Well, good as my intentions were to wake up at 7 and get
going Saturday morning, that is not what happened! I woke up around 9:15-ish
and made it downstairs in time for a quick breakfast. I really intended to eat
an authentic Polish breakfast, go back into the Old Town (and see the rest of
the New Town) early and get some pictures, and then take a tour at 10:30, but
alas, my goals were a bit too lofty immediately following my first real night’s
sleep! I got some cereal and coffee in me and headed out to catch the 10:30
tour that was supposed to start at a theatre a couple of kilometers away, but I
got there about 5 minutes too late—quite the bummer after hustling all that
way!
But onward we go! I asked some nice Polish people where the
Rising Museum is located, and they were able to show me on my handy-dandy map,
provided to me from the hostel. It looked like it was probably in walking
distance, so off I went in a new direction! On the way I stopped at a convenience
store for a bottle of water and a bottle of juice—apple cherry juice—which
proved to be an exceptionally wise decision. It got really warm by mid-day! All
the weather reports I’d seen leading up to my trip said Warsaw would be in the
50s and 60s, but it has definitely been in the upper 70s the whole time! We’ve
had really beautiful weather here.
After asking a couple more people if I was close to the
museum (there was a lot of pretty significant construction going on, so the map
was only so helpful), I made it! I got there and got my ticket around noon,
then spent the next 3 ½ hours in the museum.
***Special note to Dr. Ablamowicz, please correct me if I am
incorrect in my information! I don’t want to misinterpret or mistake the
details, and I’ve tried not to let anything get lost in translation, but if it
did, by all means e-mail or call me to let me know and I will correct it
promptly!
The Rising Museum is all about the Polish Gulag, which was
the same as the Holocaust but for the Poles instead of only the Jews. After the
attacks on Poland by the Nazis, the Polish people fought back in what they call
the Powstania Warszawskiego, or
Warsaw Uprising. It began on August 1, 1944.
The solemnity and feeling of fear and devastation is the
same at the Warsaw Rising Museum as what you experience if you’ve been to the
Holocaust Museum in DC. You walk in and the place is very dark. The walls are
metal or concrete, the floors are the same type of cobblestones as those in the
Old Town, where Nazi attacks and Warsaw Uprisings occurred. The first thing you
hear when you walk in is the sound of a heartbeat. It’s coming from the center
of the building, from a rock column that goes all the way up all three floors.
The sound is actually coming from the bullet holes in the column, and every
eight minutes, the heartbeat is interrupted by sounds of attack—planes, bombs
dropping, explosions. It certainly sets the tone.
The ground floor (what we would call the first floor in
America) is all about the events leading up to the Uprisings. The exhibits
showed exactly how it was—no covering up any of the reality—but it was all
tastefully and respectfully done. You can read about real people who lost their
lives in an effort to free themselves and everyone else in their country. They
had a lot of armbands on display. They didn’t have a set uniform for
themselves, but all those involved wore an armband that looks like the Polish
flag and also had their group’s number on it. There was a lot of information to
read, and all of it was impressive. The lengths they went to just to get
communications from one place to another was astounding. They actually had to
traverse the sewer system to get to safety (well, it was safe when Nazis were
not throwing grenades in the manholes), get messages from one place to another,
etc. It’s amazing what people can live through. Amazing.
I could continue on about that, but you’ll just have to come
see it for yourself. ;) Next stop, the Chopin museum! For all you music lovers
out there, this is the place to go! I had to overcome a few obstacles, however.
You see, it would have been one turn and then a straight shot from the Rising
Museum to the Chopin Museum (which was just a block from my hostel, by the
way!), but there was construction. Those of you in DC and other places where
there seems to be non-stop construction can understand. But in DC, I’ve
noticed, they never block an entire road AND the sidewalks for three or four
blocks at a time and not provide a detour route… but that was exactly what happened
here! Perhaps because it was a Saturday it was mostly ok to be doing so much
construction, but it was awfully confusing to wee little Whitney! What could
have taken 30 minutes ended up taking over an hour! I’m sure there was probably
a better way to go than what I did, but I have no idea what that better route
could have been! Oh well. On to Chopin!
So, Fryderyk Chopin is this famous pianist from Poland. He
was a happing, fun-loving child and young person, but he seemed to find darker
days as he got up in years. The museum itself was really interesting. They had
all kinds of interactives that included touch screens and musical tricks
(walking on certain floors and opening drawers would cause music to play!), and
one of the coolest exhibit rooms was this tremendous map—the room was
wall-papered with a map! That room was all about his travels. There was one
room dedicated to his fascination with women and a few of his affairs, which I
found to be kind of distasteful, but I’m not afraid to admit I’m a prude. At
any rate, the museum over all was very impressive. It’s in an old palace, and
it’s really beautiful! =)
And then it was hostel time! I ate something small (and
unfortunately non-Polish) in my room and put up my pictures. Hope you got to
see them already! If not, they're HERE.
Much to my delight, I got to meet someone new! His name is Andrew and he's a law student from Taiwan who hopes to finish up at GWU soon! He was the nicest person I'd met all day. It seems like the culture here is very stand-offish, especially to foreigners. Of course, not everyone is that way, but that seems to be the norm. People rarely seem to smile, but then, seeing and hearing about some of the things they've been through in the last 100 years, I can't help but understand a bit and feel a bit sympathy for them.
At any rate, I like my new friend Andy from Taiwan! I hope he moves to DC as he is just such a delight to talk to.
And then I went to bed! I woke up for several hours when the others got into the room (there were 5 of us in there last night, and someone them liked to talk--loudly), so I didn't get a lot of sleep, but I got enough to get me through the day.
Next up: Church and Adventures in the Polish train system! Stay tuned, friends. =)
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