Introduction
THE WARTA BOULEVARD - FOT. B. NOWOSIELSKI
A weekend in Gorzów
G REGGAE AT THE WARTA RIVER – FESTIVAL - FOT. Ł. TRZOSEK
MOTO RACING SHOW - FOT.M.KAŹMIERCZAK
ROMANE DYVESA - FOT. M. KAŹMIERCZAK
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orzów is a city teeming with life and diversity. To an external observer it may appear to be a rich mosaic of interesting places, events and people. Guests and locals alike are entertained with many exciting, worthwhile ,often niche initiatives and cultural events. The city has a considerable spiritual potential and it truly enchants visitors who come to discover it. All because Gorzów is an expert in special tasks; from festivals of the most libertarian music genres in the world (reggae, jazz, Roma music), to unusual kinds of urban furniture (e.g. monuments honoring outstanding citizens, the low observation deck, Schody Donikąd - Stairway to Nowhere), to pioneer and brave actions (Dzwon Pokoju – The Bell of Peace, Summer Stage, garden theaters, brass bands parade), to reviving craftsmanship and promoting eco-friendly farming, supporting city artists and various sport disciplines (speedway, boule, rowing). It all makes Gorzów stand out among other similar-sized cities.
History and legend trail
History and legend trail
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ithout a shadow of a doubt Gorzów is symbolized by its architectural gem: gothic St Mary’s Church (currently the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary), built on the foundations of a 13th century Roman church. The Cathedral boasts a 53-meter tower, added in the 14th century, which dominates the city’s skyline; its observation deck offers the best views of Gorzów Wielkopolski it is open May through October each year (at 11.30, 13.00, 14.00, 16.00.) To get there, however, you need to climb up 186 steep stairs leading through 7 levels, where you can learn the history of the city and the church.
Before you do that, take a look at the southern façade of the church; there are small round holes in it, made in the medieval times when stone was stroke to make fire with a fire drill. It was believed that if the new fire was taken home on a candle during Easter, it would bring prosperity and health for the fire-maker and his family. However, there is also another explanation of the round holes: there is a legend, or rather an anecdote, that tells of a sinner who had to repent for his sins by drilling the holes with his finger. On the walls you can also notice deep notches, made in later periods during sharpening sabers. At the side entrance on the southern wall of the main part of the temple there is a beautiful, original gothic entrance portal with jambs. Before you enter the temple take a look at the nails hammered into the door. They were placed here during World War I as a “confirmation” of payments for the war fund. The more affluent townspeople paid for nails that were even silver- or gold-plated which did not survive the Second World War, however; in 1945 they were picked out by Russians and first Polish settlers. At the entrance to the tower’s porch, you can notice the tombs of bishop Theodor Benesz (1910 – 1958) on the right, and bishop Wilhelm Pluta (1910 – 1986) on the left. There is an inscription on the latter tomb that recalls the words of bishop Pluta which were always his motto: “A man dies in a man when good deeds
ST. MARY’S CATHEDRAL CHURCH - FOT. T. CHWALISZ
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History and legend trail no longer bring him joy and bad - no longer cause pain.” Next, there is a collection of photos taken during the visit of John Paul II in Gorzów in 1997 and a polychromed wooden Renaissance crucifix from the 16th century. You can access the upper levels of the tower through the entrance in the left aisle. There are, among others, two rooms previously occupied by the town watchman. He was there to ring the bells, watch the town and warn people in case of a fire. The oldest tower bells were cast in 1448. One of them (the bigger one) was struck and pierced by a lightning in 1708, and the other (a smaller one), known as “Ave Maria” survived until 1945. The clock, made in Hannover in 1899, is a very characteristic part of the tower. The interior of the pseudo-basilica church is its oldest part: the nave and aisles divided by octagonal pillars supporting a groined vault. Sunlight seeps into the church through stained-glass windows made in 19661967 according to a design by Wiktor Ostrzołek and Edward Kwiatkowski for 1000-year anniversary of the baptism of Poland. The stained-glass windows in the chancel depict the seven Sacraments. In the chancel, closed by a lierne vault founded by Hans Promnitz, there is a precious renaissance altar from the end of the 16th century. It is a triptych where you can see the Golgotha in the central part, the Last Supper below and Jonah the prophet in the whale’s mouth in the upper part. The apostles placed on the sides of the triptych come from an earlier gothic altar. The stalls along the sides of the chancel exhibit the busts of 24 elderly men of the Apocalypse. The nave is separated from the octagonal chancel by a rood beam with a gothic Crucifixion group with Holy Mary and St. John, and it is the oldest, 15th-century decorative element in the church. Notice also the three rood beams dating back to the 15th century and a Pietà from the beginning of the 16th century. In the upper part of an octagonal column that supports the ribbed vault (on the right from the altar), you can see the oldest (14th century) depiction of the city’s coat of arms; it is a red Askanian Eagle holding clover leaves in its claws. First organs were introduced to the church in the 15th century. In 1617 twelve registers
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CHESSBOARD Another curiosity in the church is the granite quarter placed at the very floor between the 12th and 13th Station of the Cross, with a sculpted chessboard (7 rows and 4 columns). Such chessboards can usually be found at entry portals or at external walls - only in Brandenburg, Pomerania and in the Lubusz Land. The meaning and function of the chessboards is still shrouded in mystery. This chessboard is exceptional, it is the only one of the discovered 97 that is located inside a church. were added. In 1915 however, new 40-rank organs from “W. Sauer” company in Frankfurt were ordered. In the sacristy two original gothic keystones have been preserved: one shows a motif of two birds and the other – “Agnus Dei.” Right next to the church there is a monument of bishop Wilhelm Pluta, made by Czesław Dźwigaj. The bishop will always be remembered as a priest who deeply cared about his parishioners, and as the one who renovated the Church of Our Lady the Patient Listener in Rokitno, the closest to Gorzów sanctuary of Our Lady, regardless of the problems piling up in front of him. If you turn right now, towards Rynek (Market Square), you can see traces of the now gone chapel of St. Urban (founded before 1385.) The place where it once stood is now marked with red brick in the pavement near the church. There is a legend related to the chapel that tells of a townswoman who was suspected of treason during the Hussite Wars (1431-1435.) She was accused of having shown a secret passage from behind the city walls to the chapel to a Polish knight Władysław (Polish reinforcements were at that time supporting the Hussites.) To extort a confession of her guilt she was subjected to torture, and sentenced to death by breaking wheel. The horrible sentence was executed at the Wzgórze Wisielców (the Hangmen Height, currently the junction of Asnyk, Chopin and Konstytucji 3 Maja Streets), where executions were held. Sin-
History and legend trail ce then a white ghost has appeared there, to prove her innocence. Having visited the temple, move on south towards the square, where you can notice a butterfly-shaped flower bed. Among the plants growing there you can discern for example a decorative Dovastoniana species of the European yew, Juniper and Kentucky Coffeetree with original bi-pinnate leaves. Further down the square you can see a faithful reconstruction of a streetcar, built especially for Landsberg in 1899. The replica is made from mostly wooden elements, on an original Breme-type chassis from the 1920s. Today the car is used as a tourist information point. You can purchase maps, guidebooks, souvenirs from Gorzów and its surroundings as well as tickets for cultural events. If you walk further down south, you will pass the former shop “Arsenał” (Arsenal), named in remembrance of an 18th-century arsenal that was torn down in 1973. You will now reach a pedestrian crossing, where you can go to the other side of Bolesław Chrobrego Street to a green square at Strzelecka Street, where you can find a sculpture of a speedway rider. This work of art by Andrzej Moskaluk is a monument of Edward Jancarz sitting on a speedway motorbike. You can now move on along Strzelecka Street, passing by the former building of Gustav F. Gross brewery cold storage (lager) dating back to 1877, towards the bridge across the Kłodawka river. Do not cross the bridge
THE MUNICIPAL INFORMATION CENTRE - E. CHRUŚCIŃSKA-JACKOWIAK
- you will arrive at a small monument of Maria Konopnicka, the patron of the first Polish school opened in 1945. At that time the school was attended by … 183 pupils. Further to your right, on the bank of the Kłodawka river, you can admire an astonishing swamp cypress (circumference of 238cm.) This long-lived species of conifer (it can live up to 200 years!) originally comes from the United States; it was imported to Europe in the 17th century to decorate parks. It has small, 2-2.5 cm seed cones and older species are surrounded by root structures sticking from the ground (cypress knees) which help in providing oxygen to the tree.
