Trip to Olomouc!!

This past weekend was a four-day weekend for yet another school holiday. The calendar at school simply said fall break, but there was also a national holiday on Saturday for the Independence day in 1989. One exchange student, James, had had a birthday earlier in October, and more of us wanted to help him celebrate it right.

First, Olomouc (said Olo-moats) is a beautiful historic town in central Moravia, and used to be the capital of Moravia. It was founded by Caesar and the Romans about 2000 years ago. For anyone out there thinking about ever going to the Czech Republic, this town should be on the top of your list of places to visit. I hear that it is just as pretty as Prague, but with less people and in better shape. I still haven't been to Prague, so I personally cant make a comparison.

On Thursday, I traveled by train and bus, by myself!, to Olomouc, where James met me and gave me a quick tour of the main square. After a late lunch we were joined by the other student who could come, Levana. She had booked a hostel for the three nights. I was lucky that they also had a bed for me. The rest of the afternoon was spent food shopping and exploring more of the downtown. Dinner was at a small cafe, but James had to return home early. Levana and I spent the night planning what we wanted to see for the next two days.

Friday was the main touring day of the larger town. There are lots of stunning churches in town: St. Michaels, St. Moritz, St. Wenceslas, St. Mary of the Snows, and the Annunciation of St. Mary, just to name the most popular ones. My favorite was St. Michaels. Olomouc has two squares, the upper and lower square. In the upper square, there are three fountains, the town hall, astronomical clock, and the HUGE Trinity Column. Almost every town in the Czech Republic has a 'Plague Column' as the students call them, to ward off the plague and remember the victims of it. The column in Olomouc is the biggest in the country. In the afternoon we saw some of James's life: his school, favorite places to go with his classmates, and the library where he spends his time. We cooked dinner at out hostel, then took to the town for the night. Olomouc has a great selection of places to relax, dance, and meet locals.

Saturday morning was great weather, so we went for a mid-morning walk in the large city park, stopped in at more churches, and got back to the main square by noon to see the astronomical clock's 6 minute show. The clock is one of two in the Czech Republic, but was changed by the Soviets after WWII. Now, instead of religious figures parading to the music, it is a collection of workers and athletes. In the afternoon Levana and I went to a smaller village outside of town, on 'Holy Hill', where there was another church and the Olomouc zoo. The church was also beautifully decorated inside and out, but the zoo was my highlight. There were animals from around the world housed in a wooded park that dipped and curved with small hills and valleys. The leaves seemed to be peaking with their fall colors. It was fun to see new species of animals that I had never seen before, many of which were endangered. North American animals were some of the strangest to see, just because I've traveled halfway around the world to see what I have at home. Most American zoos don't have armadillos. Back in Olomouc, we had a nicer dinner (not in a pub), and spent the night packing and reading some guide books in the hostel.

Sunday was a grey and rainy day. James met us in the morning, after some time confusion because of daylight savings time. We relaxed in his favortie cafe with 'world famous chocolate pie' and coffee before I had to catch my train. My host family was in Brno for the weekend, so I met them there, met my other Czech grandparents, and drove back to Trutnov.