Mourning Toruń

10.04.2010 13:58

The President of Poland, Lech Kaczyński, was killed with his wife and a large group of co-workers in plane accident. The Mayor of Toruń, Michał Zaleski, sends his condolences to the families of the fatal crash victims.

This is what Reuters Agency said about the accident:

Poland’s President Lech Kaczynski, its central bank head and the country’s military chief were among 96 people killed when their plane crashed in thick fog on its approach to a Russian airport Saturday.

The president’s wife and several other high-ranking government officials were also aboard the Tupolev Tu-154 that plunged into a forest about two km (1.3 miles) from the airport in the western Russian city of Smolensk.

“The political consequences will be long-term and possibly will change the entire future landscape of Polish politics,” said Jacek Wasilewski, professor at the Higher School of Social Psychology in Warsaw.

Polish government spokesman Pawel Gras said the country would hold elections after the death of Kaczynski, who was 60 and had been president since 2005.

“In line with the constitution, we will have to hold an early presidential poll,” Gras said. “For now, the speaker of the lower house of parliament, Bronislaw Komorowski, is automatically the acting president.”

Russian television showed the smouldering fuselage and fragments of the plane scattered in a forest. A Reuters reporter saw a broken wing some distance from the rest of the aircraft. Russia’s Emergencies Ministry said 96 people were aboard the government plane, including 88 members of a Polish delegation en route to commemorate Poles killed in mass murders in the town of Katyn under orders from Soviet leader Josef Stalin in 1940. Earlier reports had said 132 people were aboard. Smolensk regional governor Sergei Antufyev and Polish state news agency PAP said there were no survivors.

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Business with Culture

31.03.2010 14:23

Efforts for the title of the European Capital of Culture change the climate and create an unique opportunity for various circles to jointly produce new standards of action in public space, which will then benefit for many years.

Not by accident there has been a significant development of tourism and culture and the consolidation of creative and business circles in cities aspiring to be European Capitals of Culture. This led to solving many problems and the promotion of local and nation-wide initiatives. Today also Toruń faces this opportunity.

(Full version available in Polish only. To switch language version please use the yellow „PL” button in the upper right section of this page.)

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“VisitTorun.pl”

29.03.2010 13:56

It has been several weeks since the new version of the English-speaking tourist portal VisitTorun.pl went online. Continuously expanded website is the largest professional tourist information database of Toruń and the region provided in English.

The portal already contains 159 subpages, nearly 950 articles and numerous maps and films. Visitors can make online hotel reservations in Toruń and other cities, and in the “Tips for visitors” section they can ask any questions about Toruń and the region, to which the site administrators — as they assure — respond promptly and competently.

Authors seek to ensure that their website is a trusted and reliable source of knowledge for various types of tourists — not only those partying or shopping — but also for those who are more ambitious and curious. Hence the website contains detailed information about Toruń’s advantages, emphasizing the things that are unique to the city.

The idea of Toruń as a regional tourism centre is close to the site creators. Emphasizing the position of the city not just as a rich attraction itself, but also as a starting point to other local attractions, they want to contribute to longer stays in Toruń and thus increase the importance of tourism for the city and the region.

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