Let's jump into the water!

 

 

You may be shocked, but the Polish Coal Capital (which, unfortunately, is still Katowice), actually is the third greenest city in Poland (after Sopot and Zielona Góra). You probably ask: HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!? So, more than 40% of the city's surface is covered by forests and parks. This is clearly visible on Google satellite maps: 

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Katowice/@50.2135882,18.8671096,35277m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x4716ce2336a1ccd1:0xb9af2a350559fabb!8m2!3d50.2648919!4d19.0237815!5m1!1e4

Someday I will tell you a little more about forests, but now I would like to focus on an unique place, called by the inhabitants ‘a forest park’. It is about Dolina Trzech Stawów (the Valley of Three Ponds), a huge park in the middle of the forest, located by... three ponds 😉 It is an extremely picturesque place, located in the very centre of the city (marked on the map above with a red pin), where you can not only relax by organizing a picnic or take a bath in the pond on some warm, summer day. There are several kilometres of bicycle paths, a really long track for inline skaters, and even a sports airport for small planes, where shows or exercises are organized from time to time.

What's more, it is a place where the largest city events are organized, such as student’s Juwenalia, the city's anniversary party, as well as the world-famous alternative music festival: OFF FESTIVAL (http://off-festival.pl/en/).