38 — Head East to Lublin
39 — Embrace religious diversity in Białystok
40 — Roam with the bison in Białowieża
41 — Find your haven in Wigry
42 — Cast yourself adrift in Zamość
43 — Chalk it down to the wise men of Chełm
44 — Spend a day in underrated Rzeszów
45 — Soak up the decadence in Przemyśl
46 — Go wild in the Bieszczady
47 — Go slightly less wild in the Bieszczady lite
38 — Head East to Lublin
Lublin train station
Pronunciation
Links
Magia restaurant: magia.lublin.pl | goo.gl/maps/5kG1iZNG33L2
Kraków gate, which also houses a historical museum: muzeumlubelskie.pl
The medieval castle: zamek-lublin.pl | goo.gl/maps/LKU3vKqRhYt
The quirky Renaissance-style St Joseph’s church: karmel.lublin.pl | goo.gl/maps/ErYSVY1bmjR2).
The Lublin Open-Air Village Museum (Muzeum Wsi Lubelskiej): skansen.lublin.pl/en/ | goo.gl/maps/U7haJe4JrhS2
The former Nazi German concentration camp at Majdanek: www.majdanek.eu | goo.gl/maps/uVhBtCHYPKm
The Zamoyski Museum (out of town, in the nearby village of Kozłówka): www.muzeumzamoyskich.pl/90,palace
39 — Embrace religious diversity in Białystok
Orthodox monastery in Supraśl (photo: Plrang Art / Adobe Stock)
Pronunciation
Links
Białystok
The key Catholic site in Białystok is the cathedral (aka the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary), a dual-spired brick construction over 70 metres in height (katedrabialostocka.pl |
The largest Orthodox church in Poland – the Church of the Holy Spirit: goo.gl/maps/K2ZWDNuZDsN2
Cathedral of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker Archbishop of Myria in Lycia: soborbialystok.pl | goo.gl/maps/GDCUcog7yr12).
Piaskower Synagogue on Piękna street: goo.gl/maps/ytpNiaY6sR92
Memorial of the Great Synagogue: goo.gl/maps/c4x3AzLCrvu
Jewish Heritage Trail: szlak.uwb.edu.pl/sites.html
Bialystok Temples Trail: odkryj.bialystok.pl/en/travel/route-of-the-places-of-worship
Wooden Architecture Trail: odkryj.bialystok.pl/en/travel/wooden-architecture-route
The Medical University of Białystok’s Museum of the History of Medicine and Pharmacy: goo.gl/maps/Jd34uqzRr422
Out of town
57 km marked walking / cycling trail waypoints: www.zielonewrota.pl/index.php?art=733&p=50&k=11&w=26&lv=2
A place to stay with traditional Tatar cuisine – Tatarska Yurta in Kruszyniany: www.kruszyniany.pl | goo.gl/maps/EqtpEzbRU3U2
Supraśl’s Orthodox monastery, containing a museum of iconography: www.monaster-suprasl.pl | goo.gl/maps/2jFwAupA7MQ2
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- Orthodox church at Białowieża
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- Wooden house in Białystok
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- Białystok main square
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- Palace at Białystok
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- Palace gardens at Białystok
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- Monument to the Great Synagogue in Białystok
40 — Roam with the bison in Białowieża
European bison in Białowieża (photo: danmir12 / Adobe Stock)
Pronunciation
Links
Białowieża tourist association: pttk.bialowieza.pl/info/20/about-us | Email (Polish, English or German): pttk@pttk.bialowieza.pl
Białowieża tourist association office in the village: pttk.bialowieza.pl | goo.gl/maps/Njg2cfuVUKE2
Which season to visit: bialowieza-forest.com/discover-the-forest/seasons-in-the-forest/?lang=en.
Accommodation: Luxury tsarist sleeping car (and converted water tower): www.carska.pl/language/en/vacancy.html | goo.gl/maps/F2UJQbK7K9T2
Swampy national park nearby – Biebrza: www.biebrza.org.pl
Photos
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- The closest I got to seeing a bison in the wild
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- Path through Białowieża protected area
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- Białowieża forest floor
Video
Some glimpses of Białowieża in the nature documentary Seasons.
(Note: your experience will be absolutely nothing like this):
41 — Find your haven in Wigry
The Camoldolese monastery at Wigry
Pronunciation
Links
Camoldolese Monastery at Wigry: www.wigry.org | goo.gl/maps/UpChCAdBmwL2
Szot (who run organised 6-day tours): www.en.szot.pl | goo.gl/maps/J1sGtTWABx12
Łukowy Kąt (who rent kayaks by the day, and will pick you up at the end from a pre-agreed destination): wigry.info/en/kayaks/ | goo.gl/maps/UaxUTeCgGJk
Tourist information centre in Suwałki: um.suwalki.pl/tourist-information-office/ | goo.gl/maps/PJfvC6WTFxo).
Nnarrow-gauge railway with museum and lodgings: augustowska.pl | goo.gl/maps/eaqhJMKbPhv).
