Just a bit north of Piotrkowska Street we reached one of Łódź's main attraction: Manufaktura, a large entertainment and shopping centre located in the former industrial complex owned by textile magnate Izrael Poznański. In the second half of the 19th century, Poznański built an industrial empire in this location that included 12 separate factories with more than 80,000 spindles that produced high-quality cotton fabrics. The demise of Communism in the early 1990s killed the textile industry in Poland, and employment in the sector collapsed.

Many of the former textile factories stood empty, but Izrael Poznański's former manufacturing empire was preserved and restored as the Manufactuktura complex, which today holds a theatre, the Museum of the Factory, the Museum of the History of the City of Łódź as well as the Alliance Française. It also has a cinema complex, a bowling alley, laser games, multiple pubs and restaurants, and art exhibition spaces. A French development company renovated this complex and created one of the most stunning architectural preservation and transformation projects in existence.

Andel's Hotel Łódź is part of Izrael Poznanski's former textile manufacturing empire. It was originally erected in 1878 as a spinning mill, part of the cotton factory complex. After standing empty for decades, the former factory was transformed into a 4-star hotel with 278 designer rooms and suites, 3100 square metres of conference space, a ballroom for 800 people and fine-dining restauarants and bars with seats for more than 450 people.

Our tour of Łódź on May 12, 2012 included the palace of Izrael Poznański, one of Poland's most successful entrepreneurs. Often referred to as the "Louvre of Łódź", the palace itself was commissioned in 1888 and reconstructed and expanded several times. Within its L-shaped structure there are impressive representative rooms as well as private residential quarters. With its baroque-inspired decor, the dining room is the most impressive room in the palace. Today the Museum of the City of Łódź is located here as well as a permanent exhibit about Arthur Rubinstein, the famous pianist, who was also born in Łódź.

During my visit to the Poznański Palace in Łódź on May 12, 2012, I saw three exhibitions: the palace interiors with furniture from the epoch as well biographies and memorabilia of several important Łódź personalities including Artur Rubinstein, the world-renowned pianist, and Marek Edelmann, Warsaw ghetto uprising organizer and Holocaust survivor. On the ground floor we also had a peek at the Gallery of Polish Masters with paintings from the 19th and early 20th century.

Finally we saw an exhibition that was part of the International Festival of Photography in Łódź entitled "Subjects of Gender and Desire. Photographs from the collection of Joanna and Krzysztof Madelski", which turned out to be a very interesting exhibit.

Last but not least, my final visit in Łódź on May 12 was to the Museum of the Factory, which focuses on the history of the textile factory founded by Izrael Poznański in the mid 19th century. Anna Morkosinska, my guide, happens to be the director of this museum and provided me with great background information for this institution.

With its interactive exhibits, photos, documents, architectural plans and fabric samples, the museum illustrates the production techniques (we even saw a weaving demonstration on one of the vintage looms), as well as exhibits illustrating the lives and routines of factory workers. One of the highlights is a book filled with stories of retired workers. The Museum of the Factory is not very large, but it has succeeded in illustrating the evolution and history of the factory and the people affected by it. 2016