River Motlawa
by HORSCHECK
Gdansk is situated at the mouth of the Motlawa river which is also known under its German name Mottlau. The Motlawa has a length of almost 65 km and has several branches in the city of Gdansk.
The banks of the river invite tourists for a stroll along the nice buildings. Further outside of the city centre the arms and canals of the river are lined with industrial estates.
The Gdansk Porch
by Ekaterinburg
Of the many outstanding architectural features in Gdansk, the one I liked best was the custom of having a 'platform' or Porch outside your house. Obviously these only featured in the houses of the rich merchants and bourgeoisie, to facilitate the taking of air and observing of street life by these superior burghers and their families. What is amazing about them is the complete lack of conformity. There are almost as many variations as there are houses and the finest ones are to be seen on ul. Mariacka. It's nice to see them being used today by the general public. This one in the photo is outside Deutsche bank in Dlugi Targ and seems to be a favoured haunt of local kids.
Living advertising
by matcrazy1
This, maybe 12-14 years old, boy was sitting on a chair in the middle of lively Long Street, main axis of the old town, closed for any traffic. He hold a display-board advertising grocery (beer, ice-cream) located 10 m off the main street. I found it quite effective living advertisement but... a bit moving at first, too. Does it prove strong local competition and creativity of the owner of a grocery or just common poverty which forced this boy to do that job? Or maybe this boy was a son of the owner of that grocery? Never mind, he was reading a book with passion and looked neither sad nor poor. Future businessman?
I saw 3 more similar advertisings along Dluga street. Is it Gdansk local custom? Well, Gdansk was one of the world's richiest cities in the past, mainly because of commerce. Looking at numerous, new and small stores around the old town I think that this old tradition seems to be continued since 1990. Good luck :-)
Hel: day trip
by wandw
Hel is a small fishing village where lots of Polish people go on holiday. I'd go there by boat (see my Transportation tip) and be sure to eat fried fish (see my Restaurant tip) as well as enjoying the watersports and beach. We walked along the main road where all the restaurants are and kept going till you start going through woods that are a partially abandoned military training ground. You can see the lookout posts and someone charges to go up & see an old gun but if you carry on until you get to the beach, then walk along the sea edge to the right and keep going you will see a gun there and go into tunnels (if you dare!) as well as look over to an inhabited military area.
Trip to Gdynia
by HORSCHECK
Gdansk, Sopot and Gdynia form the Tri-City. Gdynia is a relatively modern port city with a population of 250.000. The main focus for tourists is the marina where two museum ships are docked.
Panoramic views of Gdynia and the Hel peninsula can be enjoyed from Kamenia Gora, which is a 52 m high stone hill just outside of the city centre.
Gdynia is situated about 21 km north of Gdansk or 9 km north of Sopot. It can be reached by the northbound commuter trains from Gdansk or Sopot.