15 June - an extreme long day covering Praga, the Warsaw Jewish quarter and night lights in Warsaw old town

15 June

We woke up reluctantly when the alarm went off.  We wanted to accomplish much today so we had set the alarm for 7 am.  Around 8 am, we headed to the Central Station to see if we could find where we need to board the train for Warsaw airport the following morning.
 

Remnants of the original ghetto wall built by the Nazis

Remnant of a gate of the ghetto wall
built by the Nazi

As we walked down the street where our apartment is located, we note a sign saying Access to Jewish Ghetto Memorial Wall".  Curious, we decided to enter the austere but marred by graffiti compound behind an open iron gate.  We followed an older couple who were walking really slowly.  It turned out that they lived there.  We had stumbled on the remnants of the Jewish ghetto wall and a gate built by the Nazis; the only one still intact and stating in Warsaw.  Wow, what a great accidental find.  It was one visited by overseas visiting dignitaries!!

As we were headed towards the entrance that we used the day before to egress the train station, a young man popped out of what appeared to be access to the underground area. Since we had no heavy bags, we decided to explore.  Aha … there was a much easier way to get to the station from our apartment … shorter flight of stairs and better spaced risers … directly to the platforms area of the station.  Hmmm … that was definitely not something that would be known to a first time visitor.  Great, this would be the path for the next day.

We saw the ticket office for domestic and international tickets but the lady in the window spoke no English.  She just indicated that we should go to the news agent.  We went there and found out that the ticket for the airport train is the same price as a single ticket for the usual bus.  We will return to buy the ticket when we know where the train is leaving from.  The guy at the news agent could not tell us anything useful in that regard.  We continued to platforms 1-4 where we noted a reference to Chopin International Airport.  We went down to the tracks hoping to ask help from a young person.   A young lady we approached indicated only a limited understanding of English.  A young man however piped up, and explained the whole process succinctly, adding that one should check the display on the actual day to determine the actual track as the paper information said track 1 but the actual display said track 4.  He was on his way to the airport.  What a nice helpful young man.

Armed with that information and a path to that train for the next day, we went to the news agent and procured two tickets, one for the next day to the airport and one for later tonight to come back from the old town.  We then decided to take a different path to the old town meeting point for the first tour – our destination was Praga, the place where no one dares to go.  Located across the Vistula River, Praga is the town on the wrong side of the river, the ugly twin of Warsaw.  

Enroute to Sigismund Column, we passed the building known as Museum of Technology – which appeared to house the Tourist Information Centre, and School of Drama and a variety of unrelated businesses.  Its four facades appeared to serve 4 different purposes.  

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

The cross

We then went to explore the Saxony Gardens which we only perused on the way out to the Old City the day before.  This time we walked  behind a group of Spanish speakers who thought we were tailing them when we were actually trying to pass them.  It is one of the oldest parks in the world and one of the first to be accessible to public.  We found the man made lake in front of the water tower where ducks were swimming.  Near the big fountain just behind the Tomb of the Unknown soldier were sandstone statues honouring different education subjects such as Geography, History, etc.  From there we revisited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the huge cross in front of it.  This must have been where John Paul celebrated his first Mass as Pope in Warsaw back in 1979, the Mass credited with providing impetus to the Velvet Revolution.

Interior of Arch Cathedral 

We watched the security protocols as we wandered along the front of Presidential Palace. We tried to visit the church next to it that was closed for music testing (it would appear).  Strange that what looks like a Dominican church would be closed to public.  The Presidential Palace Gate is guarded by a pair of flanking anatomically correct male lions. As we were still early, we went to visit the Arch Cathedral as it was closed to visitors the evening before when a cardinal was celebrating Mass.  This time, a funeral mass was being prepared but we managed a hurried visit.  It is indeed quite a beautiful church.  We never did find that bell that never rang again.

And then it was time for the free walking tour to Praga.  Our guide Jacek is a language graduate. There was quite a good crowd for the tour although we were the only Aussies.  Jacek perceived us to be bringers of good weather as in the recent, he had had rain and storm when there was no Aussies on the tour.  So we were happy to serve as talisman for good weather.

Soviet art decorating the escalator

We went down the escalators which took us to where we could cross the Vistula by walking across the Slasko-Dabrowski bridge.  The escalator was a gift from the Soviet following the “liberation” to show that they were friends to Poland but also to show their might and power.  Back then, the computer required to run the escalator was three closet tall and weighed a few tonnes, but now a chip runs the thing.  It was decorated with Soviet propaganda figures.

