It was founded 120 years ago as a city hospital; in 1997, it was shut down, leaving behind tens of millions in debt... Today, there is nothing left of it, and it bears only a very distant resemblance to a medical facility.

Originally a flax mill, then a furniture factory, and now—thanks to the former paintball arena, deer scampering about and grazing on bales of hay, and the cry of a sea eagle echoing from outside, the complex is practically made for getting your underwear dirty ;-)

It was built in the 1970s, only to be lost in the 1990s due to a burst dam and the incompetence of local officials. It was popular with visitors from both sides of the border—and in large numbers, as can be seen in this period photograph. In addition to the main pool, there was also a wading pool for children. In the past, the city considered saving the former reservoir and converting it into a natural swimming area, but the project unexpectedly ran into financial difficulties and the council members’ apparent inability to secure any subsidies from the EU.

...whose buildings remain here as a small reminder of the once-adjacent ironworks hall, which has long since vanished, just like the railroad track that led to it. The company would have ceased to exist in the postwar years had it not been for Škoda’s intervention.

There used to be a pressurized coal gas plant here, which closed down in the 1990s, leaving behind only this enormous brown coal bunker. It’s a strange, abandoned colossus with a painting of JWM Strike on it.

The tracks leading to the hall, the offices, the maintenance workshops, the cafeteria, the ocean with dolphins, the offices with a safe, the bathroom in the shower, and those tracks again... :)

The abandoned halls, where even the ubiquitous factory railroad once ran, are now adorned only by birch trees growing in the ribbon-shaped gable skylights and risqué pictures, a reminder that normal guys used to work here. The last forgotten machines stand beneath the historic gantry crane, and the offices are now nothing but chaos...

On their website, you’ll read that they’re one of the oldest engineering companies in the world—they’ve been in business since 1889. They’ve manufactured just about anything you can think of out of high-grade steels. And suddenly you’re standing in an abandoned hardening shop, in a testing lab where material-testing equipment still sits on the tables, walking through halls where everything is in disarray and there’s just the occasional forgotten machine—including a unique American model still running on a transmission drive—or through the workshops and foremen’s offices… it’s a strange feeling.

A look inside the last "Mohican" of this part of the complex, near the former generator and Pumping Station 2.

I decided to take advantage of the situation, come back here, and explore the whole place, since I was already wandering around across the way. All that remained of the poor shepherds were the cables that had allowed them to move around the guarded area, and even those made one feel uneasy.

The steel produced here was known throughout the world; today, unfortunately, it is gradually disappearing under the watchful eye of countless cameras and sensors...

Like the mythical Phoenix rising from the ashes, this architectural gem of a brewery—whose lager was once legendary—is being reborn. During my visit, debris and trash were being cleared away, and I was told that, in cooperation with the National Museum of Brewing, plans were underway to open the building to the public—a development I had beaten to the punch. There are even plans to resume brewing beer, so all that’s left is to keep our fingers crossed for the local association and look forward to tasting the first batch.... :) In the meantime, I enjoyed exploring the brewhouse, malt house, wood storage area, and the monumental lager cellars.

As Micinka said, it's summer, so it's hot as an oven.... It's cool in the brick kiln right now, but I'd still rather head to the water ;)

These towers, which are key facilities for the production of chemical products, are places where time has stood still and where a century-old past meets the modern era. They were once filled with limestone and acid flowed through them. Down below, a network of rail transport with trolleys and bucket conveyors remains to this day, a reminder of the site’s origins 120 years ago. The silos still hold limestone, though they now serve different purposes; on one side, the space with the new conveyor is lit by fluorescent lights, and up above, a dispatcher used to sit on one side and still sits on the other to this day... plus, you’ll even come across a working alarm here, so it’s a bit of a trip.

A great opportunity to take a look at areas that are otherwise inaccessible before restoration work begins