EDWARD JANCARZ The legendary speedway rider, 11-times Polish representative in Individual Speedway World Championships. A native of Gorzów, he is presented here wearing a traditional chest protector of Stal Gorzów, the local speedway club he was a part of throughout his sport career (1965-1986.) He won Individual Polish Championships twice, “Golden Helmet” three times, and bronze medal in Speedway World Championships. He is well remembered by all speedway fans in Gorzów, and everyone in Gorzów a speedway fan at heart. EDWARD JANCARZ MONUMENT - E. CHRUŚCIŃSKA-JACKOWIAK
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History and legend trail The eclectic building across the street is the former Imperial Post Office built in 1890 and expanded several times. The inner courtyard, which you can see from the sidewalk, was in the past used as a cab rank. You should walk through the post office and come out on the other side to take a look at the main façade decorated with two single-axis risalits. The one closer to the main entrance is preceded by a portico with a raised polygonal tower closed by an openwork helmet. It is one of the most beautiful eclectic buildings in Gorzów. Strzelecka Street will lead you to a parking lot in front of the “Park 111” department store, where you can find probably the only in the world sculpture of a homeless person (made by Andrzej Moskaluk.) You will now arrive at Sikorski Street, where you can find a classicistic building of the St. John’s Masonic Lodge of Black Eagle, set up in 1810. Rebuilt in the 1890s, the building belonged to the Masonic Lodge until 1935. There is a medallion embedded in the façade, on the right from the entrance, devo-
SZYMON GIĘTY
SZYMON GIĘTY MONUMENT - FOT. B. NOWOSIELSKI
ted to the first Gorzów Starost Florian Kroenke (1909-2004.) Move on away from the center, along Sikorski Street, pass by the dam on the Kłodawka river and stop in front of a villa in Berliner secession style dating back to 1903, designed by Karol Bengert for a well-known Landsberg engineer Hans Lehmann. Today it is an
You might be surprised but Kazimierz Wnuk, known as „Szymon Gięty”, was an extraordinary person. Many of the jokes and pranks that he played on the local people and on the communist authorities are now legendary. Suffice to say that during the communist era he was often arrested, as a preventive measure, because authorities were afraid he would ridicule an official event such as the celebration of the Labor Day on the 1 of May. And the citizens remember that he used to pitch his tent in the center of the city and claimed there was a monkey inside. Those curious to see it paid a small fee to go in; once inside, they saw their own faces in a mirror. Some other time he showed exotic birds, which meant … color painted sparrows. He was an unforgettable person. The creation of the monument was initiated by a Gorzów native now living in Canada, the citizens of Gorzów and the local office of the “Gazeta Wyborcza” daily. THE OLD TENEMENT HOUSE
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History and legend trail elegant part of a modern Zbigniew Herbert Provincial and City Public Library, built in 2008. It has a secession interior with functional, modernist solutions. All rooms focus around a presentable two-story hall and a staircase. On the ground floor there used to be the owner’s bedroom with a study room and a dining room. The porch with park view offered a pleasant place to relax. There are many remnants of the former f ur nishings: staircase with a decorative balustrade, wood paneling, built-in wardrobes, a lantern, a tiled fireplace with a wicker air grating, stained glass depicting townsp e ople wearing
REFLECTION IN THE WINDOW OF PUBLIC LIBRARY- FOT. T. CHWALISZ
traditional costumes, a hoop-shaped chandelier, various paintings and ceiling decorations such as rosettes and facets. When you have visited the villa, you can walk through the gate to Park Wiosny Ludów (the Spring of Nations Park, in the past known as Emperor Wilhelm’s Park, covering 4.78ha), the most beautiful city park. It was set up in 1913 when the city purchased Koch’s meadows that surrounded an old mill pond supplied with Kłodawka waters. When you walk into the park, you should turn left in front of the library building, to see the monument of a Roma poet Bronisława Wajs, also known as Papusza. You can now walk to the bridge (you can notice there a rare specimen of Amur Maple, originally growing in China, Japan and Korea). The bridge offers an interesting view on a small island on the Kłodawski Pond, co-
PAPUSZA The poet arrived in the area of Gorzów in 1947 with one of the last wandering Roma groups. She wrote poems about the life of Roma, their customs, the wandering tradition of this nomadic nation and the beauty of nature. Her poems were published in two volumes: “Songs of Papusza” and “Spoken songs.” vered with alders and home to wild ducks. As you walk on, along the chestnut-lined path, and you happens to be there in the summer, you will pass a sundial and hundreds of multicolored roses, which give the park its informal name – “Rose Park” (Park Róż.) It is a perfect place to sit on one of the benches and rest, watching the swans majestically glide on the water. It is worth spending more time in the park, to stroll along the lanes lined with chestnut trees, London planes or hornbeams, find yellow catalpa, Japanese barberry, Bearberry Honeysuckle, hedge cotoneaster, yews, several maple species, Japanese pagoda tree, thuja occidentalis, Chinese willow or Chinese necklace poplar originating from China. You can leave the park walking along a plane-tree path along the Kłodawka river and exit through the north-eastern gate at the
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History and legend trail
ROSE PARK - FOT. ARCHIWUM UM
junction of Wybickiego and Łokietka Streets. At Wybickiego Street you can drop in to a cosy café, where you can rest from the city noise sipping a cup of coffee or hot chocolate. You can then walk towards Łokietka Street to reach Bolesława Chrobrego Street and an old bridge across Kłodawka, with a monumental specimen of white willow , its branches touching the water. Right across the river you can see a beautiful villa built for doctor Carl Bock at the end of the 19th century. On the other side of the bridge there is a green square, set up along Kłodawka as early as in 1899. Until recently (till July 2010) the place was even more beautiful thanks to a large, old (320 years old) black poplar, with circumference of 660cm.
Unfortunately strong winds “defeated” the giant and now you can only admire a part of its knocked trunk. At the other side of the Kłodawka river you can see an oak tree called “Bismarck.” Nearby, you cannot miss two monuments of painters who had strong ties with the Gorzów. The one closer to Chrobrego Street is the monument of Jan Korcz (1905-1984), a painter symbolic for the first years of Polish Gorzów, and the monument a little further shows Ernest Henseler (1852-1940). The building next to the monuments houses "Mała Galeria” (The Small Gallery) of the Gorzów Photography Association. It hosts very interesting photography exhibitions and often shows post-competition exhibitions, participated by artists and amateurs from Gorzów.
