Osobliwie situacje graniczne

Zittau is situated in the southeastern most corner of Germany along the 'Zittau mountain range' near the tripoint Germany-Poland-Czech Republic". Zittau lies on the little river Mandau which flows through the city, the river connects to the Lausitzer Neiße river which is the border to Poland.

In1945 the city lost the town quarter east of the river Lausitzer Neiße called Großporitsch (nowadays PL: Porajów) to Poland. The formerly wealthy city of Zittau lost part of its old hinterland and roads and connections were cut off.

Inhabitants:
1947: 47.000
1965: 42.800
1981: 41.500
1989: 38.100
1995: 29.500
2005: 28.700

Since German Unification almost 10,000 inhabitants left the city to live elsewhere, due to high unemployment and lower standard of living in the region.

License plate: ZI; (district Löbau-Zittau)

Sieniawka PL:

Sieniawka (in German formerly known as Kleinschönau) is a little village in the Bogatynia Borough in Poland. It is situated in the southwestern part of Poland in the Voivodship 'Lower Silesia'.

Until the end of 1945 former Kleinschönau was a part of the German Zittau County, but became Polish after the war. The local German population was expelled between 1945 and 1947 and Polish citizens were brought to the area.

There was a little railroad line going through Kleinschönau sinds 1884 coming from Zittau and going to Markersdorf (nowadays: Markocice) via Reichenau (nowadays: Bogatynia)
See pictures of the railroad track at this external Link: http://www.stillgelegt.de/zittau/zittau-2.htm

Ostritz D:

Ostritz (in Sorbian: Wostrowc) is a small town in southeastern Saxony, half way between Görlitz and Zittau in the Upper Lusatia (Oberlausitz) region on the westbank of the Lusatian Neiße river, directly on the border to Poland.
Due to the new state boundary along the river, a strange situation was created: The railway station now was on Polish territory in Krzewina Zgorzelecka (formerly: Grunau) on the Polish side. A small pedestrian bridge was built, so that German travellers could reach the German side at 100 yards distance from the station.

BK 2006

Thanks to the small pedestrian bridge, the German train can stop on its way to let people get off in Ostritz.

Railway station building in Ostritz/Krzewina Zgorzelcka  (which by the way also is the official name of the border crossing here) This village was divided by the new borderline in 1945 with the station being in Poland ever since.
The Polish station Krzewina Zgorzelcka is only used by the German railways (LausitzBahn) on the line from Görlitz to Zittau (it runs for 9 miles over Polish territory).

See also private (external, not affiliated) homepage www.neissetalbahn.de, where information and some history of the line between Görlitz en Zittau can be found.

Marketsquare in Ostritz: the town-hall. We are less than one kilometer from the border.

The Lausitzer Neisse river marks since1945 the border: Picture taken from the pedestrian bridge.

The Hotel "Neisseblick" (=Neisse View) and a street indicator pointing to the railways station which is on Polish territory since 1945.

(Bahnhofstrasse)

A modern waiting area (stop) built next to the closed old railway building.

...and a new railstation signboard of the private railway company.

The area in front of the railway station (shadow of the building). The houses in the background are on German territory already.

The historic town-centre.

On the way to the border-crossing from German side.

Chopinstr.

Arrival on the Polish side: along the main road for the first mile, lots of small kiosks and sales booths where everything from cigarettes to craftwork is sold at low prices.

ul. kolejowa

On the way back to Germany, we spot the warning sign on the left "Granica Panstwa" (=State Border)

ul. kolejowa

Arrival back on the German side.

Chopinstr.

View of the Lausitzer Neisse river, rather small in this region. Picture taken from the bridge.

Chopinstr. (D) / ul. kolejowa (PL)

The border-crossing seen from the Polish side.

ul. kolejowa