Dům U Tří Knížat

Dům U Tří Knížat, "The House of the Three Princes", is a historic building in Brno's city centre. 

The gothic cellars date back to the 14th century.  The house above was rebuilt and expanded over the yeas with the current building from the 19th century.

There was an older building, U Tří knížat, that was located nearby.  The older building was demolished in 1874 but locals kept using the name and it became associated with the new building.

The building is both a commercial and residential building.  Yesterday we stopped by for a burčák.  

The building is also home to the honorary Polish consulate.

Gliwice, Poland

Gliwice is located in southern Poland, about 25 km (16 miles) west of Katowice.  The city was founded in 1250 and it's home to just over 180.000 people.  Gliwice is one of the oldest cities in Upper Silesia, is an important industrial centre and a university town.  On Friday evening, we hopped on a train for a weekend away.

Gliwice where is WWII began.  Prior to the war, the city was called Gleiwitz and it was a part of Germany.  On 31 August 1939, German SS officers, wearing Polish military uniforms, commode a false-flag attack on the radio station.  Nazi Germany used this as an excuse to invade Poland the next day which was the start of WWII.

The Gliwice Radio Tower is the world's last wooden radio tower.  It is 118 metres (387 feet) tall and it is part of a local museum and a registered historic monument.

The Market Square dates back to the late 13th century making it one of the oldest medieval squares in Upper Silesia.

In the centre of the square is the neoclassic town hall and a fountain.  Around the square are a number of restaurants and cafes.

Saint Bartholomew's Church dates back to the late 1200s.  It was rebuilt in the 15th century and expanded in the 16th and 17th centuries.

The Christ the King Church is a Catholic Church that was consecrated in 1935.

The All Saints Church was built in the late 15th to early 16th century.  The exterior is Gothic and the interior is Baroque.  The tower is about 63 metres (207 feet) tall.

The Church of the Holy Cross is a Baroque era parish church that was built in 1623.  It is part of a monastery complex and is a registered cultural heritage monument.

The Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a wooden church that was built in 1493.  It was moved to its current location in 1925, near an old German cemetery. 

At Starokozielski Park is the Memorial Sarcophagus of French Soldiers.  It is a war memorial for 71 French soldiers who died while serving in Upper Silesia in 1920-1922 following WWI.

The Jews House of Remembrance is a branch of the Gliwice Museum focused on the history of the Jews in Upper Silesia.  The building was completed in 1903 and located next to an old Jewish cemetery.

There are over 600 tombstones in the cemetery.

Back in 1929 there were approximately 2.200 Jews in Gliwice.  Only 25 survived WWII with all of them being in mixed marriages with gentiles.

The Red Army Cemetery was established in 1951.  

There are about 2500 Soviet soldiers buried here.

The Weichmann Textile House was built in 1922.  It was built as a textile and department store.  In 1988it was designated as a historic monument.

The 19th century Chopin Park is home to the municipal Palm House, one of the country's largest.  

The brick water tower was built in 1918.

Vila Caro was built in 1885 for a local industrialist.  Today it is a museum.

Piast Castle was built in the mid-1300s.  Today it is part of the city museum.

The Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul was completed in 1900.  The church became a cathedral in 1992.

Gliwice has a street art scene and we found an industrial area that was full of various murals.

We enjoyed our little Polish city break weekend.  Well worth the trip.

The Tatra Mountains

Tomorrow we're headed to Tatranská Lomnica, in the High Tatras, in northern Slovakia.  Visiting the Tatras has been on my list for a while so I'm looking forward to doing a bit of hiking.  We're going to meet his dad and sister who are already there.  I'm still not 100% over the jet lag from our USA trip but I'll manage.

The Tatras are the highest mountains in the Carpathians and form a natural border between Slovakia and Poland.  Many of the Rocky Mountains exceed 2000 metres (+6,500 feet) tall.  There are three main parts: the High Tatras, Belianské Tatras, and the Western Tatras.  

