PISM

The Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum is one of these places that a Pole and everyone interested in the WW2 history should visit.Again, no time to tell you more about my visit, but please have a look at the institute website here.

Rivalry and a saint

It is a well known fact that Augustus Pugin helped Charles Barry design the Palace of Westminster after the fire damaged it in 1934, but did you know that Barry tried to minimalise Pugin's contribution in the public eye?  The same architect, I mean Pugin, designed many houses and churches not only in Britain, but also in Ireland and even in Australia. The one I remember seeing is St. Aidan's Roman Catholic Cathedral for the diocese of Ferns in an Irish town of Enniscorthy. You may like to read about St Aidan's miracles and tell me what you think of them:
'Many miracles are recorded of his during his sojourn in Wales.^[2] He was said to have broken a jug while fetching ale for his fellow monks; making the sign of the cross over the shards, however, it was repaired and he continued on his errand.^[8] A yoke given to him by David's steward purposefully too small to fit the necks of his oxen miraculously accommodated them and permitted him to bring the necessary materials for Llandewi Velfrey.^[1] Following his return to Ireland, a local begged him for some meal as he was grinding flour and, after receiving some, disguised himself as a blind man to come back and beg for more. Annoyed, the saint cursed him that the generations of his descendants would never lack for a blind member.^[1] Another time, wolves devoured a calf at one of his monasteries; its mother being inconsolable, Aedan blessed the head of his cook and told him to offer it to the heifer, which licked him and thenceforth "loved him like a calf".^[1] When asked by Saint Fintan Munnu to heal monks suffering under an epidemic, Aedan was said to have indulged him: first by curing the monks and then by permitting the sickness to resume when Saint Fintan changed his mind, considering the sickness to be good for their souls.^[1] His hagiographers credited Aidan's curses with Brandubh's defeat of the Uí Néill; they further state that, when Sarán slew his father-in-law, he attempted to accommodate the saint only for Aidan to curse him that his right hand would wither to the stump. When Sarán begged for a penance, Aidan directed him to pray for forgiveness at Brandubh's tomb in Ferns; when Sarán did so, a voice from the crypt forgave him. He lost his hand regardless.^'

How to be a bird or Max Ernst in Krakow

 There was an artist who apparently believed that he was a bird...

 You need to have a bird surname to see the exhibition for free.

Hungarian artists at MS1, Lodz

When in Lodz earlier this week we visited one of the three museums of contemporary art, called ms1. After a renovation it didn't at all resemble the museum I used to visit in the past. EXERCISES IN AUTONOMY, a temporary exhibition of works by a Hungarian artist Tamas Kaszas in cooperation with Aniko Lorant was really worth seeing, I think.

A woman-painter from Lvov in Sandomierz

 Walking around the Old Town in Sandomierz I stopped to look at a picture of a cat among others for sale resting against the wall. They were all works of Swietlana Nazarenko, a self-taught artist from Lwow (a beautiful city which is now in Ukraine, but used to be part of Poland until WW2). She showed me many more of her paintings and drawings. Her favourite is the one depicting the Lvov Angel. She posed for me holding it. Of course, my two friends didn't notice that I stopped and so I had to dash to catch up with them. They were far beyond the Opatow Gate when I joined them.

No pepper in The Pepper Mountains

A view of The Vistula River valley and the town of Sandomierz on the horizon from The Pepper Mountains greeted us after a walk in the sun on the first Sunday afternoon in September. These mountains are not at all high or steep as they are very old. However, they are a nice place for a hike. You will not find any pepper there, mind you. The name Pepper Mountains refers to their colour and the fact that the rocks forming them crumble resembling grains of pepper because of erosion. We met a few other tourists there. As we were leaving a group of bikers arrived and filled the place. I didn't miss my bicycle there and then, that would be too much for me. Walking back to the car we couldn't resist picking an apple from the orchard lining the road. The fruit was refreshingly crisp and juicy, sweet and sour at the same time. It was such a pleasant walk.

This place has been on my 'MUST VISIT' list for years. It was the best time to do so and the company was fantastic! :-) Owing to 'Nerijusk' another of my dreams come true!

To visit Poland is great!

Back from Poland after a fantastic stay! So many things happened, nice people met. No time to tell you about it though. Sorry!