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Poland
The Republic of Poland – Rzeczpospolita
Polska in Polish – lies in the very
geographical center of Europe between, clockwise
from the north, the Baltic Sea, Russia’s
Kaliningrad enclave, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine,
Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Germany. Its
area of 312,677 sq km (120,725 sq miles) and
population of 38,6 million makes Poland a
sizeable European nation on a par with Spain and
the key one in Central-Eastern Europe. It also
proves one of the world’s vibrant and open
economies. Poland joined NATO in 1999 and is the European
Union's member since May 1, 2004.
Visiting Poland
Poland ranks among the world’s ten most
visited countries, with the bulk of visitors
coming from the neighboring nations. Their
numbers shot up in the early 1990s, from 18
million in 1990 to 70 million in 1994 including
day trips for shopping or business, and have remained
on rise ever since. Besides Krakow, Poland’s ancient
capital, the country’s prime tourist
attractions include beach resorts along the
Baltic Sea, the vast Mazury lake district to the
northeast of Warsaw, the Carpathian and Sudeten
mountains, and many historic sites as well as
national parks with unspoiled nature.
Poland’s
major cities are the capital Warsaw (1,7
millions), Krakow (760,000); Lodz
(750,000); Wroclaw
(650,000); Poznan (600,000); Gdansk (500,000);
Szczecin (420,000); Bydgoszcz (390,000); Katowice
(370,000), Lublin (360,000).
Weather
Poland's climate blends the moderate
conditions of Western Europe with the more severe
continental ones of Eastern Europe. Notably
winters seem erratic. Average January
temperatures are -1C (30.2F) in the west and -5C
(23F) in the southern mountains. Average summer
temperatures are about 20C (68F) in the southeast
and about 17C (63F) on the Baltic coast. Heat
above 40C and froze below 30C just happen.
Average annual precipitation totals as little as
61 cm (ca 24 in), but it reaches 150 cm in the
mountains. Winter precipitation is half the
summer rainfall. Gales occur rarely. No cyclones,
earthquakes, volcanoes, etc.
Poland's
Geography
Poland
stretches between 49°00’N (Opolonek mount) and 54°50’N (Rozewie
peninsula), and between 14°07’E (Odra river near the town of
Cedynia) and 24°08’E (Bug river near the town of Strzyzow).
The northern two-thirds of Poland is a vast
region of plains. Its Central Lowlands are
crossed from east to west by a succession of
large, shallow valleys. Baltic Heights, dotted
with hills and lakes, lie north of them. The
narrow Coastal Plain, still further north, runs
almost the whole length of the Baltic Sea’s
Polish shore. The coastline of 694 km is largely
regular save the Pomeranian Bay in the west and
the Gulf of Gdansk in the east.
Poland’s
southern one-third comprises various upland areas
with intervening lowlands and a belt of mountains
in the very south and southwest. The Western
Carpathian mountains include the alps-like High
Tatra Mountains with the country’s highest
peaks and the Beskids. The southwest Sudeten
Mountains top elevation is just 1602 m. North of
the mountains are a zone of foothills, the
Silesian Plain, the Little Polish Upland, and the
old and low Swietokrzyskie Mountains.
The Vistula
(Wisla) and Oder (Odra) rivers are Poland’s
biggest by far and traverse it lengthwise from
the south to the north. The country boasts some
9300 lakes of one hectare or more, mostly
scattered across the Baltic Heights, the Coastal
Plain, and the Mazury region, where two lakes,
Sniardwy and Mamry, surpass 100 sq km in size.
There are also some 120 artificial reservoirs,
chiefly in the Baltic Heights and in the southern
mountains.
Poland's
Wildlife
Forests take up some 28% of Poland’s
territory, and they are 80% either spruce or
pine. Yet one finds in the northeast region such
scarce species as dwarf birch and Lapp willow,
unique in Europe. Most wildlife looks typical to
Europe, but Poland also boasts animals either
unique or extremely rare elsewhere–European
bison, tarpan wild horse, bear, chamois, lynx,
wildcat, wolf, elk, boar, and deer. European
bison (zubr) live in the Bialowieza National
Park, Europe’s vastest forest, on the border of
Belarus. Wolves and brown bear are found in the
mountains, while elk and deer are pretty common
by the lakes. Grouse, heathcock, and black stork
dwell in farmlands, lake marshes, and forests in
the north. Lakes, rivers and streams provide
habitat to ample fish.
Currency:
1 zloty (PLN) = 100 groszy.
Exchange rates: 3.3 per 1 euro, 2.2 PLN per US$1 (August 2008)
Time: CET as Berlin or Vienna,
i.e. GMT/UTC plus one hour.
Electricity: 230 volts, 50 Hz AC
Weights & measures: Metric
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