You will not find typical attractions in the part of the Roztocze Highland which runs along the eastern border of Poland. Instead, there are historical health resorts, Greek-Catholic churches, limestone crosses by the roadsides and in old cemeteries as well as concrete bunkers in the forests; and an atmosphere as if from a slightly different world. Here are five unusual attractions of the Eastern Roztocze.
1. Bajka Health Resort
The Bajka Health Resort in Horyniec looks a bit like a scene from a Romantic fairy tale. It is located in an old brick palace, which is surrounded with a large park. Today the lime avenues are slightly overgrown, and the building, with the lovely French-style Baroque features, looks a bit neglected. That, however, adds to the charm of the place. Much has changed here since the estate was the seat of the Poniński family. In the late 19th century, healing springs were discovered in Horyniec. Aleksander Poniński set up here the first small facility for medicinal baths. Guests wanting to use this type of therapy would come to Horyniec from the entire Lubaczów region, Roztocze and even from abroad. These were mainly wealthy Jews and landowners. Until the 1930s, there were about 60 palaces and manor houses in the Horyniec area, as well as farming estates, mills, breweries and distilleries. The manor houses had magnificent gardens, and the estates were surrounded with fields growing cereals, potatoes and tobacco. In the villages and towns, the Jewish, Ukrainian and Polish communities lived in harmony.
Not far from the Bajka Health Resort, visitors can enjoy the Spa Town Park, originally established by the last owner of Horyniec, Count Stanisław Karłowski. As a result of a revitalisation project carried out a few years ago, the place received new footpaths and wooden bridges, as well as a fountain, benches and a covered stage. Everything is made of wood in a minimalist style, which some people like, others not so much. However, the park is unique - it does not pretend to be something else, it does not try to copy the past. It sets a new direction for Horyniec, with respect to local traditions.
2. Wooden Greek-Catholic churches in Radruż and Nowe Brusno
In Radruż, near the border with Ukraine, there is the oldest wooden Greek-Catholic church in Poland, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This late Gothic building consisting of three distinctive parts with square layouts is almost entirely covered with wooden shingles. It is surrounded by a wall made of flat stones and covered with a roof made of wooden tiles. Built probably in 1580, the church is one of the most valuable architectural monuments in Poland....
In summer, a road towards the church in Nowe Brusno goes winding through bright yellow fields of flowering rapeseed. The church was built in 1713 by the carpenter Stefan Sienko Siematiewski from Płazów. Originally, it was a timber-framed structure with three distinctive parts covered with domes, oriented towards the east. Over the years the church was reconstructed a number of times.
3. Old cemetery in Stare Brusno
Hidden in the forest opposite the hill Hrebcianka, there is a majestic cemetery, a relic of a village that once was nearby. Today the place is absolutely silent. Only the birds chirp merrily, oblivious to the solemnity of death. Life in the eastern borderland may not have been perfectly happy, but it was quiet, following the rhythm of the seasons and fieldwork. The news of somebody’s passing came with the sound of carving tools giving shape to tombstone crosses. These were primarily made in Stare Brusno, known as a stone craft centre since the mid-1500s. Stone crosses with carved surfaces resembling tree bark, growth rings or ivy leaves are a characteristic feature of the Roztocze landscape, and the rare results of human activity which have survived to our times here.
4. Polanka – agritourism and horses – a new face of an old farming estate
In Roztocze you can wake up to the noise of birds. Especially if you decide to spend the night at the Polanka agritourist farm, in a large old brick farmhouse in the middle of the forest. It may come as a surprise that a farming estate was located within a forest. We must remember, however, that the areas around Horyniec looked completely different 100 years ago. Back then there were many large farming estates, and Polanka was a farm keeper’s house, belonging to the Liptay family until the late 1930s. After World War II, most of the 60 farming estates once existing in the Lubaczów region disappeared. In fact, entire villages also vanished. In Stare Brusno, only the dead remained, buried under three hundred crosses. The few farming estates which still existed were transformed into State Agricultural Farms, and so was Polanka. Cows and sheep were kept there. The pre-war landscape of Roztocze also disappeared. Trees were planted in the farmlands, as the state authorities wanted to make sure no one would return here. The relics of the wooden houses have been overgrown with grass, shrubs and trees. If you take a walk in the forest you may see traces of house foundations, relics of old cellars, as well as fruit trees and crosses, bearing witness to the history of this land.
5. Traces of history
The First World War left its traces in the form of cemeteries hidden in the forests. In Nowiny Horynieckie, it is actually hard to guess that the green carpets of periwinkle conceal the graves of Austrian and Russian soldiers. On the other hand, the traces of World War II are still like fresh scars: anti-tank ramparts, concrete barriers rising unexpectedly from the field or bunkers lurking in the forests.
There are a few synagogues left behind by the Jewish communities, and tserkvas abandoned by Greek-Catholics. Some of these were turned into Catholic churches, others stand closed. Through the window you can see Sunday school blackboard and desks or white tablecloths, baptismal vestments and other ritual textiles peeking out from the sacristy closets. Some tserkvas, more fortunate, have been or are currently being restored. Others, propped up with wooden bars, are waiting for help. Many can be entered, but first you must establish who holds the key. This is not difficult, as the locals are very friendly and helpful. These days, the area of Horyniec mainly attracts middle-aged visitors. The climate is gentle, the spa houses are affordable, and the area peaceful and quiet. But the region is slowly coming alive..
Time for a visit to the Roztocze Highland!