130 Cities
09 Bydgoszcz / Toruń
It took over thirty years to build it, but now Bydgoszcz can boast the newest and most modern opera in the country that also doubles as a convention centre.
park that is a huge draw for the locals in the warmer part of the year. The neighbouring quarters overlooking a canal, dubbed, somewhat exaggeratedly, the Venice of the North, are now undergoing something of a revival after years of neglect. Waterside cafes and restaurants are becoming a Bydgoszcz specialyty. The city is also famous for its musical venues. Even though it was constructed some sixty years ago, Filharmonia Pomorska is still considered to have the best acoustic quality in the country. Recently, the city completed an opera house, finishing a laborious process started in 1974. A concrete carcass of the unfinished building loomed over the city for decades, as a testament to the inefficiency of the communist state and the delusions of grandeur of local apparatchiks. Opened in 2006, the 860-seat Opera Nova is a source of civic pride. It also serves as a convention centre and in December of 2010 it became home to the international festival of cinematography – Camerimage. A much deserved honour for one of the most underestimated cities in Poland.