Trip to Lviv

Lviv is a city to which many Poles feel great sentiment. Until a few dozen years ago it belonged to our country, and even today it is still full of Polish accents. It is approximately 70 km from the border.

"Because where else is people as good as here?" Only in Lviv! Where do they wake you up with songs and lull you to sleep? Only in Lviv! "

Lviv is a unique city for Poles. We feel connected with the past, which is not surprising - after all, in the last century it belonged to Poland (to the Second Polish Republic). Due to the turmoil of fate, today it is a Ukrainian city, just like Kamieniec Podolski or Żytomierz. Who does not know the famous movie "Sami swoi" and the feuding neighbors transferred from the Eastern Borderlands to the Regained Territories? Who will not recognize a one-of-a-kind singsong puff? Only a few dozen years have passed since the mass resettlement, so in Lviv (and not only in it) you can still find Polish accents. And there are still people here who remember the times described in the famous song.

In the footsteps of the past

The city is still the main center of Polish culture in Ukraine. Jan Kasprowicz, Gabriela Zapolska, Aleksander Fredro and Leopold Staff lived in Lviv. The Polish People's Theater has been operating here for over 50 years, and each year the city hosts the annual Book Fair - an event in honor of Lviv's literary past. Cemeteries are also important for Poles, especially the Lviv Eaglets Cemetery , which is part of the Łyczakowski Cemetery. Maria Konopnicka and many other people of merit for the country are buried in Lviv.

The most famous square in Lviv is Mickiewicz Square , with a bronze statue of our bard. A winged figure with a laurel wreath rises above his head, and the top of the column is crowned with a burning candle. Opposite the monument is the Hotel George , a famous Lviv building designed in Viennese style. Its impressive structure catches the eye with its panache and decorations, including a bas-relief with St. George and allegorical images of four continents. The guest of the hotel was, among others Józef Piłsudski, Honoré de Balzac and Jan Kiepura.

Of course, you can visit Lviv , treating this trip as a trip to another city that you want to get to know each other. However, it is difficult to look at it as one of the many tourist centers, when at every step we encounter traces of the past and feel that we are in a very Polish city - despite the border separating both countries.

Wandering the streets of Lviv

While walking around Lviv, our legs will sooner or later lead us to the Old Town. You can wander here for hours, passing other monuments and completely losing track of time. The complex of historic buildings located here deservedly was entered on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998. It is worth taking a closer look at the miraculous statue of the Virgin Mary, the Black Tenement House and the Powder Tower, as well as direct your steps to the interior of the Armenian Cathedral and the Latin Cathedral.

Further attractions await the guests a bit further. Tourists are noteworthy for the former notorious Zamarstynów (it is worth getting acquainted with the meaning of the word "batiar" before the trip) and its beautiful Old Market Square, as well as the former Józef Baczewski vodka factory. The Halicki Square with four tenement houses in the style of Lviv modernism is also picturesque. Near the buildings there is the former Komorowski Palace, another monumental building that is a decoration of the city.

You can spend many hours exploring the attractions of Lviv. After all, more than half of Ukraine's monuments are located in this city. Apart from the buildings, there are also tempting restaurants and cafes with a unique atmosphere and excellent Lviv cuisine.

Is it worth coming here? The answer may be a comment found on one of the tourist forums: "I invite you to Lviv, but be warned - the chance to fall in love with this city is very high." Before you hit the road it is good to know the traffic regulations in Ukraine.