Zelazowa Wola (Poland)

Ask the advice of anyone employed in the tourism industry in Warsaw and they will inevitably send you to Żelazowa Wola, the birthplace of the composer Frederic Chopin (1810–1849), so strong is the cult of the Franco-Polish pianist in Poland. Many travel agencies advertise "Chopin tours", in which Żelazowa Wola plays a major role.

In fact, the Chopin family home in Żelazowa Wola, a building in the style of a neoclassical manor house and set in a beautiful woodland park, can actually make for a fascinating place to visit. It still contains plenty of furniture, personal effects and decorative elements dating from the period in question, and it is interesting to try to picture and imagine the famous composer of nocturnes and mazurkas spending his childhood years in this environment.

Though it's true to say that there is not much to see and do in Żelazowa Wola apart from this important commemorative site for Poland and the history of music in general, I did enjoy exploring this sleepy little Mazovian village, which is typical of those to be found in this region and provides a taste of the wider Warsaw region away from the capital, an area not often visited by tourists.