Andrei wore a t-shirt from a swing dance event in Israel that caught Anna’s eye.  She invited him to dance.  This is how their story began, in Saint Petersburg, Russia.  Now newlyweds, they represent “new immigrants” choosing to build lives for themselves in Poland. 

Andrei is a thirty-seven-year-old entrepreneur with a passion for swing dance and martial arts.  Andrei was raised in a non-observant Jewish family in Saint Petersburg.  He credits his paternal grandmother, with whom he maintains a close connection, with fostering his interest in the Jewish faith.  Andrei completed a degree in Jewish Studies at Saint Petersburg University.  He spent the last six years living in Israel and earned citizenship.  His business, in outsourcing and financial technology, employs thirty employees and is poised for expansion.   Andrei supports philanthropic efforts of the Jewish Community Center of Krakow’s (https://jcckrakow.org) aid to Ukrainian refugees. Andrei dreams of, eventually, using his talents and resources to proactively foster enhanced ethical thinking and behaviors in his adopted country.  Moving to Poland represents a return to his family’s historic roots in this part of the Old World.

Anna is a thirty-two-year-old ceramicist who works at Krakow’s Meditau Ceramic and Meditation Studio (https://www.facebook.com/meditau/) with a business partner from Italy.  Anna studied health sciences in Moscow.  Her professional journey, as a physician’s assistant, involved working in hospital emergency rooms, serving as a school nurse and, later, training as a masseuse.  Anna discovered her true passion was in the creative field of ceramics.  She trained and now enjoys teaching this craft to others.  Her personal evolution inspired her next goal:  to create a podcast about becoming a better version of oneself.  Anna also hopes to have a big family and a dog, with a preference for an Australian Shepherd or a Border Collie!

Anna and Andrei landed in Krakow following a two-month, summer 2022 odyssey driving around Europe with their cat, Wilhelm.  Armed with passports, marketable skills and multiple languages, they set out to find THE COUNTRY in which to build their life together.  They toured the Czech Republic, Greece, Croatia, France and Italy.  Poland was not on their list.

“It was the three Euro teabag in Italy that helped us decide on Poland. I remembered from an earlier trip that Krakow was less expensive, and that the tea was good,” Andrei said with a smile. “Poland is much more affordable and offers a good quality of life.  I feel people here are closer to my mentality with a strong emphasis on family and children—like in Israel.  The cost of living is far lower than in Western Europe.  I also appreciate Poland’s geographic diversity—there are mountains, there is the sea, there is even a desert.^[1] We feel very comfortable here; we want to build a life here.”

Anna and Andrei were startled by the high costs in Western Europe and the level of homelessness they witnessed in France.  Compared to France, Poland felt quite a bit safer.

“I found a good ceramics partner here in Poland,” Anna said.  “This was my main reason for staying here.  There are also swing dance and martial arts opportunities, plus you can get really good pickles in Poland—similar to Russia 😊!”  

We talked about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.  Anna and Andrei’s families remain divided by the war, some supporting Putin, some not.  Andrei and Anna emphasize that they support Ukraine and are doing what they can to support Ukrainians fleeing the war and those remaining to fight to protect their homeland from Russia’s invasion. Their experience with Poles—as folks who speak with Russian accents—has, generally, been positive.  They recognize that Poles appreciate their efforts to learn and speak Polish.  Although they miss family in Russia, they are unable to visit at this time.  They are learning Polish and have each applied for permanent residence cards.  If they were to travel to Russia today, Anna might not be allowed to leave. Andrei could leave because he carries an Israeli passport.

I asked Andrei about his experiences as a Jew in Poland and the perception of Poles by some Jews in the West.

“I feel safe and welcomed, here” Andrei said. “ I walk through Kazimierz (Krakow’s historic Jewish neighborhood) and I see signs in Hebrew.  I’m involved in the Jewish Community Center.  The concept of ‘Polish Hospitality’ is not exaggerated.  When Poles hear me speaking Polish, they become more embracing.  It’s important for Americans to remember that, beginning in the 1930s, would-be refugee Jews from Germany were rejected by England, Sweden and the United States.  America is very far from this place.  Americans are usually very judgmental of Poles based on newspaper articles and books that don’t show Poland from the best perspective.  I think they should come here and live here and see for themselves.”

Andrei mentioned something that resonated with me.  He said he wants to have the option of living in “two homes” (i.e., two different countries).  Perhaps I read too many Erich Maria Remarque novels about WWII refugees.  Maybe I’m indelibly marked by my parents’ refugee experiences.  Maybe it was my student from the Democratic Republic Congo years ago who retold this story:  “During the Civil War, I escaped with two sets of documents.  One set reflected my tribe of origin.  The other set reflected a warring tribe.  When stopped by marauding militiamen, I had to know which dialect to speak and which documents to surface, lest I be shot on the spot.” 

