Poland – Wrocław day 2 | alison richards | graphic designer and artworker

My first whole day in Wrocław started early, and I was at the main town square (Market Square or Rynek we Wrocławiu) at 8am. I always love getting up early in a new place - you get to just 'be' there and look around, without having to dodge around groups of people and get out of the way of people's selfies. Also, the town square was just so lovely that I wanted to see it without people.

This square was founded in the early 13th century and houses the town halls, both old and new, as well as being very close to St Elizabeth's Church. The buildings were damaged during World War 2 and carefully restored and they are gorgeous.

The two buildings at the front connected by the arch are known as Jaś i Małgosia or Hansel and Gretel.

The market square had a cluster of buildings in the middle, and this arch running between them

This is the south side of the Old Town Hall

Door detail. This is the entry to the second oldest restaurant in the whole of Europe (although this is debatable, as there are some articles online that say this is the oldest)! Established in the 13th century, the restaurant, called Piwnica Świdnicka, is housed in the basement of the Old Town Hall

I’ll post more photos of the gnomes later on… they were taking over the city!

From Market Square, I walked on to the university area. From there it wasn't far to the river. It was shaping up to be a nice day, as the clouds were slowly moving on. It was definitely not the 23 degrees that it had been yesterday, more like 14 or 15, but it wasn't too bad. I made my way across the river and over to the so-called "Cathedral Island" which isn't exactly an island, but does have a cathedral! To get there, you have to cross a bridge to an actual island in the Oder river, then cross another one to the other side. This second bridge, Tumski Bridge, dates from 1889 and is very pretty, but they really need to do something about the people putting locks on the bridge! It was surely heaving under the weight!

I'll just pause here to give you a little history of Wrocław - there is so much of it, so I'll be brief. The city, started in the 10th century, was in the middle of two trade routes. There's a lot that goes on in the centuries following, but I want to pick up in the 19th century. Wrocław was actually part of Germany in the 19th century and was called Breslau, which was one of the names it had been known by in its long history. Following World War 1, it remained in German hands but became part of Prussia. Most of the poor Polish people were pushed out of Wrocław at this time, as they were persecuted for speaking Polish after Hitler moved to power. The second World War started and the Germans set up extermination camps nearby. Most of the city's Jewish population sadly ended up there. The city was generally untouched until the end of the war when the Russian Red Army moved in and it became a battleground between Germans and Russians. So many people died, either due to exposure as they tried to escape or war itself. Thankfully, the war ended and it was decided that Wrocław would go back to being part of Poland. The Germans were expelled from the city and Poles who had been displaced elsewhere moved in.

I know, Poland has some rough history and it was saddening to learn. But, despite all this, the Polish are lovely and kind and seemed genuinely happy that an Aussie from London had decided to visit their little city and find out more of their history.

There were plaques up this footpath with all the names that Wrocław has been known by throughout its long past.

So onto the gnomes.... There's a whole story about why the gnomes started being made, but I don't know if I believe it. The more recent story is that someone made a couple and put them around the city. They became so popular that businesses and others started commissioning artists to make more, resulting in around 400 gnomes in all poses, types of clothing, doing silly things all around the city. I only took photos of a few of them but they were everywhere! It would make for a good activity for kids to find them all, though parents would probably get sick of being dragged around after a while!

I wandered around Cathedral Island before crossing another bridge to the museum area. I didn't really feel like going to a museum because it was such a lovely day so I kept going, but it was definitely time to go somewhere for some morning tea!

It was about 10:30 so definitely tea and cake time. Luckily, my Polish friend gave me a recommendation of a cafe called Cukiernia Nanan, so I aimed for that.

I'm just going to say that this place was TOTALLY me! It was pink, so pink, and served tea and the most delightful little cakes. Yes I had no idea what I bought and was eating but it was all so pretty! The following pics are from my phone, but they were just too pretty not to include...

I mean, just look at the cake selection!

It wasn’t empty, just people sitting in other places. It was so pretty

What the inside of the cake looked like… It was weirdly gooey

After leaving the pretty pink restaurant, I just wandered around for a couple of hours, before stopping at a Thai place for a Pad Thai and a glass of wine - surprisingly good Pad Thai! Not usually my first choice in a European country (they are not known for doing very good Asian cuisine) and usually I like to eat the local food, but I was just craving some noodles!

This is the Memorial to Slaughtered Animals. This street used to be used by butchers, hence the memorial. It is now artisans and artists who work in the buildings.

Old Town Hall – its a bit livelier now than when I was there earlier this morning!

In the afternoon, I decided to walk up the many stairs to the top of St Elizabeth's Church to have a look at the view. 300 steps up to the 91m platform and I had one of the best views of Wrocław!

People look like ants! Hello tiny humans!

The last stop of the day was to go have a look inside the Old Town Hall. It was almost closing time so I think I was one of the last people in there for the day. There wasn't too much to see, but some of the old interior was still intact.

I went back to my hotel via Starbucks and picked up the biggest tea I could - it was cold and not too many places served tea.

That night, I went out to a pierogi restaurant for dinner called Pierogarnia Stary Młyn. They didn't have any grape wine, so I ordered a wine made from pears. I ordered 2 plates of pierogi, then realised how huge they were and that I was never going to finish both of them! I got a baked version and a steamed version - definitely preferred the steamed. The baked was a bit like a Cornish pasty - smelled nicer than it looked.

I head back to my hotel and collapsed into bed after what had been a long day!