WALK 1

	WALK 1 Length: approx. 1400 m Time: approx. 30 min. From city hall to city hall (Moravian Ostrava) Prokešovo náměstí (New City Hall, statue of Icarus, Mining and Iron Company corporate headquarters) – Sokolská třída – Českobratrská ulice (police headquarters, Faculty of Education, Lutheran church) – Husův sad (Elizabethan chapel – Poštovní street (post office) - Československých legií street (Jiří Myron Theatre) – Náměstí Msgr. Šrámka (Cathedral of the Holy Saviour) – Reální street – Jiráskovo náměstí (Kuří rynek – ‘chicken market’ square) – Masarykovo náměstí (Marian column, statue of St Florian, Old City Hall, museum) This walk takes you through the heart of the city. It begins with a panoramic view of Ostrava from the tower of the New City Hall. From a height of 72 metres you have a bird’s eye view of Ostrava – and guides are available to point out the most interesting landmarks. Then you can descend to street level and set out on a walk through the city centre. You will see modern architecture from the period between the world wars, including a number of grand showcase buildings of banks and corporate offices. You will discover romantic parks, monumental churches, and elegant turn-of-the-century façades. The atmospheric city centre features fountains and sculptures. From spring to autumn the pedestrianised zones are alive with street cafes and restaurants. Why not relax with coffee and cakes in a typical café while admiring the stylish and imposing facades.
	1. New City Hall (Vladimír Fischer, Jan Rubý, František Kolář 1925-1930) The monumental city hall building with its bold and distinctive constructivist tower encloses Prokešovo náměstí (Prokeš Square) on three sides. The tower – reaching a height of 85.6 metres – is attached to the building by just 16 screws, but it never moves an inch! At the top of the main façade of the city hall are four statues (two male and two female figures) depicting the main functions of the city – mining, trade, science and the metal industry. The building is festooned with 23 banners, each of which bears the coat of arms of one of the city’s municipal districts. The flag of the city is displayed above the main entrance.
	2. Statue of Icarus (František Štorek 1999) This statue stands in the middle of Prokešovo náměstí (Prokeš Square) and is 3.5 m high, making it the third largest bronze statue in the Czech Republic. Icarus has become a modern emblem of Ostrava, a mythological figure symbolising the rises and falls that have characterised the city’s fortunes. Note the penetrating blue eyes, whose expression reveals hope tempered with experience. Ostrava’s citizens are particularly fond of Icarus, which has been nicknamed ‘the Orc’ after a demonic fantasy character.
	3. City Hall delicatessen Here you can enjoy classic Czech snacks such as open sandwiches or egg mayonnaise. Forget international fast food franchises – travel back in time and sample nostalgic communist-era specialities such as potato, vegetable and ham salad with bread rolls and yellow lemonade.
	4. Mining and Iron Company corporate headquarters (Jaroslav Stockar-Bernkopf 1928-1929) The former headquarters of the Ostrava Mining and Iron Company (Báňská a hutní společnost) is opposite the city hall at 30. dubna street no. 35. At the top of the façade are four statues by Josef Kubíček depicting a miner, two coke-workers and a mine carpenter.
	5. Czechoslovak State Bank (Jaroslav Rossler, Karel Roštík 1932) Today the headquarters of the Ostrava division of the national police force. The sculptural decorations on the façade are the work of František Švec. Like the city hall and the Mining and Iron Company headquarters, there are four figures, but here they are all female. The figures are allegories of Industry, Finance, Mining and Agriculture.
	6. Husův sad (Jan Hus Park) Ostrava’s citizens often refer to this oasis of calm as ‘the little park’. It was originally named Emperor Franz Josef Park, and offers a delightful place to sit and relax, with benches, a fountain and a children’s play area. Near the trolleybus stops is a ‘talking’ map of the city, which will help lost tourists find their way.
	7. Lutheran church (Karel Troll, Ludwig Faigl 1907) A pinch of Romanesque, a dash of Gothic, mix well, spread with Dutch Renaissance and sprinkle with Art Nouveau details. The result: this beautiful church near the Husův sad park (on Českobratrská street).
	8. Elizabethan chapel (Hans Ulrich 1899) This small chapel is situated in the Husův sad park opposite the city’s central post office. It was paid for with donations from Ostrava’s burghers to commemorate the tragic death of the empress Elisabeth (Sissi) and to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of Emperor Franz Josef’s accession to the throne.