In an unsettled world, documents equal options.  Andrei and Anna are aiming to play their cards well as they build a life for themselves in this little corner of Central Europe.

I invite you to follow my blog, Present Time, at https://presenttime.blog.

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^[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Błędów_Desert

Agnieszka* is a 49-year-old university professor.  She is married and the parent of two teenagers.  She was born in southwestern Poland, near the Ukrainian border.  She identifies as Roman Catholic.

Reflect on your experience during COVID-19 Pandemic:

I will start by saying that I’m grateful to have returned to my “normal” job of in-person teaching.  Online teaching, during the lockdown, expanded my skill set, but I prefer teaching in-person.  I don’t like it when students turn off their cameras during class.  I’m glad we’re resuming some sense of normalcy, albeit with enhanced digital tools and skills.  Online meetings during lockdown with colleagues in my field—at my university and across Poland—fostered new connections and collaborations. Today, we engage a hybrid model, with in-person and online teaching. 

When we first went into lockdown, I questioned whether this was the reality or if I was experiencing some sort of odd dream.  Who would have predicted that we’d all lock ourselves in our homes?  There were times when the restrictions felt a bit absurd—we couldn’t even walk in parks or in the forest.

How do you feel about Poland’s membership in NATO?

Very simply, I feel better that Poland is a member of NATO; I feel safer.  I never thought protection from NATO might be needed. We now have a war next door with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.  I’m counting on NATO if Poland requires military assistance.

How do you feel about Poland’s Membership in the EU?

It’s obvious to me that this is a good thing for Poland.  We are more open as a nation. I like the ease of travel, being able to cross borders without having to get visas or show all of these documents.  As a mother, I see the benefit for my children who can study, live and work anywhere in the EU; this gives them a more assured future, with options.  My children have spent their whole lives in the EU.  Some people in Poland express anti-EU sentiments; I hope Poland does not leave.  I want Poland to remain open to the broader world.

Talk about women’s rights in Poland today:

Poland became a new country in 1918–after over a century of partitions.  Polish women were granted the right to vote in 1918 (ahead of the United States).  That said, Polish culture is traditional, conservative.  Traditional social expectations for women imply we are supposed to be doting mothers, focused on family; career aspirations come secondary.  Highly ambitious women are a bit of a “curiosity” among some traditionalists who question why a woman might leave her children with babysitters or prepare obiad–the main meal–without soup! Those of us who juggle our professional lives with family responsibilities still have this nagging feeling that we should, somehow, be doing more.  

Talk about the 2021 refugee crisis on the Belarusian Border:  

It was an uncomfortable and complicated situation.  Alexander Lukashenko, the President of Belarus, manipulated desperate migrants, inviting them to fly to Minsk and then bussing them to the Polish border–the eastern border of the EU–without even telling them where they were.  In my view, the Polish government should have provided basic humanitarian aid. People died in that forest.  Polish volunteers, such as doctors providing assistance and people who took migrants into their homes were later questioned by police.  

Comment from Katherine: This situation reminds me of migrants from the United States’ southern border being offered false promises of assistance and then being bussed or flown to northern cities and simply dropped off, leaving northern leaders like NYC Mayor Eric Adams’ administration unprepared for the influx and scrambling to meet immediate needs.  Some Americans welcomed the migrants.  An October 31, 2022 article in The Boston Globe, “White supremacists demonstrate outside Kingston (MA) hotel where migrants are staying” demonstrates that some Americans do not support migrants.

Talk about refugees entering Poland following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022:

To me, this is a very different situation.  After the Russian invasion, many women arrived with children.^[i]  There is this perception that refugees are poor.  Those who traveled by train were limited to one backpack; some carried only a shopping bag.  That said, wealthier Ukrainians arrived by car.  Many Poles have demonstrated considerable support via volunteering, hosting refugees in their homes and donating goods and services.  That said, some Poles are growing weary as the war continues.

Talk about LGBTQ Rights in Poland: 

LGBTQ slogans are manipulated by political forces who need an “enemy.”  Conservatives see LGBTQ status as an “ideology” which, in Poland, has negative connotations.  My university has students and staff who are openly gay.  These is also an office on campus to counter discriminatory behaviors and/or practices.

How do you feel about Poland’s upcoming 2023 Parliamentary Elections?

