We first went to Tatarska Jurta in February 2013. The Supraśl area was covered in snow back then and we and our friend got stuck in a pile of snow with almost no GSM network and no ideas on how to get our car out of it. On Fridays night, our Tatar hosts helped us to dig out our car and safely get to our destination. Back then we fell in love with Kruszyniany, wooden mosques, locals’ hospitality and Tatar food that can’t be found anywhere else. You will find our report from 3 years ago HERE.

 

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland

 

We wanted to go there again in summer 2013 but something got in our way. So many plans, so many places, something new every time. We definitely waited too long to come back. This time we made a spontaneous decision to come back, almost in the last minute. We persuaded our friends to go, booked the rooms and left Warsaw at 8 pm on Friday. There’s about 250 km from Warsaw to Kruszyniany. Maks was already asleep in the car when we arrived, the village was covered in darkness but we were still greeted by the friendly host – Mrs. Dżenneta and soon after that Tatar specialties arrived on the table – savoury manty with cheese and garlic and my beloved sweet manty too. We drank delicious tea with it and quickly realised that it’s been too long since our last visit here!!!

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Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in PolandTatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in PolandTatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland

 

It gets quite crowded during lunchtime on weekends, even in winter. Someone’s taking plates with fascinating Tatar food different from the food we eat every day from the kitchen all the time. If you want to stay at Jurta, there’s several rooms. They’re simple but nice and tidy too. For us it’s a perfect place for a trip with friends and the kids. The little ones can be laid to bed upstairs while we can sit down in dining hall, eat, talk, play board games without worrying that we’ll wake the kids up.
When you arrive in Tatarska Jurta, you first enter a large dining hall – there are two right now, both furnished with wood, both with huge tables which make long celebrations and slow breakfasts even easier.

 

What makes Jurta a perfect place for families? The fact that there’s a kids’ corner with toys and stuff in every hall and on every floor. There are two in both dining halls and one on the 1st floor where the rooms are – Maks quickly went there during breakfast so I could get ready without constant ‘Mommy, I’m bored!’. There’s also a chance you kid will get a Tatar friend – Maks played with his almost-peer – Emir, Mrs. Dżenneta’s grandson. In the summer there’s a whole covered terrace for families with some tables under the roof and a playground nearby – they’ve got it all worked out! 🙂

 

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, children-friendly places

 

Tatarska Jurta is a place where you will listen to Mrs. Dżenneta’s stories about Tatar culture and Tatars in Poland, where Dżemila will tell you about food and nearby restaurants, where you will rest far from the city and most of all – that’s the only place where you will learn about Tatar flavours! I wrote quite a bit about their cuisine after our first trip to Kruszyniany – check it HERE!

 

This time we obsessively stuffed ourselves with sweet manty with cheese, yoghurt and raspberry sauce, we loved potato babka which was different than the one we knew from Suwalszczyzna or other parts of Podlasie, our friends ate lamb and Maks had kołduny with broth. We also tried katłama – turkey meat baked between pasta slices with tomato and capsicum sauce, we nibbled on kartoflaniki – dumplings filled with potatoes and for the dessert we just had to eat leafcake with cheese or poppy seed. It’s a real pity we haven’t tried granny Tamara’s doughnuts! Next time! Add generous breakfasts, omelettes, pancakes, and Tatar tea with min, lemon and ginger to all these wonders and you’ll get a real culinary paradise!

 

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, potato babka

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, katłama

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, kołduny, kołduny with broth

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, jagnięcina

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, kartoflaniki
Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, listkowiec

 

strong>What can you do in Kruszyniany apart from eating and listening to Tatar stories??? Rest, walk, enjoy the silence, peace and time passing by slowly. You should also check the wooden mosque in Kruszyniany and listen to Dżemil’s stories. He’s the one minding the mosque. You can also visit the Tatar cemetery with crescents on them.

 

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, mosque in Kruszyniany, mosques in Poland

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, Tatar cemetery

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, Tatar cemetery

 

If you have a car, it’s worth visiting the nearby city of Supraśl (about 40 km) look for bisons roaming free around (we spotted some!) and if you’re coming with kids, you must visit a tiny village called Poczopek with incredible owls! There’s a forest park Silvarum in Poczopek where you will also find a megaliths park, bridges, ponds, A Gallery on the Edge of Wild (from 1.11 to 31.03 an appointment is needed) an a whole lot of weird sundials. A place Maks did not want to leave since everything fascinated him!

 

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, Poczopek

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, Poczopek

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, Poczopek, Silvarium, poromierz

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, Poczopek

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, żubry

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, żubry

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland

 

And if you have more time you can check Father Gabriel’s hermitage in Odrynki on your way home…

 

Tatarska Jurta, Kruszyniany, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, Tatars in Poland, Tatar cuisine, magical places in Poland, Odrynki

 

 

PRACTICAL INFORMATION:

Tatarska Jurta – Dżenneta Bogdanowicz
Kruszyniany 58
16-120 Krynki
woj. podlaskie

tel. 606 603 760

More information about Tatarska Jurta can be found on their Facebook profile – HERE. Or on their website – HERE.