Žabovřesky Walk

A while ago I found a map for a self-guided walk of Žabovřesky at the Tourist Information Office.  Since yesterday was Labour Day so decided to get some fresh air and go for a walk.  

Žabovřesky is one of Brno city districts, next to where I live, that covers 4,35 km² (about 1.7 miles²).  It dates back to the Middle Ages.  It was an independent municipality until it was annexed to Brno in 1919.  The name translates to "Frog screams."

Kounicovy koleje are student dormitories that were built in 1922.  Following the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia, on 17 November 1939, about 200 students were taken from the dormitory and sent to Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp.  From 1940, the Gestapo used the facilities for interrogations and as a prison.  Tens of thousands of prisoners passed through the prison and at least 800 people died here.

After Brno was liberated, it became a prison for Nazis and collaborators from May to September 1945.  During this time at least 300 people died there from torture and were buried in mass graves at the Central Cemetery.    

In 1978, the dorms were declared a national cultural monument and in the garden is a memorial for the victims and to victory over Fascism.  

Since 1999, the dorms belong to the Brno University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Across the street from the dormitories is the headquarters of the Národní úřad pro kybernetickou a informační bezpečnost (NÚKIB).  The National Office for Cyber and Information Security is the central office for cybersecurity and cryptography.  NÚKIB has jurisdiction over the National Security Centre (NCKB).

Bohuslav Fuchs House was built in 1928, by the renowned architect who worked from a private studio in his villa.

In 1929, he resigned from his position as the city's main architect but continued to work from his home office.  He then connected his villa to the neighbouring house. 

Kino Lucerna is began screening films on 29 May 1915.  The single-storey Art Nouveau building still functions as a single-screen movie house.  It is the oldest operating cinema in Brno and the second oldest in Czechland.  

The Church of Our Lady Help of Christians was built in 1994 and consecrated in 1995.  The 500 seat church was built on the original site of Church of the Salesian Order.  The original church was built in 1939 but the order was banned in the 1950s by the Communist regime.

Sono Centrum is a multi-purpose facility that opened in 2016. The  "Death Star" is a nine-story building that combines a hotel, a music club, a conference hall and a restaurant.  

The Masaryk University Faculty of Law opened in 1919 and is one of four law schools in the country.  The present building opened in 1932 until 1939 when the Gestapo made it their headquarters until 1945.  Classrooms were used as cells and interrogation rooms.  Eventually the building was used by the Military Academy until after the Velvet Revolution in 1989 when it was returned to the Law Faculty. 

In 2010, a monument of former President Edvard Beneš was unveiled in front of the faculty.  The statue cost 1,6 million Kč (~$77K) and ame at the request of members of the Czechoslovak Legionnaires' Association and the Association of Czechoslovak Foreign Pilots 1939-1945.  Although not at some controversy as the Beneš Decrees played a significant role in relocating ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia after the war. This is locally know as the Brno Death March.  Later this year it will be 75 years since he passed away.

The Chapel of St. Wenceslas was built in 1906 and is dedicated to the patron saint of Czechland.  The chapel facade is a protected cultural monument and the the building was renovated in 2018.

The Dušan Jurkovič Villa was built in 1906 by one of the best 19th century architects in Central Europe.  

Wilsonův les, Wilson's Forest, is a 34,4 hectare (85 acre) forest park on the southern edge of the Žabovřesky.  In 1888 it was called Kaiserwald, the Imperial Forest, to honour Emperor Franz Joseph I who was celebrating the 40th anniversary of his reign.  In 1918, it was renamed in honour of American President Woodrow Wilson who supported the establishment of an independent Czechoslovakia.  During WWII it was called Kaiserwald again and from 1953 to 1991 it was known as Jirásek's Forest after writer Alois Jirásek.  I guess having a forest named after an American President isn't something that would have been something favoured by the Communist regime.

From the hill you get a great view of the city.

There's quite a bit to see just walking around Žabovřwsky.  Of course I supposed it couldn't be called "Frog Screams" if there wasn't some kind of frog motif.  

The art nouveau building, built in 1908, has a golden frog at the entrance.

The weather was perfect so it was great to walk around the neighbourhood all day.  Definitely need to explore some other Brno neighbourhoods as well.

Authentic Island Tour, Jersey

On Friday, I took a seven-hour bus tour around the island with Waverly Coaches.  The Authentic Island Tour was £27,50 (€32 / $34) and it was well worth it. 

The coach picked me up at my hotel in Saint Helier and in seven hours we drove all around Jersey, checking out all twelve parishes.

St. Matthew's, also called the Glass Church, is an Anglican Church in Saint Lawrence parish.  The unassuming church was built in 1840. 

In 1934, it became the "Glass Church" when a French glassmaker was commissioned to decorate the church. 

The moulds used were destroyed after they completion so there is nothing similar in world by artist René Lalique.  

