Partying in Poznan

This week we ventured a few hours east of Berlin to Poznan, Poland, where we have spent a few days touring and celebrating Caroline’s 11th birthday.

Travelling on the Warsaw Express

The temperatures didn’t make it out of the 50’s the first day, but at least the rain stopped, so we could get out of the hotel and explore. The Old Market Square was huge, and had a number of cafes, restaurants and shops.

Craftsmen houses in the square, dating back to the 16th century.

The Town Hall

We had a late lunch on the square, ordering some Polish specialties. The perogies and veal schnitzel were delicious! The local Polish beer wasn’t too bad, either.

We stopped by the Cathedral Island on the way back to our hotel on the outskirts of town. It features the first Polish cathedral, built in the 10th century.

We saw several bridal couples out and about having their picture taken by the city sites. One couple was at this bridge leading from Cathedral Island. The rails had 100’s of locks attached, each bearing the initials or names of couples. We’ve seen similar clusters of locks on bridges in Berlin. Apparently it is a way of showing your unending love.

We were happy to see clear skies for Caroline’s birthday. We were up nice and early for our big day at Thermal Malta, the biggest indoor waterpark in Poland.

The place was strangely deserted when we arrived; sadly, we discovered that they were closed for two weeks, despite a website that states they are open year round.

The waterpark is on the shores of Lake Malta, a 2.2 kilometers long lake on the east side of Poznan. We headed by foot to the other side of the lake to Ski Malta, which had summer toboggan runs and other fun activities. Oh, but those don’t open until 3 pm on weekdays, despite signs saying they open at 10 am. On to the nearby mall for some retail therapy. We happened upon a bike rental place, so that helped fill out our afternoon a bit, and allowed us to do something Caroline had been wanting to do for a while. Then it was back to Ski Malta, where the adrenaline alpine coaster was now open. Yea! We got in 5 runs before the rain began to fall. So, despite a disappointing beginning, we managed to pull off a fun birthday for Caroline, and got lots of exercise in the process!