8 Cool Things to Know about WROCŁAW, POLAND

Just like visiting New York City won’t tell you everything about the U.S., we plan from time to time to escape city life and explore our own backyard so that we can better understand Poland as a nation (and of course have more adventures!). Our first weekend trip earlier this month took us to the fourth largest city in Poland, after Warszawa, Kraków, and Lódź. We loved visiting this quirky and fun town.

      1.      THE NAME - What’s in a name?

Surprise, Wrocław is pronounced ‘Vrat-swav’. Yes, Polish is hard; believe me, we know. But it hasn’t always been this way. To simplify its long history, Wrocław has changed hands more times than Hillary has been asked about Benghazi. Originally a trade stronghold along the Amber Road route, it was first absorbed into Czech Bohemia, then Poland, then Bohemia, then Poland, etc, until it was enveloped into the Austrian Habsburg dynasty. Then came the Prussians, followed by Napoleon, then the Prussians again, and we can fast forward to ‘Breslau’ entering the German Empire as its third largest city, after Berlin and Hamburg.

2.      THE POPULATION - So folks with German ethnicity still live here?

Not anymore, actually. Lower Silesia – including Wrocław, its capital – passed to Poland under the terms of the Potsdam Conference in 1945. The city’s German population was expelled and Eastern Poles fleeing territory annexed by the Soviet Union moved in. The majority of the population came from Lwów, Poland (present-day L’viv, Ukraine). So while German restaurants are a ‘nie’, Ukrainian restaurants are a ‘tak’. Interestingly, due to the size and prominence of the universities in the city, 1 in every 7 residents is a registered student.

3.      THE TREASURES - So, no bierhallen or lederhosen?

We were sad too. Fortunately the Poles from Lwów brought many treasures with them from the east, including the Ossolineum library and our favorite, the Racławice Panorama painting. 

The Panorama is a truly colossal painting (49 feet high and 374 feet long) illustrating the 1794 Battle of Racławice during the Kościuszko Uprising. It’s a curved painting that lines a round room in the east of town, and visitors get to stand in the middle of it and observe different dimensions of the battle. The size and the props that are carefully laid out in front of the canvas truly give the impression that you are standing in the midst of the combat between Russians and Poles.

4.      THE HANGOUT – Market Square (and Salt Square)

Many, many Polish old towns (stare miasta) are laid out in a similar way: a large open-air square (rynek) closed-in by narrow, colorful buildings containing shops and apartments, with the town hall (ratusz) in the middle. As a former major trading town, Wrocław has a truly enormous market square, the second largest in Poland (after Kraków). It had to be moved once when the sellers and traders no longer fit, and even after that an additional small square (Plac Solny, Salt Square) had to be added off its southwest corner. Sellers were arranged by good: salt sellers in Plac Solny, cloth in the middle, amber in the rear of the square, etc etc.

Today, the Rynek is the center of life in Wrocław. 20-30 bars and restaurants fill the first floor of the colorful buildings, with patios spilling out into the square. There’s a fun brewery, Spiż, in the middle, with beer garden tables out front. Globalization shows its face with the Burger King and McDonalds, but there are enough Pierogarnia and Polish kawiarni (cafes) to hold their own. There are also many banks, art sellers, a pharmacy, candy and ice cream shops, and a grocery store. We had the best time sitting outside Spiż, watching students cutting across the square; friends meeting at the Fredro monument; children playing in the fountains; and tourists taking pictures with the small hidden bronze gnomes (more on that soon!).

      5.      THE TOWER: St. Elizabeth’s Church 

      A stone’s throw from the Rynek we found St. Elizabeth’s church, where the prominent (read: wealthy) 15^th and 16^th century Wrocławians attended Mass, or Service, depending on where we are in Reformation history (ask Bryan if you want to know more!). We climbed the top of its 300 foot tower for amazing cityscapes. Fortunately it was only after our climb that we learned the tower had collapsed in the 16^th century – either because God was displeased with the church’s move to Protestantism (Catholic view) or because God wanted to grant the church a miracle (Protestant view) by protecting everyone from its collapse.

6.      THE GNOMES (Krasnale)

One of the most fun experiences in the city was searching for the ubiquitous bronze gnomes that are sprinkled around town in doorways and alleyways, on lampposts and in shop windows. These ‘krasnale’ are found doing a variety of activities like drinking coffee; riding motorcycles; taking money out of the ATM; and, my favorite, washing clothes in the Oder River. We had a little gnome of our own (Radagast from Talinn) that we brought along for the fun of it. Next post we’ll include more shots of Radagast with the other gnomes about town! Don’t worry, we did not manage to find all 370 of them.

However, these gnomes are more than just a kitschy tourist gimmick - they exist as symbols of the city’s anti-communist ‘Orange Alternative’ movement ‘that used absurdity and nonsense to stage peaceful yet subversive protests’. When the militia would paint over anti-establishment graffiti or art, students would quickly paint orange gnomes over the fresh white paint. Hundreds dressed up as gnomes on International Children’s Day on June 1, 1988, and at other protests, orange gnome hats were passed out to passerbys. Since the fall of Communist, gnomes have remained a proud symbol of Wrocław’s spirit and resistance to the old regime.

7.      A RARE SIGHT: The Lamplighter on Cathedral Island

      

     

 

Another fun oddity in Wrocław: the city is one of only two in the world that still keeps a lamplighter on the payroll. Reachable only by crossing one of the city’s 120 bridges, Ostrów Tumski (Cathedral Island) – home to the city’s iconic two-towered cathedral and at least four other churches – is made romantic by its cobblestoned, gas lamp lit streets. We happened to be exploring the island around dusk and followed lit lamps until we caught a glimpse of a dark figure in a top hat and cape, briskly walking from lamp to lamp to set them alight. It was a marvelous sight!

8.      Neon

Although typically viewed as a symbol of Western commercialism, neon played a big role in Poland following Stalin’s death in the late 50’s. Stark Socialist Realism became a style of the past and city authorities sought an inexpensive way to brighten the grey urban landscape – enter neon. Much of the bright signage remains for reasons of nostalgia, and we enjoyed the colors and creativity (not to mention the 80’s feel) of the city’s still-neon landscape.

"Good Evening in Wrocław!"