Wroclaw in the Sun

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Some days just turn out well and this was one of them. We took the tram into the old town part of Wroclaw and the sun came out! Not only did the weather look up, but the old town was spectacular. We found our way into the large town square lined with freshly painted and highly decorated buildings. The effect was magic. This square led to another and another, as well as having several archways that took us into small narrow streets, which we wandered through quite happily until lunchtime.
Polish food for lunch was our decision and we didn’t regret it. Not wanting a large meal we settled for two kinds of Polish soup and a non-Polish cappuccino. The waiter made recommendations and we accepted. One soup was a traditional chicken consommé with dumplings and vegetables. It was full of flavour and quite a light option. The other soup was a tasty broth with special Polish sausage, mushroom pieces and a fried egg on top. It was served in a large sourdough bread roll with the top of the roll being the lid. This was delicious, but the very best part was eating the bread after it had absorbed some of the broth. We were glad we had decided to make it a shared lunch so we could each try both soups.
Suitably fortified we continued our wandering, crossing bridges over the River Odra that runs through the city and creates islands as it divides and re-forms. Eventually we arrived at the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist, a huge and important church here in Wroclaw. Like many other buildings of note, it had been damaged during the Second World War and then restored to something like its former glory. We watched cleaning being painstakingly carried out on a portion of a carved panel inside the building and realised what a difference this will make to the interior when finished.
We have noticed that many old buildings are blackened and dirty looking, probably because of constant exposure to coal smoke. However, a huge programme of cleaning seems to be going on to prepare for 2016 when Wroclaw is to be named a European cultural capital. At least that is what we understand from our translation of the brightly coloured billboards in Polish that are set out around the Town Square.
Safely back at the hotel after our adventures we were hot enough to need a very cold drink, a sure sign that summer has returned to Poland – or at least this part. Let us hope summer has also reached Warsaw as that is our destination tomorrow.

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