My Trip to Eastern Europe - Part 3

The third day of my trip was going to be pretty easy.  We were headed from Krakow up to Warsaw.  After the trip to Auschwitz-Birkenau, it was going to be nice to just have a day to recover from the emotional rollercoaster we had experienced.

Wednesday October 10, 2018 – Warsaw, Poland

I did not sleep well last night.  Too many emotions from the previous day.  I tossed and turned for most of the night.  I finally gave up and got up and headed out for a 6 mile run.  I decide to run a loop that would go up to the Market Square, through the park and then along the river again.  If nothing else, I would be able to clear my head a bit.  It was another cool morning.  I love running in real fall weather.  I ran 6.1 miles in 56:00 (9:11 pace).  What a nice way to shake of the deep emotions from yesterday.

After breakfast we gathered our things and loaded them onto the bus for a drive to the train station.  The bus was going to drive our bags up to Warsaw while we took the train.  I figured that I would be able to get a little bit of sleep on the train to make up for the lack of sleep I got last night.  We got on the train and found our first class compartments for the ride up to Warsaw.  It was about a 2.5 hour train ride.  It was comfortable and soothing.  I got some much needed rest.

We got off the train and met our Warsaw guide Marta who led us to our bus.  After a short drive through the city where Marta talked about how little of pre-war Warsaw is still standing.  The reason there was almost nothing left was due to the response of the Nazis to the Warsaw Uprising in 1944. The uprising had infuriated German leaders who then wanted to make an example of the city.  What better way than to destroy the entire city.  In the end they lost the war and the Soviets took over Poland in 1945.  This meant that the rebuilding of the city was done by the communists.  You can definitely see it in the design of the buildings throughout the city.

One building Marta pointed out to us as we drove was The Palace of Culture and Science which is the tallest building in Poland and the eighth-tallest building in the European Union.  What surprised me is that it is also one of the tallest buildings on the European continent.  She told us that it is 237 meters (778 ft) tall.  It originally was named the Josef Stalin Palace of Culture and Science.  But his name was removed during De-Stalinization.  Marta said it had other nicknames as well like - Stalin's syringe, the Elephant in Lacy Underwear and the Russian Wedding Cake.  When I looked it up later, I also found that they also refer to it as Stalin's Dick - LOL.

We stopped to have lunch on our own at Hala Koszyki a local food hall.  We learned that the ‘Koszyki’ market hall, commonly known as the ‘People’s bazaar’ was built in 1906-1908 on Koszykowa Street in Warsaw at the then ‘Koszyki’ grange place.  It went through many changes and had to be rebuilt after the war.  I looked it up to see who rebuilt it to its present state.  I found that in 2012 the building was bought by Griffin Real Estate who restored Koszyki to its’ previous glory.  In the autumn 2016, Hala reopened as a social and culinary center, where there are numerous restaurants and pubs.  There are also retail stores where you can buy fresh products at the natural/organic store or grocer downstairs.

After a good meal of sausage and pierogi, we got back on the bus to head to our first stop.  We went to the location of Mila 18.  Mila 18 was a building in Warsaw where “on 8 May 1943, three weeks after the start of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, the bunker was found out by the Nazis, there were around 300 people inside. The smugglers surrendered, but the Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa (Jewish Combat Organization), also known as the ŻOB, command including Mordechaj Anielewicz, the leader of the uprising, stood firm. The Nazis threw tear gas into the shelter to force the occupants out.  Anielewicz, his girlfriend Mira Fuchrer and many of his staff committed mass suicide by ingesting poison rather than surrender, though a few fighters who did not commit suicide managed to get out of a rear exit and later fled from the ghetto through the canals to the "Aryan side" at Prosta Street on May 10.”

Because the Nazis destroyed the building and did not remove the bodies, the spot became a war memorial as early as 1946.  In 1946, the monument known as "Anielewicz Mound", made of the rubble of Mila 18, was erected.  A commemorative stone with the inscription in Polish and Yiddish was placed on top of the mound.  Later in 2006 a new obelisk was erected on top of the mound.  It is a very peaceful spot now in the middle of the city and is really hard to imagine what it looked like back in 1943.  We all placed a stone on the base of the obelisk to honor and build up the memory of those brave Jews who fought back against the Nazis at this place.

We then walked over to the Poline Museum.  This museum is designed as a cultural institution where they present a 1000-year history of Polish Jews.  It is made up of 8 rooms with each telling a part of the story of how the Jews came to Poland and thrived for many years.  Of course it also tells the story of how they were then destroyed during WWII only to rise again from the ashes and taking their place again in Polish society.  It was a fascinating museum and so well done.  I could have stayed in there all day.

Before we went in to visit the museum, we stopped in front at the Ghetto Heroes Monument.  The monument commemorates the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943.  It is located in the area which was formerly a part of the Warsaw Ghetto and at the spot where the first armed clash of the uprising took place. The eastern part of the monument shows the persecution of Jews at the hands of the Nazis.   The western portion of the monument facing the museum is much more triumphant.  It shows men, women and children, armed with guns and Molotov cocktails.  The central standing figure of this frieze is that of Mordechai Anielewicz (who died in the uprising on May 8, 1943).  The monument has plinth on which carved in Polish, Yiddish, and Hebrew the words “The Jewish Nation in honor of its fighters and martyrs.”  The labradorite (black marble) used in parts of the monument comes from the German supplies, ordered by Albert Speer in 1942 for planned Nazi German monuments they planned to build when they won the war.  Ironic that it was used in this way.  The monument was unveiled in 1948.  It is a stunning monument.

We then went to our hotel to get some rest before going to dinner.  We ate at a great little local restaurant called the Informal Kitchen.  After a long day, I was ready to get some sleep.

As I reflect on the first day in Warsaw today I am still amazed at the contrast between Krakow and Warsaw.   I am glad I was able to visit both cities as they each offered entirely different experiences.  I will post my notes from the second day in Warsaw.  But to try and summarize, Krakow was a beautiful, medieval and quaint town with the dark shadow of the Holocaust over it.  Warsaw is more cosmopolitan with modern skyscrapers and a bustling city center.  While they are very different, I would recommend to anyone that they visit both cities if they travel to Poland.

Nov 6 – 7.20 miles (1:02:51, 8:37 pace) – Speed Work
Nov 7 – 7.10 miles (1:06:13, 9:18 pace)
Nov 9 – 2.10 miles (19:04, 9:05 pace)
Nov 10 – 7.10 miles (1:08:18, 9:37 pace)
Nov 11 – 17.10 miles (2:50:29, 9:58 pace)

Total Miles:  40.6 miles
2018 Total Miles:  1,621.1 miles