Wroclaw

Description

Wroclaw is one of the oldest and most attractive Polish cities, situated on the Oder River with 12 islands and 112 bridges including the Grunwald Bridge built in 1910, which used to be the longest suspension bridge in Europe. The city is rich in remarkable works of art and architecture. Since Wroclaw is one of the most dynamic cultural centres in Poland, it has won the bid for The European Capital of Culture 2016. Every year thousands of people arrive to Wroclaw to participate in a variety of international festivals of music (i.e. Wratislavia Cantans, Brave), film (T-Mobile New Horizons) and theatre (Dialog).

Additionally, the city attracts the visitors with the comprehensive offer of its cultural institutions, i.e. Wroclaw Opera, Capitol Musical Theatre, Polish Theatre, and the Grotowski Institute. Wroclaw is frequently a host of the international summits on politics and economy (i.e. Wroclaw Global Forum) and sports events (i.e. Euro 2012, Volleyball World Championship 2014). Thanks to its modern airport with regular direct flights service to dozens of European destinations, the city is easy to access. The heart of the city is Rynek Square with the exposing Late Gothic town hall which ranks among the finest town halls in Europe. The town hall boasts a richly ornamented facade and an astronomical clock from 1580. Many interiors are well preserved and worth visiting. A famous restaurant Piwnica Swidnicka is a perfect example of the Gothic cellar.

One of the most interesting museums in Wroclaw is Museum of Architecture situated in the former Bernardine church and Monastery. Another attraction is the Panorama of Raclawice - the rotunda purpose-built to display one painting which can be admired from the special lift inside. The gem of Baroque is Leopoldinum Hall at the University building which houses the statues of Habsburg emperors, paintings and frescoes. On the other side of the Oder River, there is a former island of Ostrow Tumski - the oldest part of the town and the heart of the religious life with many interesting churches and chapels. One of the most extraordinary building is Hala Ludowa "People’s Hall" [1913] which constitutes one of the first and finest examples of a fascination with the reinforced concrete in the European architecture. For a few years Wroclaw has been known for the fantastic music events which gained the world reputation - International Festival of Wratlislavia Cantans, The Festival of Old Masters and Organ Music but first of all thanks to the huge shows of Wroclaw Opera in the Wroclaw People's Hall. Wroclaw Opera is famous for experimenting, staging unknown and forgotten operas, introducing theatrical activities and using unconventional places for its shows like "Tosca" on the open air or "La Gioconda" on the Odra river.

The new National Forum of Music (NFM) is a performing arts organization established after merging the W. Lutoslawski Philharmonic with the International Festival Wratislavia Cantans. At the same time, the NFM is also a cutting-edge concert hall located in Wroclaw and the largest complex of this kind in Central and Eastern Europe. The building itself was built according to the design by Kurylowicz & Associates Architecture Studio.

Out of town is Ksiaz - one of the biggest and the most impressive castle beautifully located on the hill and surrounded by the lush woods. The castle has over 400 rooms! The biggest attractions of the castle are 12 terraced gardens and the Baroque Maximilian Hall. Near the castle, there is a stud farm and an equestrian centre. Another interesting sight is the Pszczyna castle – the museum of interiors contains about 80% of the original decorations from the turn of the 19th century. The French Neo-Renaissance castle is surrounded by the large landscape park.