Wooden Churches of the Carpathian Mountains # 22 - Kožany, Slovakia

The small village of Kožany lies in rolling countryside surrounded by fields and forests in a remote region of north-eastern Slovakia, between the towns of Bardejov and Svidník. This small Greek-Catholic church sits on a low hill at the western end of the village, with views across the surrounding farmland.

Dedicated to the Lord's Meeting with Simeon, the church was constructed in the second half of the 18th century by local builders. The three-roomed structure sits on a low stone foundation and features a bell tower above the entrance area. Three bells are kept in the tower and the oldest was cast in 1406, making it one of the oldest church bells to be found in Slovakia.

The inerior of the nave contains colourful paintings on the wooden walls, a unique feature among the timber churches in this region. The paintings were created between 1793 and 1797 and depict many scenes from both the Old and New Testaments. A Last Judgement icon on canvas, painted in the the late 18th century, is one of the most precious works found in the church.

The iconostasis dates from the beginning of the 18th century, and here again is a unique feature, since instead of a Czar door and two Deacon doors at the sides, there is a main Czar door and only one side Deacon door, likely because of the narrow width of the nave. The bars placed over the windows on the exterior of the church are another unique feature, since they are made of hand-crafted wrought iron and are as old as the church itself.

The key for the church is kept by a family which lives in a house several doors down from the church on the same side of the road. They charge a small entrance fee and have some books and pamphlets about the wooden churches in the region available for sale.

Getting to Kožany by public transport is possible, since there are several buses per day on weekdays which go to the village from Bardejov's main bus station (fewer on Saturdays and Sundays). Getting to Bardejov is easiest by bus from Prešov, Poprad or Košice, all of which have transport connections throughout the country.

Day Trips from Wrocław, Poland - The Top 15 Destinations

Wrocław remains one of the most underrated tourist destinations in Central Europe, despite the arrival of the budget airlines such as Ryanair. An old town square that rivals Kraków's and a series of strollable islands dotted with churches and parks in the middle of the river Odra make the city a relaxing place to unwind for a couple of days. The fact that the city's name is pronounced "vrots-wav" (difficult for foreign visitors to comprehend given its spelling) is part of the challenge Wrocław has in building its international tourist brand. Many tourists call the city "Row-claw", as it would be pronounced in English, but asking for a train ticket to "Row-claw" will be met with uncomprehending stares across the country. The city of Łódż (pronounced "Woodge", not "Lodz") in central Poland has a similar name recognition problem with foreign visitors. South of Wrocław lies a cluster of ideal day trip destinations, particularly the wooden UNESCO Churches of Peace in Swidnica and Jawor, and the impressive sight of colourful Książ castle perched above a wooded valley. The pictures used in this article show, from top to bottom, Wrocław, Swidnica, Książ castle, Częstochowa, Kłodzko, Opole, Paczków, Brzeg and Nysa.



***** Swidnica wooden church (UNESCO) - (55 minutes to 1 hour) By bus from Wrocław main bus station to the town of Swidnica

**** Książ Castle - (1 hour 40 minutes) By train from Wrocław main station to Swiebodzice, then walk 2km south on the trail through the forest or take a local bus heading in the direction of Wałbrzych

**** Jawor wooden church (UNESCO) - (1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours) By train from Wrocław main station to Legnica, then change to a second train to reach the town of Jawor



**** Częstochowa - (2 hours 50 minutes to 3 hours 10 minutes) By train from Wroclaw main station

*** Kłodzko - (1 hour 35 minutes) By train from Wroclaw main station

*** Karpacz - (3 hours 15 minutes) By bus from Wrocław main bus station


*** Kudowa-Zdrój - (2 hours 45 minutes) By bus from Wrocław main bus station


*** Project Riese World War II underground complex (the section called Osówka) - (2 hours 25 minutes to 3 hours) By train from Wrocław main station to Wałbrzych, then change to a second train to the town of Głuszyca. From there the entrance to the complex is a 3km walk through the forest


** Opole - (1 hour) By train from Wrocław main station

** Jelenia Góra - (2 hours 40 minutes) By train from Wrocław main station, or by bus from Wrocław main bus station


** Paczków - (3 hours) By bus from Wrocław main bus station to Strzelin, then change to a second bus to reach Paczków

** Wojnowice Castle - (1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes) By bus from Wrocław main station to Krępice, then change to a bus to Łąkoszyce, then change to a third bus to reach the village of Wojnowice


