Moving to Brno in February

[Cato the Elder]

All of it is in English? In any case, if it's the Faculty of Social Studies we're talking about, they're practically giving credits for free.



Well, I am from Brno so I never had to live in the dorms, ergo I can't really help you with that. But from what I hear, yes, single-person rooms aren't the norm. Students I know usually rent a flat together, like 2-5 people.

All my classses will be in English, even my Czech class is from a "for foreigners perspective" so even that one doesn't even count. I have the intention to learn Czech, at least to the point of holding simple conversation and getting myself around, but I don't have the time nor the will to learn Czech at an academical level before my exchange. Considering the English classes seem relatively interesting anyway, I chose the "easy way", so to speak.

I'll continue looking about on the internet regarding dorms, in that case. Thanks for the info though.

Also, what's the climate like, there? Think a Belgian like myself would need much adaptation, or that it'll essentially be like back home? (I'm going to be there from February to June, btw)

 

[innonimatu]

That's something else that I've been wondering, is it really as easy as people claim it to be? Kind of necessary to know so I can mentally prepare myself to either actually work every once in a while or completely go Bohemian.

To be honest I guess it'll depend on the place. But where I'm at, and that's in Portugal, Erasmus students are not usually expected to put up the normal work of regular students. Language barriers are a often-used excuse to go easy on them. And most really do not have good grades as a priority anyway. So they go bohemian and still get approval (not good grades) so long as they at least seem to care about classes: doing a show of showing up in some of them and wailing about their difficulties to the to the professors. It'll also depend on how grading is done: it only through examinations it's harder to go easy on them; where practical work is also used those students can essentially be free riders on larger groups - in which case they do need some "social skills".

 

[Samez]

Someone asked how Brno/Brünn is pronounced. Wikipedia has a nice example

 

[Winner]

All my classses will be in English, even my Czech class is from a "for foreigners perspective" so even that one doesn't even count. I have the intention to learn Czech, at least to the point of holding simple conversation and getting myself around, but I don't have the time nor the will to learn Czech at an academical level before my exchange. Considering the English classes seem relatively interesting anyway, I chose the "easy way", so to speak.

I have a feeling you'll feel very underutilized at the end of your stay

I'll continue looking about on the internet regarding dorms, in that case. Thanks for the info though.

You might want to ask your fellow students if someone isn't looking for a roommate.

Also, what's the climate like, there? Think a Belgian like myself would need much adaptation, or that it'll essentially be like back home? (I'm going to be there from February to June, btw)

Continental climate. Cold to very cold in winter, mild to hot in late spring and summer.

Right now, the weather here is just awful - foggy, inversion weather, overcast, gloomy, chilly, bleh. I don't think you'll find it very exotic. Brno is in South Moravia, so it's usually hotter here than elsewhere in Czechia.

 

[warpus]

Someone asked how Brno/Brünn is pronounced. Wikipedia has a nice example

That's how I was pronouncing it.. I don't hear an e in there! I Just hear Brrrrrno

Anyway, thanks for the link

 

[Birdjaguar]

Austerlitz is nearby; make sure you pay a visit.

The battle took place six miles (9.7 km) southeast of the town of Brno, between that town and Austerlitz (Czech: Slavkov u Brna) in what is now the Czech Republic. The northern part of the battlefield was dominated by the 700-foot (210 m) Santon hill and the 850-foot (260 m) Zuran (Žurá&#328 hill, both overlooking the vital Olomouc/Brno road, which was on an east/west axis. To the west of these two hills was the village of Bellowitz (Bedřichovice), and between them the Bosenitz (Roketnice) Stream went south to link up with the Goldbach (Říčka) Stream, the latter flowing astride the villages of Kobelnitz (Kobylnice), Sokolnitz (Sokolnice), and Telnitz (Telnice). The centerpiece of the entire area was the Pratzen (Prace) Heights, a gently sloping hill about 35 to 40 feet (11–12 m) in height. An aide noted that Napoleon repeatedly told his Marshals, "Gentlemen, examine this ground carefully, it is going to be a battlefield; you will have a part to play upon it."

The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon's greatest victories, where the French Empire effectively crushed the Third Coalition. On 2 December 1805 (20 November Old Style, 11 Frimaire An XIV, in the French Republican Calendar), a French army, commanded by Emperor Napoleon I, decisively defeated a Russo-Austrian army, commanded by Tsar Alexander I and Francis II of Holy Roman Empire, after nearly nine hours of difficult fighting. The battle took place near Austerlitz (Slavkov u Brna) about 10 km (6.2 mi) south-east of Brno in Moravia, at that time in the Austrian Empire (present day Czech Republic). The battle is often regarded as a tactical masterpiece.

The French victory at Austerlitz effectively brought the Third Coalition to an end. On 26 December 1805, Austria and France signed the Treaty of Pressburg, which took Austria out of the war, reinforced the earlier treaties of Campo Formio and Lunéville, made Austria cede land to Napoleon's German allies, and imposed an indemnity of 40 million francs on the defeated Habsburgs. Russian troops were allowed to head back to home soil. Victory at Austerlitz also permitted the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine, a collection of German states intended as a buffer zone between France and central Europe. In 1806, the Holy Roman Empire ceased to exist when Holy Roman Emperor Francis II kept Francis I of Austria as his only official title. These achievements, however, did not establish a lasting peace on the continent. Prussian worries about growing French influence in Central Europe sparked the War of the Fourth Coalition in 1806.