TriCity miscellany

Little more than a fishing village before it became Poland's access to the Baltic in the inter-war years, Gdynia was filling up with modernist architecture by the time Germany invaded. Below: public-sector building currently hosting the local tourist-information office on the ground floor and social security offices above.

Below: angular modernist apartment building on the corner of ulica Armii Krajowej and plac Grunwaldzki, nearer the beaches.

Below: modernist apartment building, on the corner of ul. 10 lutego and ul. 3 maja.

On from Gdynia to Gdańsk by train. Below: passing through Gdańsk Oliwa station. The original waiting room today serves as a bistro – hot food and drink available on the platform. Opened in 1870 and refurbished in 2014, leaving many original features such as the tiling and the wooden platform roof, the station is served by InterCity trains from Warsaw. As such, it is well located for the beach (just over 2.5km, served by trams to Jelitkowo).

In Gdańsk for the sights. Below: the Baltic Sea Cultural Centre, formerly the old town hall. Designed by Antonis van Obberghen as the Spanish Armada was sailing to England (1588). The Flemish architect was also responsible for Gdański's Old Armoury (now the Fine Arts Academy, as seen in this post), and the extension of Toruń's Gothic town hall.

Below: ulica Piwna (lit. 'Beery Street'), looking north. The holiday season is already in full swing.

Below: the Court of the Millers' Guild. Visible behind it to the left is the Great Mill of Gdańsk, dating back to the 14th century.

Below: a slice of northern Europe. I reiterate the words of Jonathan Meades – Europe's real divide is not east-west; it is north-south. Gdańsk has more in common with Amsterdam, Hamburg and Helsinki than with Varna, Constanta or Split. 

Left: the Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, one of the largest brick-built churches in the world. Interestingly, the church hosted both Lutheran and Catholic services for decades before becoming entirely Lutheran in 1572 – and reverting to Catholicism in 1945.

Below: seen outside a Gdańsk shop a Nefryt TV set, manufactured in the mid-1960s by Warszawskie Zakłady Telewizyjne. Its insides are filled with toys representing children's TV shows of that era. We see, for example, Bolek i Lolek, Koziołek Matołek, Reksio and Tytus.

This time last year:
Footpath between Widok and Chynów station is opened

This time two years ago:
Summertime, and the living is lazy

This time three years ago:
Thoughts occasioned by the picking of fruit

This time five years ago:
First half of 2019 - health in numbers

This time six years ago:
Key Performance Indicators - health - first half 2018

This time seven years ago:
Three and half years of health and fitness data

This time eight years ago:
First half of 2016 health & fitness in numbers

This time nine years ago:
Venus, Jupiter – auspices

This time ten years ago:
Down the line from York

This time 11 years ago:
Cider – at last available in Poland

This time 12 years ago:
Despondency on Puławska

This time 13 years ago:
Stalking the stork

This time 15 years ago:
Late-June lightning