The Eastern Wall of Poland
(program proposal)

DAY 1
WARSAW
After arrival formalities, departure for the city sightseeing, including the Warsaw Old Town area with its central point - the Market Square which used to concentrate the city life, the Barbican and the Royal Palace - the seat of the Polish monarchs. The tour also includes the Royal Route with its numerous palaces, churches and the Baroque Wilanów Palace - former residence of King Jan III Sobieski, the famous conqueror of Turks at the battle of Vienna of 1683. Today, the Wilanów Palace houses a great collection of historic Polish portrait paintings and European silver. Enjoy your afternoon tour of Żelazowa Wola, the birthplace of Frederic Chopin, where you will see a traditional Old Polish manor house, now a museum devoted to our great composer. Dinner to be served at one of the Old Town restaurants and a two-part Chopin piano concert at one of the Warsaw palaces with a glass of champagne during the intermission. D

DAY 2
WARSAW - NOWOGRÓD - ŁOMŻA - WANIEWO - BIAŁYSTOK
Departure in the direction of Białystok. En route, a stop in Nowogród to visit an open air museum presenting the history and life of the area of Kurpie. See the original houses and other installations presenting the country life in the past. See the world-famous paper cut-out works from the area. Continue for Łomża. On arrival, visit the Late Gothic Cathedral with fine vaulting, Renaissance tombstones and a Gothic crucifix. The visit also includes the Neoclassical Town Hall and a Baroque Capuchin Church. Continue for the Village of Waniewo located in the Biebrzański National Park, to take a fishing boat propelled with long wooden poles by local people armed. Continue for Białystok. On arrival, check in at the Gołębiewski Hotel. In the evening, a stroll within the historic centre of the city - the Rynek, and dinner to be served at one of the local restaurants. BD

DAY 3 
BIAŁYSTOK - TYKOCIN - SUPRAŚL - BIAŁYSTOK
Morning tour of Białystok includes the large Baroque Town Hall - the central point of the city, which today houses the local Art Museum with a good selection of the 19th and 20th century Polish painters. The tour also includes one of the most striking buildings in the city centre - the Branicki Palace, with its interesting classical grandeur. The tour calls at the old ghetto area where reputedly one of the finest synagogues in Poland used to stand before WW II. Departure in the direction of Tykocin, it having one of the best restored synagogues in Poland - a reminder that this was once home to an important Jewish community. A visit to the Baroque synagogue building which now houses an excellent Jewish Museum as well as the old Talmud House with a well-maintained Local History Museum. Continue for Supraśl to visit the 17th century Bishop's Palace and a large early 16th century Russian Orthodox church. Overnight and dinner in Białystok. BD

DAY 4
BIAŁYSTOK - BIAŁOWIEŻA - GRABARKA - LUBLIN
Departure south for Białowieża - one of the UNESCO sites in Poland, one of the oldest national parks in Europe, and one of the largest regions of original forest in Central Europe, also the last natural forest with fragments of primordial wood. The Białowieża National Park is also home to an impressive variety of animals, including the uncontested king of the region - the European Bison. Continue for Grabarka to visit the unique Orthodox pilgrimage place famous for its numerous wooden crosses, the oldest dating back to the early 18th century. Thousands of characteristic Orthodox crucifixes clustered together in all shapes and sizes are an extraordinarily powerful sight. In the evening, arrival in Lublin for check in and dinner at the Unia Hotel. BD

DAY 5
LUBLIN - MAJDANEK - KOZŁÓWKA - LUBLIN
The morning city tour of Lublin includes a visit to the Old Town area with its Cathedral, a large sixteenth century basilica with an entrance framed by ornate Classical - looking pillars, the Old Town Hall Neo-Classically remodelled by Merlini, the man who designed Warsaw's Łazienki Palace. The tour also includes the castle complex. This 1820s Neo - Gothic edifice was built on the site of Kazimierz the Great's fourteenth century fortress, and linked by a raised pathway from the Castle Gate. Today, the castle houses a museum with an interesting ethnography section and an art gallery. Continue for Majdanek to see a former Nazi concentration camp established on Himmler's orders in October 1941. Departure for Kozłówka to visit a beautiful two - story Baroque palace complex, once the property of the Zamoyski family, today housing a rich collection of original old furniture, crystal mirrors, sculptures, ceramics and paintings. You can also see the Museum of Socialist Realism art. Dinner and overnight at the hotel. BD

DAY 6
LUBLIN - ZAMOŚĆ - ŁAŃCUT - LEŻAJSK - RZESZÓW
Departure for Zamość - called a Pearl of the Renaissance, a city which got into the UNESCO list in 1992. It is the only Renaissance town in Poland that has more than 100 architectural monuments of significant historical and artistic value. Continue to Łańcut for a guided visit to the Lubomirski and Czartoryski Family castle with its unique Chinese and Turkish apartments and great collection of art and paintings. The tour also includes a visit to an interesting museum of horse-drawn carriages. Continue for Leżajsk to visit the Bernardine Church and Monastery. The place is famous for its Baroque organ, certainly one of the most famous in Poland. In the evening, arrival for overnight at the Budimex Hotel in Rzeszów. BD

DAY 7
RZESZÓW - SANDOMIERZ - KAZIMIERZ - WARSAW
A tour of Rzeszów includes panoramic visits to the Old Town area and its New Synagogue, a large 17th century brick building, and the Town Hall with its Renaissance facade. See the Lubomirski Palace, an early 18th century elegant-looking building. Continue for Sandomierz. On arrival, visit the 14th century Gothic building of the Town Hall, the numerous well-preserved burgers' houses, and its famous wine and grain cellars. Drive to Kazimierz - a pearl of the Polish Renaissance. The city tour will show us the numerous burgher houses in the Market Square, the local parish church and its wooden organ constructed in 1620, and impressive ruins of a medieval castle with a solid tower which provides a magnificent panorama of the town. On arrival in Warsaw, dinner and overnight at the hotel. BD

DAY 8
WARSAW
Transfer to the Warsaw airport for your return flight home. B