November 26, 2012

Today was a travel day, from Zurich to Geneva. This means traveling nearly the full length of Switzerland and passing through and around part of the Swiss Alps. The trip itself was uneventful and unfortunately, there was very little opportunity for sight seeing as the weather was cloudy and rainy and you do pass through the Alps (by tunnel). Once we reached the shores of Lake Geneva, it was difficult to separate the cloud from the lake as both were grey. Oh well, it's winter and to be expected. Getting to my hotel was straight forward and I'm settled in having done a little exploring to get my bearings and visit the supermarket to get supplies. Tomorrow I'm of to C.E.R.N. (the European center for Nuclear Research), the home of the Large Hadron Collider, the world's most powerful"atom smasher".

November 24, 2012

This was my first full day in Zurich. In afternoon I had a guided tour around Zurich booked but my hotel has provided a map that shows a suggested walking tour of the city so I decided to head into town and follow the walking tour for as long as I can before I have to get to the meeting point for the tour. To help out with this I purchased a 24 hour pass for the trams so that I can hop on and off as needed during the day. The walk started from the Hauptbahnhof or Central Railway station, and after crossing the river Limmat (which flows out of Lake Zurich towards the Rhine) the walk headed into the little alleyways and squares of Zurich. This area is not the oldest part of town (that's on the other side of the river where the Romans established a settlement that grew to become Zurich) but it is quaint and historic and fun to walk through. You might be walking through a narrow street and suddenly you emerge into a small square which has a fountain in the middle. This is not just for decoration, it's also for a drinking water supply, as I have discovered in other cities as well. On at least one occasion on this walk as I was taking a picture an individual came out of a nearby store and filled their water bottle from the fountain. Altogether I spent about three hours wandering around in these lanes and alleyways and, eventually, along the river front to Bellevue Platz before heading off to join the tour.

The lanes and alleys have a character all their own.

And suddenly you emerge into a small neighborhood square.

Churches are tucked into neighborhoods as well.

Some squares feature elaborate fountains that have (and still do) served as a source of drinking water.

Some squares are larger and more elaborate and serve as "greenspace".

The notation on this building lists the families and, in some cases individuals, who have lived in it in the past.

While I was setting up this shot, someone came out of a store on the square to fill a water bottle.

The river Limmat which flows out of lake Zurich. The steeple belongs to the Fraumunster church.

This is the Grossmunster church, the largest church in Zurich.

One of the issues with a bus tour is that you never really have enough time to explore each place visited. You're in and out on a fixed schedule and there's only just enough time to see the important stuff. As I had a second day in Zurich I used the bus tour to pick out a few places to come back to the next day by walking and using the trams. The bus tour also started at the Hauptbahnhof and initially traveled around the outskirts of the area I had been walking through in the morning. Then we went up the hill behind Zurich and passed the two universities located in Zurich (revisited), back down the hill and over to the Fraumunster church. There we were shown some amazing stained glass windows by Marc Chagall (no pictures allowed!!). Back on the bus, and down Bahnhofstrasse (revisited) and on to a lakeside park for a beautiful view across the lake to the Zurich waterfront. Then we headed out of town for a place called Felsenegg which is located on a ridgetop that overlooks Lake Zurich and the town of Zurich. It is reached by cable car followed by a short walk along the ridge to the lookout and restaurant. The view towards Zurich is great but looking in the other direction you can see the Alps. Unfortunately, it was overcast so the view was not as spectacular as it can be but at least we could see them and the view was quite good. Once back at the bus again, we drove down to a ferry crossing point to cross over the lake for the drive back to Zurich along what is known as the Gold Coast. After a qucik trip through another part of town that was on the way back to the Hauptbahnhof the tour finished up where it started.

Looking up Lake Zurich with the Alps in the distance.

Looking across lake Zurich to the city.

 

The Grossmunster church from across the Limmat river.

 

The three windows visible in this picture of the Fraumunster church were done by Marc Chagall. There is a fourth window on the right side of this part of the church.

 

Looking across the Limmat from the Fraumunster church.