** Brzeg - (35 minutes to 40 minutes) By train from Wrocław main station

** Bolesławiec - (1 hour 25 minutes to 2 hours) By train from Wrocław main station


* Nysa - (1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes) By bus from Wrocław main bus station

Day Trips and Overnight Excursions from Moscow, Russia - The Top 25 Destinations

The region surrounding Moscow contains many of Russia's greatest historical monuments, from the architectural splendour of the Golden Ring towns to the numerous sites connected to literary and political heavyweights such as Chekhov, Tolstoy and Lenin. The main attractions of the Golden Ring, especially Suzdal, should be on everyone's visit list, though for a more authentic experience there are plenty of less-visited historic towns such as Alexandrov or Yurev-Polsky within day trip distance of the capital. Some of these attractions are far enough from Moscow that an overnight trip is advisable (such as Suzdal or Yaroslavl), while others such as Plyos or Kostroma are far enough to warrant a stay of at least one or two nights. The photographs in this article show, from top to bottom, Moscow, Suzdal, Rostov-Veliky, Sergiev Posad, Pereslavl-Zalessky, Vladimir, Bogolyubovo, Uglich and Khotkovo.


***** SUZDAL - (4 hours 30 minutes) By bus directly from Shchyolkovsky bus station in Moscow, or by bus from outside Kurskaya train station in Moscow to Vladimir, then change to a bus or marshrutka to Suzdal

**** ROSTOV-VELIKY - (3 hours) By train from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow

**** SERGIEV POSAD - (1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes) By train from Yaroslavl station in Moscow

**** PERESLAVL-ZALESSKY - (2 hours 30 minutes) By bus from Shchyolkovsky bus station

*** VLADIMIR - (2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours 30 minutes) - By train from Kurskaya station in Moscow, or by bus from outside Kurskaya station

*** BOGOLYUBOVO - (4 hours) By bus or train to Vladimir from Kurskaya station in Moscow, then take a marshrutka to Bogolyubovo

*** UGLICH - (4 hours 30 minutes) By train to Rostov-Veliky from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow, then catch a bus to Uglich

*** YAROSLAVL - (4 hours) By train from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow

*** KOSTROMA -(6 hours to six hours 30 minutes) By train from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow, or by train to Yaroslavl and then by bus to Kostroma

*** PLYOS - (7 hours to 9 hours) By train to Ivanovo from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow, then by bus to Plyos, or by bus/train to Vladimir, change to a bus to Ivanovo, and change again to a bus to Plyos

*** MUROM - (4 hours 15 minutes to 4 hours 40 minutes) By train from Kazansky station in Moscow

** TVER - (1 hour 50 minutes to 2 hours 30 minutes) By train from Kurskaya or Oktyabrskaya stations in Moscow

** YUREV-POLSKY - (2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours) By train to Alexandrov from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow, then change to another train to Yurev-Polsky

** YASNAYA POLYANA (Tolstoy's estate) - (3 hours to 4 hours) By train from Kurskaya station in Moscow

** KIDEKSHA - (4 hours 40 minutes) By bus from Shchyolkovsky station in Moscow to Suzdal, then catch a local marshrutka to Kideksha. The town makes a nice short side trip from Suzdal since Kideksha is just 4km away

** PALEKH - (8 hours to 9 hours) By train to Ivanovo from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow, then by bus to Palekh

** KLIN - (1 hour 30 minutes) By train from Leningradsky station in Moscow

** ISTRA - (1 hour 30 minutes) By train from Rizhsky station in Moscow

** ABRAMTSEVO - (1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes) By train from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow

** ALEXANDROV - (1 hour 35 minutes to 1 hour 50 minutes) By train from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow

** MELIKHOVO (Chekhov's estate) - (2 hours) By train from Kurskaya station in Moscow to the town of Chekhov, then take a bus to Melikhovo

** GORKI LENINSKIE (Lenin's estate) - (30 minutes) By bus from Domodedovskaya metro station in Moscow

** PEREDELKINO (Boris Pasternak's estate) - (20 minutes) By train from Kievskaya station in Moscow

** BORODINO Battlefield Museum - (2 hours) By train from Belorussky station in Moscow

* KHOTKOVO - (1 hour 15 minutes) By train from Yaroslavsky station in Moscow