Visitors to the Polish city of Szczecin rate a portly pussy called Gacek more extremely than the regional castle. But even New York has informal tourist attractions that outperform the traveler traps
Wed 22 Feb 2023 07.00 GMT
Gacek is a fat black-and-white cat who resides in a wood box on the side of the roadway and likes snacking on sausages. He’s likewise the leading traveler destination in Szczecin, Poland with a luxury ranking on Google maps. To put that in context: Szczecin’s Pomeranian Dukes’ Castle, a Renaissance building with a history going back to 1346, just gets 4.5 stars. Tourists apparently take a trip from everywhere simply to get a look of the rotund fella. “I flew from Oslo with transit in Gdańsk to see Gacek,” one evaluation exclaims. “As expected, he didn’t pay any attention to me which made the experience fully wholesome.”
Apart from the reality that Gacek’s adorable, albeit a bit evil-looking, I’m not totally sure how he ended up being so well-known – I can just presume he handled to acquire himself a good PRrrrr company. He initially concerned the world’s attention in 2020 when he appeared in a YouTube documentary and has actually remained in and out of the headings considering that, breaking back into the spotlight a couple of days back after Business Insider profiled him.
No offense to Gacek however I’m unsure I’d take a trip countless miles simply to see an overweight cat. That said, there’s no much better method to experience a brand-new city than looking for its Gacek-comparable: the unusual landmark that embodies the soul of a location far much better than the more conventional sights. You don’t learn more about Paris by visiting the Mona Lisa, for instance. And you certainly don’t get to understand New York by going to Times Square.
I can’t make any Paris suggestions however I reckon New York’s Gacek-comparable may be Tompkins Square Park in the East Village: the scene of (perhaps) the world’s most well-known hawk love triangle. A couple of years back, a red-tailed hawk couple called Christo and Dora had 10 children and lived a peaceful domestic life. Alas, Dora broke her wing and needed to go the veterinarian. While she was away, Christo relocated with a brand-new hawk, on the other side of the park, called Nora. Then Dora returned and things got made complex: Christo needed to sweep from family to family and everybody in the area concerned see.
It resembled Sex and the City, the bird edition. And yet, it doesn’t appear like the East Village polycule has actually had half the worldwide direct exposure that Gacek has. Christo, if you require PR representation, provide me a call. Or a hoot. Or whatever hawks do.
• Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian writer.
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