As we were crossing the Vistula, we learnt that it is actually very shallow but of unpredictable depths through its length and breadth.  It looks like a haven for wildlife, which we learnt included the like of beavers in addition to birds.  We spotted a cormorant sun bathing on a bank.  We should come back here after the Jewish tour to spend more time bird watching.  On the Praga side, the Vistula does not have a built up bank; only a natural one.  The only super structure in modern times to be built on that side of the river was the soccer stadium which also serve as performance arena. It is a venture that has been profitable since the 2nd year of operation, unlike other ventures in the city according to our guide.

The Soviets had wanted to build a bridge to Praga.  Praga was where they put the prisoners and criminals.  Praga was nearer to Germany too so should invasion come again, a bridge would make it easier for their enemies than they need to be.  This side of the Vistula was purposely left undeveloped.  The zoo of Warsaw sits here and is often the only site here visited by most Warsaw folks.  Warsaw and Praga inhabitants think of the two places as two cities rather than two halves of a single city.

The Catholic Church

The priest

Our first stop was the Roman Catholic Church, the tallest spire this side of the city.  The spires was not in the original design but after the Soviet liberation, an Orthodox church was built at the terminal rail station there.  So when Soviet fell, the Catholics added the spires to reclaim their position of superiority in architecture.  Outside it stood a priest that was supposed to represent the Warsaw Uprising but many thought that it looked as if he were trying to catch a leaving bus.

Jewish dormitory of Warsaw University

We walked to the Jewish dormitory of the Warsaw University where the founder of Israel had lived when he was a student.  The Jewish rituals were so at odd with general Polish population then, that the Jews had to construct their own living quarters.  But these were superior to the prevailing student accommodation of that time, with running water and toilets, with two or three sharing some common facilities, and with exercise as well as quiet study facilities. 

We then entered a typical compound Praga where buildings surrounding the yard today still has no running water or electricity.  Everyone who lived there had to wire themselves in for power or live without it.   Bathrooms and toilets in a building are shared by all apartments. Fronting the same yard, are modern renovated buildings on one side and shocking discrepit ones resembling slums in India on the other sides.  There is an honour among those who live here though.  A guest of any resident is always treated with utmost respect and no harm would befall them.  We spied a resident in her balcony on her cellphone.  We waved to her and she waved back.

The attempt to beautify
in spite of no water or power

New renovated and derelict
old buildings sharing the same yard

Jacek advised that yards should not be randomly entered into, and especially when not on a guided tour.  He has been doing so many tours here so the residents are familiar with him.  The conditions in the yard was not the best but one can see that the residents tried their best to beautify it.  There is a shrine to the Virgin Mary in the yard.  The city is not interested in making these blocks better as they are waiting for them to fall so that developers can come in.  The owners cannot get better rent so they are milking these till they fall over.  The new fronts are part of the new development.  As we stood there listening to Jacek, a couple with a son in what appear to be a renovated upper floor yelled abuse at us.  We choose to ignore these and pretend that we heard nothing.  That is Praga, Jacek said.  

The cafe

We then passed another compound which did not look much better but there was a cafe in the corner – Café Galerie, it said.  Gentrification of the idea in spurts is under way.  The men hanging around there did not appear to mind us popping in to take photos.

The picture that
started it all

Jacek showed us street art next.  It all started with a copy of an art piece in the museum being glued to a corner of the wall.  These would get defaced quickly so the attempt was soon abandoned.  But the first time it was defaced, a neighbour used vodka to clean off the defacing graffiti saying that the vandals destroy art.  The locals appeared to have adopted these art pieces.  More art began to appear on the other walls.  Finally, there were sculpture of angels from plaster.

Street art

There is also a party street where Warsaw folks come to watch soccer, get drunk, listen to life music and get drunk or get cheap food in Praga.  Not far from there is the night market where all kind of local goods were sold.  The local popular street food here is potato dough meatballs with sauce.  

The deceivingly innocucous looking
ghetto street

We were then shown the ghetto street.  Located not far from the theater, we we were only permitted as far as the car park and no further.  There was a nice piece of art on one wall there and several on another.  In a corner was the art representation of a famous Polish soccer player.  Jacek first checked to make sure that no drug transaction was taking place before he would let us take any photo there. The street looked rather innocuous but Jacek said that no police would come to this street to look into any incident as it was too dangerous.

