Poland’s Village life beyond picturesque

Warsaw, Krakow, Gdansk and possibly Wroclaw are Poland’s most popular destinations. These sophisticated cities with wonderful new museums have a lot to offer, but if you have time it is a good idea to add a few days to your trip to explore the countryside. On our last trip, my colleagues and I did just that and had the opportunity to explore the Malopolskie region (Lesser Poland) around Krakow. Besides Tarnow, we visited Zalipie, a small charming village famous for its painted houses. The custom of painting the inside and outside of the houses was started at the end of the 19^th century when the women tried to cover the walls stained by the furnaces and chimneys. The result is a village that seems to jump out of a picture book, the houses, mills, wells and pretty much every building are decorated with lovely patterns of bright flowers . The tradition was preserved to this day and the village built a small cultural center called Dom Malarek (House of women painters) where guests can try their own artistic talents and paint on lovely wooden utensils. Or, like me, you can watch your colleagues exert themselves artistically and instead eat homemade pastry prepared by the gracious hosts.  

Dom Malarek is open Monday through Friday 8:00AM-4:00PM, Saturday and Sunday 12:00-6:00PM.

The village is there for you to stroll around 365 days a year.