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Hi Monika,
Sorry it took me so long to reply, but I am a slow writer and knew that it would take me a long time to write a reply. I have attached a letter detailing it, but basically, I am glad that I took the trip and appreciated your services.
My first thoughts in Poland were how modern and beautiful Poland was. The buses at the airport were really modern looking. The parking garage at the Krakow airport was a surprise. The new houses on the trip between the airport and the city made me think of the Mediterranean because the walls were plastered and they had clay tile roofs. My hotel room in Krakow was not only beautiful, but included the latest technology from electric conserving devices to water conserving appliances to the flat TV. This was the best hotel of the trip. I took Marcin’s services for granted, but now realize how lucky I was to have his help, from meeting me at the airport to rearranging my tours in the best possible way due to the plane delay, to meeting me the next morning and making sure that I was able to find a Catholic Mass in English. I also enjoyed Michael’s personality as we toured the next day in Krakow and the conversation we enjoyed as we toured and compared some parts of our lives as well as the history of Krakow. I was disappointed that I could not see inside of some of the buildings, especially the Royal Castle, but did understand the reason. I hoped I would be able to pick up some inside touring later, but wasn’t able to do that because of the time limits. The lively crowds in the Old Town of Krakow and the street life were enjoyable and Saturday night I even found a bar with rock music and flashing lights where the beat never stopped, and even though I am too old for that anymore, it reminded me for a while, of when I was younger. I ate most of my meals in the hotel restaurant.
The train ride to Warsaw was interesting because I was able to see some of the countryside in addition to the towns. The countryside was green and reminded me a little of Ohio, my home state. The train I took had seat numbers in no particular order which was confusing, but it was an adequate trip.
Although I enjoyed Warsaw less than the other two cities, I needed to see that side of Poland and am glad that I did see it. Warsaw is a big, bustling, booming metropolis. I felt a little guilty when Silva came to pick me up for my tour of the city because she wasn’t feeling well that day, but she had taken some medicine and came for me anyway, but I knew that I needed her to get around to see the city. We walked for hours and saw the old town. When we were near the Royal Castle, I commented how I would like to see inside of it and she arranged for me to tour it with another couple while she took a communications tour and we met up afterwards. I was impressed with the intricacy and beauty of the inlaid wood parquet floors of the Royal Castle. I also thoroughly enjoyed the paintings and wished I had more time to admire them. I thought that the Polish castle compared favorably to the French palace of Versailles on the inside, but was a little plain on the outside. The Royal Castle was the highlight of my trip to Warsaw. In Warsaw I saw monument after monument to this uprising or to those people murdered. I saw bullet holes left from the resistance and Nazi fighting. I saw the Old Town and part of the old wall from around the city, also some new modern buildings and the new sports arena going up for the 2012 games. We also saw a current demonstration going on at the president’s house about the plane crash which had killed the president of Poland and his wife. At one point, we rode a streetcar for a short distance, which was interesting. While we were walking around, it became lunchtime, so we stopped to eat at a sidewalk restaurant. I enjoyed having company for lunch. Silva was very considerate and took time to show me a wide range of different sights and took my interests into consideration. She also encouraged me to walk around from my hotel and I found an indoor, three level shopping mall in Warsaw with all of the current name brand stores and restaurants including a McDonalds, but the menu was only in Polish so I was afraid to order there. My Warsaw hotel room was the smallest of the rooms that I had, but it was adequate. The hotel restaurant closed at 6:00 PM (1800 hrs), so I was forced to go elsewhere for my suppers, with mixed results.
Gdansk was perhaps the most beautiful of the three cities, although I enjoyed the atmosphere better in Krakow, which was also beautiful. My tour guide in Gdansk was a little more business like than the others but was also good in explaining the significance of things as we looked at them. There was a church that we saw where he said that the first time he remembered it, it was a shell with weeds growing inside of it, but now it is closed in and can be used as a church. We saw a clock with figures that came out and moved about at the hour. We saw memorial after memorial for this uprising or that revolt or for these people who had been murdered or some others who had been murdered whether by Nazis, Russians or someone earlier. This was more of the same as in Warsaw and I was thinking what about something for the living instead of the dead. However, it finally began to sink in that these are recent memories in Poland in the time of people’s parents and grandparents and left a mark on the memories of the Polish people. It also occurred to me that not only was this more recently by the Nazis and Communists, but also earlier by the Prussians, Swedes, Teutonic Knights and Tartars. Although this is not enjoyable, it is something that I needed to understand. Even though my ancestors left Poland before the Nazis and Communists, Poland had already suffered at others hands and had been divided between the victors, Prussia, Russia, and Austria. I had picked up some literature that said that there was one house in Gdansk where they had restored the inside to its’ original condition and you could see how the original owners lived in it. I asked my guide about this and he didn’t know of it. The morning I was leaving I had just enough time to find this house and tour its interior on my own. I’m glad, because not only did they have some furniture of the time in it, but also some stoves for heating rooms and a stove in the kitchen for cooking, which gave me some idea of how people lived in those times.
Although the primary reason for my trip to Poland was to see where my ancestors came from and what their life might have been like, I also realized that in America I can see structures from the seventeenth century and recreations of what life was like back then, but cannot go back earlier. In Europe, I was hoping to see what life was like in earlier times, such as in the fifteenth century. Additionally, one of my hobbies is drawing house plans. So I was a little disappointed that I did not get to see inside more early buildings, such as Wawel Castle or any other early homes, but I understood that my time was limited.
I did have some problems when I was on my own. For example, when I went to the post office in Krakow to mail some post cards, the signs were all in Polish and it took me some minutes to realize I needed to take a number and wait for my number to be served instead of just standing in line. I also occasionally had trouble finding a restaurant with a menu in English. Additionally, I am behind the times in my technological understanding and had trouble with communication and my cell phone. Perhaps it is my fault for not making the effort to learn more about my cell phone. I had rented a cell phone to use in Europe and received it in the mail a day or so before I left for Poland. I did not understand how to use it except to make calls and then wasn’t too sure about what numbers I needed to dial to call in Poland. When I arrived back to Warsaw the second time, to fly home, my ride did not find me at the airport. Although I did reach Marcin to let him know, he could not call me back because I must have had the ringer turned to silence. Eventually, I got tired of waiting and took a taxi to my hotel. When I was to go back to the airport for my return flight home, my driver had an accident coming for me and was not able to pick me up, so a taxi was called. I paid for both taxis. Since they were not too expensive and it would be troublesome and inconvenient trying to get a refund, I just chalked these up to part of the experiences of traveling.
I would like to go back to Krakow again, but doubt that will ever happen. My money is limited and there are other places I would like to see where I haven’t been yet.
Thank you and Marcin and all of your associates for a wonderful trip. I could not have made my way around without their help.
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Richard - 1 pax from the USA travelled with us to Poland in the end of September 2010.
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