The theater that used
to be a synagogue

Praga, unlike Warsaw, was not flattened because the Nazis did not feel that it merit any action at all.  Though the building which was actually successfully held by the Polish uprising is located here.  Here as well was a synagogue that the Soviet turned into a theatre, its original intent indicated by the image of the Torah on the front.  Not far from there was what used to be a Jewish ritual bath.  It is now a special school for those unable to cope with the normal school.  Students can be observed smoking there when smoking is totally banned in normal schools.

The famed bar

We were shown the bar opposite the police station, and a stone throw from that Ghetto Street and the night market, where the Russian mafia tried to take over from the Polish mafia only to end up dead in a shoot out.  Although the event occurred opposite the police station, even the police would not participate.  

The Russian Orthodox church

Our final stop was the Russian Orthodox church.  From there, we went our separate way. We had to hurry as we had less than half an hour to get to the meeting point for the Jewish free walking tour.  We hurried to the other side of the bridge, noting the great view it offered of the Castle and the natural bank of the river.  We made a mental note that after the Jewish tour, we need to come back here to check out nature.  

We were only just in time for the Jewish tour.  Martina, another linguist is our guide.  There were quite a few Israelis in that big crowd that turned up.  Two other Australians, two Turkish, and a bunch from Canada and US, with 4 Quebecois who identified themselves as being from Quebec rather than Canada (how very odd folks these are). 

Warsaw Nike (Monument to the Heroes
of Warsaw Uprising in front of the Blue
Met building

4m Jews inhibited Warsaw prior to WWII.  Today only 600 are left.  Many had left to resettle elsewhere after the war.  Warsaw had the second largest Jewish population, after New York. 

First stop on this tour was what is now the MetLife blue crystal building.  It occupied what was the synagogue before Warsaw was leveled.  The SS Gen stationed in Warsaw wanted to destroy Judaism altogether so it was inevitable that he should himself blow up that synagogue, but from the comfort of a viewing point with a remote trigger mechanism.  Thereafter, a curse was placed on that spot of land by a rabbi who had proclaimed that it will be a prayer house or nothing at all.  Over the years, all building projects there had failed for one reason or another.  Current owner of the MetLife building took to heed the curse warning so he gave two floors of that building to the Jewish community so that it can be also place of prayer.  The small Jewish community accepted.  There is a prayer space and community spaces in the building.  Finally, the building was successfully completed.

Mark on the ground where
the wall used to be

The garden where the wall traversed

We were shown the only building that was not flattened in Warsaw - a small rotunda which now forms part of the tram station.  From there we walked to where the wall of the ghetto used to be.  It is now a garden, with the wall's position marked on the ground by bricks.  We learn that there were two parts of the Ghetto, the bigger one for all the Jews, the smaller one for the Ashkenazi Orthodox who wanted a quieter place.  Where our apartment is, was part of that elite Jewish ghetto.  But these two were separated by an important street (Chodlan) that the Germans refused to let the Jews have.  The two halves were linked by a bridge over the walls, allowing the Jews as they move from one part to another to have a glimpse of normal Polish life outside the walls.  This was the German way of making ghetto life more unbearable emotionally.

The ghetto was forced to be self sufficient.  No one was allowed to come out.  There was high unemployment and bad sanitary conditions so many died.  It also explained why when the Jews were transported to concentration camps, they did not appear to resist.  They had gotten so used to being resettled and sent into forced labour, so they thought it to be another incident of the same nature. 

We were shown what used to be a vibrant trading street in the Jewish quarter but now all that remain are parts of the original train tracks.  The place is now a parking lot for learner drivers in Warsaw.   From there, we went to the compound of the POLIN (Museum of History of Polish Jews) where there is a memorial to the Jewish uprising.  On the front, a relief picture of the actual uprising.  The same monument is erected in Israel, identical in all respects except that the woman with child is not showing her breast.  At the back of the monument, the relief of Jews in transportation.  Martina explained that around 1/3 of the Jews in the world currently have Polish connection.  The uprising was not so much to try to win a battle against the Nazis but to take back their dignity.  She also explained that POLIN has a great exhibit about the history of the Jews, with the Holocaust taking only a small part of that exhibit, as it should be.  We felt that we would have to come back to this museum after the tour.