JAN KORCZ The painter with outstanding talent settled in Gorzów in 1945 and it was here that he created hundreds of paintings, often "paying with them” for a doctor’s visit or a dinner. Sharp minded, often very critical towards the reality and people surrounding him, he had a sarcastic sense of humour. He coined the phrase “zgorzowieć” -a wordplay, meaning to become ordinary, uncreative and intellectually dull. Still, he was generally respected and popular. CARL BOCK VILLA - FOT. Z.RUDZIŃSKI
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History and legend trail You can now turn right in the Dąbrowskiego Street, next to the modern building of the fire department. As you walk along the path lined with the Swedish whitebeam, you will pass mechanical and electrical vocational schools. They are located in the former Social House; since 1920 it housed a sports hall, a library, a reading room, seats of various youth organizations and even a soup kitchen. Behind it, take a look at a tenement house at 34 Dąbrowskiego Street, where you can see interesting, secession balconies with wrought guard rails with floral motifs. You will now arrive at a junction with Jagiełły Street, where you should turn left to go to the City Baths, a building from 1930. At that time it was a modern building, with a swimming pool (20 x 30 m) and space for healing baths, solarium and a gymnasium. You may go inside the baths to see a bust monument of Max Bahr (18481930), the instigator of the baths, an outstanding and distinguished person.
ERNEST HENSELER Born in Wieprzyce, professor of drawing at the Berliner Polytechnikum. During his frequent visits in his homeland he liked to paint numerous Warta river landscapes. He also specialized in portraits. He painted e.g. the portrait of Franz Hofman von Fallersleben, the author of the German national anthem. His works were shown in Paris, Berlin, Vienna and London.
JAN KORCZ MONUMENT - FOT. E. CHRUŚCIŃSKA-JACKOWIAK
Let us now move on across the street towards a fragment of a stone-brick defensive wall dating back to the 14th century; it is 130m long, with four half-shell towers (lookouts). As early as in 1325 the city was surrounded by a moat filled with water, and by a stone defensive wall approximately 2 km long, with 32 look-outs and three gates: Santocka, Młyńska and Mostowa. The wall you can see today is what remained after the early 14th century construction was rebuilt and expanded. A hundred years later, fearing an expected attack of the Czech Hussites, Landsberg citizen raised the wall and strengthened it. The wall was indeed of use in June 1433, when Landsberg was besieged for 7 days by the Hussite and Polish forces. The wall passed the test with flying colors - the city was not seized. The first to seize them, damaging a part of the wall, was the Swedish king Charles X Gustav in 1631. As time went by, in the 18th century the moat was buried, and the gates and almost all look-outs and wall were torn down. A green park Planty took place of some of the former moat.
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History and legend trail moved from one place to another and almost sent to scrap, when it was finally placed here, where in some ways it takes part in the city’s life, e.g. by putting on a red hat on St. Nicholas’ Day. He was named after Józef Teofil Finster, a city councilor, who purchased the sculpture for the city.
TOWN WALLS - FOT. T. CHWALISZ
Next to the wall, surrounded by greenery, there is a sculpture called Śfinster which in the past was very controversial among the people of Gorzów. An athletic, cast-iron naked man made by Zbigniew Frączkiewicz was
WŁODZIMIERZ KORSAK The author of the hunter’s guide “A Hunter’s Year” (“Rok Myśliwego”, published in 1922) lived in Gorzów from July 7, 1945 to 1969. During Poland’s twenty years of independence after World War I he held the title of the Polish Master of the Hunt and wrote numerous books for hunters, usually in the form of storytelling. His passion for hunting (his trophies included a wolf, a bear, a tiger, an auroch) with time evolved into a need to protect the beauty of nature. He was one of the first to notice the necessity to protect the unique nature of the Warta estuary. His last book “The Forest Told Me” (“Las mi powiedział”), addressed to young people, tells about the laws of nature and about the Lubusz Land. A bird reserve “Janie” near Lubniewice was named after him.
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If you walk further down Hawelańska Street, you will find “The Witches’ Well” (Studnia Czarownic), covered with a conical copper roof and a naked witch on a broom on the top. It used to be one of many wells supplying citizens with water, and it used to stand at the back of what is now the City Hall. According to a legend the well takes its name after the burning of the last witch in Landsberg in 1686. After the war the figure of the witch disappeared, but the well survived. The well returned as a tourist attraction in 1997, when a Gorzów sculptor Zofia Bilińska restored the witch according to photos and postcards, and the then City Mayor Henryk Maciej Woźniak decided to place the well at the Wełniany Rynek (Wool Market). In Hawelańska Street, the first secession tenement house on the right is where a medieval monastery was located. Later on, in the 19th century, it was rebuilt into an elegant Max Grafling inn. As you continue along Hawelańska Street, you will pass a bookstore with a plaque on the wall commemorating a great nature lover, writer, painter, photographer, traveler and hunter Włodzimierz Korsak (1886-1973.) You are now reaching Sikorskiego Street and if you cross it, you will arrive at the Rynek (Market Square), where the second walking tour begins.
The phantom of the Town Hall
THE OLD MARKET VIEW FROM THE CATHEDRAL TOWER - FOT. T.CHWALISZ
The Phantom of the Town Hall
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arket Square has always been the heart of the city. It was here that the Town Hall, the seat of municipal administration, was located since medieval times. This two-story construction with a high, pitched roof and a trumpeter’s tower collapsed in 1825 and twenty five years later it was pulled down. However before it disappeared, like all self-respectful historic buildings it had its own ghost, or rather a phantom. In 1897 Herman Paucksch (1816-1899), a Landsberg producer of world-renowned steam boilers, founded a fountain for the city (it was made of 1575kg of bronze.) It was a symbol of the city and of its past wealth. Initially, on a hill made of Warthauer sandstone there was a figure of a woman holding two buckets. Pauckschmaria, today known as Maria or, tenderly, "bamberka” (B amb er
THE PHANTOM OF THE TOWN HALL Here is the story: in the Town Hall, two councilors argued about an issue, and when one of them felt he was out of arguments, he stabbed his opponent right in his heart and killed him. The perpetrator fled the city but after some time returned a madman, believing he would get away with his deed. That is not what happened, however. He was arrested, tried and beheaded at the Landsberg Market Square. Since the day of the execution, everyone was scared to stay in the Town Hall and Market Square at night, because the headless phantom of the councilor often appeared there. Until one Christmas day at dusk, when an elderly lady met the phantom who asked her to say The Lord’s Prayer for his sinful soul. She was so terrified that she fulfilled his request, but she experienced such fear that she died the next day. Since then however, nobody has ever again seen the phantom of the councilor.
girl), was associated with a traditional reliability and laboriousness of the German citizen, and with the Warta river. Children THE PAUCKSCH’S FOUNTAIN - FOT. D. ADAMSKI
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The phantom of the Town Hall playing at her feet symbolize the domains the city was known for: the boy with a hammer, which was previously accompanied by a cogwheel, symbolized machine industry, the girl with a fishing rod - fishing industry, the girl with a boat - trade and river transportation. Supposedly Paucksch’s granddaughter posed for the figure of the girl with a high braid. The fountain was designed by Cuno von Uechtritz. During World War II the sculpture was removed and most probably in 1945 taken away towards Stalingrad, where on the kurgan of khan Mamai they planned to set up a Monument for the Glory of the Red Army. A hundred years after the original was founded, the fountain’s replica (made by Zofia Bilińska) was placed here thanks to the efforts of Landsberg authorities and citizens. Gorzów Internet bench is an important part of the Market Square. To show yourself to your friends online, you need to find a bench marked as “WEBSTREFA”, sit on it and inform someone they can see you on the web. Tell them to go to www.gorzow.pl, open the tab “Kamery internetowe” (Web cameras) and then click on “ławka WEBstrefy” (WEBstrefa Bench.) In a matter of seconds you can wave “hello!” to your friends! Other web cameras show the Paucksch’s fountain, the bridge on the Warta, a view on the Boulevard, Hawelańska Street and e.g. the city panorama.
