P h o t o g e o g r a p h y

Hill of Crosses (Lithuanian: Kryžių kalnas) is an incredible and magic site about 12 km north of the city of Šiauliai. It is a major site of Catholic pilgrimage in Lithuania. The first crosses were placed on the former Jurgaičiai or Domantai hill fort after the 1831 Uprising.  After the 3rd partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795, Poland and Lithuania became part of the Russian Empire. Poles and Lithuanians unsuccessfully rebelled against Russian authorities in 1831 and 1863. Families could not locate bodies of perished rebels, they started putting up symbolic crosses in place of a former hill fort. Several generations of Catholics from Lithuania, Poland and all over the world brought here not only crosses and crucifixes, but statues of the Virgin Mary, carvings of Lithuanian patriots and thousands of tiny effigies and rosaries have been brought here by Catholic pilgrims.  The site took on a special significance during the years 1944–1990, when Lithuania was oc...

Post mill from Jażewnica (1876), open air museum in Wdzydze Kiszewskie, Poland  A windmill is a mill that converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. The first windwheel was used in the Babylon for the irrigation project in the seventeenth century BCE. The earliest certain reference to a windmill in Europe dates from 12th century. Post mill from Grzmucin (1921), open air museum in Tokarnia, Poland The earliest windmills were used to grind cereals, but since the first half of the fourteenth century in the Netherlands were used to drain polders. In later years wind energy was used to paint mixing, crushing of rocks, cutting of wood etc. The majority of modern windmills take the form of wind turbines used to generate electricity, or windpumps used to pump water, either for land drainage or to extract groundwater. "Stawa Młyn" (1873-1874) - beacon  in the shape of windmill in Świnoujście, Poland Poland is ...

An open air museum in Wdzydze Kiszewskie stretches upon 22 ha of the area located at the bank of the beautiful Lake Gołuń . It is a magical place. It is located in heart of Kashubia - region in the Pomeranian Voivodship, Poland. The Teodora and Izydor Gulgowski Kashubian Ethnographical Park - so is the official name of the museum - exhibits collections of buildings and artefacts from 17th till 20th century from regions of Kashubia and Kociewie. The folk museum in Wdzydze Kiszewskie was established in 1906 and it is first an open air museum on Polish land. Its founders Teodora and Izydor Gulgowski bought the 18th-century cottage of a rich peasant. The cottage and its furnishings were the beginning of the rich collection. The collection consisted of typical of those times household and farm objects, precious headdresses decorated with golden embroidery, glass paintings and pottery. Nowadays area of the folk art museum is built up with 49 objects of regiona...

Mosque Kruszyniany is a small village in north-eastern Poland, close to the border with Belarus. The village has a population of 160. It is a special place on the map of Poland. The place is often called a cultural melting pot as this is a cross point of three major religions: Catholicism, Moslemism and the Orthodox Church. In the past, Kruszyniany was primarily a Lipka Tatar settlement. Up until this day, the Tatars still remain as the only minority in the village. Tatar yurt - tent used as a dwelling by Tatars in the past  Tatar yurt - inside The name "Tatar" was originally referring to one of the Mongolian tribes and along with the creation of an enormous empire of Genghis Khan the name began to refer to all Mongolian tribes, also Turkic ones. The bravery of the Tatars was highly appreciated by the Grand Dukes of Lithuania and Kings of Poland. The Tatars serving in the Crown (Kingdom of Poland) and Lithuanian Armies were to receive soldier's pay. As the...

North part of the Spisz Region Spisz (Slovak: Spiš,  Polish: Spisz) is a region in north-eastern Slovakia (3,500 km²) and in south-eastern Poland (195.5 km²). The Spisz has been endowed by a really beautiful nature. Its northern part is surrounded by massive peaks of the High Tatras mountains and the Belianske Tatras,  that merge with the unique scenery of the National Park Pieniny with the Dunajec river. The eastern border is Levoča Mountains (Levočské vrchy). In the south, there is Slovenské Rudohorie mountain range followed by picturesque cliffs and gorges of the National Park Slovak Paradise. North part of the Spisz Region and the Tatra Mountains - a view from Wysoka (Pieniny Mts.) The Spisz has always been a melting pot of many nations, cultures and religions. You would find here people of the Roman-Catholic as well as the Greek-Catholic religion, Orthodox, Evangelic and Jews. They worked and lived together. The Very interesting ethnic group are the Highlande...

Every fourth stork in the world comes from Poland. The biggest density of stork nests is observed in the North- Eastern and Eastern part of Poland. Storks rebuild their nests each year. The nest is constructed above the ground, on poles, very often in close proximity of human settlements: on the tops of barns and houses. Storks have been present in the Polish folk culture and landscape for centuries and have found their place in our folktales, proverbial sayings. Among the most common ones there is of course the superstition about storks bringing babies. Constructing of stork nest in a particular household is believed to bring its owner good luck and prosperity. It is also believed to protect a house from thunder strikes. Storks are also appreciated for their role as beneficial animals: they feed on species considered to be pests, such as rodents. (See: Storks - the Symbol of Poland )

Kupala Night (also called St. John’s Eve or "Sobótka") in Poland it is celebrated on the night of 23/24 June. The celebration relates to the summer solstice when nights are the shortest and includes a number of Pagan rituals. The tradition of Kupala predates Christianity. Due to the popularity of the pagan celebration, with time it was simply accepted and reestablished as one of the native Christian traditions intertwined with local folklore. Many of the rites related to this holiday within Slavic religious beliefs, due to the ancient Kupala rites, are connected with the role of water in fertility and ritual purification. On Kupala day, young people jump over the flames of bonfires in a ritual test of bravery and faith. Girls may float wreaths of flowers on rivers, and would attempt to gain foresight into their relationship fortunes from the flow patterns of the flowers on the river. Men may attempt to capture the wreaths, in the hope of capturing the interest of the w...