Lukasz Samek and I had an excellent time in Niepolomice, at their invitation for DTTIA to receive an award for "The best sports initiative of 2018", This was for hosting their young football team KS DAB in Darlington over 5 days last May. The award was presented at their Sports Gala in a packed hall in Niepolomice.
On Wednesday 6th February in the Royal Castle their Mayor, Roman Ptak, and I signed an "Agreement of Friendship And Co-operation" between Darlington and Niepolomice which aims to foster and develop mutual understanding and respect between the people of our towns, and to encourage communication between the Councils, educational establishments, adult and youth organisations, clubs, companies and all individuals through exchange visits and social media. We had lots of interesting meetings about potential co-operation.
During our short stay we visited their expansive forest area, and were shown the magnificent herd of Bison so well cared for by their keepers. The Bison symbol appears on crests and many products, and is of great benefit in advertising their Town. We also visited the Youth Astronomical Observatory and Planetarium which receives vistors from all over the region and even from abroad, and many Polish schoolchildren gain a wealth of knowledge and pleasure from their visits. We also had a tour of the Royal Castle Museum with its many admirable paintings and sculptures by Western Europe artists, and although Lukasz stayed at his parents home, I had the privilege of staying in the Hotel within the Castle. We also visited the Puszcza Niepolomice Football Club and were presented with souvenirs by the staff. They play in the Fortuna 1 liga (equivalent of Championship) along with Odra Opole from our cousin twin town.
Niepolomice is a wonderful town with many facilities and is within easy reach of Krakow.
Report by Tom Nutt
Participants from Darlington - Lukasz Samek Tom Nutt
Participants from Niepolomice - Roman Ptak (Mayor of Niepolomice), Stanislaw Losinski (Councillor/Chairman KS Dab), Marek Bartoszek (Niepolomice Borough Council/Press and Media Officer Puszcza Niepolomice), Grzegorz Samek (Niepolomice Borough Council/ Treasurer KS Dab), Roman Koroza (Director Puszcza Niepolomice), Wojciech Wimmer (Councillor), Adam Michalec (Youth Astronomical Observatory).