This was the last week of my 3-week summer break, and as we did last year, we went to Rzeszów in south-eastern Poland for my wife to play in an international bridge tournament there, with her bridge partner Curra.
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In the early part of the week I cycled as much as possible, knowing that the trip to Poland would mean several days off the bike. One day I went to Busot and stopped to have a look at the ongoing works to stabilise the castle ruin:
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I cycled on to Jijona, passing the large solar power farm along the way:
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Then I heard the sound of bells and I slowed down to have a look. Sure enough, a flock of goats were grazing around the solar panels:
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I liked the juxtaposition of the modern and the traditional economies:
On Wednesday afternoon we flew to Warsaw, rented a car and spent the night in a hotel near the airport. The next morning we drove the 300 km to Rzeszów, where the bridge tournament was starting in late afternoon.
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We had lunch at a restaurant next to our hotel. The weather was beautiful, so we sat outside. I took this picture of Curra while we waited for our food. She is almost 89 but in good shape except for a bad hip. This is the fourth time she and my wife are playing together in a tournament abroad:
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Of course my first lunch in Poland had to be pierogi:
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After lunch, I drove the two ladies to the site of the bridge tournament and spent a few hours walking around the centre of Rzeszów. As always, I looked for small details in the urban landscape, including this reincarnation of my late Cheeta, gone since 2017 but always in my heart:
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One of the sights I had not seen during previous visits was this circular pedestrian crossing above a major intersection:
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I walked around the overpass, decorated with depictions of Rzeszów’s history:
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As I usually do, I walked past the hideous Communist-era Monument of the Revolutionary Act, an eyesore which has remained standing while discussions are ongoing about what to do with it:
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I continued towards what used to be the Jewish quarter of Rzeszów. The two main temples are still there, but today serving other purposes, since there is no Jewish community to speak of (there are sizeable communities in bigger cities like Warsaw and Kraków). There is a memorial stone marking the old Jewish cemetery which was destroyed by the Germans during the occupation in the 1940s:
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I came back to the central square Rynek. The town hall at dusk:
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A band was playing on the outdoor stage:
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Impressive beer belly; he should probably do some more cycling:
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Late in the evening, my wife and Curra were done playing bridge, I picked them up and we sat down for a beer and some snacks on Rynek:
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On Friday morning, I again took the two ladies to their bridge tournament and continued to explore the city on foot. I found this amusing–go and have a beer or two while your children play. Very useful, that:
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As is the case in other Polish cities, the outdoor food and flower market remains popular in Rzeszów, even though there are plenty of modern supermarkets:
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Feeding frenzy:
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Feeling deflated:
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Then I walked down to the river that flows through Rzeszów, called Wisłok. I had read about the “Rzeszów Boulevard”, a popular riverside promenade that stretches over several km on both shores. I decided to enjoy it on a quiet day when many of the locals were at work:
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While walking along the river, I took in the modern Rzeszów rising. This is not the most dynamic part of Poland, but Rzeszów is the main city in the area and is an island of dynamism and youth thanks to its many educational institutions and commercial activity:
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A big old tree on the river bank:
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Next to the tree, a calculation of its economic benefits in terms of climate change mitigation and other environmental benefits:
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A bit further down there was some interesting public art, my favourite kind:
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I had seen a “dirt park” on the map, and I enjoyed seeing some teenage boys doing serious tricks on their bikes. I chatted with them and took a few pictures:
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Pretty rubbish bin:
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The bridge was over by lunchtime, and we went for lunch at an inn in the suburbs that someone had recommended:
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In the evening, I wanted the ladies to see Rzeszów’s “multimedia fountain”, combining colours and music. We sat down at a café overlooking the fountain and had some drinks and munchies:
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These are the views we enjoyed from our table:
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On the way back to the hotel, we walked past the beautiful Lubomirski Palace, built as a summer retreat for a rich family, today the home of the regional medical association:
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The bridge was off on Saturday morning, so we drove to a town called Sanok, a place of about 35,000 inhabitants some 80 km from Rzeszów. The town is small but it has an attractive town hall:
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Outside the town hall, two San buses from the 1950s. San is the name of river flowing through Sanok, and the local bus factory supplied buses all over Poland and to other Communist countries. After the fall of Communism the company limped on in various guises until it went bankrupt in 2013. Still, it is an important part of the heritage of the area:
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Outside the town hall, we happened on a wedding party:
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There is a promenade on the square with a view of the town and the surrounding countryside:
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A monument to soldiers from Sanok who died in World War II. History is always present in these parts:
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One side of the monument lists various WWII battlefields where Sanok men fought and died:
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The other side lists German and Soviet prison camps where some of the Polish soldiers ended up:
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We drove back to Rzeszów, where my wife and Curra were going to play during afternoon and evening, while I walked around in the centre and had a beer at Rynek. On Friday evening there had been an automobile rally in the streets of Rzeszów, an annual event that is apparently a big thing in this city. On Saturday afternoon, there was a prize ceremony in Rynek. There were various categories of competitions, so there were also many winners. Here is one winning team entering Rynek:
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The winners would get to a stage:
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The traditional champagne shower. I hope they used some of the horrible cheap Russian stuff rather than the real thing:
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Afterwards, the cars would exit Rynek; they will be back next August:
A gallery of Rzeszów images can be seen here.