Last weekend was our wedding anniversary, and so we celebrated with a quick overnight trip to the medieval town of Torún.

A Hanseatic league city founded by the Teutonic knights in the 13th century, Torún was half German until about 200 years ago. That German history, and the presence of a Teutonic knights’ castle, account for the city’s remarkable state of preservation today. While the Nazis transported all the Jews to concentration camps and enslaved the Polish citizens during WWII, they did not destroy the buildings as they did in Warsaw. So, the city is mostly original and now a UNESCO World Heritage site. 

Torún’s Old Town is small, charming, and apparently very popular with Polish tourists. I was amazed at the crowds, which included more than the usual number of kids. I think many families may stop in the city on the way to Malbork Castle, one of Poland’s top family-friendly tourist attractions. 

24 hours was just about the right amount of time to spend exploring the tourist areas. We climbed the tower of the Ratusz (city hall), visited Copernicus’ house and the ruins of the Teutonic knights’ castle, and browsed a couple of small town museums. We also unexpectedly had one of the best meals we’ve had in Poland for our anniversary dinner at Szeroka 9. Sometimes, you just get lucky that way!