I hope something will change.  (The conservative PiS party is currently in power.)  I only seem to see political parties I dislike (Agnieszka laughs).  Politicians on the left are a bit removed from everyday lives of Poles living in more provincial areas.  

What do you feel Americans should know about Poland and the Polish people?

American should know that we are all not like stereotypical Poles living somewhere in the United States.  We are diverse.  We are educated.  We don’t all vote for PiS.  We are not all Roman Catholic.  We are not all antisemitic.

I invite you to follow my blog, Present Time, at https://presenttime.blog.

*Agnieszka is a pseudonym

This Time, This Place interviews capture perspectives from Poles and non-Poles, living in Poland today.  Views expressed are those of the interviewees and not necessarily those of the interviewer.

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^[i] Statista.com reported on November 21, 2022 that more than 7.87 million refugees from Ukraine crossed into Poland since the Russian invasion began on February 24, 2022.

 

Ration cards and long lines were part of daily life when I studied in Poland in the mid-1980s.  I was a meat eater then.  I recall waiting in a long line–ration card in hand–as strips of unrefrigerated kielbasa, suspended from hooks on the wall, grew smaller and smaller.  When it was my turn, there was no meat left.  

Toilet paper—even the scratchy, communist, gray version–was a hot commodity.  I tell my students at the Community College of Vermont about standing in line for ninety minutes for twelve rolls of toilet paper.  I felt so lucky as I walked back to my residence hall, adorned in a “necklace” of twelve rolls tied up with string.  People stopped me on the street to ask, “Gdzie?” (“Where?”)  I readily shared the shop’s location.  People understood that, even with quantity limits, there was no guarantee that this highly-valued bathroom commodity would be available.  

I suspect the communist regime reasoned that people preoccupied with securing scarce items needed for daily living were less likely to plot a revolution.  Poland was the first country to overthrow communism in August 1989.  Their fellow communist neighbors watched and, when Moscow didn’t send in tanks, they, too, took the risk to win freedom.  The Berlin Wall came down in October 1989.  Czechoslovakia’s “Velvet Revolution” occurred in November 1989.

There were foods we could count on in communist Poland: bread, cheese, pastries and zapiekanki—a Polish street food.  Join me on this trip down a culinary memory lane!

Bread:  For the record, Polish rye bread is really, really delicious, a thick, chewy balance of mild and tangy flavor.  I remember large, brown, oblong loaves on store shelves handed out by (often grumpy) clerks wearing polyester smocks with matching head coverings.  “Self-service” was a very limited concept in communist Poland–you had to wait in line and ask for items you wanted which were behind the counter.  As an aside, this sometimes meant getting icky apples—the only “fresh fruit” available in winter—as your request for a half or whole kilogram was subject to the clerk’s choosing from among a bin.  Occasionally, WHITE ROLLS or CHALLAH appeared.  I remember snatching up challah and eating the entire, warm loaf on the way back to my dorm.  Today, Poland offers quality ryes but also delicious baguettes, multi-grain and even gluten-free breads—and a professional, capitalist sense of “customer service.”

Cheese:  Communist Poland presented two kinds of cheese:  “yellow” and “white.”  “Yellow” cheese came in large wheels covered in bright red wax, with a flavor reminiscent of a mild emmental.  “White” cheese, twarog, is a tangy cheese that paired well with tomato, onion and a bit of butter on a thick slice of rye bread.  Oscypek, a smoked goat cheese that is pressed into decorative forms, was and continues to be available from local, small-scale producers.  I did hear, however, that the Czechs copyrighted the name—as the French did with “Champagne.”  For now, I will call my favorite Polish cheese “oscypek.”  Today, cheeses of numerous varieties and countries of origin are available.  When in Poland, I still choose twarog over brie!

Pastries:  Even though sugar was rationed for individuals, bakeries were plentiful.  Chocolate was rationed and only for children–this precluded chocolate-infused treats. My favorite Polish pastries were slightly sweet, yeasty and filled with apples, plums or farmer’s cheese.  These are readily available today, however, in upscale versions.  Raisins, a rarity in communist Poland, enhance flavor.  Sweet cheese is accented with a bit of lemon, again, once a rarity.  There is much more focus on how food is presented today, matching standards of western Europe.

Zapiekanki:  Street food wasn’t really a concept in communist Poland.  Zapiekanki were an exception.  Before there was “Italian Pizza” in Poland, there were zapiekanki.  The communist government severely limited “private” enterprise.  There was—and still is—a zapiekanka shop, “Zapiekanki u Hanki” at 3 Sienna Street, just off of Krakow’s medieval square.  The shop, founded in 1980, makes these delicious, toasted, open-faced sandwiches of sauteed mushrooms and perfectly melted cheese, drizzled with ketchup.  Today, customers can top their zapiekanki with ham or other meats.  Numerous zapiekanki shops have opened in Krakow. Hanka’s are the best as my husband and daughter can attest from our “every few years” visits to Poland.

