Zalipie , Poland – In the old times, in this small Polish village named “Zalipie”, people used to paint flowers on their ceiling to hide all the soot marks that were caused by their stove. One has to bear in mind these were old wooden houses, ventilation was pretty poor back in those times, so soot stains were a pretty common problem for any old household. This little village started a technique with covering those stains with a pretty flower paintings and the trend was born. Soon every house in the village was completely covered with these beautiful flowers. (h/t: mentalfloss)
It was no longer because of soot marks, it was their identity now, soon all the bridges, churches, fences or anything you could lay your eyes upon was blooming with flowers. Since 1948. every spring village held a “Painted Cottage Competition” to help Poland psychologically recover from WW2 sufferings.
Luckily for you Zalipie is situated in the southeast of Poland just 90 minutes from Krakow, this beautifully bright and colorful village is the perfect location for anybody looking for a unique and memorable day trip.