"Why did you come to Brno?"

“Why did you come to Brno?” The phrase quickly became a familiar sound during encounters in my premature social life in this city. The question might as well have been: “How the hell did you end up in this hole?” Its honest curiosity, mixed with a genuine inability to think of any reason anybody would want to live in Brno. Why?

Dear people of Brno,

I have gone through a minor crisis. Without accusing anybody in particular, the crisis was started by “Why (the hell) did you come to Brno”, the reactions “so then.. you’re just on Erasmus right?” – “no, I'm here for a full degree”(me), which would then be followed by one of those meaningful silences (and I am not even mentioning the facial expressions accompanying all of this). Though, the most problematic aspect was on my side: I forgot why.

But now I remember again. Please listen, especially the Brno-ers.

Good study programs and courses. Social Sciences faculty of Masaryk University rocks. They try hard and good things come from it. It’s high up there somewhere, sharing the academic hemisphere with most universities I have heard about.

Affordable high quality student life (CHEAP). Surviving on instant Noodles and pasta with ketchup is the universal student diet – but not in Brno – where only the most uninspired cooks have to face this junk. In terms of eating and drinking for good prices, buying high quality food and living in the city center: Brno is student heaven.

Student city. Speaks for itself. (Students are awesome people.)

Brno is a beauty. Impressive architecture, parks, castles. Daring sexually tainted modern public art. Moravian Karst to the north, three beautiful cities within easy travel distance.

Really, if I was not already living here, I would want to move here in an instant.

And last but not least, the interesting Consonant/vowel ratio: BRRRNo (it amuses my Dutch friends).

So dear people of this lovely city, try to cultivate that warm fuzzy feeling in your stomach when you think of your city, its not too bad. It’s not Prague, I know and you keep mentioning it, but aren’t we all glad its not?

Author: Roos Derks

This article originally appeared in HALAS, the magazine of students of the Faculty of Social Studies. The original version is available at http://casopishalas.cz/clanek/zobrazit/1624