Żuraw

On the 7th of August, 2012 I headed into the heart of Gdańsk. My goal was to buy some concert tickets, but the booking venue was closed, so I wandered around town instead. The building on the right of this photo is Żuraw - a medieval port crane. The oldest mention of this crane is in 1367, but it has been partially destroyed and rebuilt several times since then. First, in 1442, the structure burnt down and was rebuilt, and again, during World War II, the wooden portion of the crane was burnt down and rebuilt. This photo is taken from the opposite bank of the Motława river, which flows through Gdańsk, and next to the Maritime Museum, which actually spans both sides of the river, as part of the museum is located in Żuraw itself. A ferry, also called the Motława, transports the museum visitors between the two locations. 


As in English, the word 'żuraw' is used both for a machine that that lifts things and for the tall, gangly bird.

Gdańsk

On the 6th of August, 2012, after three weeks of travel around Poland, including stops in Warszawa, Kraków, Zakopane, Międzyrzecz, Świebodzin, Szczecin, Szczecinek, Borne Sulinowo, and Okonek, I finally arrived at my maternal grandmother's house in Gdańsk.

Gdańsk is the capital of the Pomeranian Province which is situated to the central north of Poland, on the coast. Together with the towns of Gdynia and Sopot it forms the Tricity or Trójmiasto area. It is the hometown of both my mother and my grandmother, and is my favourite city in Poland. It has everything: culture, history, entertainment, a busy CBD, beautiful forests, as well as lovely beaches.

I spent three weeks living with my grandmother, or babcia, which is the Polish word for 'grandmother' and rediscovering this wonderful area. As I was born in Poland, and a lot of my family still remains there, I have of course visited on previous occasions, but they were mostly with my mother or father, and this was my first time in Poland without either of them.

I still think about my travels in Poland often and a large part of me is drawn to it. This blog will not only follow the trip I made just over a year ago, but will also highlight the history of the areas I visited.