Polatsk

Early October 2019 we went on a 6 days roundtrip of Belarus. An Air Baltic flight via Riga, a Visa-on-arrival and a rent-a-car at arrival made this arrival like everywhere else. To our surprise it was a Russian registered car! We wondered if the Russian-Belarusian relations between "the commons" were ok or would we experience any bullying, but it all turned out ok.

We headed against Polatsk. Our "smart" GPS took us through highways and smaller roads, also through small towns and even gravel roads! Mainly the roads are ok, so everything worked out just fine. After 2 1/2 hours we arrived Polatsk round six o'clock in the evening.

There is about an hour of daylight, what do we do? We decided to locate the nearest part of this TWHS. The nearest part was the St. Sophia Cathedral. The church itself has Wojciech described perfectly so there is little to add. There were people (typically mothers with children) going in and out, it looked like some kind of a music school, so we didn't go inside. We established that the exterior is nice, but is it special enough? We've visited just so many churches throughout Europe (and South America), inscribed and not inscribed, so this is just another one. This one need not be inscribed.

After a stayover at a small hotel (which we prefer) with a huge language barrier (using mostly hand- and finger-language) we visited Polatsk centre, beginning with the square with the 1812-monument and …

This is a very strange nomination. Belarus proposed two churches that now have nothing in common except being in the same town of Polatsk. The first one – Saviour Transfiguration Church – is one of the oldest and most important churches in Belarus. Now it is part of the complex of the Monastery of Transfiguration and St. Euphrosine, a bit far from the center. Judging from the outside, the church is the least prominent building of the monastery (it is also the most distant from the entrance). Its real value is inside, as the whole interior is covered with original beautiful frescoes. During my visit (June 2019) the church was closed for renovation but you could look inside. The best frescoes were also presented on billboards around the church. The whole monastery is white and resembles monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal (the oldest churches there were built in the same epoque).

Please note that, as in most monasteries in Russia your outfit is strictly examined. You cannot enter in shorts but you can borrow long pants (men) or scarf and dress (women) at the entrance.

On the contrary, the St. Sophia Cathedral is located in the center of the town, next to the river Dvina. It used to be one of the oldest churches in Belarus until 1710 when, after huge explosion of ammunition stored inside the church was almost totally destroyed. It was rebuilt in the style of Vilnius Baroque in the second half of XVIIIth century …