When I mention visiting the Czech Republic, everyone naturally assumes I went to Prague, so when I reveal my destination was actually the second largest city, Brno, it is almost always met with a quizzical raise of the eyebrow. This neglected city has, in fact, been one of my favourite trips so far. In the two days we spent exploring we discovered a wealth of history and culture that lay just beneath the surface, figuratively and literally.

On first glance, the city seems like your typical Eastern European metropolis with it’s sprawling streets, austere buildings and signs of neglect and disrepair spreading like vines across the once grand and imposing façades. Spend some time getting to know it, however, and you will soon find the maze of tunnels, chambers and tombs that form a secondary city below.

Under the main market square in the city centre, you can venture through a network of storage cellars initially built by the cities merchants. As the original cellars and tunnels grew, they eventually connected and formed the labyrinth that exists today. Over 200 steps down, you descend into the darkness and pass through exhibits showing methods of food storage, an alchemist’s laboratory and finally the prison and torture chambers. The atmosphere changes steadily as you wind through the warren of brick and earth; the air feels damn and oppressive, cold and heavy, your muffled footsteps amplify and reverberate along the tunnels. When you eventually emerge from the depths, you breathe the crisp, fresh air of the surface with renewed appreciation.