So, it’s a holiday again today so I got up early and went off to map the line that goes across the city center. I figured there would be fewer people around and I was right! This line passes by Petrov, the Cathederal of Sts. Peter and Paul, in the city center and then diagonally across the Vegetable Market square. I picked the line up there this morning and tracked it across to Minoritska and through the church of John the Baptist and John the Evangelist there.
That is interesting as that church is built on the site of a very old church built by the Minorite Order ( Lesser Brothers (Minorites) of the Order of St. Francis of Assisi) around 1220-1240. This church is part of a complex that includes a monastery and another chapel. It is essentially the oldest church in Brno and now serves as the city parish church meaning that it is active for worship and prayer.
From there, I followed the line as it headed towards Brno Židenenice which was likely established also in the early 1200’s. Žide is Czech for Jew so I am guessing that this may have been named for its original inhabitants and there was a large Jewish cemetery there at one time. These days, the entire area is run down and very industrial. It has a reputation (and reality) of being occupied by gypsies and is being re-gentrified. At the beginning of the 1900’s it must have been a well-to-do area though given the architecture of some of the run down buildings there.
Someone put these chairs in the line too…..
I followed the line street to street until finally I arrived at another church. This time, the line cut across the front of the church (essentially along the church wall). Fittingly, the church is dedicated to the St.s Cyril and Methodius (whose Saint day was yesterday and a national holiday). These are the chaps who came to Moravia at the request of the Prince Rastislav and who translated the scriptures into Slavonic in the 900’s. This church was built in 1910 to serve the rapidly growing population of the then very prosperous industrial city of Brno.
Unfortunately, this is where I had to stop as the area behind the church where the line seems to run is a huge industrial area that is all being demolished. Rather, I will take my car the other side one evening and try to pick up the line on the other side.
What also interested me is that this line passes through or very close to a large number of hospitals. Yesterday, I noted that the line I was following passed by or through a large number of schools. I wonder what that means? I may end up calling the lines something like the hospital line, school line and Park line! We will see.
Yet another thing that struck me is that the lines take me to places I have been in my past. They pass close by every home I have lived in in Brno and yesterday, I found myself passing a private clinic I had had a vein operation at a decade ago and never seen since. Today, I smiled as I past places I used to frequent but haven’t been to in 8-10 years. I kept getting a feeling that a great deal of important events have taken place in my life close by energy lines I didn’t know were there.
Finally, you also see a few interesting architectural designs and things in Brno close to the lines. Like this, for example.