THE TENEMENT HOUSE OBOTRYCKA STREET/PIONIERÓW STREET CROSSING - FOT. E. CHRUŚCIŃSKA-JACKOWIAK
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WALK OF FAME Commemorative plaques honoring eminent artist from Gorzów were placed in the ground of the Market Square. You can find plaques with the names of Wiesław Strebejka (1945-1994), a graphic artist and stage designer, Jan Korcz (1905-1984), a painter, Andrzej Gordon (1948-1992), a painter, Bolesław Kowalski (1941-2001), a fine artist, Waldemar Kućka (1932-1981), a photographer, Jerzy Szalbierz (1947-1997), a photographer, Zdzisław Morawski (1926-1992), a playwright, poet and writer, Henryka Żbik-Nierubiec (1944-2001) - a fine artist and a weaver. There was another plaque, commemorating Bronisława Wajs, “Papusza”, a Roma poet. The Roma community asked however, that it be moved to Kosynierów Gdyńskich Street, where it was placed in a façade of a building (across Mieszko Hotel), where the poet lived. The facade of an edifice on the southern frontage of the Market Square depicts the panorama of the old Landsberg by Bolesław Kowalski, and a plaque devoted to Jan Korcz, as the building for many years housed his study. From the Market Square you can walk along Obotrycka Street towards the junction with Pionierów Street, where you should take a look at two tenement houses. One of them, a four-story building with a beautiful eclectic façade, was built in 1867 by a baker Carl Beker. It was later expanded and rebuilt in 1892 by his son Carl Ernest Becker. Notice the beauty of the bay window on the corner, covered with a helmet with a pinnacle. In 1936 German athletes on their way to Olympic Regatta from America to Hamburg tasted the bread baked by the Beckers and claimed it was the best in Germany. The family’s descendants continue the tradition in Germany; they own a confectionery factory in Uelzen. On the other side of the junction you can see the oldest in town two-story tenement house, built at the end of the 18th century. In its cellar you could find the remains of an even older, late gothic medieval structure. At the
The phantom of the Town Hall end of the 19th century the building belonged to the Steingke family, the manufacturers of exquisite wines and liqueurs. You should now turn left into Pionierów street and pass by a very interesting portal of a side entry (currently an ATM), decorated with images of frogs and pelicans.
FROGS AND PELICANS Stop by and take a look at the pelican that holds a coin in its beak. Supposedly, it symbolically refers to the banker's ability to tear out money from his own chest should the client need it. Some snide that the face of the frog above it reflects the face of a borrower when he pays the first installment.
The seat of the Landsberg Credit Association (Landsberskie Towarzystwo Kredytowe), a late secession building dating back to 1925, is particularly impressive looking from Sikorski Street. Its four-story façade with a portal made partially in sandstone has a quadrangular risalit with an oval medallion depicting mayor Lehmann, an accomplished member of the Credit Association. There is a small terrace and a triangular pediment above. Continue along Sikorski Street; you will pass by a bank, erected on the site where until the night of 16/17 July 1945 there was a bookstore and house of Wilhelm Ogoleit (18691953), a humanist, bookseller and collector. He had a collection of souvenirs after German romantic poets Goethe and Schiller that was unequalled in quantity in northern Germany. The collection was partly plundered by Soviet soldiers and partly perished in fire. A small part of the collection was rescued by art sensitive Polish settlers together with bishop Kurt Scharf, Wilhelm Ogoleit's godson, and was later given to the Lubuskie Museum. You will now walk by the “Lamus” Creative Thinking Club (Klub Myśli Twórczej “Lamus”), with a colorful façade by Joanna Bubienko and a very unusual interior, where you can have a cup of coffee and see an art exhibition.
THE PELICAN HOLDING A COIN IN THE BEAK - E. CHRUŚCIŃSKA-JACKOWIAK
You should now reach the City Hall (Ratusz, 3-4 Sikorskiego Street), located in the building of the former City Savings Fund (Miejska Kasa Oszczędnościowa.) The façade bears a proud insription “Pro publico bono" or “For the good of the public." It is a long forgotten anecdote that due to the lack of a stamp, the first document issued by the Polish authorities was sealed with an imprint of a silver pre-war 5-zloty coin. The building’s cellar was formerly used as a town hall wine bar. Today city councilors’ sittings take place here. The first Polish city mayor, Piotr Wysocki (a participant of the Wielkopolskie uprising) was a laborious and thrifty man. Gorzów pioneers still remember that he started the day by putting out gas street lights, still used at that time. In 2002 a plaque made by Zofia Bilińska was affixed to the façade of the building, commemorating the patron of the street, Władysław Sikorski. It is a bust monument of Sikorski and the words “General Władysław
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The phantom of the Town Hall Sikorski 1881-1943, Polish Prime Minister, Commander in Chief of the Polish Armed Forces, a Great Pole, a fervent patriot, fought and died for our freedom.” The plaque was funded by veterans, Siberian exiles, Rodzina Katyńska and Gorzów citizens. At noon the city bugle-call, composed by Jan Kupczyński, is played from the Town Hall’s roof. Cross the street now to the concrete coat of arms of Landsberg/Gorzów. It used to be one of two coats of arms fixed in the middle of the longest span of the Warta river bridge. On 30 January 1945 retreating German troops blew up the bridge and the coats of arms fell down to the river. After several years one of them was recovered and placed in front of the City Hall.
THE WHITE CHURCH The church was built between 1696-1704 by the town council, together with the Elector of Brandenburg, later Frederick I king of Prussia, as the Church of Harmony - harmony between Lutherans and Calvinists. Until their own church was built, also Catholics prayed here. Less than a hundred years later, the church was rebuilt and expanded by a Romanesque Revival tower. On the night of 23 July 1911 the tower was struck by a lightning and fire broke out. After a reconstruction in the 1980s the interior of the church was remodeled; electric bells added in 2000 play such tunes as “The Angelus” and “Apel Jasnogórski.” If you go inside, take a look at the Stations of the Cross by Ryszard Kaczor, and in particular at Station 2 depicting Jesus carrying the cross; among those looking at Jesus you can see … John Paul II. It was in this temple that on the 29 of January 1995 Landsberg and Gorzów citizen prayed together for the first time, sharing the sign of Christ’s peace and inaugurating the new tradition of the Memorial and Conciliation Day, replacing the Liberation Day. Perhaps soon the time will come to restore the former name of “The Church of Harmony”? Today it is called “the White Church.”
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Move on towards the junction with Dzieci Wrzesińskich Street towards a beautiful, architecturally interesting secession tenement house from 1905. Here, right behind the medieval Santocka gate, the Santockie suburb began. After the gate was torn down, the Square of Parades was plotted out, but it was not recreated after 1945; out of many elegant buildings which stood around the square only the existing tenement house survived. Continue along Dzieci Wrzesińskich Street to the underpass which will take you to the St. Anthony of Padua and St. Stanisław Kostka church. Next to the entrance there is a monumental specimen of a large-leaved linden. 25m tall with 420cm of circumference, it is the largest linden in the city. Usually the species grows in the mountains and in the uplands of southern Europe, Asia Minor and the Caucasus.A bit fur-
THE WHITE CHURCH – THE CHURCH OF HARMONY
ther up you can see a magnificent London Plane of similar, monumental dimensions. Now take Warszawska Street, which is an extension of the Sikorskiego Street, and on
The phantom of the Town Hall your left you will see the Capuchin monastery. Its glass corner holds an illuminated wayside shrine with a replica of Our Lady of Fátima. Across the PZU building, next to a kiosk, you can now see another exotic tree, Gingko tree or Maidenhair Tree. You will now pass by a square, where “Kopernik” cinema used to be located (until 2007).
GINGKO BILOBA The tree species had its best years 100 million years ago, when it covered a big part of our planet; hence Charles Darwin referred to it as “a living fossil”. It is a long-lived plant - it can live for as many as 2000 years with 1200cm of circumference. Ginkgo survived till our times thanks to buddhist monks in China and Japan who considered it holy and often planted it near their monasteries. In Chinese medicine it is used as an aphrodisiac and an effective medication against forgetfulness.
