Last Day in Wrocław,,,

On our last day in Wrocław we took a self-guided walking tour following a little map. It was in an area we had partially walked before…but didn't realize all of the interesting sites we could see and learn about in this area.

 After 3 days of walking Mark thought staying in or near the hotel sounded like a good idea.  But he was a good sport as we headed once more down the streets of the Rynek.  Next door to the City Hall in the center of the square is the oldest restaurant in Poland…Piwnica Świdnicka. We didn't eat there…maybe on another visit.

The architects and builders who originally created these buildings were never shy in using great details  in their colors, paintings, designs and ornaments. The details are quite nice!

The structure below is called The Pillory.  It's actually in memory of the pillory that used to be located on this spot in front of City Hall.  The pillory was a structure used to publicly humiliate and flog people convicted of minor offenses in the middle of the market square.  I noticed this structure with a tiny statue on top when we had walked past it on previous occasions, but paid little attention to it.  Now that we knew what it represented we looked closer at the statue and saw that it is of a man holding onto a whip…so this was actually a whipping post!

We went inside the old but very beautiful City Hall...

It was filled with rooms with beautiful old doors, art, furniture...

….stoves....

….and beautiful ceilings and framework.

It is amazing to think this building took 250+ years to build in its current form…with sections and rooms added on over the years.

 Here is the very first gnome created…Papa Gnome! We actually saw this small figure from a tram the day before….but on that occasion, when we walked over to see if it was a gnome I said, "No, this looks like an ape. I wonder what it means?" Little did we know it was the very first gnome!

 The history of these gnomes dates back only to the mid 1980's…as a symbol of protest against communism and censorship by a student protest movement called the Orange Alternative.  Gnomes are common characters in Polish folklore, and the protestors would paint gnomes in public places as absurd symbols of their protest.  It wasn't all whimsical though….anyone caught painting gnomes or wearing orange hats were subject to arrest and sometimes beatings.

Wrocław reclaimed the gnomes as a city symbol by erecting this gnome monument on June 1, 2001, in memory of the protests of the Orange Alternative.   In the ensuing 11 years, businesses and other interest groups have placed the other gnomes at many locations all over the city.

We had heard, "Oh the city with the gnomes", or "You know, Wrocław is filled with gnomes"….and didn't know what those comments referred to….but now we do.  

Since there are over 200 of them, I am sure we would enjoy finding more on our return visits.

Here is the gorgeous Opera House in Wrocław…"Wrocław Opera". It was built in 1841 and over the years has been expanded with a number of different stylistic variations. I would have loved to step inside….better yet, to have seen a performance here.

We almost tripped over this little gnome with walking sticks…which someone actually had taken away!

Here is a statue of Bolesław the Brave…the first duke and then the First King of Poland. He was considered a very successful ruler, politician and statesmen. It is erected on a city corner in the middle of trams, buses and pedestrian walkways. 

One of my favorite monuments in Wrocław was in honor the common citizens…we found these sets of statues on opposite sides of the street at a major intersection.  Together, the two sets of statues are called "Crossing" or "The Anonymous Pedestrians"

These life-size bronze statues are a memorial to the many people who went underground in the middle of the night to escape the militia after the declaration of martial law on December 13, 1981.

On one corner are people walking down into the ground….forced underground by martial law.




Across the street are people walking back out of the ground after having persevered until martial law was lifted.

 The 14 statues were erected here in the middle of the night in 2005….

…. on the 24th anniversary of the imposition of martial law.

Every December 13 there are demonstrations in Warsaw, and perhaps all across Poland, against the declaration of martial law in 1981.  The man who was president of Poland at that time lives just up the hill from us, and it is customary for one of the demonstrations to end near his house.  As far as we understand the demonstrations are noisy but peaceful, and watched over by a significant police presence.

We had a great walking tour…all done on our own but with the help of a guidebook.  I would have loved to do another walking tour...but our time in this beautiful city was coming to a close. 

So…. goodbye to Wrocław…and your beautiful streets...

….to the Best Western Hotel Prima….

….and a wonderful weekend together….

Another artistic creation that caught our attention on the way to the airport….

 ….a locomotive standing on its back end, proceeding up a track leading up into the air.  

We are not sure what it means…or how it was created…but it definitely caught our eyes!

We have loved Wrocław…Poland's 4th largest city…such a rich cultural heritage, beautiful buildings, parks and green spaces…we loved learning and relaxing together….and  being here during the autumn season. We have had a great weekend!

How fitting that the last gnome we found was quite close to our hotel…it is holding a heart…we have loved being in this beautiful city!

Safe journeys home…to Warsaw!