The Mystery of the Light Papal Trail: szlakpapieski.elk.pl/informacje-o-szlaku
Agro-tourism (farm-stay) option: Agroturystyka Żubrówka (www.booking.com/Share-9xpg7V | goo.gl/maps/TcJeqUWHt762
Official park website with visitor map: www.wigry.org.pl/index_en.html
Suwałki Landscape Park to the north: www.spk.org.pl
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- The monastery at Wigry
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- The restaurant in the monastery
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- Wooden house at Wigry
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- The monastery at Wigry
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- Lake Wigry
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- Storks nest near Lake Wigry
Lake Wigry
42 — Cast yourself adrift in Zamość
Flowery balconies in Zamość
Pronunciation
Links
Zamość – a UNESCO World Heritage Site: whc.unesco.org/en/list/564
Museum of Zamość (Muzeum Zamojskie): muzeum-zamojskie.pl | goo.gl/maps/xRoiXTNLpQo).
3-star (and presumably ironically-named) Hotel Renesans: hotelrenesans.pl | goo.gl/maps/U2NcVtWb4yF2
The Mausoleum of Martyrdom of the Zamość Region: goo.gl/maps/ruxmmJwTyc52
Annual jazz festival – Jazz na Kresach: kosz.zam.pl
Folk music festival – EUROFOLK: zamojszczyzna.com.pl/eurofolk.html
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- Railway line next to Zamość old town
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- Zamość street
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- Zamość town hall
43 — Chalk it down to the wise men of Chełm
Walls of the chalk mine in Chełm
Pronunciation
Links
The downloadable audio guide to the city’s monuments no longer appears to be available, but the city’ official tourist portal has plenty of good information: itchelm.pl
The Chalk Mine: podziemiakredowe.pl | goo.gl/maps/vsJuDjV9a2r
The YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe: goo.gl/wE8syZ
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- Chełm church
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- Chełm main square
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- Chalk mine
44 — Spend a day in underrated Rzeszów
Monument to the Revolutionary Deed in Rzeszów
Pronunciation
Links
The Monument of the Revolutionary Deed: goo.gl/maps/AgY5Mt9my5L2
The Bernadine Monastery: bernardyni.rzeszow.pl | goo.gl/maps/hSWnJF9k9JH2
Modern, elevated circular-walkway-roundabout-thingio: goo.gl/maps/93cCkUWzCkG2
Multimedia fountain: goo.gl/maps/DycuEKsGqc62
Underground tunnels: www.erzeszow.pl/44-turystyka/7271-podziemna-trasa-turystyczna.html
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- Pedestrian walkway in Rzeszów
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- Tunnels under the main square in Rzeszów
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- Rzeszów main square
45 — Soak up the decadence in Przemyśl
The main square in Przemyśl during a heat wave
Pronunciation
Links
Kawiarnia Libera (multi-platformed leafy hideaway): www.facebook.com/Kawiarnia.Libera | goo.gl/maps/o7Y9jKss7T82
Restauracja Cuda Wianki (good quality international food, people-watching): goo.gl/maps/5VefoxYZKhP2
Museum of Bells and Pipes (Muzeum Dzwonów i Fajek): goo.gl/maps/K5MUxHGaCDv
Castle: kultura.przemysl.pl/zamek-kazimierzowski/
17th-century Renaissance-Mannerist castle (and hotel) in Krasiczyn: www.krasiczyn.com.pl | goo.gl/YTT5m3
Hobbitówa (cosy hobbit house built from timber, clay and stone) in the village of Krzywcza: www.facebook.com/chatabrata
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- Przemyśl church
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- Przemyśl
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- Przemyśl main square
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- Przemyśl view
46 — Go wild in the Bieszczady
Pronunciation
Links
Maps of the various walking routes (get a hard copy if you do go hiking): mapa-turystyczna.pl/bieszczady
PTTK (Polish and Tourist Sightseeing Society) hostels in the region: www.bieszczadypttk.pl
Rustic guesthouses – Chata Magoda in Lutowiska (chatamagoda.pl), Borsuczyna in Wetlina (pensjonaty-bieszczady.pl/borsuczyna-guest-house) and Przystanek Cisna in Cisna (www.przystanekcisna.pl).
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- The path leading up through the lower forested slopes en route to Tarnica
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- The well-worn path leading to the highest peak in the Bieszczady – Tarnica (1,346m)
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- Basic bunks in a hostel in Ustrzyki Gorne
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- A high pass in the Biesczady, and congregation point for hikers going in different directions
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- Cross atop the summit at Tarnica (1,346m)
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- A hiker enjoying some alcohol-based refreshment at the summit of Tarnica
47 — Go slightly less wild in the Bieszczady lite
Watery fun on the reservoir at Solina
Pronunciation
Links
Ferry across the narrow channel to the larger island solina.pl/wyspa-energetyk/
Pedalo rental in Polańczyk: bryza.bieszczady.pl
Sanok Castle, with Beksiński galley and museum of wooden iconography: www.muzeum.sanok.pl/en/
The Museum of Folk Architecture (Muzeum Budownictwa Ludowego): mblsanok.pl | goo.gl/maps/ytce99mrCAU2
Trail of Icons: goo.gl/KafJBH
The Wooden Tserkvas of the Carpathian Region in Poland and Ukraine: whc.unesco.org/en/list/1424 | goo.gl/237FK5
The Wooden Churches of Southern Małopolska: whc.unesco.org/en/list/1053 | goo.gl/wob3QP
Natural History Museum of the Bieszczady National Park (in Ustrzyki Dolne): goo.gl/Juqv88 | goo.gl/maps/NKAnyupLGRk
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- Sanok street scene
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- Solina dam
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- Souvenirs at Solina (cuddly trout included)
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- Sanok main square
(All pronunciation courtesy of Forvo)