Walk in Kosciuszko Park and the discovery of the oldest temple in Katowice... #TheLongestTrip

In the middle of the winter rainy season in Kemer, we had a great opportunity to visit Europe, to take a break from the monotonous pastime, to get a new enthusiasm that people can feel when visiting places they have never been before! So, let's call this trip "A Gift for Love Day", because we went on February 14, on Valentine's Day. We visited Bucharest, the capital of Romania. Then we flew to Krakow, and finally arrived in Katowice, where we spent an unforgettable week, celebrated @bugavi's birthday here... And made @darine.darine's dream come true!

We will write about all this soon, but today I invite you to a cozy walk in the Kosciuszko Park on the outskirts of Katowice, where you can feel the beauty of wooden ancient architecture and the silence of a gloomy day...

I noticed two large snow globes on the lawn - the remains of a snowman :) It reminded me of my carefree life in Ukraine, even before the war... Walks in parks with children. Empty benches between birch and beech trees. Suddenly, from the noisy city, I found myself in the silence of nature, where birds are already singing their almost spring joyful songs. And this joy of life is felt in my soul...

Kosciuszko Park in Katowice is a large old park located in the Brynów-Zgrzebnioka district. We drove up by car with our friend to get at least 15 minutes of fresh air between our active activities and excursions, and catch some sun rays on our faces. But nature is unpredictable, and as soon as we arrived at the park, the sun hid behind the clouds. It started to rain. And the two people continued to chat on the bench under the umbrella :)

As soon as we entered the park, I immediately noticed a wooden church on the hill, and headed there. This is the Church of St. Michael the Archangel, one of the oldest churches in Katowice. The walls are made of logs and the roof is covered with shingles - this style was typical for Gothic wooden churches. Nearby stands a tall wooden bell tower. A very interesting combination of light and dark wood looks breathtaking! These ancient buildings are truly architectural masterpieces.

The Church of St. Michael the Archangel was first built in 1305 in Syryn, near Wodzisław Śląski. At that time, it had a defensive purpose; it was used by the villagers as a place where they could hide in case of attack. The freestanding bell tower was used as a watchtower. There are also historic lychee gates and a wooden fence around the churchyard.
The church, in its present form and size, was built in 1510. A new freestanding tower was built in the 17th century, but it was replaced by a modern one in 1853. In 1913, the German Kaiser Wilhelm II visited the church and was reportedly very impressed by its beauty.
In 1938-1939, the church was moved to Kościuszko Park...

There are several old tombstones near the bell tower. This is a church cemetery. The atmosphere of the cemetery is quiet and peaceful. It looks very harmonious in the churchyard. You want to sit here, think about eternity...

On the other side, near the benches, there is a vase-like structure with an eagle on it. It looks very beautiful! The eagle is a symbol of Poland, meaning dignity and strength of spirit. And here, on the territory of the church, in the funerary symbolism, the eagle means the soul rising upward, the victory of the spirit over death...

Thank you, @tattoodjay for your wonderful initiative #WednesdayWalk 😊

Our trip to Katowice had a purpose. It was the dream of my youngest daughter Daryna.
@darine.darine has been consistently helping improve Hive.blog by sharing thoughtful user feedback and reporting issues as she finds them in real use.
During our trip to Poland, @gandalf arranged a short educational visit for her with @thebeedevs so she could see how a software team works day to day and how community reports like hers translate into real changes in the code.
It was a behind-the-scenes look at the workflow, and a great example of how open-source projects move forward thanks to engaged users.
We hope that our beloved Hive will grow every day and we will all continue to enjoy sharing our lives! Thank you to everyone who is following our #TheLongestTrip ❤️