Svitava, Židenice

Svitava is one from two Brno's main rivers. From its total lenght of 97 km, is about 13 km in Brno alone.

In present (2013) Brno city council have projects for revitalisation of Svitava's banks, but it is very slow process.

These images are from Židenice quater, one of Brno city parts where Svitava flows. And I'm living around there.

Industry and "ghetto"

Like every river, Svitava was basically used in industry. Factories (mainly textiles) grow around Svitava's banks. Nowdays institutions and companies tries to clean as much as possible and use Svitava as water source more responsibly.

There are lot of fishermens in the spring, summer and autumn. I am actually not really sure, if they really eats fishes or just release them back to the river, but they are fishing.

Part of Svitava now flows around Brno's districts, that are considered as a "ghetto". I think that it sounds much worse than reality. Also Brno citizens thinks about this region in much worse, than really is.

Contrasts

Like everything, there are a lot of contrasts on Svitava's banks. 

There is very thin line, between the "ghetto" and "normal" part of Zidenice. Basically, it can be divined by train tracks and bridges - one of most important corridors for Czech republic, and also for central Europe.

In one side families living in low income flats, even in conditions below poverty status, on the other, just around the corner middle and luxury houses of people, who like to live near city center and don't want to pay too much for properties.

Old, slowly meets with the new one

There is no hurry. Life is slow here. Big parts of Zidenice are considered as deicate and also speed is lowered here to almost a half of normal 30km/h (19 miles/h).

Catholic, Protestants, Jews and atheists mixing together in slowly living community.

Not all things are pretty

It is ghetto, right? So there are places, around factories and industry areas, that atracting mess. I don't understand this part of human mind, where you take mess from your property, and throw it just around corner.. because you are not going around too much (or like, at all).

Fascinating.