Lodz-Warsaw

We survived the drive from Krakow to Warsaw! Fiver perilous hours on beaten dicrepid roads. Most of the public utilities and infrastructure are from the days of communist rule. The fun was further enhanced by a 2001 Mercedes van that did not have functional suspension. Nonetheless, we managed to take a 2 hour break in Lodz. This was the city my great grandfather was from. Lodz was the home of some of the most powerful and prominent 19th century Jewish industrialists outside of Berlin. Its textile industry rivaled that of Manchester. Unfortunately, there is not much left of the former district. However, the residential home and factories of Posmanksy still exist and have been restored. This man was the Polish equivalent of Bill Gates. An Ashkenazi Jew who settled in Lodz in the mid 19th Century, he amassed a fortune by pioneering the mass production of affordable, albeit, of poor quality, clothing. We also saw the Jewish Cemetery of Lodz. This is the second largest surviving Jewish cemetery in the world. It is only rivaled by the Jewish Cemetery of Berlin. We saw Posmansky's tomb, which is literally the size of the Jefferson monument. Inside it is decorated with gold leaf and Helenistic mosiac tiling This was a man who, defying Jewish traditions, wanted the world to know how wealthy he was in death. In Lodz, we visited the recently restored Jewish community center. Lodz has a surviving community of about 300 Jews. Upon entering the community center a Hasidic gentlemen spoke to my mother in Polish. My mother responded in Hebrew that we did not speak Polish. He then switched into fluent English. This was very surprising, as most people we encountered only spoke broken English. However, he also proceeded to unfurl a carton of cigarettes from underneath his taiylet. We said goodbye to our new found Hasidic friend boarded our van to Warsaw.

Lublin, Krakow

So the last two days have been a tumultuous juxtaposition of travel and powerful memories. Our second day in Lublin the weather was brutally hot. The temperature reached 36 c and communism has instilled into these people an intense fear of air conditioning. Poland is a country with a storied history that is unfortunately being marred by an ignorant, unproductive, and poverty stricken population. Lublin is a gorgeous city, but outside of the old city, one can see the full affects of brutal transition into Western life. Many people were drunk, or wandering around in semi intoxicated states. It was eerily reminiscent of life in Moscow. That morning we awoke and me our guide Magda, who was quite enthusiastic and, well lets say emotional during our trip. Our driver Piatrosh (Peter) spoke only a few English phrases. Nonetheless, we perhaps managed to offend him when our guide Magda, commented on how the new Pope, the German Pope, was destroying the open relations that John Paul( the Polish Pope) had constructed. After making sure everything was alright with Peter, I dont think he understood much, but Magda wanted to make sure, we arrived at Sobibor. Sobibor is the most dualistic of the death camps. It stands as a symbol to both mass murder but also heroic struggle. Most American Jews have had the ominous names of Auschwitz or Treblinka hammered into their heads. Sobibor is the forgotten camp. It was perhaps far more lethal than Auschwitz. If you were deported to Sobibor you had no chance of survival. There was no work. You were sent to die. The camp was only in operation for 13 months and in that time of 250,000 Jews were murdered. However, their is some salvation in this story. After 3 months of planning, the camp underground let by Soviet Jewish officer Sasha Pecherskey killed 9 SS guards and the 300 Jews who maintained the camps labor force fled into the woods. The camp was destroyed after much embarrassment and fear from the SS. Their is nothing left of the camp today other than a dense forest but you can feel the sorrow draped over the trees like a vale of spirits. On the way back from Sobibor we drove through the Wlodova forest. This dense woods was home to many Jewish partisan units from 1942-44. Many of these groups had joined with Soviet forces as the Red Army pushed across the Bug and into Poland in 43-44. We then decided to explore Lubin's Jewish past. Magda took us to the gate that divided the Jewish town from Lublin. Much research is going into exploring the destroyed former Jewish district. We heard a recording of the last Jew who had lived in Lublin before the war. He has passed away in 2004 but before he was recorded chating the prayers and hassidic nagims of his community. It was perhaps one of the most melancholy things I have partaken in. He was the last remnant of a shattered world yet his voice pierced me saying, "look we are still here". The next day was much more positive. We visited the great Yeshiva of Lublin which was establsihed by one of the greatest advocates for Jewish-Pole cooperation, Meir Shapiro. Reb Shapiro was an member of the Polish Sejm (parliament) and represented the Augudat Israel party from 1924-1929. He worked closely with liberal Poles who wished to include and protect the rights of Jews. After the Yeshiva was saw what was left of the Jewish cemetery. A monument was made by the liberal Polish communists in 1950, (who were quite friendly to the Jews, declaring this is in memory to the thousands of Lublin Jews who perished under the hands of the Nazis. Considering how revisionist the Polish government became from 1960-1989, this was very meaningful.


