This is where the Independence Day celebrations will occur tomorrow – Plac Piłsudskiego near the Old Town. At the eastern end of Saski Gardens is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier which has its own eternal flame and 24-hour honor guard. It is one of many monuments erected after World War 1 to commemorate the unidentified soldiers who died fighting for their country.
A surprisingly temperate day today making it perfect for a morning walk in the park with the boys. Most of the trees have shed their leaves by now and the lakes and woodland floor are scattered with wet, rotting foliage. There are numerous stone bridges throughout the park spanning the interconnecting waterways between the lakes. All are inhabited by large carp and ducks, and red squirrels forage in the undergrowth around them. No matter the time of year, the park is alive with wildlife.
Buried in the depths of the woods behind Wilanów Palace is this rather splendid Chinese gazebo. Mostly the home of pigeons now, it still provides an interesting focal point for a walk through the woods and beyond to the bridge.
This could be one of the last roses of 2009. There were very few left on this particular bush in Wilanów Rose Garden and most had been trimmed off in preparation for a new batch next Spring. Still, it was nice to see some bright colour in the gardens amongst all the bare trees.
I spotted this in the leaf litter on the verge a couple of days ago. Some of the larger leaves had retained the ice from the early morning which had formed in the tiny furrows and veins. A sign that earlier that day, the temperature had been much lower.
To the south of Warsaw lies Wilanów, one of the few areas of the city that escaped the bombing during WWII. The Palace was built for the Polish king Jan III Sobieski between 1677 – 1698. It is now open as a museum and for a small fee (5 złoty per person), you can walk around the vast woodland gardens behind the palace which run alongside the lake. Well worth a visit during the summer for the rose gardens, and the museum tour if you have plenty of time!
I’m sure ths won’t be the last photograph I display of Autumn colours, but it’s a pleasant start. This is a prominent tree in Łazienki and noticeably changes colour through the seasons. The dramatic kaleidoscope of colours always impress me and truly show Mother Nature at her best.
Adjacent to Płock Cathedral is a viewpoint looking over the River Wisła. It is said that this is one of the most picturesque points on the river which runs from the Carpathian Mountains in the south to the Gdańsk Bay in the north, finally emptying into the Baltic Sea. The river also runs through Kraków, Warsaw, Bydgoszcz, Toruń and Sandomierz amongst many other major cities. Whilst in Poland, the river covers an area of over 65,000 sq miles.
I do enjoy the chance to play with my macro lens and here is one of my better results. A dragonfly warming up in the early morning before it starts its busy day flitting about, preying on smaller insects. You have to be very quick taking a shot like this because once they take off, they’re very hard to track down again!
Strolling around Ogród Krasińskich this weekend, I came across this sign. As you can probably guess, it’s warning people not to go swimming in the park’s duck pond. What is unclear from the picture is that the water is green, murky, has several beer cans floating on the surface and is overpopulated by squabbling mallards. It’s like telling somebody not to jump out of a moving car. If there are people who relish a refreshing, early morning dip in the local duck pond, let them do it I say!