I recently stopped by Hanka’s shop for a zapiekanka.  I placed my order and chatted with Hanka, explaining that I was a frequent customer in the 1980s and on intermittent visits to Krakow since that time. Another customer in the shop, an Asian woman, who studied in Krakow in the 1990s, spoke up, in flawless Polish, that she too was revisiting her favorite eatery while vacationing in Poland!”  

“This happens all the time,” Hanka said. “People come back.”

I asked about what it was like during the Pandemic.

“We closed,” Hanka said.  “All the shops closed.  The government provided some financial assistance to help businesses. We were, eventually, allowed to re-open na wynos (for takeaway), but there was no foot traffic.  There wasn’t even a pigeon on the square.  Now, we are dealing with high inflation.  We will see what the future holds.”

Photo:  My favorite vendor at the Stary Kleparz Market, a local farmer who makes the best “Oscypek”—smoked goat cheese.  People line up for his fresh chickens and kielbasa, too.

Thanks for reading. I invite you to follow my blog, Present Time, at https://presenttime.blog

It’s important for Americans to understand that we, too, have a right to self-determination ~ Lidka

Lidka, age 54, is a mid-career Polish professional who earned a Master’s Degree at the Jagiellonian University.  She is a librarian and parent of an adult daughter. Lidka lives near Krakow and loves to garden and read, particularly science fiction and fantasy.  She identifies as a non practicing Roman Catholic.  Lidka agreed to share her perspective on recent events in and near her homeland.

Talk about the COVID-19 Pandemic:  I remember speaking with a neighbor about feeling apprehensive when the pandemic started; it felt a little like a war.  My employer was supportive.  We continued to receive our salaries when sheltering in place from March to July (2020).  We returned to work in a hybrid capacity; some colleagues continue working from home offices.  As for me, I love my home and my garden and would be happy to work from home on a permanent basis!

What is positive about Poland today?  We are surrounded by beautiful nature which is very accessible; there are lots of beautiful green spaces in Poland.  Additionally, there are plenty of employment opportunities.  I am able to work in my profession.  

What could be better in Poland today?  I wish our government (PiS political party) was more oriented to the European Union (EU); our current government is right wing.  Our government’s actions have prevented Poland from receiving its full funding due from the EU, for general and pandemic relief purposes. You must understand that, during Poland’s transformation to a market economy after the fall of communism, “we were like preschoolers playing in a sandbox with teenagers.”  We were less skilled in business.  I also wish Poland’s social safety net was stronger.  It is difficult to count on family when one needs assistance and there are fewer government resources to help.  We do not have the infrastructure of wealthier countries (e.g., Germany).  I wish Poland had better (i.e., higher) pensions and a more expanded system of care for the elderly.

What are your hopes for Poland?  I hope Poland’s government will change in the 2023 parliamentary elections.  I hope a more centrist and/or left leaning government wins, one that is more open to the rights of minorities (e.g., LGBTQ, etc.) and the rights of women.  I am more introverted and do not participate in street protests; I do, however, support the protestors.  I do not believe women should be required to just stay home, cook, clean, care for children and be unquestioningly obedient to their husbands.

What do you feel Americans should know about Poland and the Polish people?  Americans should know that most of us do not support the current right wing government.  During the last election, many young people did not vote.  It was as if they did not understand the importance of voting.  PiS gives a lot of money to older people and, therefore, can count on a high voter turnout from them.  Some Americans wonder why there are so many “small, independent countries” in Europe.  It’s important for Americans to understand that we, too, have a right to self-determination.

This is a very difficult time for us.

I invite you to follow my blog, Present Time, at https://presenttime.blog.

This Time, This Place interviews capture perspectives from Poles and non-Poles, living in Poland today.  Views expressed are those of the interviewees and not necessarily those of the interviewer.

I’m sitting in my favorite Polish cafe on Bracka Street, a short walk from Krakow’s spectacular medieval square.  Two weeks into my stay, I completed my first book interview and started volunteering with Ukrainian refugees.  I’m reveling in Krakow’s rich cultural offerings and take daily walks to Wawel, the magnificent castle overlooking the Vistula River.  I am immersing myself in this place, this time.  When one speaks the language of a place—even imperfectly—the “aha moments” multiply.