The Tatras take up 785 sq km (303 sq miles) with about 78% in Slovakia and about 22% in Poland.  The Tatras are basically the "Slovakian Alps" and a favourite place for hiking and skiing.  

The mountains were a problem for hikers back in the day because it was illegal to cross the border without going through an official border checkpoint and there weren't any checkpoints on the border ridge.  At least until 2007, when both Slovakia and Poland joined Schengen and internal border checks became a thing of the past.

There's a Tatra National Park in Slovakia and a Tatra National Park in Poland.  And both are part of the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves.

I hope that we survive.  Slovaks love to joke about Czechs getting lost, or needing to be rescued, in the Tatras.  Usually because Czechs took the wrong equipment, wrong clothes or wrong shoes.  One joke is that the world's biggest Czech cemetery, outside of Czechland, is called the High Tatras.

2022 World Happiness Report

This year is the 10th anniversary of the World Happiness Report. by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network of the United Nations.  The report factors in things like gross domestic product per capita, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make choices, perceived corruption and social support from friends and family. 

For the fifth year in a row, Finland came in first place.

Scandinavia did well as usual with the five countries all placing in the top eight places.  Finland #1, Denmark #2, Iceland #3, Sweden #7 and Norway #8.

Switzerland placed #4.

The BeNeLux countries did well too with the Netherlands #5, Luxembourg #6, and Belgium #19.

Europe is the happiest region with the eight of the top ten spots.  The only non-European countries to crack the top ten are Israel #9 and New Zealand #10.

The USA placed #16 and Czechland placed #18.

Czechland continues to be the happiest of the Visegrád Four with Slovakia #35, Poland #48, and Hungary #51.

Last place goes to Afghanistan, behind Botswana, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, and Lebanon.

Czechs Ban Russian Tourists

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Czech Republic was the first EU country to stop issuing visas to Russian citizens except for humanitarian cases.  Czechland is now stepping things up and as of 25 October, that even with a valid Schengen visa, Russian citizens will not be allowed in the country for tourism, sport or culture.  It's not clear if Russian citizens, with a valid visa, will be granted entry for business purposes.

Citizens of Russian that have a valid Czech residency visa will still be granted entry.

Vladimir Putin's announcement of partial mobilisation has caused many people to try to leave Russia before they are drafted to fight in Ukraine.  People fighting the Russian government or human rights activists are among the exceptional cases that qualify for a humanitarian visa.  The Czech Foreign Minister, Jan Lipavský, has said that Russians who fear mobilisation don't fulfil the conditions for a humanitarian visa in Czechland.  

The European Commission says that it is up to each EU country to decide if they will accept Russian citizens in to their country.  Finland, Poland, and the Baltic countries
- Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, like Czechland, don't grant asylum to people fleeing Russian military mobilisation.  However, Germany will allow Russians fleeing military conscription. 

Here's a short video that I found on YouTube about Estonia not issuing visas to Russians.

©France24

Here's a Voice of America interview with the Czech Foreign Minister on the subject.

©Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Я за Україну. Я за Україною. Слава Україні  Stojím za Ukrajinou!  I stand with Ukraine. 

Eurocorps

My 2000th blog post.  I can't believe that I've been at this for over 13 years or that people still seem interested in my Czechland adventure.  Thank you to everyone who continues to follow along.

Eurocorps is a European army, of about 60.000 troops, that can be deployed on very short notice.  It was founded in 1992 by France and Germany and it went operational in 1995.  This month it celebrates its 30th anniversary.  Eurocorps' headquarters are in Strasbourg, France.
Eurocorps is at the service of the EU and NATO and in 2002, it was certified as one of NATO's nine High Readiness Land Headquarters.  Eurocorps considers requests for support from the UN and OSCE.  It can also be deployed at the request of the framework nations.

There are six framework nations - France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain, and Poland.  

Any EU country can join with the unanimous approval of the framework countries.  There are also five associated nations - Austria, Greece, Türkiye, Italy, and Romania. 