However, I cannot condone the Poles for their forgiveness. It is not sincere in anymeans. For the majority of Poles, the Zhyd was an alien presence amongst the catholic peasantry. The Germans simply removed an unwanted parasite and most Poles, quietly, relish Judenrein poland. Furthermore in 2010 ,the overwhelming majority of Poles still harbor anti-Semitic perceptions. This was manifested quite well in Zamosc by the presence of the Jew dolls. These cute little dolls are shaped like Hasidim. In their hands is clutched a Zloty. These are supposed symbols of good luck, I was delightedly told by a simple Pole. I smiled and said in German, "well give me some I need all the luck I can have"! He laughed and pointed to the pointing of a Jewish man on the wall counting coins, again the symbol of prospective fortune. "See! We have ours", he chimed. " To have a Jew on your flat means you shall be rich!"

Warsaw, Lublin

We have been in Lublin the last two days. We saw Majadenek concentration camp, Sobibor, and some of the old city.These past few days have been a torrid juxtaposition of emotions for me. I am often frustrated but interested in this society. Poland has carried on as if it never had a Jewish population. Antisemitism is vibrant and doing quite well. It is not uncommon to see paintings of Jewish men counting coins or dolls of Jewish rabbis clutching coins. These are Polish icons of fortune and good luck. Lublin is 3 hours south-east of Warsaw. Our driver made it in 2. We literally traveled 140km/hour down winding country roads. The Polish government has a limited concept or road maintenance. Several times we had close calls with Cows, tractors, and oncoming traffic. There are no real traffic laws. Poland has the highest number of traffic deaths in the EU and for good reason. These people cannot drive. Our driver was an interesting but nefarious character. He had the disposition of a Ukrainian mobster. He had lived in the US for 30 years yet had to suddenly return to Poland 3 years ago. My guess was his gambling habits had caught up with him. Other than this he was an extremely forceful and capable man. Later, after our trip to Majadenek concentration camp, he professed to us that is mother was Jewish. Her last name was Kauffman. In Poland, that is a very honest and sincere declaration as most people will shun you once they find out you are an ignominious Zhyd. Majdenek was a terrible but powerful place. Most of the original camp had been destroyed by the Russians but what was left was more than adequate at conveying the organization of the Nazi death machine. After we where driven back to our hotel in Lublin where we enjoyed a quiet, but hot evening.

An evening in Warsaw

Last night I learned there are two Warsaws! It is the paradoxical Dickensian city. Also notice how my internal clock is really messed up. I just woke up at 4 am! Anyways, Last night was great. We met my mothers friends brother, Gregory. By now I had noticed that the area we where surrounded by kind of stagnation and gray people who were not what I would call very friendly. It was much like living at a Tops. Then Gregory shows up in a beautiful brad new Mitsubishi, wielding flowers! He quickly proceeded to demolish my hastily formed perspective. Gregory took us on a tour to Old Town, and Praga, which is right outside the city lines. The whole of old Town is filled with awesomely restored public buildings, giant government palaces, Mideval castles, and tons of shops. We past hundreds of places like Sophria, Ralph Lauren, Gregory took us on a walking tour of some of the landmarks, including the Presidential palace. It is a sad place because people are still mourning the death of the old President and his cabinet in that terrible plane crash in Smolensk last April. Warsaw was absolutely stunning. Old town was impressive because all these historic buildings, houses, and churches were completely leveled during WW2. Whats really great from an architectural perspective is how the city is filled with remnants of its Soviet past. The one of the most impressive building I have ever seen, The Center for Polish Culture, was a gift to Poland from Josef Stalin. It looks like a cross between a rocket ship and the Kodak building.

Poles 101. A very complex, interesting, and if not stubborn people. I can see why Kless likes them so. They don't speak English, kind of like Americans, pretty much hate Germans, absolutely despise Russians, and work for the British! There are a ton of German tourists here too, Which knowing the cultural animosity, is pretty funny. I like Poles much more so than Germans. The receptionist at our hotel called them brutes who burp in her face when they speak to her. Back to last night. Old town was impressive because all these historic buildings, houses, and churches were completely leveled during WW2. The Germans invaded in 1939. The Jewish Ghetto revolted in 1943 against the Germans. Then the Poles revolted. The Russians bombed in 1944. Then the Polish armies fought among themselves for the city. Horrific destruction. Whats really great is that the city is filled with remnants of its Soviet past. The gaudiest building i have ever seen, was a gift to Poland from Josef Stalin. It looks like a cross between a rocket ship and the Kodak building.

