POLAND 2001
by Evelyn Micolichek/Mikol~ajczak
Its August 11, and we are off on Lot airlines to Poland. Our trip was fantastic. We never met a rude person all the while we were there. And that is saying a lot. Seeing that we speak only the basics in Polish. We stayed 16 days. We--consisted of my husband's sister and her husband, and their daughter. And of course my husband and I. We landed in Warsaw. We rented a van as there was 5 of us and our luggage. Our niece drove. She had experience driving in Europe and her nerves are better. The deal was, we paid her way and she drove. Everyone was happy.
We stayed overnight in Warsaw and then left for Krakow. Stopped in Czestochowa to see the "Black Madonna". The people that were there already ! And Aug. 15th is still a few days away. It was really nice though. The only down side to it was the heat. It was so hot !! The church was jammed, shoulder to shoulder. Had a hard time to breathe. It was worth it.
Went on to Krakow. Oh-oh. Our hotel is in "old town". Which is neat if you are young. We are retired. We lugged our luggage 4 blocks over cobblestone streets as no cars are allowed except in the wee hours of the morning. We get to the hotel. Now all I am thinking about is a long cool drink of anything. Guess what !! Our hotel has no elevator !!! We are on the third floor. According to them we are on the second floor. The floor we call first - they call the ground floor. The first floor there is the second floor here, etc. etc. Get to our room. No air conditioning. I had specified that as my husband has a bad heart and my sister-in-law has a trac-tube in her throat. We learned what travel bureau in the midwest NOT to use. No, it was not Orbis. It was a local. We made a pact- no matter what we were going to enjoy ourselves and have fun. Which we preceded to do. I picked up some canes and crystal at Cloth Hall. We enjoyed the music, ate at open air
Cloth Hall in Krakow
Church were Pope John Paul was baptized
Heading into Janowca
Heading into Wl~oszanowo
Heading into Brudzyn
|
cafes, drank piwo or tea, and people watched. Watched the horses with the carriages behind. They line up for the tourists on one side of Cloth Hall. It was still really hot. The horses would shake their heads and tails and stomp their feet to chase away the flies. All you heard was the clinking of the harnesses and folk music in the background. The churches are so pretty. Pretty is a tame word. If one just sits and really looks at all the work that went into all the carvings, paintings, etc., it is awesome. Remember there was no modern tools or electric dodads.
I really wanted to see Sister Faustina's grave and convent. We had a dickens of a time finding the street. But being determined we found the convent. The guard at the gate was so sweet. He went with us to the main hall to speak to this one nun. They spoke Polish among themselves and he smiled and told us to wait right there. So we did and they both left. After about 5 minutes another nun came in the room. She spoke English. She took us all around and afterwards she asked where we were from. We said "the state of Wisconsin in the United States". Her eyes got real big. It seems she has a girl friend who lives in Milwaukee now. It sure is a small world.
The kielbasa is just wonderful here. So is the strawberry soup--when you can get it. But if the truth be known-------I am a mushroom lover. Not just any mushrooms but POLISH MUSHROOMS!!!!! The wild ones are yummy. I ate them every chance I could. The mushroom soup is to die for. No pun intended. Ha ha ha
One day we took a ride to see the Pope's home town. It is beautiful. But when we went the flooding damage was still very evident everywhere. Saw a smashed stove and some clothing caught in trees. It was sad.
Another day we went to Zakopane. That town is just gorgeous. We had hoped to go to my husbands' great grandmothers home town near here but in the mountains. The name of the town is Izby. But we were nervous about all the washed out roads to try it. Now we wished we had. Now we will probably never see it.
We took our niece to see Aushwitz. No one should ever come to Poland and not see it. Her father and uncle walked her through it. My sister-in-law and I stayed outside on the benches. I have a real hard time there. But everyone should see what man is or is not. I had made it, a few years ago, as far as the hair. That did me in. Could take no more.
After 5 days in Krakow we left to go to Poznan. Bob found the cross he wanted and I found my white tablecloth. This is the area that most of Bob's ancestors came from. From the lovely town just E-SE of Poznan, called Kol~ackowo, to the towns N-NE of Poznan. Their names are Brudzyn, Wybranowo, Wloszanowo and Janowiec. We went to the towns with a very slim faint hope of maybe a grave to be found. Needless to say we did not find anything. What we did find was people who were so kind and patient with our very poor Polish. They went out of their way to help us. We were trying to find where the old cemetery was. We could not make ourselves understood. Even with talking with our hands. And that is another story that will never be told. Ha ha ha Anyway---since I am the only artist in the group I drew headstones. We were directed to a huge lot like field-overgrown with grasses etc. In there was a white stone that said "The Cemetery of the Angels". I wish everyone could experience what was on the faces of my husband , sister-in-law and niece. It was like when they stepped out of the van in Brudzyn. That area was, for all time, the land of their forefathers, and they felt truly at home. We found on the very outskirts of Brudzyn a cobblestone road that went on for miles. It was really old and in bad shape. But we went down it for a little ways anyway. Got worried so we turned around and came back for the sake of the van. I spotted something that looked like kumquats hanging from trees, or vines over trees. What ever. We were afraid to try it to see if it was or not. Now we will always wonder.
One day we went to Germany. The border crossings were a pain. Over 1 1/2 hours wait each way. I do wonder why there is such grooves in the highways in Poland. In some spots the tire tracks were 3-4 inches deep in the blacktop. We were swaying all over the place. Can't imagine what they do in the winter time. When we were there in "98" they were doing a lot of road building. In just those few years they have done wonders!!
The last few days we spent back in Warsaw getting some things the we (gasp) forgot. We strolled "old town". Bought some paintings and a piece of amber. Watched the wedding carriages go by on Sat. Flowers all over. Especially at weddings. Nice.
I wish I could find the statue or even a picture of this statue I saw in 1998 while we were on the tour bus. I took a picture but it did not turn out. It was a concrete farm wagon with soldiers with rifles at one end and crosses at the other end. If I remember correctly, it was to depict the Warsaw uprising. Am not sure on that. So if anyone who reads this and knows what it is or has a picture of it I would love one.
I am not a writer as you can see. But before I close I have to say something about the Polish people and their country. I have never seen a more religious group of people in my life. It is not paraded out for others to see. Its deep in their souls. They are also the cleanest and neatest people I have seen as a whole. Go in the alleys. Go in the streets. Go down any side road. There is no junk laying around like in other countries I could name. I never even saw a bottle cap for goodness sake!!! Ha ha ha No matter how poor the person was--when they went to church their clothes were clean and pressed. I remember on the way to Zakopane. A poor man was walking to church with his wife. It was down a country road. His pants were pressed so sharp you could have cut bread with the crease. Like I said at the beginning. I never met a rude person here. They went out of their way to help us. They can and should be very proud. We are--that we went.
Author Email: evelyn@gbonline.com
Related subjects:
Detail Map of Poland
This story is presented here with permission of the author. -
Share your article/story, contact: ATPC - Articles/Stories.
|