The destroyed reactor is still extremely radioactive, covered by the so-called sarcophagus, built to protect the environment from radiation, but it was only designed to last 15 years and now scientists and environmentalist say it is falling apart.

Send by: Michał Borzymek

Polish embassy in Pyongyang, North Korea

Send by: Michał Borzymek

Byczyna is a town in Kluczbork County, Opole Voivodeship, Poland, with 3,708 inhabitants (2004).

The town was the setting of the Battle of Byczyna on January 24, 1588.

The Battle of Byczyna was a battle between the Polish-Lithuanian army of the newly-elected King Sigismund III Vasa of Poland and the Austrian army of Archduke Maximilian III, a pretender to the Polish throne. Taking place near Byczyna in Silesia on January 24, 1588, the battle ended in an overwhelming Polish victory under the command of Hetman Jan Zamoyski; the archduke was captured and Austrian intervention was stopped.

[Source: Wikipedia]

[Source: Wikipedia]

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Transrapid is a German monorail system using magnetic levitation. Based on a patent from 1934, planning of an actual Transrapid system started in 1969. The test facility for the system in Emsland, Germany was completed in 1987, and on the 17th June 1993 the Transrapid TR-07 vehicle reached a record-breaking speed of 450 kilometers per hour. Today the maximum design speed has exceeded the 500 km/h (310 mph) mark and currently stands at about 550 km/h, with the fastest (and currently the only operational) scheduled passenger service reaching 430 km/h between Longyang Road station and Pudong International Airport in Shanghai, China. The system is developed and marketed by Transrapid International, a joint venture of the German companies Siemens AG and ThyssenKrupp.

[Source: Wikipedia]

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Town Hall built in XV century in Kazimierz - district of Cracow.

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Old Synagogue was a Orthodox Judaism synagogue in Kazimierz, Kraków, Poland. It is the oldest existing synagogue in Poland and one of the most precious landmarks of Jewish architecture in Europe. Till 1939 it served as a most important synagogue in the city, main religious, social and organizational centre of the Kraków Jewish community.

It was built in 1407 or 1492. Date of building varies depending on source. The synagogue was completely devastated by Nazis during World War II, equipment was stolen. During the war it served as a magazine. It was renovated from 1956 to 1959 and currently serves as a museum. It is a Division of the Historical Museum of Kraków.

[Source: Wikipedia]

Send by: McMac

Topkapı Palace (Topkapı Sarayı in Turkish, literally the "Cannongate Palace" - named after a nearby gate), located in Istanbul (Constantinople), was the administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1465 to 1853. The construction of the Topkapı Palace was ordered by Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror in 1459. It was completed in 1465. The palace is located on the Seraglio Point between the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara in Istanbul, having a splendid view of the Bosphorus. It consists of many smaller buildings built together and surrounded by four courts.

The palace is full of examples of Ottoman style architecture and also owns large collections of porcelain, robes, weapons, shields, armors, Ottoman miniatures, calligraphic manuscripts and mural decorations, as well as a display of accumulated Ottoman treasures and jewelry.

Wloszczowa Polnoc (Wloszczowa North) - (last days) most famous railway station in Poland.

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