The restaurant at Felsenegg. There is a large recreation area here and the restaurant serves as the starting point for the walking trails that lace the area.

The view towards Zurich from Felsenegg.

The view towards the Alps from Felsenegg.

This picture and the following were taken from the ferry as we crossed Lake Zurich on the return journey to Zurich from Felsenegg.

Before heading back to the hotel I went shopping at the Hauptbahnhof. You may wonder why but in Europe the main station, and many of the smaller stations, are built under or over a shopping complex and Zurich was no different. Particularly, I wanted to visit the supermarket in the center to stock up on supplies for breakfast and supper. The hotel will give me breakfast but for the money they charge I can do much better on my own either by eating at cafes or by getting supplies at a supermarket. I have generally been doing the later unless breakfast is specifically included in the room rate.

November 25, 2012

Today is Sunday so Zurich is relatively quiet early in the morning. I headed out relatively early to catch the city in a quiet time. My first goal was to get up to the two university campuses which sit side-by-side. Behind the buildings is a publicly accessible terrace with great views over the older sections of town. Both universities are well respected with a substantial list of noted graduates - Both claim Einstein and Roentgen as graduates and Pauli and Schrodinger were both professors in Zurich at one time. The views were as good as I had hoped but what really got my attention was the church bells. Over a period of about 15 minutes first one then another would start to peal sometimes consecutively, and on one occasion, concurrently. I just sat on a bench and listened to the bells ringing out.

The view from the terrace behind the university buildings.

Once the bells stopped I headed back down the hill and into the alleyways again, taking a different route with no particular destination in mind for the moment. Eventually, I arrived back at the river so continued up the river to the bridge that spans the mouth of the river as it flows out of Lake Zurich. From there I picked up the walking tour I had begun yesterday which now took me along the waterfront, past the City Hall, to the Fraumunster Church.

I thought the decorations on this building were interesting.

 

This is the Water church, so called because it used to be on an island in the Limmat until the channel was filled. It is affiliated with the Grossmunster church.

This statue of Ulrich Zwingle, a major figure in the Reformation sits in front of the Water church. He was associated with both this church and the Grossmunster church.

At this point you start to notice that there is a distinct change in the type of shops that start to line the little streets of the are. This is the oldest part of town and it has also become some of the most expensive. Several streets away from the river is Bahnhofstrasse. This is one of the most expensive streets in the world to shop on with all the big name, expensive stores/brands located along the 1 km or so stretch of street from the lake to the railway station. I walked along this street for a couple of blocks before heading back towards the river through the very oldest part of town.

Bahnhofstrasse, one of the most expensive shopping streets in the world.

 
Eventually I emerged in the square adjacent to St Peter's Church which has the largest clock face in Europe (2.55 meters diameter) in the steeple. Interestingly, the steeple is actually owned by the city while the rest of the building belongs to to the church. From here it was a short climb up to Lindenhof, the site of the Roman fort and customs post. While the hill is not particularly high it does afford good views across the river and towards the lake. Then, back down the hill and to the river once more and onto another bridge across the Limmat.

The clock face on the steeple of St peter's church, the largest in Europe at 2.5 meters.

 

A street view in the old part of town; St Peter's steeple in the background.

This restaurant/bar proclaims that Goethe and two other poet/philosopher contemporaries met here in 1779. It's tucked away in a little square near St Peters church in the old town.

 

The view from the Lindenhof hill across the Limmat.

 

This is the main building of the Polytechnic university, again from the Lindenhof hill.

We passed this church early in the bus tour and I revisited it the day after.

The Lindenhof hill, the site of the original Roman settlement and fort.

 

The view from the riverbank near the bridge where I sat eating roasted chestnuts.

There was a roasted chestnut stand by the bridge and I decided to sample these again. I had previously tried them in Innsbruck but I suspect those were not roasted well as they were nowhere near as good as these in Zurich. The last photo was taken from the bridge as I was sitting on a bench eating the warm chestnuts. It seemed a fitting end to my stay in Zurich.

