![Sunshine Plaza from a hill top](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_075156.jpg)
Sunshine Plaza (Slunecni namesti) in Prague was revitalized extensively since 2000 from a formerly large panel system-building (LPS) residential area. LPS, sometimes also called Plattenbau, is a housing constructed of prefabricated concrete slabs. Prefabrication allowed for lower-cost public housing, but residents resented it for its poor aesthetics.
After the collapse, this monotone but technology-loving design common in Eastern Bloc was gradually submerged into freer modern architecture. Inhabitants painted more upbeat colors on the dull facades lifting the gloom of the plain concrete. Advertisement posts of a variety of local enterprises went up.
The dominating spirit of achieving more with less using technology so far stayed in this europolis. You will see that for yourself during the tour around a magnetic resonance clinic south of the communal church center, a palm tree living inside of tiny glass bio-dome, telecommunication towers grabbing the rooftops like landed space ships, sub-way tube skylining over a pond, and a weird robotic art piece next to a automated wine bar.
Enjoy the journey documenting the current state of the synthesis of the stark with the liberated.
![Slunecni namesti in Prague](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_075753.jpg)
![A palm tree lives inside a glass bio-dome at Lužiny station.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200820_083517.jpg)
![A space ship just landed on a brutalist rooftop?](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_080047.jpg)
![A polyclinic next to the shiny town hall.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_080116.jpg)
![Sunshine Plaza (Slunecni namesti) has a church and a magnetic resonance clinic.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_080339.jpg)
![The little prince fountain](/images/sunshine-plaza/PXL_20201019_053735021.NIGHT_fountain.jpg)
![A satelite image of the sun-shaped garden at Slunecni namesti](/images/sunshine-plaza/sunshine-satelite.png)
![Modern communal church construction would be prohibited during the communism.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_080603.jpg)
![A subway ventilation reminiscent of an ocean liner's exhaust.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_080842.jpg)
![A weird robotic art piece next to a automated wine bar.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_081140.jpg)
![The church next to a plattenbau building.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_081505.jpg)
![A soviet era mosaic next to 'Donate your plazma for 3500 crowns' advertisement.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_081630.jpg)
![Colourful graffiti on a wooden gazebo.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_082532.jpg)
![Plattenbau buildings painted with pastel colours.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_074942.jpg)
![A subway tube skylining over a pond.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_083215.jpg)
![A Sunshine Plaza view from Central Park.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_083337.jpg)
![The subway tube connects to the next station Lužiny.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_083540.jpg)
![Can you tell the time from a solar clock on a facade of a plattenbau building?](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_084136.jpg)
![Sometimes the symmetry is broken by multi-colour facades.](/images/sunshine-plaza/00100lrPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200703081140700_COVER.jpg)
![Original on the left, the insulated and painted plattenbau on the right.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200830_094127.jpg)
![Colourful statues next to children playground.](/images/sunshine-plaza/IMG_20200821_084158.jpg)
Hopefully, the current generation won’t allow the resource pie to stop growing by exploring, innovating, building, and enterprising. And thus, the next gallery will be from a new colony on Mars or an O’Neill cylinder in space.
How I am Trying to Improve Local Park
In a nearby park, there are 1m above ground elevated concrete sewer manhole-pipes since the 1980s. I walked past them couple years until one day I am thinking: at least they could be painted to look like medieval castles. They would become a fun element in the park.
![Castle-like manhole cover design](/images/skruz_hrad_porovnani.jpg)
So, I wrote to the municipal property office. I followed up with them several times. Eventually, they rejected it because they are not the property administrators and advised against doing it.
I thought it couldn’t be done and that it was out of my hands, and I almost gave up.
It came to my mind, however, that the property administrator must be the municipal sewage company. Which eventually replied:
Based on your report, we inspected the situation on-site … all above-ground parts of these shafts will be removed to ground level …
So there will be no castles in the park. That is what I should have requested in the first place. This was another reminder that more is possible. 🙂
Other Notes
If you have a VR headset, try my VR180 channel “VR Holiday in Nature”.
(Note that this place was likely an inspiration for game The Longest Journey Dreamfall Chapters).