Euro dollars for the local currency, Czech crown or koruna, at a money-exchange kiosk before we could buy a meal. Then we decided to have Vietnamese food for lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant, Mango Restaurant.
Tour group arriving at Brno City at noon and walking to Nadrazni Street for lunch, Czech Republic
Vietnamese food at Mango Restaurant, Nadrazni Street, Brno City, Czech Republic
Choo Chaw’s wife changing Euro dollars to Czech crowns at a money-exchange booth, Nadrazni Street, Brno, Czech Republic
Electric Trams in Brno
After lunch all the tour-members gathered at the junction of Nadrazni Street and Masarykova Street. From the junction I noticed that electric trams were a common sight along Nadrazni Street. Trams are an important means of public transport in Brno City. There are 12 tram-lines in the city and some are connected to nearby towns totalling 139 km in length. There is a bus-station along Nadrazni Street.
Nadrazni Street, a busy street, in Brno City, Czech Republic
Bus station along Nadrazni Street, Brno City, Czech Republic
Tram running along Nadrazni Street, Brno City, Czech Republic
Group Photo
After the head count, our tour manager, Joanne Wong, led us to a large cathedral, Cathedral of St, Peter and Paul, on Petrov Hill. First, we walked along Masarykova Street. Then we turned left into Kapucinske nam Street where we stopped for awhile to have a group photo taken. From that street we could see the well-known cathedral in the distance.
Masarykova Street with tram-lines, Brno City, Czech Republic
Kapucinske Street, Brno, Czech Republic
Tour group taking photo in Kapucinske Street, Brno City, Czech Republic
Market Square in Brno
Kapucinske nam Street led us to a large square, Market Square, with newly replaced cobblestone ground. Old quaint buildings surrounded the square. They had become restaurants, hotels, shops, theatres and museums.
Market Square with new cobblestone ground, Brno City, Czech Republic
Quaint buildings of shops, restaurants, hotels and museums surrounding Market Square, Brno City, Czech Republic
A large mountain in Market Square, Brno City, Czech Republic, is under repair.
Sculptures in Market Square
In the square there was a fountain which was under repair. Near the fountain was a sculpture of the Holy Trinity. Besides, there was a black sculpture of a little boy, Wolfgang A. Mozart, atop a high column in front of a theatre, Reduta Theatre, where Mozart who was 17-years old and his sister performed together in 1767.
Choo Chaw in front of Moravian Museum in Market Square, Brno City, Czech Republic
Sculpture of a boy, Wolfgang A. Mozart, in front of Reduta Theatre, Market Square, Brno City, Czech Republic
Choo Chaw’s wife in Market Square and a sculpture of the Holy Trinity in the background, Brno City, Czech Republic
Capuchin Church
Near the square there was a yellow church, Capuchin Church, decorated outside with Baroque sculptures created in 1765 and having several mummified bodies of monks and devotees in its cellar.
Capuchin Church with Barogue sculptures outside and mummified bodies in its cellar, Market Square, Brno City, Czech Republic
Cathedral of St. Peter and St. John
Walking up a slope on Petrov Hill and away from Market Square we came to a few flights of steps that led visitors to Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul. When we reached the top of the hill we saw the cathedral. It was large and old. Built in neo-Gothic architectural style at the end of the 19th. Century, it had two 84-metre high towers. Its interior retained the Baroque architectural style.
Side-view of Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Upper part of the facade of Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Lower part of the facade of Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Retreat of Swedish Army
In 1646, Brno city was saved by the cathedral’s bells which rang at 11 o’clock instead of 12 noon. Legend has it that the Swedish general, Tornstenson, would give up Brno City if it was not captured by midday. But the crafty leader of the defending army requested the bells to be rung at 11 o’clock which was one hour earlier. So the Swedish army who were fooled by the bells left Brno without capturing it. Since then the cathedral’s bells are ringing at 11 o’clock to commemorate the happy occasion.
Steps from Market Square to Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul on Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Statue of a saint at the top of the steps to Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul on Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Statue of a saint on the top of the steps to Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Sculptures outside the Cathedral
Outside the cathedral, I saw some sculptures, including two separate statues of saints at the upper part of the steps, a simple sculpture of two saints who were brothers(Cyril(826-869) and Methodius(815-885)) and Crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
Sculpture of two brothers, St. Cyril and St. Methodius, near Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Choo Chaw’s wife outside Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Sculpture of the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ outside Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Cathedral Interior
When we entered the cathedral we saw many visitors watching a drama about the life of Jesus Christ at the main altar. With my camera, I went round inside the cathedral taking some photos of the interior, statues and paintings featuring saints and Jesus Christ at small altars. The the ceiling was high and curved.
Interior of Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul with high, curved ceiling, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Baroque pulpit inside Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Visitors inside Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Petrov Hill, Brno City, Czech Republic
Altars in Cathedral
Photos of the altars in Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul are shown below:
Altar of The Cross
Altar of St. Wenceslaus
Altar of St. John, the Baptist
Three more photos of the altars in Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul are shown below:
Altar of St. Cyril and St. Methodius
Altar of St. Procopius
Altar of St. Barbara
Back to Nadrazni Street
We left Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul at 2.30 p.m. after spending a short time at the cathedral to see its structure and learn about its history. We walked back to Nadrazni Street and waited for our coach. While we were waiting at a junction some of our fellow-members bought some home-made wine from a street vendor.
Joyanne Wong, tour-manager, waiting for the remaining members to come back from Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, Brno City
Cristel, a fellow-tour member, taking a photo with a home-made wine seller, Brno City
Yvonne Lee wants to buy a bottle of home-made wine from the Czech lady, Brno City
Travel to Prague
At 3 p.m our coach arrived and took us to the next city, Prague, which is 204 km north-west of Brno. It is the capital of Czech Republic and home to about 2 million people.
Three Little Pigs Restaurant, Prague
At 6 p.m. we arrived at a restaurant in Prague City for dinner. It was known as Restaurant U Tri Prasatek or Three Little Pigs Restaurant located along Vinohradska Street.
Three Little Pigs Restaurant(U Tri Prasatek), Prague, Czech Republic
Fellow tour-members having a glass of locally-made beer, Pilsner, during dinner at Three Little Pigs Restaurant, Prague, Czech Republic
A plate of salad, chopped roasted pork and steak for dinner at Three Little Pigs Restaurant, Prague, Czech Republic
Before entering the restaurant, we were fascinated by three little, white pig-figures at the top of the entrance. They gave the name of the restaurant. At the restaurant we were served a plate of salad, chopped roasted pork and steak.
Pilsner Beer, Czech’s Beer
Some fellow-members enjoyed drinking Pilsner beer. The beer was first produced in 1842 in Plzen or Pilsen which is 90 km west of Prague in Czech Republic and takes its name from the city. It is now well-known worldwide. A Bavarian brewer, Josef Groll(1813-1887), created the beer.
Hotel Duo
After dinner we went to a hotel, Hotel Duo in the outskirt of Prague City, where we would stay for two nights.
Hotel Duo, Prague, Czech Republic
Eastern Europe Travel(13-20 October 2015):
Part II(Bratislava & Pandorf Designer Outlet)