Battery Lothringen is a WWII artillery battery at the top of Noirmont Point in Saint Brélade parish.  It was built in 1941 by the Germans to defend against the Allies when the Channel Islands were occupied.

There's a memorial stone for the men and women of Jersey who perished in the war from 1939 - 1945.

The site overlooks la Tour de Vinde that the British built in 1915.

Janvrin's Tower, also known as Janvrin's Tomb, was built by the British in 1808 on Île au Guerdain in Portent Bay in Saint Brélade Parish.

The beach at Saint Brelade's Bay is one of the island's most popular.  Even in November, it felt so good to be on the beach.

Next to the bay is the St. Brelade Parish Church.  The church dates back to around the 12th century.  

Next to the church is the medieval Fisherman's Chapel.

The Corbière lighthouse was built in 1874.  There's a causeway from the shore to the lighthouse at low tide.

Near the lighthouse is a sculpture commemorating the 1995 rescue of the Saint-Malo catamaran.  On 17 April 1995, a French catamaran was sailing form Jersey to Sark when it hit a rock.  Nearby ships came to the aid and all 307 passengers and crew were rescued.

There are also more German defensive positions that once made up the Atlantic Wall during the war.

The seven-story German observation tower was converted in 2004 to the island's only self-catering holiday accommodation.

The Channel Islands Military Museum is housed in a German bunker.  We only drove past the museum as it's not one of the tours designated stops.  It wouldn't have mattered as the museum closed in November and won't open for the tourist season until April.

In Saint Ouen parish we stopped at Jersey Pearl for a lunch break.  They café was quite good and there was enough time for a short walk out to the beach.  

I didn't have any interest in buying pearls but one interesting thing was a replica of the pearl jacket and dress worn by Princess Diana which sold at a charity auction in 1996 for $151,000.   

After lunch it was on to Grosnez Castle on the north-west corner of the island.  It was built in 1330 to provide local farmers with protection fro the French at the start of the Hundred Years' War.  It has been in ruins since the mid-16th century.

At the St. Ouen parish church is a memorial for Louisa Gould who during the Nazi occupation, took in a hid an escaped Russian POW for 18 months.  

She was caught and sent to the Ravensbrück concentration camp, 90 km (56 miles) north of Berlin.  She was gassed and died in 1945 just two months before the camp was liberated.

In 2010 she was posthumously honoured as a British Hero of the Holocaust.  Her story was the inspiration for the film Another Mother's Son.

We later stopped off at Gorey Harbour, in Saint Martin parish, for a tea break.  Above the village is the Mont Orgueil Castle, also simply called Gorey Castle, which was built from 1204 to 1450.  It was the island's main fortress until Elizabeth Castle was built in 1594.  

I suppose that no visit to Jersey is complete without coming across a Jersey cow.  This tour ticked that box too.

I was surprised that we got to see as much as we did.  There were a few times that the tour guide provided some cultural references which were lost on me.  

I did have to chuckle when one elderly English guy asked me what my native language is.  He seemed shocked when I said 'English'.  Good times.

Slovak National Uprising

The Slovak National Uprising, Slovenské národné povstanie, usually just abbreviated as SNP, was a revolt organised by the Slovak resistance during WWII.  It lasted from 29 August to 28 October 1944.  Here's what happened...

Romania had been an Axis ally of Nazi Germany and the Slovak puppet state but on 23 August 1944, it switched sides and joined the Allies.  On 28 August, in Martin, a group of partisans killed 24 German soldiers that were returning from Romania.  So the next day, Germany essentially invaded and took over Slovakia.

The next day, on 29 August, an uprising started in Banská Bystrica to resist the Germany occupation and to overthrow the puppet state and to re-establish Czechoslovakia.

The uprising's headquarters were in Banská Bystrica which is about halfway between the country's cities.  It's 208 km (129 miles) from Bratislava and 217 km (135 miles) from Košice.

On 5 September, Ján Golian was given the rank of General and became commander of all of the rebel forces in Slovakia.

Many groups fought in the uprising - units of the Slovak Army, democratic resistance, communist partisans, and some international forces.  However, it the end it wasn't able to overthrow the government due to bad timing of the uprising and a lack of support from the Soviet Union.  

On 3 November 1944, General Golian was captured and sent to the Flossenbürg concentration camp in Bavaria.  He was officially listed as missing for two years after the war but it is believed that he was tortured and murdered in Flossenbürg.

While the uprising was put down by the Germans, resistance continued until the Red Army, Czechoslovak Army and Romanian Army occupied Slovakia in 1945.

SNP Square in Bratislava

In Slovakia, 29 August is a public holiday to commemorate the Anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising.  There are many streets and parks across the country that are named after SNP.

In 1955, the SNP Museum opened in Banská Bystrica.  Here's a video I found on YouTube about it.

©Govisty & Tipnatrip

Banská Bystrica has actually been on my list of places to visit.  I've heard that it's a lovely small town in central Slovakia and worth a weekend visit.  Now I need to make sure that check out the museum whenever I eventually go check it out.