Current issue:
EVENTS - 07.2009
Turn off the system
Under this slogan, Varsovians celebrated the fall of communism in Poland on June the 4th. Let us recall that on the 4th of June, the first free elections in our country after the Second World War took place, in which „Solidarność” won a significant part, leading to the first non-communist government under Tadeusz Mazowiecki; later, the Berlin Wall fell. Today we are in the European Union and part of NATO, in the shops there are shelves filled with products, we can travel abroad freely, we have freedom of the press... so we had something to celebrate. On Krakowskie Przedmieście Street, crowds watched a multimedia exposition „Sztafeta do wolności 1976-1989” (Relay to Freedom 1976-1989, which showed the victory of ordinary people over the totalitarian system. In the evening, at Plac Teatralny, there was a big concert with bands from the 1980s whose songs were on the hit lists at the time. In a few hundred places in Warsaw – in restaurants, coffee-shops, museums, theaters, and courtyards, between 20:00 and 20:20, we drank toasts of champagne, wine, juice, and milk cocktails, to freedom.
Lublin – a city on seven hills
That is what Lublin has in common with Rome – both cities are situated on seven hills. Adam Wasilewski, the mayor of Lublin, organized a study tour for reporters. Although the weather was bad, we saw a lot, and not just in Lublin itself. We visited Kazimierz Dolny, Zwierzyniec, Kozłówka.
Lublin is a city with nearly 700 years of history, abounding in important events. This year, the city is celebrating the 440-year anniversary of the Polish-Lithuanian Union. The Union joined the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into one body – the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, reigned by one monarch. Presently, Lublin is the largest and most dynamically developing city on the right bank of the Vistula.
Kazimierz Dolny is a city of painters and tourists. They come at the weekends to relax. In the summers there are exhibitions, concerts, and festivals. Centuries ago, Kazimierz fulfilled a completely different function. It was a trade center.
It is worth coming to Zwierzyniec, above all to walk around in its lovely forests and see the farm of tarpans – small horses (so-called primitive horses) which are only found here. In Kozłówka, we can see how the everyday life of a powerful land-owning family looked – this is where the late Baroque residence of the Zamoyskis is located – today it is a museum, but not the only one. There is also a museum of socialist realism here, which has a collection of more than 600 objects.
Will the Hoover monument return?
Herbert Clark Hoover was president of the United States during the years of the greatest crisis, from 1929 to 1933. After the First World War, Hoover served Europe, and Poland too, with his humanitarian activities. Thanks to the help received from the humanitarian organizations he led, more than a million Polish children survived the difficult period of hunger and epidemic from 1919-1921. He also visited Poland personally – and not empty-handed – after the Second World War. He did all of these things as a private citizen. In 1921, the Polish Parliament granted this great American honorary citizenship, and the residents of the capital funded a monument out of gratitude to the American in Hoover Square, in Warsaw. The monument was created by Xawery Dunikowski. Unfortunately, the beautiful sculpture did not survive the war, and afterward there was not any political will to restore it. Does that mean we ought to completely forget about this symbolic monument of gratitude? And can we not afford to recreate it in the times when we consider the United States to be our closest ally? Initiative has already been taken to do so. Let us hope that this artistically interesting monument in memory of this great friend to Poland will return to Krakowskie Przedmieście Street.
On the 30th anniversary of John Paul II’s visit
In the heart of Warsaw, at Piłsudski Square, a cross stands to commemorate the 30th anniversary of John Paul II’s first pilgrimage to Poland. The Pope’s visit started an avalanche of changes in Poland. May this cross remind us that what was impossible became possible. May it always be an expression of gratitude that we live in a free Poland – said the mayor of Warsaw, Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, when she unveiled the Papal Cross. It is a simple cross made of marble, with an irregular texture, measuring 9 meters in height. It was placed in nearly the exact place where the Holy Father, on the 2nd of June, 1979, uttered his famous words: „Let your Spirit descend and renew the face of the land, this land”. Not only was Poland renewed, but Europe, too. Communism fell.
Dalailama, citizen of Warsaw
On the 29th of July, His Holiness the Dalailama will become an honorary citizen of Warsaw. It is expected that he will receive it personally. Dalailama was in our city last year, as well. This title was given to Dalailama by the City Council of Warsaw because „he seeks freedom and sovereignty for his people and his country.” Dalailama has great respect and authority in Poland. He recently took part in the ceremony on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Nobel Peace Prize award for the legendary leader of „Solidarność”, Lech Wałęsa. Along with Dalailama, honorary citizenship in Warsaw will also be given to the first non-communist prime minister of Poland, Tadeusz Mazowiecki, among others.
