Museum Mania!!!

Well our trip is sadly coming to an end. We have had so many amazing experiences here in Poland thanks to numerous Rotary and Rotaract Clubs. I hope to come back again someday.

From folk art at the Lublin Castle Museum

 I was able to visit over 20 museums throughout the country and have learned so much about Poland's rich culture and history. There are so many stories to tell and much more to learn.

and ethnographic museums in Torun and Olsztynek...

to contemporary art at MS and MS2 in Lodz 

and in Olsztyn.

From archaeology

at the museum in Wroclaw...

to astronomy in Torun

and Olsztyn.

 From devastation in Warsaw ...

to fostering creativity in Lodz.

It is obvious that Poland has an enduring spirit, a passion for enjoying life and people who really care about preserving and sharing all of these stories. We were lucky enough to be toured around musuems by conservators, facilities directors, educators and often to areas that are generally closed to the public. Thank you to all the people who took time out of their busy schedules to make this possible!

Inspiration from Students and Rotarians

Lodz is a city of reinvention and perseverance. It has overcome foreign occupation, the collapse of its textile manufacturing economy, and the horror of Nazi-imposed ghettos and death camps. Today, we learned about the small triumphs that are still occurring every day in this beautiful city.

We visited a school for physically and mentally disabled children and young adults. We were warmly greeted by the school's director and staff before being treated to a delightful student performance of "Puss in Boots". The enthusiasm and excitement that the kids exhibited during their performance was contagious - it was definitely the highlight of my day.

We were then taken on a tour of the student facilities. Some of the students are permanent residents of the school, while others spend part of their time at the school and part with their families. Despite somewhat limited resources and some recent cut-backs, the school provides medical care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, life management training, general education, and arts education. In addition to theatre, many students learn painting, woodworking, felting, cross-stitching, and other crafts. Some of the students have become such skilled artisans that their works are sold throughout Poland and the world. 

 

The school has been aided by Rotarians around the world. In addition to donations from Australia, the U.S. and elsewhere, Rotarians in Lodz have aided in purchasing mini-buses, a lawnmower and kitchen equipment for the schools. All of these items ensure that the students can learn additional skills, have the care they need and engage in their community.

The most heart-warming part of the experience for me was witnessing the obvious affection shared between the teachers, staff and students. The teachers were patient and encouraging. The students' faces would light up each time we walked into a room with the school's director. He demonstrated a deeply-felt sense of warmth and kindness and seemed to have a personal relationship with each one of the 126 students in his care. I was truly in awe of the students, staff and rotarians who made this school possible.

-Posted by Jessica

Lodz- City of Reinvention

We are now in lovely Lodz (sounds like woodge.) This city is different from the other cities we've visited as it has no central old town/city square area. Wroclaw (vroswav), where we just left, is pictured here for comparison.

Lodz is a city that was established through industry. There were hundereds of textile factories, the buildings built to house the factory workers and an occassional palace where the factory owners would live. It was a thriving industrial city until (believe it or not) the US outlawed slavery. This so drastically reduced the supply of cotton available for these factories that the whole industry essentially collapsed. It is likely that other factors played a role, too, but this definitley contributed to the decline.

In the enduring spirit of Polish reinvention, Lodz is now renovating these old factory buildings to house museums, offices, etc. The largest project to date is called Manufactura and is now a thriving alternative to a town square.  There is a factory museum there as well as numerous shops, eateries, movie theater, performance spaces, art galleries, public art and venues for all sorts of festivals and events. 

One of the larger buildings has been beatuifully preserved/restored as a hotel that uses the old water storage tank as the swimming pool and nicely blends the feel of the original building with some modern updates necessary to make it a functioning hotel.

Also on property is the longest fountain in Europe, which marks where a river used to run through the town.

The fatory was owned by a Jewish family whose mausoleum we happend to see in the Jewish cemetary we visited today. As I understand, a French company is responsible for funding the Manufactura project.

 We are doing so much here everyday and there are countless interesting stories and photos we'd like to share. It may take a while...

Wroclaw

A snapshot of an incredible lights & sound show at a large fountain space next to Centennial Hall in Wroclaw.  It's done twice a night and it's free to the public!

Our internet access isn't always predictable, so bear with us as we travel, we are trying to post updates as often as we can.  We've just spent a few days in wonderful Wroclaw, where we've had vocational days, museum visits, club presentations, a BBQ, and fun times spent with new friends.  It has been most interesting not only to see what we've learned from our Polish counterparts, but seeing what new insights we bring to them too.

-posted by Mary

Polish Folklore 101: Vampires, Zmory and the Devil's Paw

We have seen so many wonderful things on our journey to Poland and can now add Lublin Castle to the Top Ten list.

The day started with a behind the scenes tour of the preservation and conservation department. Here we saw painting is several stages of the restoration process. It can take anywhere from one month to one year of continuous work to restore a painting to its original glory.

One of the most intriguing things has been the Folklore exhibit at Lublin Castle.

In the Spirits Room, we learned about Polish customs used to protect from vampires and a demon called Zmory - believed to take form in a man's seventh daughter.

To protect against these mythical creatures, the folklore states people would place a trail of poppy seeds leading from the front door. Before a vampire could enter a home, he would first have to count each poppy seed; this would hopefully protect the home until morning.



Stakes and garlic were not able to kill a vampire, only stop it in its tracks. Once stunned, the vamipires head would need to be cut off with a large saw.

For protection against the Zmory, a chalk circle was drawn around a bed and a  row of knives place by the bedside. It was believed that once a target, the Zmory would try to enter a person's sleeping quarters to posess them.  Someone would need to sit by the target's bedside to ensure the Zmory did not break the circle.

Also of interest was the Devil's Paw. A large wooden table used for signing important documents had a hand etched in the middle. It was believed that if a person placed thier hand atop the etching and it was a perfect fit, they had the devil inside them.

Luckily, I passed the test!

New Old and Old Old

We left Warsaw yesterday after a wonderful stay. It is a beautiful and vibrant city with one of the most interesting histories of any city I've been to. In addition to the Warsaw Uprising, the story of Old Town is very fascinating. The city was essentially leveled during WWII. However many years previous to the war there was an Italian painter who was enamoured with the city and painted the buildings in great detail. During the post-war reconstrucion efforts these paintings were used as references to recreate this part of the city as it had been many years ago. Although the locals informed us that it is mainly tourists who visit this area, it is quaint, charming and made us all crave ice cream! (They sell it on every corner it seems.)

We are now in Lublin which has a similar feel, but these buildings really are hundreds of years old! The locals take great pride in the fact that these are original, and for good reason. When we were asked why we keep taking photos of  "things that are ugly" (referring to the areas of the buildings that are showing wear) we had to admit that it just feels special somehow...

And while we did not end up getting ice cream from any of the street vendors, we did have the opportunity to indulge at a lovely restaurant that used to be a water powered grain mill.

Greetings from Lublin!

After three wonderful and exciting days in Warsaw, including our first Rotary Club presentation (in Polish!)...

we have arrived in the beautiful and historical city of Lublin.

Our Warsaw host families were so incredibly gracious and hospitable and it is already clear that the same will be true in Lublin. We can't wait to see all of the sights. 

-Posted by Jessica