Finland was an associated member from 2002 - 2006 and Canada was from 2003 - 2007.  Czech Republic isn't a member but I believe that they have participated is some military exercises with Eurocorps in the past.  I'm not aware of Czechland having any plans to join. 

Eurocorps has participated in peacekeeping missions in the Balkans as part of SFOR in Bosnia and Herzegovina and KFOR in Kosovo.  It was deployed to Afghanistan as part of the UN's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).  It's even been deployed to Africa as part of EU training missions in Mali and the Central African Republic.

Poland became the newest framework member this year in January.  From 2023-2025, a Polish general will take command of Eurocorps.  With all of the support Poland has given Ukraine during the Russian invasion, I'm sure that Russia isn't thrilled with Poland soon to lead Eurocorps.

What's interesting to me Austria and Türkiye being associate members.  Türkiye is a member of NATO but not the EU so until it actually becomes an EU member, if ever, then it can't be one of the framework nations.  Austria's constitution prohibits it form entering into military alliances.  So I guess that by being an associate member it can participate in Eurocorps without violating its constitution, in the same way that it is a member of NATO's Partnership for Peace programme without being a NATO member.

Here's a France24 video I found on YouTube from 2009 that talks about Eurocorps.

©France24

Frontex

Frontex is the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.  Frontex comes from the French words frontières extérieures, which means "external borders."

Frontex is an EU agency that was established in 2004 as the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders.  Due to the migrant crisis in Europe in 2015-2016, its role expanded to became the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.  In 2021, the European Border and Coast Guard standing corps was launched which is the EU's first uniformed service.  The corps expects to have 10.000 personnel by 2027. 

Frontex is headquartered in Warsaw.  The agency reports to the European Parliament and the European Council. 

Here's a just over 5½-minute video about what all the agency does.

©Frontex

Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, almost 5,65 million refugees have fled Ukraine and arrived in EU countries, especially Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania.  Moldova isn't part of the EU but has also seen many Ukrainian refugees arrive.

Frontex has deployed 520 standing corps to countries to help them with the influx of refugees.  They have also organised humanitarian flights to help non-Ukrainian citizens who were in Ukraine make it back safely to their home countries.

Я за Україну. Я за Україною. Слава Україні  Stojím za Ukrajinou!  I stand with Ukraine. 

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organisation.  It even has observer status as the United Nations.  It began in 1973 as a forum between the west and the east during the Cold War.  The OSCE focuses on arms control, promotion of human rights, freedom of the press, and free and fair elections.  

Its headquarters are in Vienna and today the OSCE consists of 57 participating countries plus 11 observer/partner countries.  The six official languages are English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, and Russian. 

It's basically every country in Europe plus the USA and Canada.  The 11 partner countries are Afghanistan, Australia, Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Morocco, South Korea, Thailand, and Tunisia. 

Each year a different country assumes the chairmanship for a calendar year and that country's minister of foreign affairs is the Chairperson-in-Office.  Czechoslovakia held the chairmanship in 1992.  An independent Czechland hasn't held the chairmanship yet but Slovakia held it in 2019.  

The chairmanship is with Poland this year.  North Macedonia has it next year followed by Estonia in 2024 and Finland in 2025.

Here's a short video I found out on YouTube about the OSCE.

©The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe

Nat's Coming to Help

Well Natalie is on her way back to Europe but it's not for something good.  Well, she will do some good but the reason for her coming isn't good.  Natalie is part of the New Zealand Red Cross and they are sending her as part of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) team supporting people affected by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

I know that the IFRC has to be politically neutral so their stance is that they are helping people affected by the conflict in Ukraine.  I still say that they are helping people affected by Putin's invasion of a sovereign country.

So Natalie is headed to Budapest, Hungary to start her assignment.  I'm sure that she will end up in Poland, Slovakia, Romania, and maybe even Moldova.  Not so sure that she'll go to Ukraine but who knows?  I don't know how long she will be here because thanks to Brexit, her UK passport no longer gives her unlimited time in Schengen so I guess the max is 180 days.

Here's the New Zealand press release about her deployment.

