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o m m u n i t i e s
area comprising Gdansk, Sopot and Gdy-
nia, “Trójmiasto” (Tri-city).
Gdansk is the largest city, with nearly half a
million inhabitants (almost double if we con-
sider the entire metropolitan area. There
are four “must see” places for those who
visit the city: the Royal Road, the Harbour
promenade; the Old City, and the shipyards.
The Royal Road runs along Dluga Street,
from the city’s centre, to the harbour. At
the beginning of the street we find Brama
Wyzsza, the “High Gate” with a façade de-
corated with the inscriptions and emblems
of the ancient Free City of Gdansk. A few
meters from there, we enter Dluga Street
through the great Zlota Brama (Golden
Gate) arch which dates back to the 17th
century and has eight statues on the top
and bears an inscription which says: “small
States grow in harmony; large States fall
into discord”.
As Dluga Street becomes wider, we re-
ach a long square where we find another
of the city’s landmark, the Town Hall buil-
ding. Built in the 14th Century, one of its
most impressive features is its façade and
a tower crowned by a statue of King Sigis-
mund II Augustus. The Neptune Fountain at
the foot of the Town Hall building is another
landmark of this Baltic city.
Behind the Neptune Fountain is the district
full of house of the rich traders and bour-
geoisie which ends at the Green Gate from
where one reaches the long walk along the
river that ends at the Royal Road.
As we approach the Green Gate, we reach
the Harbour Promenade, one of the typical
sites of Lech Walesa’s hometown. The first
street that ends at the promenade, parallel
to Dluga Street, is Piwna Street (the street
of beer brewers’ and the favourite spot
of soccer fans between the games). If we
keep going, we arrive at St. Mary Gate, built
of brick with two towers at each end, which
gives way to Mariacka Street where we find
most of the jewellery stores selling amber.
At the end of Mariacka Street, we find the
great Basilica of Our Lady (Bazylika Mariac-
ka), a huge brick building (in fact, it is the
largest brick church in Europe). Construc-
tion of this church began in the 14th cen-
tury and has been used, curiously enough,
as a Catholic and a Protestant church (du-
UEFA
has classified the Area
as an Elite Stadium