On to Toruń

Wednesday May 17, 2017 Day 7

Thanks to all those who have made comments about the blog. Glad that you’re enjoying it and appreciate hearing so. Not too sure about how to reply to questions so here’s a couple of answers…language is no problem. Most people seem to speak at least some English and if they don’t they take us to their friend who does. Yes, amber is big in Gdansk. Much of the world’s amber comes from the area of the Baltic Sea and actually washes up on the beaches near Gdansk.

Today we were on the road again, a 2-hour drive to Toruń south of Gdansk. More flat landscape and rapeseed fields. As we went farther south we saw less of the brilliant yellow fields and started seeing other grain crops, forested areas, and slightly more rolling hills. Very slightly.

Toruń was originally built by the Teutonic knights in 1233. It is another Unesco World heritage site recognized for being an example of a medieval village that has been preserved almost intact. It was in fact two towns, side by side, built on a set plan of the Teutonic order and surrounded by a moat. During WWII it was pretty much spared the destruction we’d seen in Warsaw and Gdansk. Having been around for over 750 years it has undergone changes as control went from one group to another. Today it is a busy tourist site with no cars inside the walls but with many shops that cater to locals…bakeries, butcher shops and flower stalls. Besides being a fine piece of heritage conservation Torun has two other claims to fame…the birthplace of Copernicus and gingerbread.

After checking into our small 13th century hotel on the edge of town, (yes, our hotel has been updated and is very cute and comfortable) we headed out on a 3 hour guided tour to learn about what makes this town so special. Toruń was built at the crossroads of two important shipping routes…north south along the Vistula River and East West from the Europe inland to Russia. Of course, we also visited the Copernicus Museum in the house where he was born and visited a shop to learn about gingerbread.

After another very good dinner we headed through the gate and down to the river where a lovely promenade has been built. It was a warm evening so there were many people out enjoying a pleasant stroll in this lovely spot. As the sun slowly went down we headed back through another gate and back to our hotel and hopefully a good nights sleep.