 Doc

Brno

There is one overriding reason for coming to Brno – it was the professional home of Gregor Mendel and the Augustinian Monastery in Brno was where he lived and worked. After the fun and games (!) involved in getting from Berlin to Prague, the trip from Prague to Brno was very tame. The only difficulty was actually finding the penzione at the Monastery where I was to stay. It is tucked away behind the Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady, the cathedral associated with the monastery. Fortunately, the directions provided by the penzione provided enough detail (and a picture of the entrance) so that I could get close to the entrance and there I found a sign pointing to the entrance. The penzione is located in an unused wing of the monastery and the rooms are converted cells that the monks used to use. It is very comfortable and very quiet and a pleasant place to stay. And, of course, it’s very handy to the Mendel Museum.

The Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady with the Abbey of St Thomas to the left. The penzione is located behind the Basilica to the right.

The Penzione

 Day 1: In my brief wanderings looking for the penzione I had discovered the entrance to the monastery compound which contains the Mendel Museum. The Museum is actually maintained by Masaryk University as a part of the University and as such is separate from the Monastery. It is possible to get a separate tour of the Monastery but you need to pre-arrange for this tour, something I did not find out until after I arrived so I was unable to see the monastery other than from outside. However, the museum is open to the public 6 days a week (it’s closed on Mondays, which is true of many museums and galleries in Europe) and has a separate entrance in the monastery grounds.

The first thing you see when you enter the monastery grounds is the foundations of Mendel’s greenhouse in the grass quadrangle. This was built by Mendel’s mentor (and the man he followed as abbot of the monastery) C. F. Napp. The remaining grass areas in the quadrangle formed the gardens where Mendel grew his peas. At the far end of the quadrangle is a statue of Mendel that had originally been erected in Mendel Square outside the monastery in 1910 but was relocated to the monastery grounds when it was threatened with being knocked down. 

The grass quadrangle of the monastery with the greenhouse foundations visible.

Another view of the greenhouse foundations.

The open areas of the quadrangle are where Mendel maintained his experimental gardens.

The architectural drawings for the greenhouse. This was a large structure by the standards of the day and well equipped with heating and cooling systems which were largely unheard of at the time.

This statue was erected in Mendel Square which lies immediately outside the monastery, It was moved to this location much later to protect it.

The museum display does a really nice job of laying out the background to Mendel’s genetics research – it was not a random project but was intended to have direct benefit to the monastery. It also provides a fairly detailed description of Mendel’s life and his education. There is an extended explanation of his experiments and what the results mean. They have on display several pages from his notebooks with his original results written in pencil in his own hand. Interestingly, one of the displayed pages has results on one side and notes about monastery affairs on the neighboring page. Also displayed are some of Mendel’s tools – his microscope, a box of plant specimens – and copies of the papers he published outlining his results. 

The monks of the monastery during Mendel's time. He is standing second from the right holding a fuchsia, the floral symbol of the monastery

This furniture is typical of the furniture used by the monks.

Seed orders made by Mendel.

Mendel's experimental notes.

More experimental notes on the left. Notes about monastery business on the right.

Mendel's paper, published in 1866, describing his results. It was based on two talks he gave in 1865.

The English translation of the 1866 paper. Mendel did communicate with other scientists of his day about his results, including Charles Darwin. Almost all could not comprehend his results and conclusions, consequently his work was "lost" for many years.

A specimen box that belonged to the monastery and was used by Mendel in his teaching.

Mendel's microscope.

What most people may not realize (I did not) is that Mendel made other contributions to science. He originally described himself as a meteorologist and he kept extensive, and long-term, records of the weather in Brno, even publishing these records. He was also likely the first person to scientifically describe a tornado in a published paper. And after his pea experiments, he tried to apply his principles to improving honey production in bees, building a bee house (still used for bee research) and maintaining multiple beehives.

One of Mendel's beehives on display in the museum.

Anyway, I learned a lot more about Mendel which I will not go into here. This will help when I cover Mendel and his experiments in class in future as I can make Mendel more real for the students. I may not have time to use everything I have but at least I can enrich this part of the course with my experiences and photos.

