Oh Łódź!
My joy and my pain in the ass! Adore you or despise you?
I choose to focus on the positive aspect of the city. Therefore I’d like to encourage you to visit Łódź and maybe you’ll find something special to love it as I did.
I have a theory that I can confirm by my own experience. When you have a week to discover all wonders of the city you are sightseeing you’ll find extra energy sources within yourself so that you could take advantage of the precious time you have. However, when you live in a place for several months or years you always think you have all the time in the world to see and experience everything. Well, you don’t.
My friend Andrew has lived all his life in Łódź. I dare to say he started to explore his home town because of me. I’ve come here almost 2 years ago and this big and neglected city overwhelmed me with its opportunities and peculiar beauty. I am a kind of an independent and self-reliable person. However, every single thing is much more enjoyable when it’s shared with a friend. I am sure Andrew thinks the same way I do. This is why we have been discovering Łódź together since we met. I always thought the locals are the best guides in their territory. Another stereotype is abolished. This Sunday I will show Andrew the Poznański Palace. I’ve been there last week and I will be there every next weekend. It’s gonna be my own weekend’s palace.
The owner of the palace was Izrael Poznański known as a King of cotton . He was a successful textile producer. Since 1975 the palace was transformed into museum. Let me just say it is called the Louvre of Łódź and there is nothing more to add.
The museum is divided into parts. There is temporary exhibitions and permanent gallery of art and the Pantheon of Famous Citizens of the City of Lodz. One of the most interesting exhibition is Music Gallery devoted to Arthur Rubinstein. He was very successful pianist. In the gallery you can see the Oscar award that he won in 1969 (L’Amour de la Vie) and the pictures of him standing next to Charlie Chaplin or Albert Einstein.
I shall not reveal more details. I’ll let you discover them by yourself. Enjoy!
* Łódź is a name of the Polish city. It has two meanings: 1) as a noun it means a boat 2) as an imperative it means delude yourself, but it has different spelling (ó should be changed into u), but the same pronunciation (ó sounds exactly the same as u).