Soon, behind the square, the Gorzów Artistic Education Center (Centrum Edukacji Artystycznej) will be completed. The main building of the complex will house the Philharmonic with a concert hall (600 seats) and another room for rehearsals and smaller events (approx. 120 seats.) You are now at the entrance to the Lubuskie Museum. It is located in a 1904 eclectic villa, formerly owned by a cable factory owner Gustav Adolf Schroder (1838-1916.) The twostory building and the annex was designed by Reimarus & Hetzel architecture office from Charlottenburg, Berlin. The front of the building is decorated with a risalit with a splendid balcony. A covered terrace with glass walls on the park side allowed to look at the park also on rainy and chilly days. A hexagonal tower was added on one of the sides. Each wall is richly adorned with architectural details made in sandstone. Permanent art exhibitions are shown in the palace interior. Elegant staircase is decorated with an openwork balustrade and an oak, formed handrail. On the ground
JAN DEKERT MUSEUM OF LUBUSKIE REGION - FOT. B. NOWOSIELSKI
floor, marble fireplace with a mirror in a stylish oak frame add charm to the interior. Visitors often wonder why the mirror was placed so high that it is not possible to see one’s reflection in it. The answer is simple: the mirror is there to reflect the chandelier’s light, making the room lighter. Before you enter the museum, you should take a walk around the Arboretum (Ogród Dendrologiczny), open from 10.00 to dusk, which spreads across an area of 3.32ha. Take a walk along its nature trail where you can see around 150 species of trees and shrubs. Go back to Warszawska Street and find the historic Catholic church of the Feast of the Cross, built of red clinker brink between 19051907 in a Romanesque Revival style. The ground for both the church and the cemetery was donated by Klaudiusz Alkiewicz, a Pole of Tatar origin, whose tombstone can be found on the right side of the main lane. The basilica-like temple, with a tower covered by a pyramid-shaped helmet and a sanctuary closed with a semicircular apse, was designed by a Berlin architect Konrad Nuon. The body of the building is made up of eight combined elements of different sizes. These are: the nave, two aisles, two half-towers, the transept, the sacristy and the sanctuary. The interior is decorated with wall paintings made between 1907-1915 by Theodor Nuttgens,
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The phantom of the Town Hall
ARBORETUM The atmosphere of the park is shaped by London planes, yews, oaks, maples, elms and a collection of magnolias: Kobushi magnolia, Magnolia soulangeana and magnolia stellata. Moreover, you can see here such exotic trees and shrubs as the Oregon-grape, Kerria japonica, White Fir, Korean Fir, several juniper species, Chinese willow and Catawba Rhododendron. You can also find here the ruins of what was believed to be an early medieval settlement; research proved however that it was a military fortification from the Napoleonic wars. Notice also the reconstructed megalithic tomb of the globular amphora culture, approximately 4000 years old. It is made of splitted stone slabs, weighing up to 3 tons each. Inside the tomb the remains of 17 people were found, probably members of one family, together with a hatchet, a chisel, a flint chopper, two boar tusks, remainders of an amber jewelry and a clay cup.
referring to early Christian compositions. Interestingly, in the paintings’ background you can see the Warta river landscape, the Cathedral church and the church of the Feast of the Cross itself. In 1912 the church was equipped with pipe organs made by Orgel-Anstallt company of B.Grunberg. The organs have survived to the present day in a perfect condition and are played on by outstanding musicians during organ concerts organized by the Organ Music Friends’ Association. In 1919 a sexton from Berlin began to create polychrome decoration on the vault. The only original elements of the church are the main altar depicting Abraham offering Isaac and Jesus Christ on the Cross. Another preserved element is a wooden, quadrilateral pulpit with scenes of the life of Jesus carved on the sides, decorated confessionals and benches. After you leave the church, go towards Santockie roundabout and just before it turn right into Szpitalna street. You will pass an eclectic two-story building from 1848 that was a former city hospital. The symmetry, rhythmic arrangement of the corner projections
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with attics and a quadrilateral tower make us admire the architect’s vision. You should now be at Teatralna Street, where you can see the most magnificent example of classicistic architecture in Gorzów. The three-story edifice with a 24-axis façade, covered with a pitched roof, is currently the seat of the Higher Vocational State School. The structure, built in 1802 at the order of the King of Prussia Frederic Wilhelm II, originally had a different function. It was the National House of the Poor, established to care about the disabled and to rehabilitate minor offenders and vagabonds, offering them work in a spinning mill and in a loom. In the first year of operation, the House accepted 252 poor, 33 prisoners and 14 mad people, altogether 299 people. Apart from the guests’ bedrooms, there were also employees’ apartments in the building . The eastern bloc where prisons were located was added in 1804 and the western one, for the administration offices, in 1879. After the National House of the Poor was closed in 1920, the building was given to the Prussian Agricultural Research Institute and after World War II its work was continued by the Institute of Farming, Fertilization and Soil Science. Continue along Teatralna Street to the entrance of a former hospital; from there you will see a remarkable, octagonal neo-gothic chapel dating back to around 1850, covered with a conical roof. Soon you will reach the junction of Teatralna and Ogrodowa Streets. When you get there, notice the tenement house at the corner, with its antique-type pseudo bas-reliefs (above the top level) of various professions’ attributes: a hammer, a chisel, a hatchet, an anchor, a trowel and a cogwheel. Next, you will arrive at a neoclassical building of the Juliusz Osterwa Theater (29 Teatralna Street.) It was completed in 1873 from the funds paid by France as war reparations after it lost the war with Prussia in 1870. The theatre opening performance took place in 1886. In 1917 a Theatre Association was established and it took over the theatre. Thanks to their efforts such famous artists as e.g. Enrico Caruso, King of Tenors, performed here. The building’s renovation began in 1923, under the supervision of Meyer, the city’s construction advisor. The front façade was decorated
The phantom of the Town Hall
JULIUSZ OSTERWA THEATRE - FOT. M. KAŹMIERCZAK
with four Doric columns supporting a triangular pediment, closed by an arcade extension with jerkin heads. Also the interior was redecorated by Sandforth. When warfare ceased, on 8 September 1945 the theater resumed activity by an amateur staging of Aleksander Fredro’s “Ciotunia.” An artist's life at that time was neither easy nor safe. It is best proved by the fact that in 1945 a showgirl Maria Didur-Załuska was shot in the leg during her performance in the “Polonia” restaurant. In 1946 a permanent actor company was established, led by Leonia and Henryk Barwiński. It staged 13 premieres that year, playing in total 163 shows, including 89 guest performances away from Gorzów. The theatre was equally active in 1947 and 1948, when it was managed by Aleksander Gąssowski. Unfortunately, it all changed later when theatre plays were suspended and the stage was given to boxing and wrestling or even circus shows. Finally, a permanent state-owned theatre was created in 1960. Its complete revival took place under the management of the famous Polish actress and director Irena Byrska (1963-1966.) It is proved by the awards the theatre won at national competitions, and by the fact that its staging of “Don Alvares” by Herakliusz Lubomirski was shown on the Polish TV. 1967 was the birth year of Konfrontacje Teatralne (Theatre Confrontations, since 1983 known as the Gorzów Theatre Meetings.) The theatre had the honor
to show performances (not only during the Theatre Meetings) of such renowned Polish actors as Zbigniew Zapasiewicz, Jerzy Zelnik, Kazimierz Kaczor, Krystyna Feldman, Anna Seniuk, Wojciech Pszoniak, Piotr Fronczewski, Krzysztof Tyniec, Leonard Pietraszak, Piotr Machalica, Marian Kociniak, Marek Perepeczko, Andrzej Grabowski. The theatre’s Summer Stage, including open-air and small audience events, is something out of the ordinary. Apart from drama performances, sometimes the theatre hosts excellent music concerts, such as the world renowned pianist Michael Ponti’s performance of Ludvig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, op. 58, accompanied by the Brandenburg Philharmonic Orchestra. The activity of the theatre and its head Jan Tomaszewicz (since 2003) were appreciated and awarded by both the Ministry of Culture (awarding a medal „Zasłużony Kulturze – Gloria Artis”) and by the Ministry of Education (medal of the Comission of National Education). It was also appreciated by the Mayor of Gorzów from whom the theatre received the “Motyl” cultural award. The theatre building houses also a theatre-themed café “Art Caffe Teatralka” where you can have a refreshing drink or relax over a cup of coffee. Continue along Teatralna Street and you will reach a secession tenement house (no.