	9. ‘U Rady’ pub This legendary pub on Poštovní street has the best Pilsner beer in Ostrava and a wide range of classic Czech cuisine. As the local saying goes: “I never go to the doctor, I go to U Rady.”
	10. Československých legií street This beautiful street in the city centre is flanked with imposing buildings displaying grand pastiche-historical façades. On the right hand side you will see the building of the former Citizens’ Savings Bank, the Jiří Myron Theatre, and the ‘Sokolovna’ (the headquarters of the patriotic ‘Sokol’ movement which was active in the late 19^th and early 20^th century). On the opposite side is the Cathedral of the Holy Saviour, the University of Ostrava and the legendary Klub Atlantik – which serves excellent coffee and cakes as well as hosting a range of cultural events and activities. The street is named after the Czechoslovak foreign legions which fought abroad during and after the First World War.
	11. Jiří Myron Theatre (Josef Srb 1892-1894) This grand theatre has hosted many prestigious performers in its 115-year history. It used to be known as the ‘National Centre’ (Národní dům), and served as a cultural focus of Ostrava’s Czech community in the days when the city used to have large German, Polish and Jewish populations too. After the Czech National Centre was built, the German and Polish communities followed suit and established their own cultural centres.
	12. Cathedral of the Holy Saviour (Gustav Meretta 1883-1889) This monumental basilica has three naves and with its two 64-metre high spires is the second largest cathedral in the whole of Moravia. It has a capacity of 4,000 people – at the time when it was built, it could shelter a quarter of the city’s inhabitants from the rain. By the left-hand entrance to the cathedral is a notice-board giving details about the building.
	13. Hotel Royal (Felix Neumann 1911 and 1925) This former hotel used to have a luxurious coffee house on its ground floor. It also used to be a well-known brothel: while Ostrava’s society ladies sipped coffee from porcelain cups and nibbled delicately on cakes and strudel, their respected husbands, pillars of local society, went upstairs to “play billiards”. Today the building houses the university canteen.
	14. Jiráskovo náměstí (Jirásek Square) This small but perfectly formed square is rarely referred to by its official name. Instead it is known as Kuří rynek (meaning ‘chicken market’) after its former function.
	15. Masarykovo náměstí (Masaryk Square) Named after the first president of the independent Czechoslovakia, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, this is Ostrava’s main square, and it is flanked with imposing buildings. A good tip for a visit is the Ostrava Museum, which occupies the former city hall building, dating from 1539. From the top of the tower you have an enchanting view of the square, whose paving stones form a pattern like a Persian carpet. Every hour the museum’s chimes sound a melody which is accompanied by a jet from the fountain built into the surface of the square.
	16. Marian column (1702) The oldest surviving Baroque work of sculpture in the city. This column is a traditional depiction of the Virgin Mary Immaculate and is 12 metres high. During the communist era the column was removed and replaced with a statue of a ‘people’s militiaman’, so for many years the square was guarded not by the Virgin Mary, but by a burly man holding a machine gun.
	17. Statue of St Florian (1763) This Baroque sandstone statue of St Florian (the patron of firefighters) is next to the Marian column.
	18. Slabs of history The paving slabs in the main square are in-laid with plaques commemorating important milestones in Ostrava’s history. All you need to do is walk around the square and look downwards. To trace a route taking you back in time from the present to the city’s earliest history, start just outside the main entrance to the ‘Laso’ department store.
	19. Museum of zithers Not big, but unique – Ostrava’s museum of zithers. This special collection devoted to an unusual but traditional musical instrument is located in the green-painted building marked ‘PUB’ on Ostrava’s main square.
	20. Baťa department store, formerly Pešat and Laso Three functionalist department stores in a row. The Baťa building, and the adjacent narrow building which used to be the Pešat department store, are jewels of Czechoslovak architecture dating from the period between the two world wars. The Laso building is somewhat less impressive, yet all three buildings are full of commercial hustle and bustle. On the second floor of the Laso department store there is a good cafeteria offering a superb view of the main square.
	21. The city in lights… Where next? How about a cinema, a theatre, a gallery, or a concert? Ostrava’s main square has several information boards which light up and give details of the range of cultural events currently on offer. Just walk round the square and visit these talking maps, and you will be able to make up your mind.