Monument to Jewish uprising in front of POLIN

The other side of the
monument

Our next stop was where the Jewish uprising took place led by Mordecei which stood against the Nazi for an entire month despite being outnumbered and outgunned.  The entire group had elected to commit suicide once it was clear that they would not win.  They made one of them escape so that he could tell the world about the Jewish uprising.  He ended up surviving the war and lived until 2009.  After the war, Jewish survivors were perceived with disdain and suspicions as it was generally thought that they actually betrayed their families and friends just to live.  Mass suicide as a result of the Jewish uprising meant the site of the memorial is also a cemetery for all involved, bar 1.

The gathering point to transport to extermination camps

Our final destination was the assembly point where the Jews were packed into cattle rail cars bound for Trebeka.  Unlike believed, it was not a working camp but a death camp.  The sole purpose was extermination.  SS made the Jews believed that they were being requested to take a purification bath before he gassed them to their death.

It was the end of the walking tour, so we next made our way back to POLIN.  There, as we had our really late lunch of a muesli cookie and coffee, we met school children making a presentation there with their teacher.  The audio guide to the POLIN was 10 PLZ and entrance 25 PLZ.  The visit was very informative.  

History began with the Exile by King Nebuccanazer.  Apparently the Torah is the first 5 books of the old testament.  And here is where we learnt why the Jews came to be treated as they were, and how the general populace abetted through their ignorance of warning signs.  In medieval times, Jews became money lenders (they basically invented the future value of money through the concept of usury, which back then frowned on even by the Catholic Church!)  The same nobles who originally borrowed monies to save face with their families and their peers, subsequently begged their kings to expel the Jews from the community and deprive them of their rights to property and assets just so that they do not have to repay the loans.

Attitude to the Jews were mixed throughout history.  The Jews were great book keepers and had good economic sense, so their involvement was always desired by the noblemen who collected taxes.  Some kings even had Jewish mistresses.  But when their egos / face were threatened, it was Jews that they blame for strange events.  There were not few accusations that the Jews abused the Host after the 12^th Century after Trans-Substantiation became part of the Catholic Church's Holy Canon.   Jews were prolific propagators.  In less than two hundred years, their population grew 10 folds.  Through early history, Jews always had the alliance of either patrons of the Catholic Church or kings and rulers. 

The greatest population of Jews over time in Europe was in Poland.  There they had enjoyed the best terms.  But when the throne of Poland became empty, and it was broken into three administration regions of Prussia, Russia and Austria, the tide of fortune turned for the Jews.  Things deteriorated fast.  At the same time, within the Jewish community schisms began – first the orthodox, then the intellectuals, and then there was Yiddish vs Hebrew.  These contributed to more issues.  The Zionist was not something old but something rather new that arose after the Soviet liberation of Poland.  Jews had preferred to pay rather than fight wars.  During the Soviet dominance, they were consequently more heavily taxed.  Both Austria-Hungary and Russia were anti-Semitic. Anti-Semiticism is a creation of the 19th Century.

POLIN is relatively new.  It opened in 2013.  What is nice about this museum is that it gives just the facts, but not conclusions that could be considered propaganda.  It shows the thousand year of history of the largest Jewish community in the world before the Holocaust with a small single section dedicated to the Holocaust.  Photography was not prohibited nor did it incur any additional charges.  Allocate at least half a day to do it properly.  

After the museum, we went back to the Old City with the help of Map.Me app.  Initially, we walked the wrong direction so had to retrace our steps.  POLIN and the Jewish memorials were often not in retail part of Warsaw.  We went back to the same restaurant we ate at the day before and ordered pork knuckles.  We requested this young lady from Hong Kong to help us watch our bags as we went to the bathroom.  When we came back to our seat, two young Polish ladies were telling us that we should watch our bags in the kindest of ways.  It was nice of them to care about strangers.  My travelling companion shared with the young lady from Hong Kong and her presumed very domineering mother some of her life experiences.  The young lady was very thankful.  My travelling companion wished that someone had done the same for her when she was as young as this young lady.

Sunset over Vistula River

After dinner, we hurried to catch the sunset over the Vistula.  We had not been able to make it back to the bridge earlier as desired.  There were some fishermen on the Warsaw bank of the Vistula and they were a little surprised when we turned up.  When we got back to the top of the bridge again, we found this gentleman who was super friendly there.  He really wanted to help my travelling companion take a picture, but she took a photo of me instead.   He tried to teach her a little Polish.  She kept an ear for him but continued to make pictures of the sunset.  He left shortly thereafter to catch the bus. 

Fire jumping folk dance

As we headed back towards the old town, we saw people making their way through the Warsaw Castle gardens and wondered whether it be possible to make a short cut through there.  When we got to the gates, the guards invited us in : "mademoiselle, please", they said.  We thought it was a private party but it was actually a community event.  We managed to catch the fire jumping ceremony performed by the folk dancers at the end.  My travelling companion was making night picture of the Castle when a fellow photographer appeared from nowhere and said, "you were late. you missed these and these". Marek and her chatted for a bit before we took leave of him to do some night photography of the old city.

Warsaw Castle - east facade

As planned, we took the bus back to the Central Station.  It was close to midnight.  The area was still busy with folks moving around.  We took another wrong turn on the way home but got there in the end.  Not much sleep that night as we were bound for Denmark the following morning.  

14 June - Warsaw Old City - a story of determination

15 June

We woke up early, rushed to finish breakfast in 30 minutes and hurried to the train station.  Our first class Inter-City train coach from Krakow to Warsaw appeared surprisingly did not have wi-fi.  The lady at the ticket office also had gotten it wrong and gave us an aisle seat when we had specifically requested for window.  Although the train was quite full, we were lucky enough to be able to change seat.  There was no charging points at the seats too, only complementary coffee and pay as you eat food service.  There was also no conductor to help with the bags.  Still the seats and the relatively quick journey was comfortable.

Arriving at Warsaw station was easy.  It was when we got to the surface to find our accommodation that we found that we could not cross the road for kilometers at the road level.  Back underground we went .. via stairs dragging all our luggage.   Then we had to get back to the surface via stairs too.  This proved to be challenging until a kindly elderly gentleman helped us.  It was most kind of him.  They are so much stronger than us in the developed nations who are used to the conveniences of elevators and seldom had to climb so many flights of stairs.

Our accommodation was not ready so we decided to wait a little until cleaning was complete.  We had not been so impress with Warsaw thus far.  Another big city lacking distinguishing features of interest.  It looks very much a typical legacy of the Soviet era with huge endless blocks, not warm nor welcoming unlike Krakow.  

Our accommodation appeared to be located in a residential building a street away from a major retail mall.  The supermarket nearest to it was barely stocked and had no washing powder.  The washing machine in the unit looked like that at Dubrovnik, narrow with metal drum on its side.  We had no idea how to use it, so we made do with handwashing soap and the kitchen sink to do our laundry.

The apartment block looked like an Soviet era big block with graffiti in the security entrance.  The stairs looked dark although there was an elevator.  We were on the fifth floor and it was a tiny bedsitter – 24 to 36 m2, with a bed facing the door, a sofa next to it, a kitchenette, and a bathroom.  3 windows graced the wall opposite the door.  The apartment felt warm and there was no air conditioning.  We were feeling a little uncomfortable about the place.  May be we will feel better after the first night.  

Interior of St Anne's Church

We decided to walk to the Old Town Tour for the afternoon free walking tour.  On the way, we passed the Saxon Gardens.  We did not have time to stay and look today but we made a plan to do so in the coming days as it looked interesting.  Adjacent to it is the eternal flame dedicated to the memory of the Unknown solders guarded by two soldiers.  In front of the memorial is huge square with a flag in the middle and a cross on the further end.  We walked past the President’s Palace, the Parliament.   As we had some time before our tour start, we popped into nearby historical St Anne's Church to have a peek.  We later learnt that it was one of the oldest churches in old town Warsaw as it was only damaged but not destroyed unlike the rest of the old city.  

Sigismund Column with Warsaw
Castle on the right and the old town
to the left

At 3.30pm, we went to Sigismund’s Column and found the tour group with our tour guide. First thing we learnt was that Warsaw old town is the newest old town; barely 60 years old. It was reconstructed after WWII.  During that reconstruction, they took great pain to revive it to the great extent possible, using salvaged parts and adding in the rest.  In the case of the Arch Cathedral, they even went to the length of only using the construction techniques and mechanisms that were available at the original time of construction.  Everything in the old town - Barbican and the city walls, etc … all of which looked like they were not much newer than Krakow - all that had been reconstructed.  The great care to restore it as much as possible to the original state earned it the UNESCO Heritage certification.

Our guide said that there is a superstition that the sword of Sigismund must never touch the ground or the city would fall.  And the only time in history it had done so was when the city of Warsaw was leveled by the Nazis.

Our first stop, the Warsaw Castle was also reconstructed.  Resembling the original which was constructed over time, with each of the 5 sides with architecture of 5 different genres.  Sigismund II who moved his capital from Krakow to Warsaw was Swede.  He was the same king that exploded half of Wawel Castle in Krakow after an alchemy experiment.  Krakow was mostly Catholic while Sigismund was Protestant.  Part of why he moved the capital to Warsaw was so that he can go back to being Protestant and king of both Poland (Catholic) and Sweden.  His castle in Warsaw was nothing as grand as Wawel.  It was restricted by existing buildings and the city wall.  It was a requirement that the castle be within the city walls for protection.

We learnt that 95% of Warsaw was flatted following the 2^nd WW.  As the old city looks authentic and yet feel Disneyland-ish, one cannot get the vibes as one could in Krakow. Yet, the history is here is important and preserved.  One has to give credit to the will of the people of Warsaw at the time of the reconstruction as it was during the Soviet era when monies for such matters were scarce.  Soviet also had little appetite either for all matters that were non-utilitarian.

The narrowest facade - in the middle

We passed the Arch Cathedral where that special technique of reconstruction was used. Salvaged Gothic bricks from the original cathedral were also reused.   We then visited the bell that would not ring but could grant wishes.  Tradition had it that wishes would be granted at the rate of one a day provided that one hopped around it when holding on to its stem. Next to it is this very narrow gate where we were told the story of the pauper in the street who was offered a free house.  Since taxes were paid based on facade width, he built a super narrow one facing the street although the building is actually a triangle with a wide face where taxes are not calculated.

We past a museum dedicated to Marie Curie, the discoverer of radium.  We also learn of Chopin.  Both of them were Poles from Warsaw.  Her maiden name was Sklodowskiej.  They lived during a time when the nation of Poland did not exist; it was divided administratively between Prussia, Russia and Austria.  Curie’s family won the most Nobel Prizes in history.  Her husband had one as had her daughter and son in law.  Chopin used to drink with his friends on this path near where a bench dedicated to his memory is currently sited.  There are 15 such benches in Warsaw; they each play a tune of Chopin.

We were then introduced to the market square where a whole side is being renovated as it will become the future Museum of History.  In the middle of the square is the statue of a mermaid.  The legend was that the twin sister to the mermaid from Denmark swam up the Vitula River.  She was captured and freed but wanted to stay in Warsaw.  In return, she promised to protect the city, hence she holds a sword and a shield.  The market square has the copy of the original statue which is in the museum due to a few defacement.

Building in the square with mermaid statue

Wall and Barbican, Warsaw

Buildings in the square were reconstructed to resemble how they would have looked had they not been flattened.  The levels in individual buildings differ from those of its neighbours. In spite of the outer facade, the rooms behind it complied to Soviet's austerity standard. From the square, we went to examine the Barbican and the city wall which looked terribly authentic, except there were no rubble or ruins nearby.

Warsaw Rebellion monument

Our next stop was the monument to the Warsaw Rebellion where the people of Warsaw rebelled against the Nazis.  It was supposed to last 2 days but lasted 63 during which many were sacrificed.  The Red Army was already across the river but did not enter the city to help until everything had been flattened by the Nazis.  One can only guess their reason for the delay as Poland was immediately occupied by the Soviets thereafter.  The surviviors attempted to escape through the sewers.

Monkey on the roof of the villa

We then came upon this building where there is a statue of a monkey with bananas sitting with other statues of the Renaissance era.  Bellotto's paintings were used when the city was being reconstructed.  Bellotto had not like the lady of the villa so he had hidden the non existent monkey among the statues because he thought of her as a monkey.  That monkey was subsequently incorporated for real during the reconstruction.

At the end of our tour, we went to the milk bar recommended by our guide for a dinner of zupy and pierogis.  Originally we would like to stay to see the night lights but as we were still feeling the after effect of our cold, we decided to walk home. As we zig zagged through the blocks, we notice people were going through doors in long buildings and then exiting on the other side.  It dawned on us that there are easements through the centers of those huge Soviet blocks.  The locals were using short cuts so we took their leads.  We looked for such easements we were passing a huge blocks and got back to our apartment in shorter time that it took us to walk to the old town.

We slept well but fitfully that night.  We had placed furniture in front of the door and used the sofa for our bed.  It was safe even though we originally did not think so.  As the evening progressed, families started to appear in the apartments opposite us.  As we had learnt, these buildings constructed in Soviet era complied with austerity standard as the one we were staying it.  Apartments were extremely small with few bathrooms.  Soviet dictated that singles need only 24 m2, married ones 36 m2 and family with one kid 40 m2, and second kid to 42 m2 etc.  All the apartments were tiny.  Aha, that explain the look and feel of our apartment … it is an old Soviet block!!

13 June - Wieliczka Salt Mine, Poland (one of the world's oldest working mine till 2007)

It was good to change mood after that somber visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau.  The coach journey to Wieliczka would take around 2 hrs (1.5 hr to get to Krakow, then another 0.5 hr to the mine) in the traffic.  The mine is located to the south of Krakow while Auschwitz was due west.  Michael gave us our pack lunch to eat on the bus enroute.  Traffic was better than expected.  We arrived at our destination at 3.40pm ahead of the scheduled 4.25pm.  We had the opportunity to explore the town itself.

interior of St Clement

Garden dedicated to memory of Pope John Paul II

From the coach stop opposite the mine to the town, we passed a garden dedicated to the memory of Pope John Paul II.  At the end of the garden, was a Zupny Castle which used to be the headquarter office for the salt mine.  Opposite it, the Church of St Clement.  We decided to take a peek into the church.  It is a very ornate church.  We were alone in the church for a while which allowed us to explore and appreciate the richness of the artwork within.  

Zupny Castle
one the headquarters
of Wieliczka Mine

We then went over to visit Zupny Castle which has a history that dates back to medieval times.  There was information on how salt was processed once it reached the surface.  we then went back to the salt mine entrance where our scheduled tour would start at 4.25pm.  

At 4.25, our petite tour guide appeared.  In our initial briefing we learnt that the mine has ceased commercial operation as a mine and is UNESCO heritage listed.  It was one of the world's oldest working mine until 2007.  We also had to watch a safety video.  The mine has 3 level.  Our initial entry will be to the first of the levels via 54 flights of stairs.  

looking down the
stairwell of 54 flights

The stairs were hewn out of polished wood. Everything inside the mine was made of wood.  When salt interacts with wood, it made wood stronger.  The interior of the mine were supported by logs.  You can almost taste the salt particles in the air even though this mine is no longer functioning.  Apparently there are spas operating here in the re-purposed mine serving those with respiratory issues.  May be that is why we had not cough once since entering the mine even though at times we had breathed heavily from the exertion of stairs climbing.

Exhibit of old mine mechanism

on the machinery.  Sweet water as opposed to super saturated brine was a danger to the walls of the mine which were carved from salt themselves.  Rock salt was extracted in pillars.  Back then salt worth the same price as silver.  In a world of no refrigeration, salt was the only preserving ingredient. 

A story associated with this mine was that of princess Kanga who became St Kanga at some point.  She had asked for a salt mine as her dowry from her father, the king.  She then dropped her engagement ring into it to claim it.  Down the road, she recovered that ring when she asked her people to dig somewhere along the route she was travelling to her husband.  She used the example of her engagement ring to answer her father's question of how the salt would be transported from where he gave it to her to where she would need the salt.

In the mines are several chapels and a huge cathedral, and two pools spread over three levels (800 steps from the surface to the 3rd level, with 378 steps to the 1^st level).  Most of the level were sufficiently tall for tall visitors to stand upright.  Many of the support pillars were painted white (to reflect open fires lamps so that it is brighter in the mine).  Like all mines, methane gas release is a hazard.  Since open flame lamps were used for lighting, there was a need to do methane flashes to prevent explosions.  To ensure sufficient ventilation, there are double doors at regular intervals along the tunnels to maintain the appropriate air pressure.  We were advised to watch our fingers as we entered through one and exit to the other and to ensure that the one we entered was closed before we open the one we exit.  The group observed the safety rules well.  

Big retail room

Supersaturated brine pool

Spread throughout the mine now are several cafes and souvenir shops.  The group had a short rest in a restaurant area and shopping area in the middle of the tour.  In this area, there were also several impressive sculptures carved from substantive.  When we left this space, we entered a tunnel where there were other salt sculptures depicting historical scenes.  The finding of the engagement ring by Princess Kanga, and miners doing methane flashing.  There were also exhibits showing miners and their horses in the tunnels moving and mining salt, dewatering the mine, and feeding and watering the horses.  Later the lines along the salt wall show where the miners started using machines in place of pick axes.  There were several more salt sculptures before we descended the second set of stairs into the next level.

