Nysa

Tourist attractions of Nysa are numerous and interesting. It is a medium-sized city in the Opolskie region. The name of the town comes from the river flowing throgh it – Nysa Klodzka. There is also an artificial reservoir nearby, called the Nyski Lake. Nysa gained city rights in 1223.

It is one of the oldest cities in the Upper Silesia and it might have originated as a settlement, back in the 10th century, although first documents didn’t mention it as a city until 200 years later. In the middle ages, Nysa was already known as an educational centre. It had a parish school, and later a gimnasium.

Similar to the entire region of Upper Silesia, Nysa belonged to many countries throughout the centuries Both in its history and in architecture we can notice influence from the Czech, Germany, Poland and even France. (from the times of Napoleon) There was also a synagogue and a huge part of people of Jewish origins.

There are plenty monuments in Nysa, including old, charming stone houses. Unfortunately, most of them didn’t survive World War II. There are also plenty churches in Nysa, although some of them are beggging to be renovated. Apart from admiring churches, tourists should also go for a walk to the park and pay attention to the buildings of the former fortifications with a bastion of St. Jadwiga.

In the 17th century (and probably even earlier) Nysa was a blooming city of trading. That’s why all goods coming into the city had to be precisely weighed in order to pay the proper custom duty.

In the 19th century, Nysa was the home to blessed Maria Luiza Merkert, who along with her sister Matylda, as well aas her two companions – Farnciszka Werner and Klara Wolf helped the poor, homeless and sick citizens of Nysa. Together, they started a long-standing tradition of St. Elizabeth sisters, who still work in local hospitals daycares and diners today.