Czestochowa
From World travel guide
Częstochowa is in Poland.
Contents |
Understand
Częstochowa, and the monastery of Jasna Góra is holy place for Polish and abroad Roman Catholics.
Get in
Get around
See
Częstochowa is best known for its Black Madonna icon, housed in the monastery of Jasna Gora. Black madonna icons are controversial in many respects, read the previous link for more information, or the book Longing for Darkness: Tara and the Black Madonna by China Galland.
Pope John Paul II, who was from Poland, presided over an enormous gathering of pilgrims in Czestochowa which is documented in Longing for Darkness. The Polish labor movement, Solidarity (Solidarnosc) is also linked with the Madonna in Czestochowa thanks to its leader (and now former Polish president) Lech Walesa's devotion to her.
Do
Buy
Eat
Drink
Sleep
Czestochowa is very small, and accommodations are easy to find. The monastery has a large guesthouse built to accommodate the immense amount of pilgrims who walk here annually from all over Poland. The only time of year you're likely to have a problem finding a place to stay is immediately before and after 15 August, the Feast of the Assumption - a Marian holiday which draws thousands to the monastery for special devotionals.
Cope
English speakers are easy to find near Jasna Góra - many nuns and priests on the grounds are multilingual. The town is another matter.
Get out
External links
fr:Czestochowa WikiPedia:Czestochowa Dmoz:Europe/Poland/Voivodships/Upper_Silesia/Czestochowa
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