Belarusian Versailles in Mosar village 

Mosar, a Belarusian village in Gluboksky district, Vitebsk region, is called Belarusian Versailles by tourists. Its history began in 1514. The village belonged to different noble families, and at the end of the 18th century Anna and Robert Bzhestovskys built there a magnificent Catholic church. The village got its second life when priest Joseph Bulka (1925–2010) came in 1989. He organised work to rebuild the Catholic Church of St Anna and to plant a park around it. Visitors can see here a lot of flowers, trees and bushes, alpine [ˈælpaɪn] gardens, ponds (пруды) and sculptures [ˈskʌlptʃəz] on religious themes. Mosar is also famous for its springs (источники). Their water, which has a lot of minerals, is very healthy. These Mosar landmarks attract tourists from Belarus and from abroad.

The Trinity Church in Gervyaty, 

Grodno region, Notre Dame of Belarus

 The Trinity Church in Gervyaty, Grodno region, is called Notre Dame of Belarus. The church, 61 metres high, was built in 1899–1903. It is beautiful both inside and outside. It stands among trees and colourful flowers. People come here on Sundays and religious holidays. They can listen to sermons (проповеди) in Belarusian, Polish and Lithuanian. Here, visitors are in a wonderful world, where there’s only silence and beauty. It is relaxing and healing (исцеляющий). But tourists should remember to take their picnic with them — there is no cafe in Gervyaty. It is only a small agro town.

(1)          Dear mum and dad, 

(2)          Yesterday we went to Belovezhskaya Pushcha. 

It is near Brest, in the south of Belarus. We saw, did and learnt so many things! 

It was a long trip and it was exciting. I enjoyed the views.

 Alex’s mum told me that Belovezhskaya Pushcha is the  oldest forest in Europe and the world’s oldest nature reserve — the official date of its foundation is 1409. Wildlife is rich here. We can’t find some species anywhere else in the world, for example the European bison — named zubr in Belarus!

(3)         When we came to Belovezhskaya Pushcha, we went to the Nature Museum first. We saw a lot of animals and birds which live in Belovezhskaya Pushcha. 

Then we rode bikes to the Zoo and saw bison there. They were fantastic! So big! 

We also visited Father Frost’s residence (called Father Christmas in England and Santa Claus in the US, also called Ded Moroz in Belarus). 

We went to Father Frost’s House, Snow Maiden’s Tower and we saw the world’s tallest and oldest New Year Tree. We took a lot of photos there. 

At the end of the day we had dinner at a cafe. I enjoyed traditional Belarusian food. 

Finally, we bought gifts at the gift shop. 

(4)  It was a great day. I hope you will like the attached photos. 

(5)       Best wishes,
            Kate.

A. 

Love, 

Natasha and all my family.

B. 

We look forward to seeing you. I hope you will like the people and the nature of my country.

C. 

Hi Alison!

D. 

We will take you on trips to different places and go on excursions to churches, museums and parks.

We can go on a hike and spend a couple of days outside: we will go camping on a shore of a beautiful lake. There are a lot of birds there, so we will go bird watching. Does your dad enjoy fishing? He can choose to go fishing. We will go swimming in the lake. It'll be fun!

E. 

My name is Natasha. I am your relative from Belarus. Your grandad left my country many years ago. We are happy he found us in May. Now I'd like to invite all your family to Belarus this August.