We were lucky to have a local with us - potentially the first person in the village to listen to Metallica (maybe even before 1989).ISO 200, 23mm, f/3.2, 1/1250s.
I vaguely remembered some this part of the forest from my childhood, but the greeny has changed a lot, especially given they cut down huge parts of it.ISO 100, 4mm, f/2.8, 1/640s.
If you've ever tried the Żubrówka vodka - this is where it gets made: Białystok. I was surprised it's been made since the 16th century. The fourth photo shows part of the Branicki Palace, built in the 16th century by Jan Klemens Branicki, who was a member of... the Brotherhood of Enemies of Abstinence, founded by Augustus II, an elected King of Poland.ISO 200, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/1250s.
A couple pray to what they believe is tissue from Jesus' heart that miraculously appeared on sacramental bread in this church in 2008. You can see it further away in the photo. This is located in a Catholic church even though the Church as an organisation does not recognise the miracle. Sokółka, Poland.ISO 2000, 23mm, f/2.0, 1/60s.
I was surprised to see this Polish Muslim sculpture depicting an imam. Islam isn't overly enthusiastic about depiction of humans.ISO 200, 23mm, f/2.0, 1/60s.
Tatar food in Eastern Poland - pierekaczewnik and chebureki and drink they call ashura (which is actually an Islamic commemoration).ISO 1250, 23mm, f/9.0, 1/60s.
People come here to wash in a stream, and leave the tissue/cloth they wipe their faces with, symbolically leaving trouble and worries behind. ISO 800, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/60s.
It was great to visit living Tatar and Orthodox cultures in Poland, but after World War 2 and Communist Poland there are only traces of Jewish culture left, sadly.ISO 200, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/60s.
These white-red stripes remind me of ablaq - Islamic architecture motif. This Polish castle was designed by Italian architects. In windy weather you're not allowed to climb this hill, as there are many trees that might fall.ISO 200, 23mm, f/8.0, 1/500s.
I got to visit the village of Lipce, where the Nobel Prize-winning author Władysław Reymont set his novel "The Peasants". It's not quite what it used to be, as I found tanks (perhaps guarding the tranquillity of rural life) and an outdoor gym. Some speculate that the novel is the first Polish-language work of fiction to describe an orgasm.ISO 200, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/170s.
