Golshany - Boruny - Krevo - Oshmyany and a little more
Continuing my travels around the Grodno region, I visited a small but very interesting city of Oshmyany. It got its name from the river Oshmyanka (formerly Oshmyan). For the first time the city was mentioned in 1341 as an inheritance, during its transfer to the son of the Lithuanian prince Gediminas. The status of the city was received after the battle of Vitovt's troops with the Tatars in 1399, and the surviving architectural monuments speak of a rich historical past.
A calm and cozy city can be explored in just one day and leisurely walk.
How to get to Oshmyany?
You can get from Minsk to Oshmyany in a couple of hours, covering a distance of 133 km. get there by bus you can go there at any time of the day - direct buses run frequently, in addition, you can take a bus next to Vilnius or Kaunas.
Minibus Minsk-Oshmyany departs almost hourly and will take you in 1,5 hours. For one place in the minibus you need to pay 15 rubles.
Oshmyany station can be reached by by train, which departs from Minsk-Passenger station every 2-4 hours. You can buy a ticket at train Minsk-Vilnius or Gomel-Kaliningrad. From the station "Oshmyany" to the city is about 15 km, which can be overcome by a suburban bus (runs 5 times a day) or by hitchhiking.
And who loves convenience and does not want to be dependent on the schedule, can go by own car and walk around Oshmyany as much as you like or stop by for sightseeing in neighboring cities.
Sights of the city Oshmyany
The city has churches of the three most common confessions in Belarus: Catholics, Orthodox and Jews. From almost every corner of the city, you can spot the high spiers of the temple - this Church of St. Michael the Archangelbuilt in the early 20th century.
The neo-baroque "airy" church is considered by the townspeople to be the hallmark of the city. It is located in the very center of Oshmyany, in front of September 17 square.
On the next street, at Sovetskaya 108, a couple of steps from the church, there is another architectural monument - Holy Resurrection Church.
The historical and cultural monument of Belarus began to be erected in 1873 according to the project of the architect Polozov. We got acquainted with the church and the church, now we are heading to synagogue.
The prayer house of the Jews appeared in Oshmyany in 1912. The traditional brick building is decorated with a stained-glass rose window. See Ashmyany synagogue you can on Mickiewicz Street, in the central part of the city, next to the museum.
From the synagogue you can walk to ancient catholic cemetery in the central part of which a wooden chapel was built.
However, far from all the architectural monuments of Oshmyany have come down to us intact. For example, ruins Franciscan church, which began to be built on the Right-bank part of Oshmyany (the so-called modern outskirts of the city) in the 16th century.
Although the temple is abandoned, it fascinates no less than modern grandiose buildings.
Heading to the exit from the city along Krasnoarmeiskaya Street, after 3 km you will get to the village of Budenovka. Here you can see many old houses and interesting buildings. Most interested in the manor house, which turned out to be nothing more than the estate of the Strugach family.
The wooden manor, decorated with stucco inside, is being rebuilt today.
What to see near Oshmyany?
In the neighborhood of the city, you can visit a couple more places rich in historical sights. Small triangle runs along the route "Oshmyany - Golshany - Boruny - Krevo - Oshmyany". What might be interesting points on the route?
In an urban village Golshany the ruins of a haunted castle have been preserved (this is rumored of course).
Golshany Castle Sapieha was built in 1610 (although historians agree that a more likely date is hidden somewhere in the first half of the 17th century) and was a defensive structure.
The destruction of the castle was caused by wars that took place more than once in this territory. (On the video, see how the castle looked before the reconstruction).
After the reconstruction began, the place began to attract tourists with its fascinating history and legends, which are mentioned by Vladimir Korotkevich in the novel "Black Castle Olshansky".
In neighboring Borunakh preserved монастырь, erected by the Basilian order in the 18th century.
Despite the fact that the monastery is abandoned and partially destroyed, the external features of the building speak of the classical style of architecture.
Next to the Basilian Monastery rises an amazing Church of Saints Peter and Paul. The architectural elements of the temple give a certain charm to the three-century building, which houses the miraculous icon of the Mother of God.
The last point of our route will be the village Krevo, famous for its ancient ruins of the legendary Kreva castle, embedded in 14th century under Prince Gediminas.
The defensive fortress made of red brick and stone reached a height of 13 meters. The ruins of the castle are still (according to witnesses) walking the ghost of a lady with a dog.