Having spent the morning at the museum, I headed around the base of the hill behind the monastery and then climbed it to Brno’s castle, Spilberk Castle. Begun in the 13^th century by the same Bohemian kings who began Prague Castle, Spilberk served as a royal residence until Bohemia became part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Over time it developed into a prison, first as a local prison but eventually became the toughest, and most notorious, prison in the empire. At various times it did double duty as a barracks, but the prison function was one that would last into, and through, World War II, being used by the Nazis periodically. Today, the Castle is the home of the Brno City museum as well as a Castle museum.

Spilberk Castle as it probably looked in the 14th and 15th centuries.

The central courtyard of the castle as it is today.

Looking from the courtyard to the secondary entrance to the castle.

The castle walls are very impressive and in good condition having been restored where problems occurred.

The city of Brno from the castle hill.

This was the main entrance to the castle. The moat was a dry moat.

Two story casemates, or protective structures, were added to the castle in the mid-18th century. originally intended as storage, they were developed into jail cells.

Looking down the outside of the upper level of casemates.

The interior of a cell designed for 16 prisoners.

Another view of the 16-man cell.

Torture was commonly used to get confessions as this was once considered as the only reliable way to get confessions.

This tortue would dislocate your shoulders.

  

Day 2: Yesterday had been overcast with rain throughout the day but today the rain is finally starting to let up. This morning I went for a walk around Brno using some recommendations from the TripAdvisor web site as to which places to visit. First on the list was the Cathedral of St Peter and St Paul, the main church in Brno and which occupies the other hill in the city. This is an imposing, and old, cathedral with the first identifiable structure being built at the end of the 13^th century. However, the cathedrals most distinctive features, the 85 meter tall North and South towers, were only added at the beginning of the 20^th century. I did go inside the cathedral but, as I was to find in many cathedrals, it was not possible to take photos. I also climbed the towers, which gave great views over the city and also good views of the Castle.

The Cathedral of St Peter and Paul

An imposing structure

Spilberk Castle from the cathedral tower.

Brno from the same tower.

The cathedral area is undergoing some renovation.

 

From here, I descended the hill to Zelny trh square (cabbage or vegetable market) where a market is held six days a week (closed on Sunday). The market has been held in this square since the 13^th century, and these days is primarily a produce and flower market. In the center of the square is the Parnas fountain, built in the 17^th century. One of the buildings on the square is the Theater Reduta – on December 30, 1767 Wolfgang Mozart (then 11) and his older sister (15) performed with an orchestra of local inhabitants.

The produce market.

From there I wander through the old part of Brno (which centers on the market square) trying to track down the last city gate. The map I was following had the gate marked but it was hidden back in a little square which, unless you were looking, would be hard to find. Nearby is the Old Town hall, which is also tucked away on a narrow street. The New Town Hall faces a square which is also bordered by St Michaels Cathedral. This not surprising as the buildings that make up the New Town Hall complex were originally a monastery and only became the Town Hall in 1936. Almost literally around the corner is the center of modern Brno, Namesti Svoboda or Freedom Square. This square is the cultural and social center of Brno, with street markets, concerts and street performers being common features during the summer months. From there it was an easy walk to visit the other sights – the University, Jan Amos Komensky church (a Protestant church also known as the Red Church), and James Square and St James Church.

The last Brno City gate.

The Old Town Hall.

The New Town Hall.

St Michael's Cathedral

Masaryk University

Jan Amos Komensky church - the Red church

St James Cathedral in James Square

Freedom Square

There are some very distinctive buildings that front Freedom Square.

Here's another one.

My final visit was to return to The Mendel Museum. Yesterday I had not been able to visit Mendel’s beehouse but I had arranged to visit it today. The beehouse is located on a small rise behind the monastery/cathedral complex and is still used by biologists from Masaryk University who are investigating bumble bees as an alternative pollinator of crops. As a consequence you can’t enter the building but at least you can see the structure and some of the beehives that Mendel designed and built.

Mendel's beehouse - the extension on the left is where his work room was located during this time.

With this visit my time in Brno came to an end. Next is Vienna,

Doc