It is often said that Łódź is an uglier sister of Warsaw. I can agree that they are related somehow, but I'd never say that Łódź is the ugly one. Even if it's only 135 km (84 mi) away from Warsaw, it is far different from the capital of Poland - and this is what makes her worth sightseeing.
Łodź has left her brightest times in the past - it used to be one of the biggest manufacture centres in Poland. Giant factories were everywhere, not much of them have survived. Łódź was focused on the textile industry, it was even called a 'Polish Manchester'. By the time right before the World War I Łódź had become one of the most densely populated industrial cities in the world! The textile industry declined dramatically in 1990 and 1991. However, countless small
companies still provide a significant output of textiles and old factories are being turned into galleries, cinemas, theatres and culture centres. The alternative culture is growing there very quickly - you can observe it on the streets, on the walls of buildings, in cafes and pubs... everywhere.
During the World War II, Łódź was captured by Germans. Soon the Nazi authorities set up the
Łódź Ghetto in the city and populated it with more than 200,000 Jews from the Łódź area (approximately 900 people survived the liquidation of the ghetto in August 1944).
These days, history is still alive in Łódź. There are many beautiful old buildings, especially tenement houses still waiting to be renovated. They seem to be ruined, but they still have something eye-catching. So, what Łódź has to offer?
Piotrkowska street: is the main artery and attraction stretching north to south for a little
over 5 km, making it (one of) the longest commercial streets
in the world. A few of the building fronts have been renovated and date
back to the 19th century.
Łagiewniki: you can get close to nature in this largest city park in Europe. Actually, you can say that it is an urban forest! You can ride a bike there, rent a paddleboat, sightsee old chapels and enjoy the nature.
The 'Poznański' Palace: is known as a Louvre in Łódź and it became a City of Łódź History Museum with many events taking place there.
Manufaktura: it used to be a giant factory, right now it is a multicultural centre of spending free time in shops, restaurants, clubs, cinema and museum.
M2: it is a museum of Polish contemporary art. It has got a wide collection of Polish most important avantgarde artists. There are plenty of museums and galleries in Łódź!
Film School: Łódź is also a national film centre. It has got the most famous film school in Poland. Scenes of David Lynch's 2006 film
'Inland Empire' were shot in Łódź :)
Check out a great map of Łódź here:
http://www.use-it-lodz.pl/
And finally,
how to get there? Very simple! There are plenty of trains going from Warsaw Central Station. All journey by train takes only 2 hours. Check the timetible here:
http://test2012.rozklad-pkp.pl/bin/query.exe/en?
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| All the details are important in Łódź |
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| 'Wolności' Square (the Square of Freedom) |
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| Buildings of Łódź |
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| Giant mural next to the Piotrkowska street |
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| The details of Manufaktura |
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| Cafe 'Wolność' ('Freedom' cafe) |
For the second time Polish students tried to teach people how to make a
HOŁUBIEC STEP – a Polish national dance step. It is supposed to express
joy and happiness. What's the aim of the action? - We want to show
people that the is nothing to be ashamed of! On the contrary, The Polish
Foklore is very representative and we should popularize this type of
culture since it's deeply rooted in our tradition. We mey go even
further! Why not mix folklore with modern forms of artistic expression:
music, dance, design?
