Easter in Poznan

I'm going to start a little backwards for this post because today was a little backwards. Believe it or not this is the interior of a japanese restaurant, just about the only place open for dinner here because it's easter and nothing is open really. most people here are walking around with little wicker baskets that are covered with a cloth. Some have sticks of pussywillows arranged in what looks like the four corners of the basket but other than that it's really hard to tell what is in them. probably eggs and candy but i'll have to look it up to be sure. anyways it's not easy foraging under these conditions. 

it was really cold today, maybe close to the low 50s but it was hard to tell this morning so i initially went out under dressed. we wandered around for a while looking for the big "famous" square here but it was illusive since the streets are windy and because it's easter and no one was out so it was kind of a ghost town. i kept asking myself what's the deal with this place. also our apartment is kind of sketchy. the street it's on is not the nicest and last night when we first got here i fell asleep asking myself what was i thinking when i chose this particular city to come to. i'll stop torturing you with my self doubts and let you know a few corners were turned, the phone was consulted a second and third time and we found ourselves here:

this is where all the action was. here's another short video but i just can't do this thing justice. it's beautiful and strange and so unexpected. it's a little bit like falling down the rabbit hole and finding a kind of wonderland:

i confess i really disliked this town at first. i mean i complained bitterly until we turned a magic corner and then suddenly everything changed... like going from black and white to technicolor in the w of o. ok i'll stop with the classic children's literature analogies and just say i have been won over. in the simplest of terms i think posnan is known for its wacky variety of architectural styles not to mention their juxtapositions. at times it feels like who ever built these structures has a very playful aesthetic. even the negative spaces are  visually interesting. but i'm going to stop boring you with my drivel and post some random photos that in no way do this city justice:

even mundane details like doors and doorways are fascinating:

and finally some random pictures with short explanations not in any particular order from today. A herb store (closed for easter but i liked the exterior):

looking down the street the herb store is on:

a secret courtyard cafe i read about in someone else's blog (but closed for easter) and also a museum dedicated to a Polish writer:

another courtyard with a luthier shop and a few other shops and apartments:

an ancient sign for a tailor i think:

Shaggy (from Scooby Doo):

more random grafitti with cute recurring (throughout Posnan) pig:

a Tatar restaurant we might try that is closed for easter and advertises kybynis:

Rosa Luxumberg stayed in this building for a month:

A neighborhood cafe called The Little Rockinghorse with excellent coffee, hot chocolate, tortes and tonight a "jam session" at 8. their calendar also included ukelele lessons on Thursdays and a few other fun stuff and off course it was crowded, beautiful inside and out, with clean restrooms and lots of books: