Day 2 in Warsaw *or* If it doesn't rain, it pours.
It is pouring outside. I just walked 1.6 km in the rain and I am ready curl up in a warm bed and sleep. Alas, I cannot. I need to buy some supper and go to the Yiddish theatre tonight. Actually, I am really excited about that, but I am also really wet...
Today started with a delicious breakfast of sugary Kellogg's exported-to-Eastern-Europe brand cereal. Sort of like cinnamon toast crunch but with more sugar. I figured I would walk it off, and I SO did.
First thing I did after breakfast was to go the Nova Praga, to find the house where my grandfather used to live in. The area was not a great area. I went in an open coutryard and started taking pictures, and the people living in the houses came out and STARED at me. Not saying anything (not that I would have understood them if they HAD), but they just stared. The first few houses on Schwetska street had been turned into a parking lot (if they were ever there), but the house I think was £6 was still there. It had a courtyard and was 3 stories tall. It was awkward to take pictures with so many andgry-looking men around, but I did.. ha!
I went next to the older cemetery, which was just down the street. It was locked, and was mostly ruins. There were not many gravestones, they had been used to make roads, just grass and trees and a few headstones. The cemetery was locked, so I took a few pictures through the gate and caught the tram back accross the Vistula.
Next I went back to the store under the synagogue, where I had bought the neck-turing-green pendant. The man was fine with me exchanging it. I have a new one that happily says .925 and I am not yet green.
After that I walked down the streets where the ghetto uprising took place, down the the Umschlagplatz, where people were taked to be deported. The train tracks were gone, with plaques on office buildings and street corners, often with candles and fresh wreaths of flowers.
I was hungry after the umschlagplatz, but I noticed that I had forgotten my debit card at the hostel and I was almost out of Zloty. Eek! I had enough for admission to museums and a little lunch. I stopped at a farmer's produce stand (they are all around the urban city) and bought a bunch of radishes. What a great 1.50zl purchase!!
Next I visited (and remember, it took at LEAST 30 mins of walking and subwaying and then more walking and maybe a tram or two also to reach all of these locations) the Jewish Historical Centre. I watched their (v. graphic) film on the Warsaw Ghetto, and looked at their displays, then I went upstairs to talk to their offices of geneological research. They were not much help. I told them the names I was searching for and they logged onto Jewishgen. Grr! I can do that at home! They were nice and had interesting things to say but were not much help.
After that museum I went to the Warsaw uprising museum, stopping on the way at a little jewelery store who was selling silver and amber rings for only 23 zl!! I bought the cutest ring, and if it falls apart, I will get my 23 zl out of it. And besides, it has the .925 on it...
The Warsay uprising is a different event than the ghetto uprising, and is supposed to be one of the best museums in Poland. Well, the museum was shiny and there were actually signs in English. The room for children was a little strange though. There were tanks to colour, and they could dress up in an army uniform and pose behind the barracade. A video was playing with a children's choir singing about how good it would be to die for children to die fighting. They had a theatre that showed an interesting film, and entrance was only 2zl (30-40cents), so I was happy.
Then the rain started and the walking started, and here I am. And that is all for now!
Today started with a delicious breakfast of sugary Kellogg's exported-to-Eastern-Europe brand cereal. Sort of like cinnamon toast crunch but with more sugar. I figured I would walk it off, and I SO did.
First thing I did after breakfast was to go the Nova Praga, to find the house where my grandfather used to live in. The area was not a great area. I went in an open coutryard and started taking pictures, and the people living in the houses came out and STARED at me. Not saying anything (not that I would have understood them if they HAD), but they just stared. The first few houses on Schwetska street had been turned into a parking lot (if they were ever there), but the house I think was £6 was still there. It had a courtyard and was 3 stories tall. It was awkward to take pictures with so many andgry-looking men around, but I did.. ha!
I went next to the older cemetery, which was just down the street. It was locked, and was mostly ruins. There were not many gravestones, they had been used to make roads, just grass and trees and a few headstones. The cemetery was locked, so I took a few pictures through the gate and caught the tram back accross the Vistula.
Next I went back to the store under the synagogue, where I had bought the neck-turing-green pendant. The man was fine with me exchanging it. I have a new one that happily says .925 and I am not yet green.
After that I walked down the streets where the ghetto uprising took place, down the the Umschlagplatz, where people were taked to be deported. The train tracks were gone, with plaques on office buildings and street corners, often with candles and fresh wreaths of flowers.
I was hungry after the umschlagplatz, but I noticed that I had forgotten my debit card at the hostel and I was almost out of Zloty. Eek! I had enough for admission to museums and a little lunch. I stopped at a farmer's produce stand (they are all around the urban city) and bought a bunch of radishes. What a great 1.50zl purchase!!
Next I visited (and remember, it took at LEAST 30 mins of walking and subwaying and then more walking and maybe a tram or two also to reach all of these locations) the Jewish Historical Centre. I watched their (v. graphic) film on the Warsaw Ghetto, and looked at their displays, then I went upstairs to talk to their offices of geneological research. They were not much help. I told them the names I was searching for and they logged onto Jewishgen. Grr! I can do that at home! They were nice and had interesting things to say but were not much help.
After that museum I went to the Warsaw uprising museum, stopping on the way at a little jewelery store who was selling silver and amber rings for only 23 zl!! I bought the cutest ring, and if it falls apart, I will get my 23 zl out of it. And besides, it has the .925 on it...
The Warsay uprising is a different event than the ghetto uprising, and is supposed to be one of the best museums in Poland. Well, the museum was shiny and there were actually signs in English. The room for children was a little strange though. There were tanks to colour, and they could dress up in an army uniform and pose behind the barracade. A video was playing with a children's choir singing about how good it would be to die for children to die fighting. They had a theatre that showed an interesting film, and entrance was only 2zl (30-40cents), so I was happy.
Then the rain started and the walking started, and here I am. And that is all for now!
posted by Melamondiale @ 7:42 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home