Grodno is so diverse
Grodno, Grodno, Grodno. What a name, but beautiful! Much can be said about the history of this glorious city. It was first mentioned in the chronicle of 1128 as a border fortress on the banks of the river Neman. In the Middle Ages, Grodno was a major military, trade and craft center. Ruthenians, Lithuanians, Poles, Germans lived here… The city actually became the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Here the nobility sowed, the palaces were built by one-day magnates, the famous botanist and naturalist Zheliber arranged his botanical garden. The last king, Stanislaus August Poniatowski, exhausted in the struggle against the nobility and magnates, lost his kingdom when in 1795 the Sejm agreed to the third last division of the state between Russia, Prussia and Austria. The border was established almost near the walls of the New Castle - the opposite side of the Neman belonged to Prussia, until in 1807 Napoleon gave these lands to Russia.
The Germans came here during the First World War.
The occupiers recognized the Belarusian language as the official language. In 1918, when the war ended and German troops left the city, the government of the Belarusian People's Republic headed by Anton Lutskevich was in it for some time, and a national army was formed. In 1919 he was captured by Polish troops. In the interwar period, it became a deep province. The laurels of the voivodship center went to the livelier Bialystok. In 1939, Soviet troops entered the city. After the war, Bialystok was returned to Poland, but Grodno became the regional border center, which it still is.
The Grodno route started from the railway station. It was quite cold. There was already hoarfrost on the grass. Crossing the road, I saw a map of the city in the stands. Trying to make monuments, I realized that my map is far from perfect.
There was not much time, and I wanted to watch a lot. The primary route with the possibility of change began with the street. Eliza Ozheshko.
Congratulations to the statuette of the frog-traveler. Hello colleague; ) Next to the blue one-story building - the house where the writer lived, the Holy Intercession Orthodox Cathedral. , Lenin Square. The Bildruk kiosk offers a chic city card. The route is adjusted on the street. Bol. Trinity and Grodno for sightseeing. Bol. Trinity, a rather narrow street running uphill, was very reminiscent of Eger. Here it is, the fire tower, the Old and New Castles, the Monastery of the Nativity of the Virgin with a black-star dome. Then the intersection with the street. Bridge. This street ends with a bridge over the Neman on one side. On the other - Soviet Square. The Parish Church is located on this square. It impressed with its size, but at the same time the lightness of the architecture.
The Soviet itself resembled one of the squares of Prague. A confession of love for Belarus is written on one of the houses. I agree with this) The bell announced the start of service. It's still pretty cold.
You can warm up at the same time. Huge church premises with good acoustics, majestic organ playing spreads with pleasant warmth. I take a seat near the entrance, because I do not plan to be until the end. I think I will be forgiven, I want to see all the masterpieces of Grodno) The sun shines in the upper windows, filling the room with light. Prayers were read in Polish, Latin and Belarusian. Immersed in thoughts of good, smart, eternal) After 20 minutes, resting, I decide to go further. It got warmer. When leaving the church, a couple of Poles brake. They have a map in Russian. I explain to the state and draw how to get to the place. We wish each other a pleasant journey. The route passes st. To.
Marx, past the Red Church of the Annunciation and the Monastery of St. Brigitte. This part of the city seems to have come down from photos of Vilnius species. I cross the railway bridge. Visible painted water towers.
Residents of the city do not remember why they were called "Kasya" and "Basya". On the street. Polygraph is located in one of the largest markets in Belarus. There is no special desire or purpose to visit the market. Instead, visit the river embankment. Neumann. Here the map lied a bit, but you can find your way around. The flow of the river is quite fast, but smooth. Part of the waterfront is tiled. Part - just green grass. Ducks swim actively, without disturbing the general harmony. And silence. On the opposite side, the Church of the Acquisition of the Holy Cross fits organically into the landscape. I remember the ability to make a ship out of paper. Greetings to him. I am moving to a new part of the city in a comfortable trolleybus.
Trolleybuses, as in any Belarusian city, are small, clean, tidy. Go according to schedule. Here the buildings are modern, wide, typical of all Belarusian cities cleanliness. The houses have a national ornament.
And flower beds with the obligatory decorative cabbage. We returned to the old part. The weather is already warm in summer. The main attractions have already been visited, we decide to just walk the old streets, enjoying the gentle autumn sun. We went to the Intercession Cathedral. The neighboring deli (there is such a relic in Belarus) smelled like pastries. Puffs with jam and bagels with poppy seeds (a la Soviet childhood) and juice were chosen from the huge assimilation. We descend to the park near the Gorodnychanka River (a small river that gave the city its name). An officer of the Napoleonic army "sat down to rest" on one of the benches. We sat on a bench nearby.
Sharks went very quickly, but shared bagels with local birds, learning about the bird hierarchy. Then walked the street. Gorky, Lermontov, through the park. LKSMB to the Kalozha Church. The alley of the park is formed by chestnuts. They fired at us with big fruits.
On the streets of Polova, Nimanska with wooden buildings and unchanging decorative cabbage in the flower beds; past the Ice Palace, on the street. September 17, Timiryazev go to the train station. The Grodno circle closed. Despite the rather sad pages in his life, Grodno retained its sincerity, tolerance, peace and aristocracy. The streets of the old setting are wide, as if reflecting the breadth of the population. Era, architectural styles, religions and ideologies coexist peacefully here. At the same time the streets have a soldered European look, well-groomed with clear markings. People's faces do not look worried, embittered. The train belonged to the monumental Minsk.
But this is another section.
