Belarus castle Nesvizh and Corpus Christi Church

Europe » Belarus » Minsk Voblast
January 17th 2015

Published: March 29th 2015

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GeorgeKevinBelarus

Icy moat around Nesvizh Castle

A cold January morning. Occasional sun.

Nesvizh is home to Nesvizh castle

and the interesting Corpus Christi Church,

both important reminders of the Radziwiłłs family,

an estate of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

starting in the 16th century.

Traveled with our good friend Ellen.

Remember Alexander,

our chance acquaintance on our Poland trip?

We have met him several times since in Minsk.

We met him and his friend, Olga, for a drive to Nesvizh.

Olga doesn't like to drive outside the city,

so I was the designated country driver.

It was nice to get back in the drivers seat.

The castle is nicely remodeled

in some of the many styles that the

great house wore during its many years.

Large ceramic heaters in the corner of every room

kept this place warm during the long winters.

The game room with billiards and animal trophies

was a sight to behold.

Lunch at the castle was very good,

linen covered tables and

Belorussian cuisine.

At the Corpus Christi Church,

catholic because of the Polish influence

in

Nesvizh inner courtyard

eastern Belarus,

the ceiling painted with frescoes

and a Last Supper was behind the alter.

We 5 plus 4 others sitting on front benches

in the cold church, emphasized by

icicle crystals hanging from the chandelier.

listened to our very passionate red-haired tour guide.

She told us the history of the church and Radziwiłłs family.

She, alternately pointing at us and pictures in a photo album,

multiple dents in the plastic covering the photos

from her intense tapping with her fingernail.

Entertaining even though it is in Russian,

we get the gist from short translations by Alexander.

The crypt was creepy because it was packed

with old birch coffins and had a musty smell.

Additional photos below

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