Quotes of the Day

In its 1,000-year history Wroclaw, the capital of the southwestern Polish province of Lower Silesia, has had no fewer than four rulers and five names. Founded at the turn of the first millennium Wrotizla, as it was first known, received city status in 1241. It was renamed Wretslaw when the Bohemians claimed it in 1335, Presslaw under Habsburg rule in 1526, and Breslau when it belonged to Prussia, and then Germany, from 1741 to 1945, when it was returned to Poland.

Almost 60 years later, Wroclaw and its visitors are finding much to appreciate in the multicultural history and energy of this city of islets on the River Odra. World War II left Wroclaw in ruins, but local initiatives have restored parts of the city to their former glory. This means an intriguing and accessible collection of churches and monuments, all contained within Wroclaw's unique cityscape, in which some 122 bridges are juxtaposed against the more than 100 church towers — ranging from Gothic to 19th century — that reach to the sky.

	STREETWISE BEST HOTEL Qubus Maria Magdalena Hotel is a modern hostelry located 100m from Rynek and Old Town sights but is architecturally well-adapted to its historical surroundings. St. Maria Magdalena Street 2, 50-103, tel. +48 71 341 08 98, www.qubushotel.com BEST DINING Take an outside table at Pod Gryfami (Griffin House) with a view of the Old Town Market Square, beautifully lit at night. About $25 a person for Polish and international cuisine. Galeries Horszowski, Rynek 2, 50-106, tel. +48 71 343 79 27 VEGETARIAN CHOICE Vegetarians should head for Vega, which offers meatless cuisine on the ground floor and vegan fare upstairs. Rynek 27a, tel. +48 71 344 39 34 BEST BEER Bialy Baran (White Ram) is brewed for Piwnica Swidnicka; a 330-ml glass costs $1, a half-liter is $1.50. Between noon and 4 p.m. try the quick lunch: soup, main dish, dessert and soft drink for $4. Rynek Ratusz 1, tel. +48 71 369 95 10. At Spiz you can try four kinds of beer brewed on the premises. $1.85 for a half-liter of dark, light, wheat or strong. Rynek Ratusz 9, tel. +48 71 344 72 25 LEISURE FIX International Center for Youth Meetings. Tennis buffs can hire courts — three indoor and seven outdoor (four are floodlit at night) — for up to $6.25 an hour, with extra charges for night use. Instructors or playing partners can also be arranged — for $9 to $15 an hour. Other facilities include a 25-m indoor pool, gym, sauna and jacuzzi. Located not far from the city center at the AZS Stadium complex, Baudouina de Courtenay Street 16, 51-606, tel. +48 71 373 90 13

The Old Town, situated in the city center, offers Wroclaw's most interesting attractions. The central point is the 13th century Market Square (Rynek). Buildings on all four sides have been restored, among them the 18th century Pod Zlotym Sloncem (Under the Golden Sun) — once host to visiting kings and now a medal museum — and the Ratusz (Town Hall), Wroclaw's most significant historical building. The Rynek is also home to the 16th century Pod Gryfami (Griffin House) restaurant and the Piwnica Swidnicka (Swidnicka Cellar), possibly Europe's oldest eatery. Bialy Baran, a full, light, house beer, is still brewed exclusively for Piwnica to a traditional recipe.

Just north of the Rynek along Odrzanska Street is a charming passage called Jatki, where butchers' stands were once located. The little street is now decorated with groups of bronzed animals — made by the artists who operate galleries and gift stands here. Farther along is the huge Baroque edifice of Wroclaw University's Academia Leopoldina, founded in 1702. To the east — past the Romanesque portal of the Church of the Most Holy Virgin Mary and over the Tumski Bridge — lies the oldest part of Wroclaw, Ostrow Tumski. The skyline is dominated by the twin 100-m towers of the Gothic Cathedral of St. John the Baptist — the city's patron saint — erected between the 13th and 15th centuries.

Visitors in search of more contemporary sights could seek out the cylindrical 1894 painting Panorama Raclawicka, housed on the margins of the Juliusz Slowacki Park. Created in Lvov by nine Polish artists, it commemorates the centenary of Tadeusz Kosciuszko's 1794 insurrection against Russian domination. The Panorama forms part of a diverse heritage of which the citizens of Wroclaw are justly proud. Indeed, when the city returned to Poland after World War II, its then communist government encouraged residents to erase any part of its German past. The idea was short-lived. Visitors are more likely to find a city whose residents are as fond of its history, and taken with its wide-ranging collection of attractions, as they are.

• JENNIE JAMES
• Wroclaw's charming spires and bridges frame a wealth of historical pride