Under this slogan, Varsovians celebrated the fall of communism in Poland on June the 4th. Let us recall that on the 4th of June, the first free elections in our country after the Second World War took place, in which „Solidarność” won a significant part, leading to the first non-communist government under Tadeusz Mazowiecki; later, the Berlin Wall fell. Today we are in the European Union and part of NATO, in the shops there are shelves filled with products, we can travel abroad freely, we have freedom of the press... so we had something to celebrate. On Krakowskie Przedmieście Street, crowds watched a multimedia exposition „Sztafeta do wolności 1976-1989” (Relay to Freedom 1976-1989, which showed the victory of ordinary people over the totalitarian system. In the evening, at Plac Teatralny, there was a big concert with bands from the 1980s whose songs were on the hit lists at the time. In a few hundred places in Warsaw – in restaurants, coffee-shops, museums, theaters, and courtyards, between 20:00 and 20:20, we drank toasts of champagne, wine, juice, and milk cocktails, to freedom.
Lublin – a city on seven hills
That is what Lublin has in common with Rome – both cities are situated on seven hills. Adam Wasilewski, the mayor of Lublin, organized a study tour for reporters. Although the weather was bad, we saw a lot, and not just in Lublin itself. We visited Kazimierz Dolny, Zwierzyniec, Kozłówka.
Lublin is a city with nearly 700 years of history, abounding in important events. This year, the city is celebrating the 440-year anniversary of the Polish-Lithuanian Union. The Union joined the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into one body – the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, reigned by one monarch. Presently, Lublin is the largest and most dynamically developing city on the right bank of the Vistula.
Kazimierz Dolny is a city of painters and tourists. They come at the weekends to relax. In the summers there are exhibitions, concerts, and festivals. Centuries ago, Kazimierz fulfilled a completely different function. It was a trade center.
It is worth coming to Zwierzyniec, above all to walk around in its lovely forests and see the farm of tarpans – small horses (so-called primitive horses) which are only found here. In Kozłówka, we can see how the everyday life of a powerful land-owning family looked – this is where the late Baroque residence of the Zamoyskis is located – today it is a museum, but not the only one. There is also a museum of socialist realism here, which has a collection of more than 600 objects.
Will the Hoover monument return?
Herbert Clark Hoover was president of the United States during the years of the greatest crisis, from 1929 to 1933. After the First World War, Hoover served Europe, and Poland too, with his humanitarian activities. Thanks to the help received from the humanitarian organizations he led, more than a million Polish children survived the difficult period of hunger and epidemic from 1919-1921. He also visited Poland personally – and not empty-handed – after the Second World War. He did all of these things as a private citizen. In 1921, the Polish Parliament granted this great American honorary citizenship, and the residents of the capital funded a monument out of gratitude to the American in Hoover Square, in Warsaw. The monument was created by Xawery Dunikowski. Unfortunately, the beautiful sculpture did not survive the war, and afterward there was not any political will to restore it. Does that mean we ought to completely forget about this symbolic monument of gratitude? And can we not afford to recreate it in the times when we consider the United States to be our closest ally? Initiative has already been taken to do so. Let us hope that this artistically interesting monument in memory of this great friend to Poland will return to Krakowskie Przedmieście Street.
On the 30th anniversary of John Paul II’s visit
In the heart of Warsaw, at Piłsudski Square, a cross stands to commemorate the 30th anniversary of John Paul II’s first pilgrimage to Poland. The Pope’s visit started an avalanche of changes in Poland. May this cross remind us that what was impossible became possible. May it always be an expression of gratitude that we live in a free Poland – said the mayor of Warsaw, Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, when she unveiled the Papal Cross. It is a simple cross made of marble, with an irregular texture, measuring 9 meters in height. It was placed in nearly the exact place where the Holy Father, on the 2nd of June, 1979, uttered his famous words: „Let your Spirit descend and renew the face of the land, this land”. Not only was Poland renewed, but Europe, too. Communism fell.
Dalailama, citizen of Warsaw
On the 29th of July, His Holiness the Dalailama will become an honorary citizen of Warsaw. It is expected that he will receive it personally. Dalailama was in our city last year, as well. This title was given to Dalailama by the City Council of Warsaw because „he seeks freedom and sovereignty for his people and his country.” Dalailama has great respect and authority in Poland. He recently took part in the ceremony on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Nobel Peace Prize award for the legendary leader of „Solidarność”, Lech Wałęsa. Along with Dalailama, honorary citizenship in Warsaw will also be given to the first non-communist prime minister of Poland, Tadeusz Mazowiecki, among others.
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Information published at 30 June 2009