Photo. Gdansk Harbour and Motlawa River The Port of Gdańsk is a seaport located on the southern coast of Gdańsk Bay in the city of Gdańsk (Danzig), extending along the Vistula estuary Martwa Wisła (Dead Vistula), Port Channel and Kashubia Canal. It is one of the largest seaports on the Baltic Sea. The Port of Gdańsk is divided into two parts, the Inner and Exterior Port. Huge stone towers are located at the entrances to the city. Solidarity leader Lech Walesa's offices are in the tower known as the Green Gate (there's a plaque out front) and the main square is full of colorful, Dutch Renaissance-style mansions. St. Mary's Church in Main City is reputedly the largest brick church in the world and can hold 25,000 for services. The seven-story Great Mill on the waterfront (on Motlawa River) was once the largest mill in medieval Europe. It's amazing to stand on Long Street (ul Dluga) and imagine that what you see now was all rubble after the war. More recently, after the shipyard strikes in the 1970's and 1980, and a 1980 agreement, 10 million Poles (out of about 36 million at the time) joined Solidarity, and Walesa went on to become the first democratically elected president of modern Poland. The oldest documented mention of Zuraw as a wooden port crane was in 1367. What you see today, however, was reconstructed in the middle of the 15th century after a devastating fire devoured the original structure. The large crane was used to place masts on ships and to load cargo. During World War II, the wooden area was destroyed and only 60% of the brick portion remained in tact. After the war, Zuraw was once again rebuilt and handed over to the museum. Today you can find different exhibits detailing the interesting history of the entire port of Gdansk. The crane is home to a branch of the Maritime Museum. Zuraw is open to visitors during the summer months from 10 AM to 6 PM--Saturdays are free!
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