There simply is no way to tour Europe and not be awestruck by its scenic beauty, epic history and dazzling artistic and culinary diversity.
Oświęcim (Auschwitz) is located in southern Poland, it lies at the confluence of the Vistula and Soła rivers. Oświęcim began in the 12th century and received municipal rights in the 13th century. It served as the capital of a sovereign duchy that in 1307 swore allegiance to Bohemia...
On the way to Krakow, we have stopped on the left bank of the Vistula River above the latter’s confluence with the San River. There lays the historical city of Sandomierz. First mentioned in 1097, Sandomierz gained early importance because of its geographic position astride the trade...
We spent Friday evening in the regional hub – Lublin. Founded as a stronghold in the late 9th century on the Bystrzyca River, the settlement grew up around the castle and received town rights in 1317. It served as a joint meeting ground for Poland and Lithuania, and in 1569 the Union of...
Another sad stop we made just southeast of Lublin in the infamous Majdanek (parking 15 PLN), the second-largest Nazi concentration camp in Europe, where some 360,000 people died during World War II. In October 1941 it received its first prisoners, mainly Soviet prisoners of war, virtually...
Our next stop was the Old City of Zamość, a fine example of an Italianate Renaissance town, which became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1992. It was founded on the estates of Polish chancellor Jan Zamoyski (1542–1605) that lay on the trade route between the Black Sea and northern and...
Kazimierz Dolny, a picturesque town in the Vistula valley, its tradition as a summer resort, and an artists’ colony date back to the early 1900s. We have parked next to the river (parking 15 PLN) and walked to the main square, where we took lunch in Sarp Restaurant (Vegetable cream soup...