My Abundance of Breakfast Friends

I began my nomadic adventure exploring Europe in October 2014. I recently realized that breakfast is my favorite meal when I visit local cafes. Not only is it my favorite meal but it also has become almost an obsession in what I eat. While in different cafes I have met some very interesting personalities who have helped me understand and appreciate their respective cultures. This story is about my breakfast obsession and the friends I have made as I have crossed Europe and found several mouth-watering breakfast delights.

Continue reading “My Abundance of Breakfast Friends”

Dateline May 6, 1945 – Plzen, Bohemia

unnamed-3aDateline May 6, 1945, Plzen, Czechoslovakia. Over the past five and a half years Plzen (Pilsen) in the Bohemia region of Czechoslovakia has been oppressed under the boot of NAZI German rule. Today, General Patton’s United States’ Third Army liberated Plzen. Czechs, young and old, greeted American soldiers by waving the stars and stripes as American tanks thundered into the city.

Occupying forces of the Third Reich, Czech conspirators, and NAZI sympathizers are being rounded up. Remnants of NAZI German snipers are being cleared out and life is returning to normal. 

Continue reading “Dateline May 6, 1945 – Plzen, Bohemia”

Brno Snowfall Reminds Me of Home

img_7635The first real snowfall of the season occurred this week in Brno, Czech Republic. Granted, the snowfall was just a dusting of maybe four inches. As it fell, the view of Špilberk Castle disappeared from my apartment’s picture glass window. Snow covered the branches of the trees and I reminisced about this time of year when winter snowfall would come to Somerset, my hometown in Western Pennsylvania in the United States

I have always thought of January differently than other months. It is a bleak time of year. Yes, the daylight hours are increasing but January also has penetrating cold and blustery winds. It is time when one’s exhaled breath drifts away in a cloud of steam. It follows the celebrations of Christmas and New Years and it seems to me to be a time for resting and recovery from them. By a burning fireplace seems to be the place of comfort.

Continue reading “Brno Snowfall Reminds Me of Home”

“Look Up” – My Brno Exploration

heads-2
Holding the Building on Their Backs

Happy New Year, everyone. I hope you have a wonderful 2017 and have begun to work to achieve all of your personal goals for the year.

Today is a cold New Year’s Day and the streets in Brno, Czech Republic (a.k.a. Czechia) are almost empty. I had the opportunity to wander around and “look up” to enjoy the architectural beauty designed into many of the center city buildings.

Continue reading ““Look Up” – My Brno Exploration”

Medieval Dragon Legend and Brno Tradition

obolysk
Snowy Christmas Day at the Napoleonic Wars Memorial

A few years ago I traveled to the Czech Republic city of Brno. Within a few blocks of my apartment the story of the past 900 years of this part of the world is preserved… not only in stone but also in legends and the cultural traditions of the people there.

Brno is located north of Vienna, Austria. It is a small city of about 500,000 people and is accessible by trains and busses that run between Vienna and Prague. Many tourists just see Brno as a waypoint between these more famous places. Little did I know when I initially arrived that I would find myself staying in Brno’s old town for seven months including a frigid, blustery winter. Living in Brno provided me with a different perspective than a tourist may get.

This blog story is based on a small geographic portion of the city… my neighborhood… and the legends, history and traditions that are preserved there.

Continue reading “Medieval Dragon Legend and Brno Tradition”