Thursday 16 June In the morning we explored that central district a bit more ourselves before joining a Free guided tour. These tours are technically free, but you are expected to donate at the end. The guide Cami, had good English and was very personable and passionate about Poznan, giving detailed explanations of the historical aspects of the city.
Poznań has had the sort of chequered history of many European cities; growth, disasters, invasions, destruction and regrowth. Some facts I found interesting were: the fairly utilitarian buildings build by the Communist Government in the centre of the square cannot be demolished because they are in a World Heritage zone;
Poznan has its very own copyright and authorised croissant, the St Martin, plus a museum dedicated to it.
The beautiful Jesuit church, which is one of the world’s best examples of gothic churches, was built on the cheap, for example the huge marble columns are only coated to look like marble, and the cupola over the centre is an optical illusion, painted onto a flat ceiling.
Poznań has had the sort of chequered history of many European cities; growth, disasters, invasions, destruction and regrowth. Some facts I found interesting were: the fairly utilitarian buildings build by the Communist Government in the centre of the square cannot be demolished because they are in a World Heritage zone;Poznan has its very own copyright and authorised croissant, the St Martin, plus a museum dedicated to it.
The beautiful Jesuit church, which is one of the world’s best examples of gothic churches, was built on the cheap, for example the huge marble columns are only coated to look like marble, and the cupola over the centre is an optical illusion, painted onto a flat ceiling.
After lunch we attended a free student performance in the Poznań Ballet school which is house in an old Jesuit College building.The performance was quite good, but it reminded us of ones that Rachel and Charlotte had performed in while at Miss Jenny’s dance classes in Newtown.
The venue however was completely different provided a unique atmosphere.
By now Frances was desperate for a coffee, and we happened on Kawiarnia Sztukafeteria a tiny café that served real expresso coffee.We’d had such bad experience trying to get good coffee in Germany, that we were a little apprehensive.
Fortunately Marta, the proprietor and her husband both spoke English so we ended up having a debate about coffee!She was adamant that adding milk was an adulteration, and it should be drunk black. We agreed to differ and had an excellent cappuccino for the first time since leaving Australia.
By now was late afternoon, and Frances wanted to swim at the nearby Thermal Baths at Lake Malta, a short tram ride away. The place was huge, with thermal baths, aquatic play centre and Olympic size swimming pool. Fortunately they had separate entry fees for the different sections, so Frances could just do a few laps. There was even an outside ‘beach’ area with sand, umbrellas and beach chairs!
That night was another Europen Cup night, this time Poland vs Germany, so we knew we’d be in for a sleepless night.Most of the bars and restaurants had their screen showing the football. Those that didn’t were empty.
We decided to have some snacks and sit outside in the square as it was a pleasant evening.
We went to the main Polish style BBQ stand to choose something. They had all kinds of BBQ’d meat; kababs, sausages, small rolled sausages, steaks, etc. In fact anything you like as long as it’s pork. I chose a kebab with potatoes (what else) and a huge dollop of mustard. It was huge, and was strung alternately with pork, pork fat and onion. The potatoes were the small kind that’s common here, cooked with paprika and dill – quite nice. Frances ordered bigos a traditional Polish meal. It’s made with sauerkraut, chopped cabbage and meat - pork, game, sausage and/or bacon. All the ingredients are mixed and cooked over a low flame for several hours, then put aside and reheated a few more time over the next couple of days. Frances really liked it but it was a bit too ethnic for me. We still have the duck’s blood soup and other traditional dishes to go!They also served beer with a mixed berry cordial – I left that for Frances who thought it was fine. By the time we finished dinner the football game was in full swing, and as predicted, the celebrations went on until daylight. I don’t know why though, the game was a draw, no-one scored a goal!
Today we leave Poznań for Wroclaw (pronounced Vratswuv) for 3 days which is about 2 hours further east in Poland. Here are some parting photos from Posnan, including the horrible Rosemary’s Hostel where we stayed – each room named after a Roman Polanski movie.