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The phantom of the Town Hall 35) beautifully decorated e.g. with the figures of sitting eagles. Further down on the left you can see a pseudomedieval wall and a gate. This decorative neo-gothic wall was built of burnt cellular bricks in the 1890s. In the left part of the wall there is a suspended semicircular pinnacle, based on a pyramid-shaped corbel. There are two towers above and below the top bricked up window. On the right there is a quadrilateral brick gate pole, terminated with a profiled cornice with a lambrequin ornament. Common ivy climbing up the wall is considered to be the thickest in Poland (40cm of circumference, 5.5m tall.) You should now turn right, take Sikorskiego Street again and go towards Zbigniewa Herberta Street (former Fornalska Street), where you can find a four-story building of the former Town Hall, built in 1923-1924. Its entrance is decorated with a columned portico originally decorated with allegorical figures of children that you can now see in the park of the Lubuskie Museum. Now turn right and take Obotrycka Street. On your left you can see a kindergarten; in the 15th century there was a Teutonic castle here, and later a middle school that perished during the Second World War. On your right there is a classicistic building, formerly the Orphan’s House, probably designed by an architect David Gilly. Built in 1824, it was located on the site of an older building founded a hundred years before by captain Meier. The Orphan House was here until 1891, when it was moved to another building, and municipal treasury and police moved in here. Just a few more steps and you are again in front of the Steingke tenement house, described in earlier part of the tour.
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THE BUST MONUMENT OF FRIEDRICH DANIEL ERNST SCHLEIERMACHER - FOT. Z. RUDZIŃSKI
W
e will start our journey from visiting a secluded part of the town – the garden of the Centre for Euroregional Studies in Gorzów in Kazimierza Wielkiego Street – to discover a bust monument of a philosopher Ernst Daniel Schleiermacher (1768-1834), designed by Michał Bajsarowicz.
FRIEDRICH DANIEL ERNST SCHLEIERMACHER This eminent philosopher and Protestant theologian served as a preacher between 1794 and 1796 in the Landsberg Church of Concord. The bust monument of this clergyman stood near the church since 1848 until the end of the Second World War. He was a curate and spent his free time translating such works as the writings of the English preacher Blair. When he lived in Landsberg Schleiermacher never severed relations with the world; he exchanged many letters, views and kept track of what was changing in sciences. He must have felt at home here since after leaving Landsberg he dedicated a collection of his own sermons to his predecessor in our town. Thus the word of God preached at the Church of Concord was the first result of his research work.
In search of the dragon
In search of the dragon Coming back to Kazimierz Wielki Street, you are now heading towards the Carl Bahr’s secession villa situated in the same street. The building, designed by Karl Edward Bengert from Berlin, was erected in 1903 in the Berlin secession style. Above the main entrance in the front façade there is a large ornamental stained-glass window. The porch was altered in 1911 by adding another storey topped with a turret. A year later a small wine cellar was added. The hall and a fine, impressive wooden staircase are the remaining elements of the former furnishings. The building is surrounded by a small park with a fountain. Currently it serves as a Wedding Hall and it is also the seat of the MG-6 Commune Association. The north-west part of the park and windows on this side overlook a small lake called „the Russian Pond” („Ruski Stawek”.) The name was based on a rumour which said that there was a sunk Russian tank at the bottom of the pond. The tank supposedly sank in 1945 when in darkness it drove into ice which broke under its weight. Pass Roosevelt Street and you will reach a courthouse in Mieszka I Street, where artillery barracks were formerly located. This three-story brick building was put at the disposal of the 18th Field Artillery Regiment in 1895. After the end of the World War I the unit was dissolved and the building was taken over by the police. After World War Two it was used by a Soviet army unit. Currently it is the seat of the District Court. The next intersection with Mickiewicza Street will begin your adventure with the
THE WEDDING HALL SURROUNDED BY A SMALL PARK - FOT. D. ADAMSKI
Gorzów secession. The artistic style (dominant from 1880 to 1914) combined artistic vision, aesthetics and functionality as no other before. To fully grasp its atmosphere you will have to turn right and walk about 50 metres to reach the office and storage building of the former Newmarchian Artificial Stone Company (19/20 Mickiewicza Street.) The façade of the building designed by Bruno Krischker in 1908 was decorated with a fancy little dragon. Let us go back to the intersection of Mieszka I and Mickiewicza Streets and turn to the latter and reach the tenement house no 30. What a splendor! There is a balcony over the gate with windows decorated with the head of a bearded man and profiles of two young boys. Further above there is the building construction date “1909”. The higher stories in this pivot have triangle-shaped windows ornamented with a rose and shell motifs, the head of a young lady and two owls
MICKIEWICZ STREET NO 19-20 - FOT. T. CHWALISZ
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In search of the dragon nearby. Somewhat higher there is a small dragon and a solid vase. The neighboring buildings façades (also those with balconies) are equally lavishly decorated with geometrical and floral motifs. Secession was a beautiful but costly style.Its numerous examples in the Landsberg architecture give us an idea of how wealthy the citizens were at the turn on the 20th century. Its numerous examples in the Landsberg architecture give us an idea of how wealthy the citizens were at the turn on the 20th century. You are now approaching a small park (2.1 ha) founded in 1882 by Friedrich Klose, a Landsbergian decorative painter and a member of the then town council. Let us spend THE TENEMENT HOUSE NO 30, some time here MICKIEWICZ STEET - FOT. T. CHWALISZ before you move on. The small bridge modeled after constructions found in Paris or Rome is accompanied by two pedunculate cone-shaped oak trees. This part of the park abounds in small-leaved and large-leaved lime trees, European ash, Italian poplar, London planes and common Douglas-fir trees. Among the trees you will find a commemorative stone with a medallion devoted to Irena Dowgielewiczowa, a poet and a writer who lived in Gorzów.
IRENA DOWGIELEWICZOWA
The poet’s debut was a collection of stories „A Better Dinner” devoted to those struggling with illnesses, pain and suffering. She is also the author of the poem “About the City of Gorzów” from the volume “This is where I live”. This is an excerpt from the poem: “Can one love walls? One can. But not the Capitol or the Gothic of Cologne, Only that niche of the corner wall, A rough defiance of a weakened hand.” The writer lived in Gorzów for forty years. She gained recognition as the author of a novel “A View with a Poplar” and short stories “Uncle Snep and Friends” with animals as protagonists.
