Wild beasts of Poland

Poland’s wide variety of animals includes brown bears, wild horses, elk, deer and tree sparrows •

Białowieża Forest is home to a 500 member herd of European bison (aboVe). It is the largest group of these extremely rare animals (fewer than 4,000 living worldwide), which were nearly hunted to extinction in Europe as early as the Middle Ages. A total of over 1,000 European bison live in Poland. Białowieża Forest is the last primeval forest complex on the continent. It is one of the most important natural treasures not only in Poland, but also in Europe. Therefore, in 1979 Białowieża Forest was included in the UNeSCo World Heritage List •

Customs of the Country

a mini-guide to the odd and out of the way

Śmigus-Dyngus (AbOVE)– the tradition of dowsing women and girls with water, rooted in pagan springtime rituals but incorporated informally into the Christian calendar. Now celebrated on Easter Monday, with certain peculiarities in various regions of Poland •

Midsummer

Eve (LEFT)– previously known in Polish as Noc Kupały or Sobótki, something like Valentine’s Day in the West. Celebrated on the shortest night of the year, typically around 23–24 June. Depending on the region, you set garlands afloat on the water, seek the fern flower for luck or get your fortune told. Nowadays these customs mostly accompany folk festivals and performances •

Stations of the Cross at the Sanctuary of Kalwaria Zebrzydowska (LEFT), a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The mystery of the Passion is reenacted here during Holy Week, before Easter, in a unique setting •

Re-enactment of the Battle of

Grunwald, (AbOVE) in Mazuria, commemorating one of the greatest clashes in Medieval Europe (15 July 1410). The annual programme includes several days of attractions themed around the Middle Ages. The culmination is a grand re-enactment by groups of knights, drawing thousands of spectators from around the country. (Hint: Poland always wins the battle against the Teutonic Knights.) •

The tradition of building Nativity scenes, called szopki, stretches back to the Middle Ages, but over the years the artisans developed their own style alluding to Cracow’s church architecture. Every year there is a competition for the finest szopka. Richly decorated, they depict the scene of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem. Miniatures make a popular souvenir. An attraction for the Christmas season (see if your travel agency offers special excursions during this period) •

Drowning of Marzanna – a custom from pagan times, so long ago even the oldest Highlanders can’t remember them. Marzanna was the Slavic goddess of death and winter. Because no woman in her right mind would want to play this horrifying figure, effigies of her were made instead. To this day, on 21 March of every year, effigies of Marzanna are drowned any place that’s good for drowning: rivers, lakes or ponds, but a biggish puddle or even a bathtub will do in a pinch. Drowning Marzanna is supposed to summon the spring and call on the heavens to ensure the crops are abundant and the people prosper. Marzanna is so despised that just to be sure she is dead, the effigy is set on fire before drowning, which certainly makes the overall effect more spectacular. Children skip school the same day, but not all of them get around to drowning Marzanna; some seek other outlets for celebrating their joy or drowning their sorrow •

The Corpus Christi proces-

sion in Łowicz (AbOVE) probably stretches back to the beginnings of this holiday, instituted by Pope Urban IV in the 13th century. An inseparable element of the festivities in this Mazovian city is the procession starting with Mass at St. Mary’s Basilica. From there, the crowds follow a portable altar constructed traditionally by the parishioners. Corpus Christi in Łowicz became famous for the incredibly colourful procession of locals dressed in their traditional folk costumes, featured in the National Geographic magazine in the 1930s.Visitors to Łowicz at other times of the year are disappointed to find that the people don’t wear the same colourful outfits every day. Tourists from all over the world descend on Łowicz for the procession every year (in May or June). To accommodate them the Gospel is read in four languages •

Fat Thursday is a moveable feast, as it depends on the Easter calendar. It’s the last Thursday before Lent and thus also marks the beginning of the end of the Carnival season. (The exact calculation depends on phases of the moon, the spring equinox, and a little arithmetic.) Basically it’s a day for gorging, traditionally on jelly doughnuts called pączki and crullers (faworki) which no nutritionist would recommend as a steady diet. These sweets are baked and shipped to shops by the thousands, but every self-respecting firm will buy dozens to feed their staff. The weight folks gain on Fat Thursday can come off during Lent •

The harvest festival called

Dożynki (RIGhT) is held in the countryside, when the crops have been gathered in and field work has come to an end. Thanks are given for this year’s harvest and prayers are offered for an equally abundant harvest the next year. It’s an occasion for the villagers to put on their finery and show off their new tractor or bicycle. The local community comes together for feasting, dancing and concerts. In Communist times, Dożynki was celebrated on a wide scale, with overtones of party propaganda. This was intended to stress the solidarity between peasants working the land and the urban proletariat, and often ended under the table at the nearest bar •

Tatar festivities

Boisterous dancing to mark the end of important religious holidays celebrated by Polish Tatars – Muslims who settled in the old Polish Commonwealth in the late 14th century•

Great Purim Ball

The most joyful holiday in the Jewish calendar (usually in March), commemorating Mordecai and Esther, who saved the Jews from annihilation almost 3,000 years ago. Jewish communities celebrate by holding fancydress balls•

Countless fairs and festivals.

The most important of these include the Dominican Fair in Gdańsk (July/August), the St. John’s Fair in Poznań (June), and the Fair of St. James in Szczecin (late July) •