Olomouc – Czech Republic

Olomouc town hall

Photo: Olomouc town hall and main square at dusk

Olomouc is my favourite city in the Czech Republic and one of my favourites in Europe overall.  It’s located in Moravia, in the eastern part of the country and easily reached by train (3 hours) or bus from Prague.  Olomouc is a lively student town with no shortage of cobblestone roads, narrow alleys, historic monuments and churches, atmospheric teahouses for rainy afternoons, and a large variety of pubs to keep you out until all too late – there are 25,000 students among a city population of 100,000, meaning there’s always some place to go.  And where else can you go have a drink in an old Soviet TU-104 airplane that sits in a parking lot near the supermarket. The restaurants are tasty and cheap with a good selection to choose from, and there’s no shortage of cafes either. Even a budget traveler can eat like a king with little need to worry about those tourist traps found elsewhere.  Olomouc is basically a mini Prague, minus the kitsch and hoards of tourists.  The main square even has one of those astronomical clock things on the side of the town hall.

I’m not really sure why Olomouc hasn’t become more of a travel destination than it is, especially for backpackers.  For example, there’s only one hostel here (Poet’s Corner – A super cool place and one of my favourite hostels) compared to how many dozens in Prague or even in Cesky Krumlov.  Olomouc is pretty much halfway between Krakow and Prague.  Though maybe that’s where the problem lies; people just pass by on their way from one hotspot to the next.   But maybe that is also good, as it keeps Olomouc a ‘real’ city and not some circus attraction that the other cities have unfortunately become.  And for me, it’s a good thing.  I look forward to my next visit.

 

Olomouc trinity column

Photo: Holy Trinity column – UNESCO historic monument

 

Street tram, Olomouc, Czech Republic

Photo: Street tram and cobblestone roads

 

Olomouc view

Photo: View of the main square from the tower at St. Moritz church

 

Rooftop view from St. Maurice chuch, Olomouc, Czech Republic

Photo: Church towers fill the horizon, view from the tower at St. Moritz church

 

Olomouc st mary of snow church

Photo: Interior of St. Mary of the Snow church

 

Olomouc pub

Photo: Enjoying the unique setting of a Soviet TU-104 airplane and bad 80’s dance music.

strange painting

If I could speak Czech (though it almost looks like Latin?), perhaps it would help in my deciphering of this cool painting. It was on some old wall in the super cool town of Cesky Krumlov.

cesky krumlov

the wastelands…

Been working on a few stock photos these last days. Kept coming across ugly things that I seem to like taking pictures of.

Had some thunderstorms pass over the other night, but alas, I was not with my camera at the time, nor at home. After about 15 minutes of seeing some of the most spectacular lightning I’ve ever seen (coming from Santa Barbara we get lightning like what, once every three years.), I decide I need to stop what I was doing and get to my camera. So I bolted out the door and ran through awful rain, black skies and streaks of lightning all around; Arriving completely soaked. Would have been some cool shots of lightning over the church tower, but by this time, the storm had passed for the most part, and was now in the distance…

stairway in prague

coal poweplant in czech republic

abandoned building in cesky krumlov

Czech Sojourn

I forgot to mention that I spent some time in Czech (not Prague) a few weeks ago. So much cool old stuff to wander around and look at. On a Sunday when I arrived, the streets were nearly empty and I thought I had come to some ghost town. I would spend hours a day sitting in this cool teahouse, just reading or talking or relaxing. Nights were often late and mornings too soon to arrive. It was a good place to relax after the noise and crowds of Vienna.

© cody duncan photography. Olomouc, Czech republic Photography

© cody duncan photogrphy. Olomouc, Czech republic Photography

© cody duncan photogrphy. Olomouc, Czech republic Photography

© cody duncan photogrphy. Olomouc, Czech republic Photography

© cody duncan photogrphy. Olomouc, Czech republic Photography

© cody duncan photography. Olomouc, Czech republic Photography

© cody duncan photography. Olomouc, Czech republic Photography