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THE LIGHT
There is a part of the park with a playground, and it abounds in specimens of interesting trees: the exotic yellow catalpa, baldcypress, native oak trees or the European white elm and impressive black poplars growing along the Kłodawka river. Now we are just a stone’s throw from the Grunwald Square, the largest of Landsbergian squares surrounded by beautiful London plane alleys. A former drill ground for the artillerymen stationing nearby, the square with time became a place where special events were organized. Currently the dominating element of the square is a Szydłowiec sandstone monument of the Polish-Soviet Brotherhood in Arms designed by Leszek Krzeszowski. Nearby we can see a modern bell tower erected by the city authorities and ornamented with the Bell of Peace founded by the former Landsberg citizens. The commemorative plaque has the following inscription taken from “The Song of the Bell” by Friedrich Schiller: “To this city Joy revealing, Be Peace the first note of its pealing.” The bells rang for the first time on 2 September 2006 during the official inauguration of the celebration of 750 years of Gorzów, initiated by Urszula Hasse-Dressing (the president of the BAG Landsberg/Warte Association) and Tadeusz Jędrzejczak (the Mayor of Gorzów Wielkopolski). And so we have two symbols here: the first of the past we should never forget and the second of the future worth living for. A recent reconstruction of the square gave it a beautiful light fountain. Another element of this impressive square is the Time Capsule.
In search of the dragon
THE TENEMENT HOUSE, CHROBREGO STREET - FOT. B. NOWOSIELSKI
5th Infantry Division of the Polish Second Army many of whom decided to settle in Gorzów after the end of World War Two. The monument Hailed be the Heroes which was here earlier (until 1978)
FOUNTAIN ON THE GRUNWALD SQUARE - FOT. B. NOWOSIELSKI
KAPSUŁA CZASU (TIME CAPSULE) Bożydar Bibrowicz who revived the idea of the Association for the Adornment of Gorzów was its originator. A year after Landsberg/Gorzów Wielkopolski celebrated its 750th anniversary, the citizens put into the capsule old and modern maps, photos, a guidebook of the city, coins and many other small objects. It will all help those who open the capsule in a hundred years understand and get to know the current citizens. Before you leave the square and turn left to Mieszko I Street, you can stop by at the Polish Tourist and Sightseeing Society (PTTK, open between 12.00 and 16.00) to buy a map or a Gorzów Wielkopolski travel guide. Later you can head to the centre of the city to admire the beautifully renovated secession tenement houses which are indeed a feast for the eyes. The gate of number 64 tenement house is a noteworthy architectural element on your way. Above the gate you can see a sea shell woven in the floral and geometrical motifs supplemented with the bowls of fire and the head of a woman in a bonnet. Still immersed in secession, take Bolesława Chrobrego Street to marvel at beautiful balconies with Corinthian columns or pseudo-caryatids (female figures supporting another row of balconies). We have reached the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier commonly referred to as “the Square”. This monument situated amidst the trees and bushes was designed by a visual artist Jerzy Koczewski. It commemorates the soldiers of the
THE TENEMENT HOUSE, KRZYWOUSTEGO STREET - FOT. B. NOWOSIELSKI
commemorated the soldiers of the 5th Shock Army of the First Bellarussian Front. The walking routes were planned and described by Zbigniew Rudziński (born in Gorzów 12.24.1960.) He is a member of the Polish Tourist and Sightseeing Society-Gorzów division (www.pttk-ziemiagorzowska.pl.) He organized over a hundred sightseeing trips in Gorzów and in the region for schoolchildren and teenagers. He is also a traveler and a mountaineer who organized over 30 expeditions, from Iceland, Lofoten (Norway) to Sierra Nevada (Spain), and the Crimean mountains. He has climbed, among others, Mont Blanc in the Alps, Mount Marmolada in the Dolomites, Aneto in the Pyrenees, Mount Etna in Sicily and Bobotov Kuk on Durmitor mountain. A tourist and a hiker, author of several travel guides “Zamki Sudetów Polski” (“Castles of the Polish Sudetes”), “Chojnik i okolice” (“Chojnik and the area”), “Gorzów Wielkopolski i okolice – szlaki rowerowe” (“Gorzów Wielkopolski and the surroundings - biking trails”, German version available), “Gmina Kłodawa zaprasza do Puszczy Gorzowskiej” (“Kłodawa Commune welcomes to Gorzów Primeval Forest”, German version available), „Rowerowy szlak Królewski” (“Bike the Royal Route”), “Gorzów Wielkopolski – miasto na siedmiu wzgórzach” (Gorzów Wielkopolski - a city on seven hills”, German translation available), „Rowerowy szlak zakonów rycerskich na Ziemi Lubuskiej” (“Biking trails around knights’ orders in the Lubuskie region”), “Chronione obszary przyrodnicze powiatu gorzowskiego” (“Protected natural areas of the Gorzów poviat”, German translation available), as well as several descriptions of maps of the northern Lubuskie province. The author of a multimedia presentation “Gorzów known and unknown.” The originator and creator of walking trails in Czechówek Park and Wieprzyckie Hills.
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GUIDE
GUIDE I CULTURAL ATTRACTIONS
• “Pod Filarami” Jazz Club www.jazzfilary.pl 7 Jagiełły Street Ph. 0048 957 228 780 FOT. EWELINA CHRUŚCIŃSKA-JACKOWIAK
• Jan Dekert Museum of the Lubuskie Region www.muzeumlubuskie.pl "The Villa and Garden Complex” 35 Warszawska Street Ph. 0048 957 323 814, 0048 957 322 843 • “The Granary” (Spichlerz) 1-3 Fabryczna Street Ph. 0048 957 225 468, 0048 957 226 709 • “Zagroda Młyńska”, Bogdaniec 22 Leśna Street, 66-450 Bogdaniec Ph. 0048 957 510 007.
• “Lamus” Creative Thinking Club www.klublamus.pl 5 Sikorskiego Street Ph. 0048 957 226 796
FOT. D. ADAMSKI
• “Gród Santocki”, Santok 4 Wodna Street, 66-431 Santok Ph. 0048 957 316 108.
• The Small Gallery of the Gorzów Photography Association www.gtf.cba.pl 4 Chrobrego Street Ph. 0048 957 367 667
FOT. ARCHIWUM UM
• Juliusz Osterwa Theatre www.teatr-gorzow.pl 9 Teatralna Street Ph. 0048 957 289 930 Box Office: Ph. 0048 957 289 939, 0048 957 289 940 • Galleries and the 60 Chairs Cinema in the City Cultural Centre www.mosart.pl 73 Pomorska Street Ph. 0048 957 332 550
• Artistic Education Centre - Gorzów Philharmonic www.cea.gorzow.pl • “AzylArt” Culture Centre and Gallery www.kultura-gorzow.pl 36/37 Wał Okrężny Street Ph. 0048 957 225 582, 0048 957 224 427
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• Civic Cultural Centre www.emceka.pl 26 Drzymały Street Ph. 0048 957 202 911
I SPORTS AND WELLNESS • Capri Medical Day Spa www.caprispa.pl 14 Słowiańska Street Ph. 0048 957 338 538
FOT. ŁUKASZ TRZOSEK
• “Słowianka” Sport and Rehabilitation Centre swimming pool, sauna, tennis court, bowling, ice rink, boule www.slowianka.pl 14 Słowiańska Street Ph. 0048 957 338 500
• A carriage ride (upon reservation only) Western boulevard Hieronim Piela, ph. 0048 69356504
• Play squash in Super 24h Recreation Centre www.super24h.pl 25 Walczaka Street • Quad rides (upon reservation only) www.quady-gorzow.pl 38a Kobylogórska Street Ph. 0048 509 548 847 • Paintball www.micegroup.pl 4/2 Spichrzowa Street Ph. 0048 957203040
FOT. BARTEK NOWOSIELSKI
FOT. BARTEK NOWOSIELSKI
GUIDE
• Askana Shopping Center and Helios Cinema www.galeria-askana.pl 102 Konstytucji 3 Maja Av.
I RESTAURANTS
• “Kuna” icebreaker cruise www.kuna.gorzow.pl Eastern boulevard Jerzy Hopfer Ph. 0048 602 599 536 Magdalena Sierocka Ph. 0048 693 434 634
FOT. T. CHWALISZ
FOT. ARCHIWUM UM
• Barge Ana (open April through September) Docks at the western boulevard
• Browar Witnica (Brewery in Witnica) www.browar-witnica.pl 1 Marii Konopnickiej Street, 66-460 Witnica Ph. 0048 95 751 51 14 Brewery tour and beer tasting, entrance fee: 15 zł.
