Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for poland
A Crooked House in Poland
By Linda Tancs
As wonky as a funhouse mirror, Krzywy Domek is Poland’s crooked house. Located in Sopot, its warped shape was inspired by Polish fairy-tale illustrations of Jan Marcin Szancer and Per Dahlberg. Built in 2004, it’s part of the Rezydent shopping center and a go-to site for tourists and photographers. You’ll find it near the corner of Monte Cassino and Morska streets.
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Eye of the Sea
By Linda Tancs
The Tatra Mountains form a natural border between Poland and Slovakia and are the focal point for Tatra National Park, so-named on both sides of the border. One of the most indelible images on the Polish side is Morskie Oko, which means “eye of the sea.” Legend has it that the name harks back to an ancient belief that the lake’s bottom has a hole connecting it to the sea. It may lack a hole, but it doesn’t lack a superb reflection of the surrounding Tatras. You’ll find the lake in the middle of the park in southern Poland near the resort town of Zakopane.
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Wild Cats in Poland
By Linda Tancs
Located in the southernmost portion of Poland, Bieszczady National Park is one of the country’s largest national parks. It holds the distinction of being part of the first UNESCO biosphere reserve to be located in three countries, complemented by sections in Ukraine and Slovakia. It might be better known, though, as a home to the once highly-endangered Eurasian lynx, as evidenced by the wildcat’s likeness as the park’s logo. One of Europe’s largest predators, the lynx finds a safe haven in this park thanks to its extensive mountain forests. You might spot a European wildcat or two as well.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Butting Heads in Poznań
By Linda Tancs
Poznań is a city on the Warta River in western Poland. Halfway between Warsaw and Berlin, its Old Market Square is ablaze in richly-colored townhouses where merchants once traded in fish, candles, torches and salt. The crown jewel of the square is the Town Hall, dubbed long ago as “the most beautiful Renaissance town hall north of the Alps” by an Italian architect. You’ll likely find the biggest crowd there at noon, when two mechanical billy goats glide forth from the clock tower to butt heads 12 times. The midday hour has been marked in this fashion since the 1500s. A trumpet call signals the start of the action.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Poland’s Salt of the Earth
By Linda Tancs
The Wieliczka Salt Mine, located in the town of Wieliczka in southern Poland, lies within the Kraków metropolitan area. One of Poland’s largest tourist attractions, it offers themed tours for all ages, featuring underground tunnels and a mine with chapels, chambers and saline lakes. You can choose between the Tourist Route and the Miners’ Route, an authentic experience allowing participants to play the roles of miners and, under the keen eye of a chargeman, gain their first ever experience working underground. The routes don’t connect. If you don’t want to miss the crown jewel of the attraction, the Chapel of St. Kinga, then be sure to take the Tourist Route.
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Europe’s Largest Jewish Cemetery
By Linda Tancs
Jewish heritage abounds in Łódź, the third largest city in Poland. Jews first began settling there in the late 18th century, and the city became one of the largest Jewish communities in Europe, second only to Warsaw. When the Nazis attacked, it became a ghetto, replete with death and mourning until its liberation by the Soviets in 1945. Amidst such history it should come as no surprise that the city hosts Europe’s largest Jewish cemetery (and one of the largest in the world), with about 160,000 people buried on its grounds.
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The History of Polish Jews
By Linda Tancs
The Museum of the History of Polish Jews stands in what was once the heart of Jewish Warsaw—an area the Nazis turned into the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II. Its compelling location underscores its role as a narrator of history and its standing as an important and innovative center for research, education and culture as well as a platform for social change. The museum traces 1,000 years of the Jewish community’s history in Poland, and its core exhibit includes artifacts, paintings, reconstructions, interactive installations and video.
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The 2016 European Capitals of Culture
By Linda Tancs
New year, new cultural pursuits. The European Union’s honorees for 2016 Capitals of Culture are the Spanish city of Donostia-San Sebastian and Wroclaw, Poland’s fourth largest city. San Sebastian, the third largest city in the Basque Country, is focusing their agenda on a community of culture to foster peaceful coexistence. Seeking to link the two cultural capitals, Wroclaw’s opera director is planning a massive Spanish folk musical at the local stadium, featuring 50 dance groups and 80 choirs performing under the direction of a Spaniard. What a perfect way to promote understanding through culture and the arts.
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Woodstock Lives on in Poland
By Linda Tancs
The Woodstock Music Festival of 1969 at Max Yasgur’s dairy farm in Bethel, New York is one of the most popular music events in history. It’s been faithfully re-created in Kostrzyn, Poland (50 miles from Berlin) since 1995. This year’s festivities begin today and end on 2 August. Over 500,000 attendees are expected. Be there or be square.
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The Longest Wooden Pier in Europe
By Linda Tancs
It isn’t uncommon for a seaside city to boast of rejuvenative effects. In Sopot, Poland’s seaside city, they even say that the concentration of iodine in the air is heavier at seaside than on land. Whatever the merits of the claim, what is undeniable is that this small seaside resort sports the longest wooden pier in Europe at about 1676 feet. That’s quite a platform from which to view the town’s panorama of Art Nouveau townhouses, villas and historic parks. Not surprisingly, most hotels are situated along the shoreline, like the stately Grand Sopot. Spring and summer bring a slew of street and music festivals. Better hurry.
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