Poland

Poland has a great heritage. What to think of Cracow, one of Europe's prettiest cities.

The country's tricky strategic position between Germany and Russia has left its historical marks here too, though. Hanseatic cities, Teutonic castles, but also Auschwitz.

In July 2003 I made my first trip here: a weekend break to Warsaw. Two years later I spent 5 days in Cracow.

List of world heritage sites in Poland

Site name	Entered
Wieliczka Salt Mine	1978
Cracow's Historic Centre	1978
Auschwitz Birkenau - German Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp (1940-1945)	1979
Historic Centre of Warsaw	1980
Belovezhskaya Pushcha / Bialowieza Forest	1992
Old City of Zamosc	1992
Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork	1997
The Medieval Town of Torun	1997
Kalwaria Zebrzydowska: the Mannerist Architectural and Park Landscape Complex and Pilgrimage Park	1999
Churches of Peace in Jawor and Swidnica	2001
Wooden Churches of Southern Little Poland	2003
Muskauer Park/Park Muzakowski	2004
Centennial Hall in Wroclaw	2006

Tentative list of Poland

Bialowieza National Park - extension, modification

Gdansk (historical centre within 17th century fortifications)

The Augustów Canal (Kanal Augustowski)

The Dunejec River Gorge in the Pieniny Mountains

Visits

The still distant pearl of Central-Europe

February 2005
The abundance of flights to former distant places does spoil you. I had planned a 5-day break in and around Cracow, a cultural pearl in the south-eastern corner of Poland. However, air traffic jams and US President Bush turned my 3 hour flight into a 13 hour journey with long stops in Munich and Frankfurt.
But I did eventually succeed in visiting Cracow and two other sites in this WHS hotspot (and there are even two more within reaching distance).

Eastern Europe (2)

July 2003
After the Czech Republic, time came to visit Poland. An ultra short stay in Warsaw (1,5 days) turned out to be a pleasant introduction to this fascinating country. Another plus: hardly any tourists!