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I feel the spirit of the Middle Ages... #ArchitecturalPearlsofWorld

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olga.maslievich
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I'm definitely behind schedule :)
In March it will be three years since I went on my #thelongesttrip

At the end of the year I always write a review post for myself, where I post the best photos of all the places I've been, and I also save links to all the posts there to remember all the cities in the 13 countries we've visited. This way, you can also get to know us if you're new here and don't know how our journey began three years ago.
Year 1 and Year 2 are exciting adventures that are preserved in these reporting articles.
But this year I will write my third report post later, because I haven't had time to write about all the interesting places we visited over the past year. Therefore, today I am combining in this post some beautiful famous places of Poland, which are actually architectural pearls of Europe. Enjoy the spirit of ancient Poland with me...
Today I will share with you my emotions from being near these historical castles, which are truly masterpieces. Someday later I will write separate posts about each of them, where I will devote more time to studying the history of these places.
But today, enjoy my adventures and memories!

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So first place Ogrodzieniec Castle, which is located 53 km from Katowice.
I have very warm memories of visiting this place on a warm July day, and of a mysterious tall man in a white hat :)
It was very hot that day, so I found my spare hat and thus saved him from the heat. But, if you look closely, you might recognize him by the T-shirt he's wearing... So, true friendship was born between us and our wonderful friend @gtg, who offered to be our guide to the castle, and I fondly remember how much fun it was to drive our Mazda behind the red Tesla, catching up with it on a winding forest road between pine trees.

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On this day, Viktoriya's "Zelya" drone was still alive, and the three friends enthusiastically launched it over the castle.
And I walked around this unique castle, which is deservedly called Little Wawel.
The castle ruins are located on the highest hill of the Krakow-Częstochowa Upland.
Therefore, the photo perfectly shows the structure of the walls, windows, Renaissance-style towers, and the preserved castle walls, which look absolutely beautiful against the blue sky and seem to have grown into a monolithic structure with the white rocks on which they were created by human hands!

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While staying in Katowice for only three days, we also visited another famous place located on the outskirts of the city.
So, the second palace, which transported us to the times of grandeur and luxury, is located 12 km from the center of Katowice in the town of Sosnowiec - Sielecki Castle

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Honestly, we were surprised to find this gem on the side of a modern city road. I would like to put on a long dress, close my eyes, and imagine myself as a medieval princess...
We had very little time that day, so we just walked around the courtyard a bit and enjoyed the exterior of this beautiful building, which is truly worthy of being called a palace!

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Siełecki Castle is located on the left bank of the Czarna Przemża River and is the oldest building in the city, its history dating back to the late Middle Ages.
The castle now houses an art center that actively participates in the cultural life of the city. It hosts exhibitions, concerts, and various cultural events.

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The next historical castle we found nearby was Zamek w Siewierzu located 32 km from Katowice.
We left a little late, wandered around using the GPS to find our way, and arrived at the castle in the dark.

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That's why we were left with a mysterious impression of being in this place...
A wooden bridge surrounded by a chain-link fence made a great impression, which apparently in the old days could be raised to make access to the castle impossible for enemies... I gave free rein to my imagination...

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There was absolute silence on a warm July evening, only the singing of the grasshoppers could be heard. There were no people around, it was a little creepy for us, three girls, to explore an ancient mysterious castle in an unfamiliar part of Poland...
My daughters looked very exotic in their bright silk dresses, walking along the bridge that led to the closed gates!

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The flag of Poland, a truly fascinating country with a rich history, proudly flew on the tower.

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The next day we left Katowice and arrived in the famous Krakow, where we spent three days actively traveling around. Of course, there was not enough time to fully enjoy all the historical places that Google offered us.

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The legendary Wawel on the left bank of the Vistula River became the fourth place where we spent time on this short trip around the ancient capital of Poland, the city of Krakow.
We spent a wonderful evening near the castle and filmed a video from afar, driving across the river on the bridge in our car!

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There are probably a lot of beautiful words and stories about this residence of the Polish kings. An incredibly luxurious palace, a unique architectural masterpiece on the top of the hill of the same name, near which you can truly feel the spirit of ancient Poland and enjoy a walk and the music of street musicians...
And also walk around in your best dresses ☺️

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We also found a charming old castle
Tenczyn amidst beautiful nature 53 km from Krakow.

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My daughters @bugavi and @darine.darine sat in the middle of a beautiful flowering field and controlled the Zelya drone, so soon you will see incredible photos of this unique architectural creation from a bird's eye view...

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And at that time I walked to the entrance and took a few photos.
The castle stands on the top of the Tenchyn Hill. So from there you can see the Bieszczady Mountains and even the Tatra Mountains clearly and far away. Around the castle there is a forest and the air is filled with the scent of wildflowers. The ruins of the castle against the background of the bright blue sky and the dark green forest look very impressive.
This medieval castle has a rich history. It was the family nest of the Tenczynskis, famous almost as much as the king!
Unfortunately, we arrived quite late, and we were unable to buy a tour.

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And at the end of our stay in Poland, we found a fascinating place - the Benedictine Abbey

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An ancient Benedictine abbey, located on a cliff overlooking the Vistula River. Approaching the castle, my girls started filming with a drone, and I went for a walk to the river for a while to look at the castle from afar. But a sad story happened, which my daughter Viktoriya wrote about in her post. There are wonderful photos of this unique castle, taken with a drone, which unfortunately crashed that day :(

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After we had dealt with our stress, we went into the courtyard where there was a gorgeous church, many interesting elements of abbey life, an ancient well. Near the defensive wall, there were beautiful views of the river... This beauty is difficult to describe in words, but our photos convey our emotions!

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Later we walked around and we were captivated by the amazing nature of the high cliff on which the abbey was built. The red brick building looks surprisingly harmonious on the cliff, and everything around is covered with green climbing plants, which creates a beautiful picture. This place is worthy of enjoying the harmony of nature and human creation here!

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This was my first trip in my own car in Poland, which is part of our #thelongesttrip

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Thank you to everyone who follows our events and supports us with your likes 💕