Since I first visited Toruń several years ago, I have always thought that the medieval town looks very beautiful. Now I also wanted to introduce this town to my husband. Toruń is only 1 hour away from my hometown.
I find the payment system for parking in Poland annoying. You need to know in advance how long you're going to stay and pay for it. In Taiwan, you can park and not worry about anything, as someone will check the timing and put a ticket on your car. That's much more convenient. Whenever we go somewhere, we are always checking the time to make sure we're not late to our car.
Mostly, we walked around the town, visited the Leaning Tower, old town gates, castle ruins, and, in the end, some gingerbread shops, handmade candy shops, the town hall, and Nicolaus Copernicus' house. It took us about 2 hours. Initially, I planned to visit the Museum of Gingerbread, but going back and forth to the car felt annoying. Besides, the weather was sunny but cold and windy.
See also: Toruń Travel 2023
History of Toruń
Toruń is a historical city located on the Vistula River in north-central Poland. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997 and was added to the list of Seven Wonders of Poland in 2007. Believed to be one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, Toruń is renowned for its Museum of Gingerbread, which has a baking tradition dating back nearly a millennium, and its large Cathedral. Toruń is also the birthplace of astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. The city has the largest number of preserved Gothic houses in Poland, many of which feature Gothic wall paintings or wood-beam ceilings from the 16th to the 18th centuries.
Toruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland, with the first settlement dating back to the 8th century. It was later expanded by the Teutonic Knights in 1233. From 1264 until 1411, Toruń was part of the Hanseatic League and became one of the elite trading points. This influenced the city's architecture, which ranges from Brick Gothic to Mannerism and Baroque styles. During the early-modern age, Toruń was a royal city of Poland and one of the four largest cities in the country at the time.
Throughout its history, Toruń has been home to notable individuals, scholars, and statesmen. Nicolaus Copernicus was born there in 1473, and Polish King John I Albert died in Toruń in 1501, with his heart being buried inside St. John's Cathedral. In 1500, the Tuba Dei, the largest church bell in Poland at the time, was placed in the Church of St. John the Baptist. A bridge across the Vistula River, the country's longest wooden bridge at the time, was also built. In 1506, Toruń became a royal city of Poland.
Old Town Hall (Ratusz Staromiejski)
The Old Town Hall dates back to the 13th century. In spring 1231, the Teutonic Knights crossed the Vistula River at Nessau and established a fortress. Due to frequent flooding, it was relocated to the present site of the Old Town in 1236. Franciscan friars settled in the city in 1239, followed by Dominicans in 1263. The adjacent New Town was founded in 1264 to accommodate Toruń's growing population of craftsmen and artisans.
The Old Town Hall was inaugurated in 1274 and was later extended and rebuilt between 1391 and 1399. It was extended again at the end of the 16th century. It is considered one of the most monumental town halls in Central Europe.
Dragon of Toruń
On August 13, 1746, a master carpenter named Johann Georg Hieronim and the wife of a city soldier named Kataharina Storchin certified at the town's administrative office in Toruń that they had seen a dragon in spring 1746. The creature could fly and swim, measured 2 meters long, had a dark-grey head and trunk, and a light-brown and shiny tail. The flying dragon appeared near Struga Toruńska in the Przedzamcze region and flew in the direction of the Teutonic Castle ruins.
See also: Toruń Castle
See also: Gingerbread Traditions
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