Last night we also got to fully enjoy Polish cuisine. Gregory took us to nice Polish cafe. Basically most authentic Polish dinners focus on either meat or potatoes, but the combination of the two in so many ways is really impressive. BEER IS CHEAP AND VERY GOOD HERE. I am in love with Zwyiec. We then concluded our evening with some ice cream. It was called American style Ice Cream. Gregory and I got chocolate twist, which I thought actually tasted better than Abbots.

Today is our final structured day in Warsaw. We are going for tours of the Jewish quarter and the Ghetto. It should be really interesting. We come back to Warsaw on Tuesday and I am eager to go shopping!

Arrival in Warsaw

Pictures shall be coming up shortly! We have landed in Warsaw. Its bout 85 degrees. I am passing for a Pole quite nicely. Mom? Not so much. Everyone keeps speaking to me in Polish. I just nod and smile. The city itself is quite unusual. It is literally torn between two worlds. The presence of its Communist past still lingers as much of the Soviet infrastructure still peppers the cityscape. However, there are tons of English, German, and American stores and brands suggesting Poland's attempt to integrate itself into the EU and the western global paradigm. There are WWII ruins straddled between luxury apartments.

And so it begins...

So this it it. The first departure of our journey. I am eager and excited to to depart for Poland. A lot of people are quite curious to understand why we are going to Poland. Paris, Berlin, Madrid? Those are all normal destinations. Zamosc, Krakow, Lodz? We seem a tad meshuggenah. However, for me, this makes perfect sense. I spent the last four years studying Jewish-Polish culture and ethnic identity. After pouring myself over hundreds of literary and histocical sources I am quite curious to see what the reality of this world is. It is one that has existed for so long and vividly in my imagination. It is now time to transform the perceptions of my imagination into actual perception. This trip originated as a random but fortunate daydream. I was sitting in my modern Jewish Writers class, listening to Dr. Frieden discuss his visits to the old Pale of Settlement. Out of nowhere a burning desire to visit these places consumed me. I thought, "The only way to forge a true connection with the literary and cultural heroes of Judaism is to actually go forth and see what is left of their world". And so with a simple phone call to my every supportive, constantly doting, but sometimes spastic mother, we began to discuss a trip to Poland. So after surprisingly finding lots of support, the proposed trip became a reality. This trip could have not have occurred without the love and contributions of my grandmother, Marsha and is done in the memory of my late Grandfather Michael. Her constant tenacity and tenderness has taught me so much about being a loving and strong individual. From them I first began to understand my Jewish ethnic consciousness.
I have outlined three purposes for this trip. Our primary motivation is to actually witness and comprehend the vibrant world that existed from 1000-1939. Much of Jewish identity, culture, and history was forged in Poland. In lieu of the macabre period of 1939-1945, most of f this period as been relegated as futile cultural failure. I disagree. The purpose of this trip is not to reaffirm the strength and necessity of Israel. Instead it is to reconnect with the land and soil that forged our religious-national consciousness. My mom and I are more than travelers. We are archeologists, prodding at the current fabric of Poland for glimpses of its Jewish past. Poland itself is a society that structurally has changed very little since the 19th century. Outside of the major cities much of the urban landscape is built out of the same farm houses that peppered the world of Peretz and Besheivis.
Our second hope is to revel in the cultural landmarks of modern Poland. I.L Peretz is one of my favorite writers. His works are draped in a sense of both Jewish and secular Polish consciousness. By visiting his home and place of birth, I hope for the chance to connect with his works. Comprehension stems from perception and perception stems from actually seeing. Zamosc in particular is a city that I harbor curiosities towards. At one time it was known as the Paris of Eastern Europe. The splendor still exists today, but to what degree I do not yet know.
Finally, we will visit the centers of destruction that facilitated the final solution. We will be paying solemn tribute to the victims of Majadnek, Auschwitz, and Sobibor. This will serve as a chance to reflect on who we are and how fortunate we are for the the free and democratic society which we live in.

This is it for now. We have a half our until we board for Chicago. The windy city awaits. I got my Ipod all set on Buddy Guy. Mom is knitting furiously.