Białystok

Białystok is a city in the North-East of Poland. In this part of the country you can feel better then anywhere what "cold" means. Still, if you put a warm coat on (and a warm hat too), you can see some interesting buildings there.

In the first place you can have a look at the Market Square of Kościuszko. Actually it is more a street than a square.

It starts with the roman catholic cathedral devoted to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.

Then, you can see the historical museum. In front of it you will see the statue of Marchal Piłsudski, similar to the one that I have shown you in Warsaw, near Belweder.

Finally, you will arrive at a square, with the Town Hall in the middle. Actually, the Town Hall has never been the seat of any local government. Before World War II it used to be a trading place, a kind of old-fashioned shopping mall. Nowadays it houses the museum of the Podlasie region.

The Town Hall is surrounded by some nice residential houses, who used to belong to rich merchants.

What I liked best was however the fountain.

Besides the Market Square, you should also see the Lipowa Street.

The tall building at its end is the church of st. Roch.

And yes, there are quite many churches in Białystok, like in many other Polish cities. The peculiarity of Białystok is that there are many orthodox living there. So besides the catholic cathedral they also have an orthodox cathedral, devoted to St. Nicolas.

Białystok used to belong to the aristocratic family Branicki. They had a beautiful palace, surrounded by a wonderful park. They are both open to the public now. But to go there in winter is even more absurd than to have a market square that is not square or a town hall without the mayor. So I will take you there on some other occasion.