The first chapel

There were more salt sculptures here.  This second level was worked on from the beginning of the 19th Century.  We visited our first of the underground chapels here.  There are several spread through the mines for miners to pray in.  

Hanging from the ceiling was a chandelier fashioned from salt crystals.  The pace of the walking tour was quite fast.  At one point one of our visitors lost a group member.  We had heard her call out but did not think much of it as she and her husband has a young child with them.  It turned out that she had taken a wrong turn we passed a junction.  We were about to start a back track search when she appeared, having been redirected by another guide.  We decided to keep an eye on her and started a conversation with them.  They were from Kuala Lumpur.  She was from Pondicherry but she has no accent as she went to a great Mission school there.

Overview of The Cathedral from gallery

Altar of the Cathedral

The grandest space in this level is the Cathedral with all its statues sculpted from salt pillars. We learnt that all the salt sculptures in the mine are not carved by professional artists but by the miners themselves.  There were several grand rock crystal chandeliers.  The higher than usual walls were all carved in salt.  Religious and historical scenes as well as statues scattered through the cathedral.  Even the floor was carved from salt to look like laid tiles. The Cathedral is an active one.  Every Sunday morning, a Mass is held here.

Grotto reflected
in 2nd supersaturated
brine pool

Beautiful sculptures from rock salt

The Cathedral exit led us to the third level of the mine.  At this level, there is a pool of supersaturated brine.  There is a model of how machinery pulled cars filled with salt to the surface.  We had come to the last large chamber of our tour route.  The total length of the tour was 3.5km.  It took us around 3 hrs to complete the trip that covered barely 2% of the total length of tunnels in the mine (total = 287km).  In this final chamber, we found a huge restaurant / space that was suitable for a grand ball.  Beautifully decorated with yet more sculptures, the second super saturated pool is found here.  Leaving this chamber to get to the elevator which we would take to the surface, we passed another chapel.  This chapel was decorated with what looked like stained glass windows. They were salt crystal panels. This was followed by a section with murals to resemble an underpass in a typical town.

   

The second chapel

The entire mine was presented as if it were a retail space or a museum by itself with featured attractions along the way.  It has indeed been transformed into one where the exhibit is underground mining of soft rock.  We were then 130m below the surface.  We spent some time examining the beautiful wall and other areas around the chamber as there were many sub chambers attached to this massive one.  .  

The way to the hidden
entrance of the
elevator

We took a quick elevator to the surface, to find ourselves behind the Church of St Clement that we had visited earlier.  Aha, we now realised that underlying that the entire town of Wieliczka is the salt mine itself.
 

Michael whose nickname
in Polish means bear with me

On the way back to Krakow, Michael introduced us to Tune In Radio, an app that enables one to tune in to the radio anyway in the world digitally.  Wow, that is a cool app.  We will download later at the hotel. We chatted about Australia.  He said he would see us there in winter.  This young man was eager to get home to see travel stuff on Croatia.  

We dropped off near the railway station.  We would pick up some snacks for the morning journey to Warsaw.  It was still light so we decided to see if we can catch the dragon at the river bank breathing fire.   We walked through the old city again all the way to Wawel Castle. 

Fire breathing
dragon outside
Wawel Castle wall

At the dragon, a group of  Spanish girls trying to get a picture with a fire breathing dragon. Coincidentally, the dragon had spurted out fire momentarily when we got there.  We had managed to capture that.  There was an unpleasant guys who wanted to take a photo with the beauties and he was calling them chicken for not wanting to be photographed with him.  Weirdo.  They consented after he tried that tactic several times on them.  We thought that they should have asked him to beg since he was so rude and demanding.  He did not even compliment them or thank them for the photo before he was showing off to his friends as if he had won a trophy.  What a jerk!!  Unfortunately for them, their photographer did not manage to capture them with the fire breathing dragon.  

Wawel Castle was unfortunately closed for the night so we could get only external night shots.  The moon was already rising behind it.  We wandered back through the Market Square, Florian Gate and the Theatre before getting back to the hotel. We did get some interesting night shots of that beautiful city.  

Night photographs of the city will be published on Sylvia's Photos shortly.
Link : https://www.facebook.com/SylviaTanPhotography/