Brno is home to 60,000 university students. It is located in the Czech province of Moravia and is the second largest city in the Czech Republic. A friend of mine called it “communism painted over in pretty colors.” I whole heartedly disagree. I found Brno to be a unique and beautiful city filled with exquisite architecture and friendly people.
Brno is also a city of interesting stories. I will share a few with you…
There are lots of churches in the Czech Republic. Everywhere you look there are Baroque churches, Gothic churches, and NeoGothic-transitional-Romanesque churches redone in the contemporary renaissance style. I guess you catch my drift. In Brno there was an architectural battle between the Czech and German churches. The Germans were frustrated by the Czech’s gaudy Baroque church dominating the Brno skyline, so they built a bigger and more modern gothic masterpiece to show up the Czechs. What makes the story funny is that the steeple of the German church prominently features an angel mooning (showing his bare bottom) the Czech church across the way. How hilarious is that?! I don’t think I’ll ever see a church with more attitude. 
The Brno town government used to be notoriously corrupt. At the Brno town hall there is this crazy sculpture over the entry way. The sculpture is crooked because the town neglected to pay the architect his promised salary. The artist intended for the sculpture to serve as a permanent reminder of how crooked the politicians of Brno were.
The town of Brno has a series of caverns that run underneath the city. Dragons are said to guard the caverns to keep people out and protect the city. As a result, the dragon is the unofficial mascot of the city. Brno is a little obsessed with Dragons. But even cooler, the city of Brno opens up the caverns and allows the public explore the caves once a year. How crazy is that? Too bad we were not in Brno that weekend!
I never knew there was a rivalry between Brno and Prague in the Czech Republic. When speaking to some Brno locals about my experience thus far in the Czech Republic, they asked me what I was doing in their city. I answered, “I’m just here to sight see.” The table of Brno locals was severely offended. I tried to explain myself, but I was completely unaware of the cultural miscommunication that just occurred. Later that day, when I was explaining what happened to an AIFS staffer, I learned of this rivalry. While the Brno vs. Prague rift is nowhere near as severe as the East Coast vs. West Coast battles of Biggie and Pac, it is still a pretty serious rivalry. The locals did not understand what I meant by “sightseeing,” as tourism is a relatively new phenomenon in the city. They thought I was belittling Brno since I currently live in Prague. Brno people are extremely proud of their city, just as they should be. I guess I know for next time… It’s just kind of a shame I did not get to convey to the locals how much I enjoyed Brno.
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