Poland is my first stop on a project to gather stories Poles who experienced WWII German and Russian occupation told their children, here in Poland and, in the Diaspora.  This is about interviewing folks of my generation to understand the impact on how we view our world.  I am currently interviewing children of Poles who remained in Poland or returned after surviving forced labor camps in Germany.  Virtual interviews with the Diaspora begin in January.

As WWII ended, Polish refugees—like my father—fled communism to far corners of the globe. Traumatized by war, they learned new languages and adapted to new cultures, rebuilding their lives in Europe, North America, South America and Australia.  I once interviewed a member of Poland’s underground resistance who boarded a refugee ship to New Zealand.  Tadeusz and I sat on a bench overlooking Wellington Harbor in 2006 as he recounted the British soldier who helped him sneak from the Russian-held sector to the British-held sector of a defeated Germany.  Russian “liberators” would have forced him to repatriate to a Soviet-dominated, newly communist Poland. Tadeusz wanted to live in a free country.

I conducted my first interview with an acquaintance who is a university professor.  We were classmates during the 1985-86 academic year.  He expressed some hesitancy about tilling the soil of his parents’ wartime experiences.  His parents’ stories, to him, seemed quite ordinary.  This was where I gently explained that I was seeking stories of ordinary people experiencing extraordinary circumstances.  My curiosity lies in how people were impacted amid the deprivations and horrors of a dual occupation, Germany from the west and Russia from the east.

My former classmate, like me, was raised on stories about the war.  Viewed through our parents’ childhood lenses, these were not fully formed narratives.  They appeared as anecdotes, whisps of stories.  What they lacked in historical chronology and literary description was more than made up for with uczucia–feelings.  As children, we understood, instinctively, that our parents’ childhoods were disrupted by war, infused with themes of hunger, loss, grief and displacement as bullets whizzed and bombs fell from the sky.  As adults, we understand our parents did what they could to shield us from experiencing such horrors, and yet, the stories seeped out.  My classmate’s parents’ stories and his reaction to them was familiar, resonant.  The differences lie in the details of when, where, and who the protagonists were.

Krakow hums with Ukrainian voices and so many refugee mothers with their little children.  I see them on the square and on the Planty—a circular park encircling the core of the Old City.  They hold their children’s hands as they speak into iPhones with often serious faces, perhaps talking with their husbands defending their homeland against Putin’s war.  I can only imagine these women and children sheltering in basement bomb shelters and enduring far-too-long bus and train rides to cross the border to the safety of a NATO-member country.  I envision tearful goodbyes as their boyfriends, husbands and fathers remained behind to fight a Russian invasionary force. 

Let me tell you about my “little ones.”  I am supporting two Ukrainian teachers, refugees themselves, as they teach at a school housed in a basement suite.  Classrooms and meeting spaces are named after Ukrainian cities.  I am intentional—at this moment—to not reveal identifying information as the war rages.  Working with these beautiful little boys and girls, ages six to eight, feels “right.”  Folks helped my deeply traumatized parents learn English when they arrived in the U.S. decades ago.

I am careful to follow the lead of the Ukrainian teachers.  They are the experts; I am a “helper” who brings the gift of being a native speaker.  I pull out small stuffed animals and a squishy black plastic spider we named “Charlie.”  We dance, we sing and we play games to instill familiarity with a new language and alphabet.  One of the teachers is writing a series of fables designed to teach the children English’s non-cyrillic alphabet.  I get to be her out-loud reader. The teachers work magic keeping the lessons fun.  The children’s personalities emerge with the little girl in auburn braids whose pronunciation of “th” (very difficult) is flawless and the energetic boy with a buzz cut who likes to climb under the table.  There’s a sweet girl, with dark hair and dark eyes, who was so very shy on her first day who now runs along with the pack during recess.  These children enthusiastically give and receive hugs, an important part of our time together.  It’s been liberating to “hop like a bunny” and “swim like a fish” amid a swirl of English, Ukrainian and Polish words in the air.

Thank you for reading.  Please be in touch as I invite you to follow my blog (https://presenttime.blog/).  I invite your questions, too!

P.S.  Folks have been asking about Tony.  My beloved husband and “best friend ever” is in France, engaged in a French immersion program.  He’s been studying French for about five years and hopes an immersion experience will yield a fluency in speaking that he’s already achieved in reading.  We miss each other very much AND support each other in this adventure!  We look forward to celebrating Thanksgiving in Poland with Aleksandra, Alan (hopefully) and family! 

I invite you to follow my blog, Present Time, at https://presenttime.blog.

Photo: Ukrainian children’s backpacks at school