Our overland route in Poland

We entered Poland on 17 August 2018 at Sejna and drove south towards Warsaw.

In this overland trip we covered Central and Northern Poland covering Warsaw, Lodz, Poznan and Gdansk. 

We covered Southern Poland (Wroclaw, Krakow) in our 2013 overland trip from Glasgow to KL (See www.klglasgowoverland.blogspot.com)

We re-entered the Baltic state of Lithuania on 25 August 2018. 

Total distance travelled in Poland - 1,400km

Poland - Westerplatte.. the place where the first shot of WWII was fired

Location: Westerplatte (about 10km north of Gdansk) - Poland

Visiting a different kind of old today...Westerplatte - located in the north of Poland, near the city of Gdansk.

Westerplatte began as a Polish military depot staffed by 88 military personnel to bring in military equipments and ammunitions. The League of Nations prevented the Polish government from further fortification of Westerplatte. Hence, five small concrete guardhouses were built to strengthen the garrison when the threat from Germany increased.

On 1 Sept 1939, World War II began when Germany invaded Poland. However, most would not know the exact location where it all started.

Poland - Swieta Lipka - Our Dear Lady of Swieta Lipka Church on the Camino Polaco / Way of St James Pilgrimage Route

On 24 August 2018, we drove along Route 594 and headed east from Reszel town towards Swieta Lipka, a small  village in Northern Poland, to visit the Our Dear Lady of Swieta Lipka church.

This church is on the Camino Polaco walking pilgrimage route which is part of the wider Way of St James (Camino de Santiago) pilgrimage route that spans a number of European countries and is linked to the pilgrimage routes in France  and Spain. The Way of St James leads to / ends at the shrine of St James. To read more about the Way of St James in Poland, click here.

The Camino Polaco in Poland starts from the Polish border with Lithuania at Sejny and goes westward for 300km to Olsztyn. The route is marked by the shell of St James.

Though the church is in a small village, it is very impressive both inside and outside.

Poland - Colourful city of Poznan

Poznan is the 5th largest city in Poland best known for the Renaissance style building in the Old Market Square.  The square was originally built in 1253. The Old Market Square or Stary Rynek is the main trading venue and it is surrounded by colourful old tenement houses. These days they are mainly used by restaurants and cafes.