ISC guide 2010/2011 - International Students Club VUT

Brno
Brno is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, with a population
nearly 400,000 and it is the centre of Southern Moravia Region. The city
is located in the middle of Moravia, 120 kilometres to the North of
Vienna, 200 kilometres to the East of Prague. Easily accessible by most
transportation means, it has rail and bus connections to all major
European cities. It is surrounded by a romantic countryside, forest and many
attractive tourist sites and natural landmarks.
In the nineteenth century it became one of the most prominent industrial centres in
the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Brno was the first city in Europe to use Edison’s
electric light bulb to illuminate the theatre. Gregor
Mendel formulated his theory of heredity right
here, in Brno. Victor Kaplan designed the first
water turbine here too, and Leoš Janáček lived
and composed his musical works in Brno as well.
Bohuslav Fuchs, Mies van der Rohe, Arnošt
Wiesner and other have built examples of modern
architecture in the city and this is also the place
where Milan Kundera wrote his first novels.
Brno is a home to an opera, a ballet, repertory and musical theatres, Brno
Philharmonic Orchestra and many museums. Annually it holds several music and
theatrical festivals.
Brno has beautiful scenery and has excellent leisure and sport facilities. Brno Dam
offers possibility of going round on boat, and in summer you can play beach
volleyball there.
New modern motorcycle and auto racing track was built 15
years ago and hold Grand Prix racing tournament every year.
Several sports clubs and sports groups provide opportunities
for various field sports. List of available sports facilities
complete two ice-hockey stadiums, one cycling stadium and a
shooting range. In the vicinity of Brno, you can find several tourist attractions and
historic sites: Macocha abyss and stalactite caves, the Napoleon Austerlitz (Slavkov)
battlefield, Pernštejn castle, the chateau and park at Lednice, the Pálava hill range
nature reserve.
Petrov - Cathedral
One of Brno’s most prominent features is its intellectual potential
resulting from rich research and educational facilities. There are six
higher education institutions in Brno offering degrees in science,
engineering, humanities, medicine, law, agriculture, arts and other
areas: Brno University of Technology, Masaryk University, Mendel
University of Agriculture and Forestry in Brbno, University of
Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Janáček Academy of
Music and Performing Arts, The University of Defence.
For more information see: www.brno.cz
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