A massive complex of red roof and fading yellow facades, the Premonstratensian Monastery is a neglected elder waiting for someone to restore it to its former glory, or put it out of its misery. The fortress was built in the 12th century as one of hundreds of outposts of the Premonstratensian Monks, who fanned out across Europe to bring knowledge, civilization, and religion to a then-uncivilized world. The monks left in 1784 for reasons we have not been able to determine. The interior was ornately decorated, and parts of it were packed up and shipped out to places all over the world. The carved walnut cupboards, for example, ended up at the order's monastery in Strahov in the far eastern part of the country. By the middle of the 20th century, the Soviet army discovered it, and turned the building into a barracks. They pulled out in the 1980's, and the place has been abandoned ever since. In a telling example of this building's rich history, you can still see the mark left behind by the Soviet red star on the gables. And just a few hundred feet away, a much higher, much brighter, holy cross stands on the roof.
