Lodz, Poland

As Polish cities go, Łódź is about as strange as it gets. For starters, its name is pronounced 'Woodge'. Secondly, Łódź looks as though it's been dropped from a great height and left to lie where it fell - visually it could politely be called gritty. Thirdly, behind the obvious grime is a treasure-trove of delights: palatial mansions, Art Nouveau buildings, progressive galleries, gigantic 19th-century redbrick factories, and a creative energy that has not only reached Poland's stage, but the world's.