Poland 2019 – Day 01

Our “day” today really started yesterday. We had about 18-20 hours of travel time, plus lost 6 hours to the time zone change. And so got to Warszawa about 1:30 today. After a wait for our luggage, and then getting our rental car, we were on our way to our hotel about 3 PM. We spent a bit of time to settle in, then began our adventure for the day.

We headed off to nearby Wilanów Palace, built by King Jan III Sobieski. Sometimes compared to Versailles and considered a small Versailles, it is really something to see. Sobieski has a special place in my heart as he’s known as the King who saved Western Europe and Christendom from the Turks in 1683. It was that important a victory, but too often overlooked or glossed over in modern history books.

Some years ago, I read a book about Sobieski that I highly recommend, “Jan Sobieski: The King Who Saved Europe,” by Miltiades Varvounis. It’s one of a very few biographies in English about Sobieski, and is excellent. I plan to reread it soon.

Anyway, today we got to see this magnificent palace, inside and out. It is beautiful beyond words. I will post some pictures later, but just Google it for more info.

Wilanów, a spectacular piece of architecture.

My photos from Wilanów are here: https://photos.leonkonieczny.com/Poland-2019-Vacation/08-28.Warsaw.Wilanow/index.html

The rest of our day was uneventful. We managed to find a Kantor with a rate far superior to that at the airport, and had a nice dinner with a few drinks at our hotel.

Stay tuned, tomorrow we plan to visit Marlborok, then on to Gdańsk.

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