Our second international delegate is on her way to join the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) team supporting people affected by the conflict in Ukraine.

Natalie is travelling to Budapest where she'll be focusing on the distribution of multipurpose cash support to the most vulnerable people.  Cash assistance provides funds for displaced people to buy the essentials they need, which could include rent assistance for housing.  Natalie will be working for the IFRC and Red Crescent Societies as part of the New Zealand Red Cross International Delegate Programme.

She will be travelling around the countries bordering Ukraine to help Red Cross teams assist people who have fled the conflict zones.

"I'll be focused on the data and systems side of the cash and voucher programme - helping ensure the cash support is going to where it's needed most," says Natalie.

Natalie has a background in information management.  She's part of the New Zealand Red Cross IT and Telecommunications Emergency Response Unit and has previously deployed to Indonesia and the Pacific. Recently, she has worked for the IFRC in Switzerland on the global COVID-19 response.

International Delegates are trained technical experts who provide humanitarian assistance and contribute to saving lives, alleviating suffering and maintaining human dignity in conflict and disaster zones.

We are so proud of our favourite Kiwi!!  Stay safe Nat!!

Я за Україну. Я за Україною. Слава Україні  Stojím za Ukrajinou!  I stand with Ukraine. 

Я за Україну

Я за Україну is Ukrainian for "I stand with Ukraine."  Two days ago Russia invaded Ukraine almost eight years after it occupied Crimea.

Vladimir Putin is calling this a "special military operation" but he can call it whatever he likes but he's really declared war on Ukraine.  He invaded Ukraine in 2014 by annexing Crimea and his actions in the Donbas, and now with this full on invasion there is no doubt that he has invaded a sovereign country, the second-largest country in Europe.

In response, Czechland was the first EU country to stop issuing visas to Russian citizens, with the exception of humanitarian cases.  The Czech government has ordered that Russia must close its consulates in Brno and Karlovy Vary.  The Czechs are also suspending their consulates in St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg.  Along with other countries, Czech airspace is closed to Russian aircraft.  In response, Russia had closed its airspace to Czech flights.

Czech Railways is permitting free travel throughout the country to anyone with a Ukrainian passport.  They are also running humanitarian trains to the Ukrainian-Polish and Ukrainian-Slovak borders where they drop off supplies and bring refugees back here.  Many Czech cities, including Brno, are providing free public transport to Ukrainians.  Vodafone and T-mobile are providing free calls to Ukraine.

Czech President Zeman, who has always been very pro-Russia, has changed his stance and condemned Putin for invading Ukraine.  

Russia's annexation of Crimea hits a never for most Czechs because it is similar to when Hitler annexed the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia.

After WW2, there was an agreement that both American and Soviet troops would leave the country.  So Czechoslovakia was the only eastern block country where Soviet troops didn't remain after the war.  Then in 1968, the Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact allies, invaded Czechoslovakia to put an end to the Prague Spring.  When they invaded in 1968, the Soviets said they were only staying temporarily.  That turned out to be 23 years.  

After the Velvet Revolution, one of the goals of the new government was to get the Soviet army out of Czechoslovakia.  The Soviets had over 73.000 soldiers, 18.500 officers and their families, plus over 44.000 civilians, stationed here and they were in no hurry to leave.  Logistically the Soviets didn't have enough facilities to take back all of their troops from all of its satellite countries at the same time.  The last troops didn't leave Czechoslovakia until 1991.

It was pretty much the same in other countries.  Soviet troops left Hungary in 1991 and they left Poland in 1993, 54 years after they invaded in 1939.  Soviet troops had been stationed in East Germany.  Germany reunified in 1990 but they didn't leave Germany until 1994.

I've got Covid and I'm home on quarantine.  It seems that all I can do is watch the news which is 24/7 coverage of what's going on in Ukraine.  Here's a 32 minute video on YouTube that really shows why Putin invaded Ukraine.  #standwithukraine 

©RealLifeLore

Я за Україну. Я за Україною. Слава Україні  Stojím za Ukrajinou!  I stand with Ukraine.