An exciting journey

The staff of the Vitebsk Regional Prosecutor's Office and their family members took a two-day trip to Grodno on wonderful June weekends.   

Grodno is a city that breathes history. This Belarusian regional center is often called the most European city in the Republic of Belarus. And this statement, as our team became convinced, is not unfounded, and the center of Grodno is a "time machine," visiting which creates the feeling of being in the Middle Ages.

 We began our journey with a visit to the museum of prison life, which operates at the correctional institution "Prison No. 1" and is located in the very center of the city. The tour for our group was conducted by the Deputy Head of the correctional institution for ideological work and personnel support, Major of the Internal Service Yuri Krupovich. The time of the excursion flew by unnoticed, we got acquainted with another, hidden from view, side of the life of our ancestors.   

Next, we headed to a bright, elevated building, near which everyone was imbued with the atmosphere of a medieval city - the Cathedral Church of St. Francis Xavier, walked through Sovetskaya Square along Zamkovaya Street to the Museum of the History of Religion, where we were given an overview tour. Then we moved on to the main attractions of Grodno, for which tourists come - the Old and New Castles with a museum part inside, the fire tower, where a trumpeter plays every day at 12 o'clock, visited the Great Choral Synagogue, and finally, the legendary Holy Boris and Gleb (Kolozha) Church. The part of the church that faces the Neman was once destroyed due to flooding, so now it is rebuilt from boards, but the second part has preserved unique brickwork, stone crosses, and simply intact boulders from the 12th century! It can be confidently said that no one remained indifferent after visiting this unique place. The staff of the Vitebsk Regional Prosecutor's Office continued their joint walk through the Gorodnitsa district: Tizengauz Square, Zh.-E. Zhiber Park, Ozheshko Street, Holy Protection Cathedral.

Having walked enough through the streets of Grodno, we moved to the Augustow Canal - one of the outstanding objects

of hydraulic architecture of the first half of the 19th century, which connects the Vistula River with the Neman. Its length is 102.8 km. Only two analogues of this waterway can be found in the world: one of them is located in Sweden – Gota, and the second in Great Britain – Kalendonski. The canal connects 7 natural lakes: Krzywe, Studzieniczne, Paniewo, Orle, Białe, Niecko, Mikaszewo and 11 rivers: Klonownica, Czarna-Hańcza, Netta, Perkucia, Wołkuszanka, Neman, Ostasznianka, Płaska, Biebrza, Mikaszówka, Ślamiaca. We had a great pleasure to ride on a steamboat along the Augustów Canal, watched the lockage, which caused a storm of emotions, both in adults and in young tourists, visited the museum of the Augustów Canal.

And then we stopped near the fort of the Grodno Fortress, located near the village of Naumowicze, where in September 1941 and February 1942, more than 3,000 Jews were brought to the semi-ruined Fort No. 2, 2.5 km from the Neman, who were subsequently shot, their bodies were exhumed and burned in 1944. In 1960, a monument to the Grieving Mother was erected at the execution site. Especially for our tourist group, a performance with theatrical elements was organized by students and teachers of the Ratich Secondary School, which turned out to be so unpredictably moving and sincere that only a few could hold back tears. For this, of course, special gratitude is due to them. It was on such an emotional note that our first excursion day came to an end.

The next day, the travelers saw for themselves how harmoniously excursions to the ancient city can be combined with rich ecological recreation. Part of the group went to the Grodno Zoo, which was founded in 1927 as part of the zoological department of the men's gymnasium. The zoo has over 3,000 animals. Part of the group went to the agro-tourism complex "Korobchitsy". The territory of the complex is built in the style of a 19th-century noble estate and covers more than 40 hectares, divided into several zones. On the territory of the complex, we saw enclosures with wild animals, a hunting lodge, a fisherman's house, a wood carving museum, a blacksmith's shop, and a nature museum.

Visiting

similar places, one cannot remain indifferent. This is living history, with which everyone can connect.

Prosecutor of the Human Resources and Ideological Work Department I. Naumenko