Liberec the town where I live or

Liberec – the town where I live or study

Liberec 1. Location 2. Ještěd 3. History and industry 4. Famous people born in Liberec 5. Sights 6. Culture life 7. Sport 8. Babylon 9. ZOO, Botanical garden 10. Surroundings

Location One of 10 largest cities in our country, 100, 000 inhabitants. Lies 100 km north of Prague, in the valley between the Jizera mountains and Ještěd range, near the borders with Germany and Poland. The river Nise flows through the city.

Ještěd This mountain rises to 1, 012 m above sea level. You can get to the top by a cable lift or on foot. The construction in the shape of a rotating hyperboloid designed by the architect Karel Hubáček is a dominant feature of the town. The building houses a communications tower and a hotel.

History Liberec history goes back to the times of a small open market settlement on the merchant paths leading through this area. During the 15 th and early 16 th centuries it changed into a feudal town. Town rights were confirmed by Emperor Rudolf II in 1577. The beginning of the 19 th century saw the growth of the textile industry.

Liberec used to be, after Prague, the second biggest town in Bohemia, with 50 textile factories, and 60 factories connected with the metal industry. In the 1990´s, textile industry declined and most of the factories were closed.

The once famous Textilana was pulled down in 2005. Nowadays, Liberec is connected with plastics and carmaking industry and mechanical engineering.

Famous people born in the city One of the most famous people born in Liberec is Vlasta Burian (1891 -1962), who is remembered as the king of comedians because of many theatre and film roles. František Xaver Šalda (1867 -1937), one of the founders of Czech modernism, was born in Liberec too.

Famous people born in the city Vratislavice nad Nisou near Liberec was the birthplace of the car designer Ferdinand Porsche (1875 -1951), who created the famous "people`s car" VW Beetle and gave name to the brand of fastest cars. Famous musician Karel Vacek (1902 -1982) was also born in Liberec. His songs are still played today.

Sights - townhall Many buildings are the pride of the town - for example, the townhall finished in 1893. Then, it was a symbol of wealth and the economical as well as cultural development of the town. It was built after the Vienna town hall in neorenaissance style. Its tower measures 65 m.

Sights - theatre Behind the town hall, there is the Theatre of František Xaver Šalda dating from 1893. The theatre was built in neo-renaissance style. It was reconstructed at the end of 20 th century. .

Sights - churches Thanks to its 70 m high tower, the Church of St. Antonin the Great on Sokolovské Square has been one of the dominant features of Liberec for several centuries. The Church of St. Cross, dating from the mid-18 th century, is the most precious baroque monument in the town.

Other sights The museum, chamber of commerce and the old swimming pool, originating from 190102, can be found in the historical part of the town. Another interesting bulding is the old culture centre – PKO.

Culture life Besides the F. X. Šalda theatre with its 2 scenes, where you can see dramas, operas and ballets, there is also the Naive theatre, 2 cinemas and the house of culture, where concerts and balls take place.

Culture life You can also visit the gallery located in one part of Liberec castle. The rest of the castle is not open for the public. The inhabitants of Liberec are proud of the new library, built at the turn of the century.

Sport There are many sport facilities, including the swimming pool with the longest tobogan in the Czech Republic. The surroundings of Liberec offer good conditions for winter sports – downhill and cross-coutry skiing and ski -jumps. Liberec also has football and ice-hockey teams.

Babylon As the textile industry decreased, old factory buildings were destroyed or reconstructed. One of them houses Babylon entertainment centre now – a hotel, an aquapark, bowling, a lot of restaurants and small shops.

ZOO, Botanical garden They are placed in the most beautiful part of the city, about 20 minutes walk from the centre. Liberec Zoo was founded in 1911 and is the oldest in the central Europe. One of its attractions are white tigres.

Surroundings Visitors can go on trips to the Jizera mountains or Bohemian Paradise. There also wellknown castles near Liberec – Sychrov, Lemberk and Frýdlant.

Relative clauses – complete WHO, WHICH, WHERE Rudolf II was the emperor ______ gave Liberec the town rights. F. X. Šalda, ______ was a famous critician, was born in LBC. Liberec theatre, ________ was built in the 19 th century, was reconstructed recently. Come to the House of Culture_____ balls and concerts take place. Ještěd ______ you can get by tram and a cable lift, is 1012 m high. The tower at the top, ____ was designed by K. Hubáček, is the dominant of the town.

Passive voice – complete suitable verbs Liberec ________ in the 12 th century. The theatre _________ in 1990´s. ZOO and Botanical Garden _______________ at the beginning of the 20 th century and _______ in the most beautiful part of the city. Old factory buildings _________. Gallery and Museum ________ by lots of people every year.