Poland. Southern route (roadtrip)

A short car trip through the northeastern part of Poland was a continuation of our journey to the Lofoten Islands. Since we were flying to Norway from Gdansk, and driving there from Kaunas, we decided to visit a few interesting places in Poland, adding a road trip format to our travel kaleidoscope...

Map of the route...

The first town on our way was Elbląg. Arriving in the evening and settling into a hotel, we went for a walk around the town...

We also went for a morning walk... This day, at noon, we had a flight from Gdansk airport to Norway, so we had a bit of time to stroll around the town...

A great urban idea - a bench with a bike parking, solar panel, and USB ports for phone charging...

Elbląg is quite cozy, with a beautiful old part and typical architecture for this region...

After returning from the trip to the Lofoten Islands, we went to the center of Gdansk and flew a drone over its central part...

In our opinion, Gdansk is the most beautiful Polish city, with its own special charm...

Colorful houses and the canal make it truly special...

After Gdansk, we visited a campsite by the sea near the village of Stegna, spending the rest of the day on the beach... After sunbathing and swimming in the "Polish part" of the Baltic Sea, we stayed overnight at the campsite among the pine trees... The next morning, we headed to the Teutonic Knights' castle - Malbork... The Teutonic Order is a monastic knightly order of the Roman Catholic Church, founded in the 12th century, mainly consisting of people from the "Teutonic" (East German) lands. It participated in the Crusades and played a significant role in the Christianization of Eastern Europe and the spread of Western European customs in its territories. The most famous battle in Lithuanian history, the Battle of Grunwald, is associated with the war against the Teutonic Order, resulting in a large part of modern Lithuania - Žemaitija - coming under Lithuanian rule. This castle is the largest medieval brick castle in the world and is one of the benchmarks of brick Gothic... It was the residence of the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order from 1309 to 1456...

The Virgin Mary was the patron of the Teutonic Order, as evidenced by the castle's name - Malbork, which literally translates to Mary's Castle, and a large nine-meter statue on the main facade of the building, which in medieval times impressed everyone with its grandeur...

The entrance gate to the castle, whose lifting mechanism has survived to this day...

The chambers of the Grand Master - the head of the Catholic knight-monastic Teutonic Order (Order of the Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem). The Grand Master was the head of the internal and external policies of the Order, handling personnel and other matters. He was elected by a majority of votes from the members of the Order's chapter. The castle's rooms were heated by warm air supplied through shafts. Small grates in the floor allowed warm air from the boiler room in the castle's basement to enter the rooms... The Grand Master's room is small and beautifully decorated...

Interestingly, only the Grand Master and his cook had personal toilets...

The halls where the knights of the Order gathered have a characteristic feature in the form of columns supporting the ceiling. This design makes the halls spacious and well-lit...

A sculpture dedicated to the four most prominent Grand Masters...

The entrances to the halls are decorated with rich stucco...

The tombs of the Grand Masters...

The inner courtyard of the castle...

The entrance to the common toilets, located in a tower directly above the moat...

The prayer hall... The church inside the castle...

The castle is very large and atmospheric, with the entire lifestyle of the knights organized within it...

It took us more than four hours to explore all the halls of Malbork Castle with an audio guide. It was very interesting and informative. The audio guide, included with the entrance ticket, tracks your location and tells you about the place where you are currently standing... After touring the fortress, we headed to a campsite Ukiel, near the town of Olsztyn...

The next morning, we went for a walk in the old part of Olsztyn...

The town is very cozy and attractive... We flew a drone around its old square, seeing it from above...

One of Olsztyn's main symbols is the Prussian Baba. This mysterious stone statue was created in the Middle Ages with an unknown function and origin... Such statues were found in areas inhabited by Prussian tribes...