FOT. T. CHWALISZ
FOT. T. CHWALISZ
• Bella Toscana Nadbrzeżna Street (niche no. 5, eastern boulevard) • Don Vittorio www.donvittorio.com.pl 21 Sikorskiego Street
• Futerał www.restauracjafuteral.pl 5 Spichrzowa Street
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GUIDE I A CUP OF COFFEE
• Hong Kong Bar 24 Kosynierów Gdyńskich Street • Il Forno Nadbrzeżna Street (western boulevard) • La Dolce Vita www.dolce-vita.pl 16 Wełniany Rynek Street • Living Room Nadbrzeżna Street (western boulevard)
FOT. T. CHWALISZ
FOT. E.CHRUŚCIŃSKA-JACKOWIAK
• Art Caffe Teatralka www.teatr-gorzow.pl 9 Teatralna Street
• Santa Fee www.santafee.pl Nadbrzeżna Street (niche no. 12-15, eastern boulevard) • Sante www.sante-restauracja.pl 5 Lutycka Street • Smażalnia Ryb u Pirata 3 Herberta Street • Sofra - Turkish Restaurant 11a Obotrycka Street • Sushi Bar www.sushigorzow.pl 4 Spichrzowa Street • U Bartosza 35 Łokietka Street
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• Corto Caffe 20G Kosynierów Gdyńskich Street www.cortocaffe.pl • Śnieżka 12 Obotrycka Street 29a Chrobrego Street 136 Sikorskiego Street 70 Słowiańska Street • Red Coffee 10b Wełniany Rynek Street • Zaścianek 36 Borowskiego Street
I NIGHT CLUBS AND BARS
FOT. BARTEK NOWOSIELSKI
FOT. T. CHWALISZ
FOT. T. CHWALISZ
• Long Play Pizzeria 7 Chrobrego Street • Łubu Dubu www.lubudubu.com 32/33 Łokietka Street • Pasja www.restauracja-pasja.eu 32 Chrobrego Street • Republika Róż 13 Pocztowa Street
• Cafe Batavia www.donvittorio.com.pl 21 Sikorskiego Street • Cafe Club - Askana Gallery 102 Konstytucji 3 Maja Av. www.cafeclub.eu • Cafe Costa www.cafecosta.pl 7/1 Wybickiego Street
FOT. BARTEK NOWOSIELSKI
GUIDE
• Doors 8 Obotrycka Street • Hades Club www.hades-klub.za.pl 14 Dworcowa Street • Garappa 11 Zabytkowa Street • Grand Club www.grand-club.pl 9 Obotrycka Street • Light Cafe www.light-cafe.pl Pod Info Globem • Matnara www.matnara.pl 4 Mostowa Street • Metronom-Club www.metronom-club.pl 2 Chrobrego Street • Hell Club 82 Kosynierów Gdyńskich Street • Piwiarnia Warka 5 Chrobrego Street
• Studnia Pub www.studnia-pub.pl 7 Obotrycka Street • Tawerna Bosmana 1 Zaułek Street
I ACCOMMODATION • HOTEL AZYL** www.hotelazyl.prv.pl 45 Chopina Street Ph. 0048 95 7227276 hotel.azyl@wp.pl • HOTEL DWORCOWY* 1 Dworcowa Street Ph. 00 48 95 722 85 91
FOT. T. CHWALISZ
FOT. BARTEK NOWOSIELSKI
FOT. DANIEL ADAMSKI
• AQQ Garbary Street • Bulwar Cafe Nadbrzeżna Street (western boulevard) • Bulwar Żywiec Pub www.bulwarzywiecpub.pl Nadbrzeżna Street (western boulevard) • Cafe Music Club Mana Mana Mieszka I Street • City Pub & Cafe Nadbrzeżna Street (western boulevard)
• Pod Zielonym Abażurem 14-15 Chrobrego Street • Pub Fahrenheit www.fahrenheit.com.pl 7 Chrobrego Street • Santa Fee www.santafee.pl Nadbrzeżna Street (niche no. 12-15, eastern boulevard) • Silver Club www.clubsilver.pl 9 Sikorskiego Street
• HOTEL FADO *** www.hotelfado.pl 12 Konstytucji 3 Maja Av. Ph. 0048 95 7388800 recepcja@hotelfado.pl
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GUIDE • HOTEL GORZÓW www.hotelgorzow.pl 20 Walczaka Street Ph. 0048 95 7221133 recepcja@hotelgorzow.pl • HOTEL GRACJA*** www.hotelgracja.pl 20b Dąbrowskiego Street Ph. + 48 95 720 28 15 recepcja@hotelgracja.pl • HOTEL HUZAR** www.hotel-huzar.pl 2 Husarska Street Ph. 0048 95 7224407 recepcja@hotel-huzar.pl • HOTEL MIESZKO*** www.hotel-mieszko.pl 82 Kosynierów Gdyńskich Street Ph. 0048 95 7205051 office@hotel-mieszko.pl • HOTEL MCM GORZÓW** www.hotelmcm.pl 4 Grobla Street Ph. 0048 95 7369292 gorzow@hotelmcm.pl
• METALOWIEC www.osir.gorzow.pl 25 Szczecińska Street Ph. + 48 95 728 76 28 • MŁYN www.mlyn.gorzow.pl 111 Wyszyńskiego Street Ph. 0048 95 7350315, 0048 605 447993 kontakt@mlyn.gorzow.pl • Motel Pintal** www.pintal.eu 24F Os. Bermudy Gorzów-Wawrów Ph. 0048 95 7263230 biuro@pintal.eu • Szkolne Schronisko Młodzieżowe - Youth Hostel www.schroniskogorzow.eu 8 Wyszyńskiego Street Ph. + 48 95 722 74 70 schro@edu.gorzow.pl http://www.schroniskogorzow.eu/ • Dom Studenta – Student Dorm www.awf-gorzow.edu.pl 36 Myśliborska Street Ph. 0048 95 7279114 ds@awf-gorzow.edu.pl
FOT. WWW.QUBUSHOTEL.COM
I ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
• HOTEL QUBUS**** www.qubushotel.com 3 Orląt Lwowskich Street Ph. + 48 95 735 07 35 gorzow@qubushotel.com • HOTEL U MARII** www.umarii.pl 16 Walczaka Street Ph. 0048 95 7366656 hotel@umarii.pl Written by: Zbigniew Rudziński Introduction: Izabela Grygiel-Guła Content assistance: Ewelina Chruścińska-Jackowiak, Tomasz Chwalisz Proof-reading: Małgorzata Pera Cover: Façade of a tenement house at 19-20 Mickiewicza Street (photo: T.Chwalisz) Translation: Paulina Dzwonnik
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• Bimba - city information centre It is located in the pedestrian zone at Wełniany Rynek Street (next to the Arsenał) You can purchase souvenirs related to Gorzów, tickets for cultural and sport events. There are also interesting books about the city, its attractions and history. Opening hours: Low season ( September through May): MonFri 13.00 – 17.00, Sat 11.00 – 15.00 High season (June through August): Tue-Sun 10.00 – 18.00 During the high season the Centre also serves as a Tourist Information Centre. Phone number: +48 697 523 375 www.emceka.pl/mci Wydział Rozwoju i Promocji Miasta Urząd Miasta Gorzowa Wlkp. Ul. Sikorskiego 3-4 66-400 Gorzów Wlkp. T: +48 95 7355 784 F: +48 95 7355 744 E: wrp@um.gorzow.pl I: www.gorzow.pl