Liamaniacs!

August 24, 2006

Brno, Czech Republic. Part 3

As everyone knows, I am running slightly behind schedule. I have back-posting to do from the Sachsenring race in Germany, and more from California, as well - including the "Computer Chronicles"! I think the best thing for me to do is continue telling the story of Brno, then bouncing back to Germany and the USA in the coming week. I had a great farewell dinner last night with my old roomate, Mario, along with his girlfriend, Thoci, Daniel, and Hiro, and several of us plan to hit the beach later today (in the interest of saying goodbye to BCN for Mario, who is moving with Thoci to Madrid this weekend).

One week ago I was working hard in Brno, and let me tell you, it was great to be "back in the saddle" again! Here are some photos I took on Tuesday evening. I left my apartment in BCN around 5AM to catch a flight that would take me to Marseille, then Prague, and finally to Brno. Five of us took some taxi's to the hotel and then we had some free time to explore the city and soak in a little of the culture.

Driving in, the first thing you notice is the large castle/cathedral in the center of town. Like many medievil spots, it is located on a hill and served as the chief lookout point for incoming attacks.

Although the Czech Republic is no longer Communist, there is still a heavy vibe among the people, and they stared at us as if we were alien creatures who had too much money (If only they knew the truth, haha). The streets seem to aim at towards the center of town, so we headed for the church to get a better view. I was pretty wiped out from several days of travel, and the constant harassment at the airport security check points. I just wanted some coffee and a serious nap - as in a couple day's worth of sleep!

When I got this close, I gave up because I would have had to walk around a huge museum and I just didn't feel like it was a smart idea to be poking around a strange city at night . . . . .

Nice, clean, old-style buildings line the streets.

But there is still new growth happenning, as evidenced by this modern parking garage. Parking on the street is dangerous at night because of the high crime rate, and parking in the hotel's underground area was unusually expensive.

Here's a neat shot of the garage. Not only did you need a security passcard (with barcode that changed daily), but the garage was protected by dual doors. They opened simultaneously, one sliding to the side, and the second one raising up. Very Bat-Cave-like. Too cool, but at the same time, kind of sad.

Just another shot of Brno. Can't remember what building this is, but it's stately.

Mega bonus points if you can figure out what this is. Some mafia type dudes were rolling around in it, and I barely had time to get a shot (discreetly, of course).

Many of the bars/clubs are downstairs. . . . and if you're in the area I Highly recommend the The Mandarin and the two spots right around the corner. You can't miss them on a weekend - there are tons of people going in. . . . .

Down, down we go!!

Check out the cool Red Bull mini-fridge. I don't know why, but I find things like this really neat. I wish I had a tiny one like this in my apartment back in BCN, for diet Cokes - or as they say in Spain, Coca Cola Light.

What kind of trinkets were we shopping for? Moto-goodies!!! I didn't trust any of the prices on anything, because there were signs all over for 20% off, discounts, you name it. Everything seemed to be up for bargaining, and because we were foreigners who didn't speak the language, I knew we'd get screwed. Not like I'm shopping for anything, anyway. About this time we got back together with the whole team and went out to eat. . . . . you guessed it, Italian food!

More stuff to come, like always.

Moto,
Liam

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