Poland - a gate between present and past

A time too short to see as much of what had to be seen in this beautiful
country, but anyway, I collected enough impressions for years of memories
and a few reviews that I hope will be useful to others who will want to repeat
the experience. It was an unforgettable experience, with great places, with
great people, with feelings and unique experiences.
The trip to the welcoming Eastern European country was planned with at
least 4-5 months before in a Comenius Multilateral Partnership entitled
"Heritage of the past-foundation for the future", a 2-year project funded by
the European Commission by Long Life Learning program. I am going to
share my impressions of the journey, pointing to all the locations visited. I'll
start, then, with the first stop, Cracow, the historical and cultural capital of
Poland, the third largest city in the country and the first target in tourism. We
arrived before noon, after a fairly long route and not so comfortable because
we decided to travel by bus. This route, like the one that followed the
passage in Poland before arriving in Cracow, was one of rare beauty: pure air,
flawless roads, villages and households perfect new or newly renovated
which betrayed the household spirit of the locals.
Thus began our journey through the Royal capital Krakow, a city full of
history, considered today as the heart and priceless jewel of Poland. First we
stopped in Old Town or fortified Wawel Hill, with its Wawel royal castle and
cathedral, watching the slow flow of the Vistula river. The exact date of the
beginning of construction is not known, but it is historically proved the fact
that around 1000 the city became archdiocese and capital of the kingdom
of Small Poland which implies that then the cathedral, the fortified walls and
several churches in Romanesque style were built. Wawel Castle, originally
Gothic later transformed by Sigismund I, a royal residence stately
Renaissance, played the role of the presidential palace for the Polish
monarchs until the XVIIth century, when the capital was moved to Warsaw.
Visiting the castle was not possible for us due to the limited time at our
disposal and the strict program of guidance that our Polish partners reserved
to us. We bounded only to admire from the outside the elegant silhouette
and we took photos of the interior courtyard. Seeing them again I felt a deep
frustration: I realized how important it was to shape our schedule after our
own preferences. There were many to be seen in the castle and the regret of
not visiting it does not leave us even today. We had half an hour to walk
freely on the airy alley bordering the long arm of the Vistula, traversed by
ships and pleasure boats. That moment of respite was welcome because we
prepared visually for what we was to come. Here our trip to the royal city
Krakow ended . We went then to buses with the destination Warsaw. We went
straight to the hotel "Bella Vista", where we checked in for a night. There we
met with our colleagues from Spain, Turkey and Poland. The latter received
us with great affection and made us feel like a family. Another day followed .

A special moment was the visit to the Polish capital, with the objectives of
sightseeing: the old city, the Presidential Palace, Tomb of the Unknown
Soldier, Warsaw University Library and Suspended Gardens, Lazienki Park
and Palace, the royal palace on the island or the water palace as it is called. I
thought we passed a time gate ! My heart beat ready to jump out of my
chest with emotion, feeling the chills of a unique meeting ... All the places
we've visited in Warsaw made me feel I was involved in an affair from which I
had to go out changed and garnished.
On the streets of the great medieval city we could enjoy that atmosphere full
of history: narrow streets , incredibly clean, bordered by lovely colorful
buildings ; numerous terraces and restaurants more or less attractive and
alluring; trimmed carriages and vintage cars, ready to give a city tour to
those interested ; cheerful and courteous locals and especially noisy
tourists. Contrary to what I read in a review before departure, I discovered
that the Polish, especially the younger generation is doing well with English
and it is not difficult to make yourself understood. As a "crowning" of this
perfect day a heavy rain began , in that smoke, thunder and lightning but we
were already in the bus with the destination-Korycin. The atmosphere
created was likely to hasten the departure to the hotel. In fact, it was just the
right time: it was 9 pm , darkness had fallen well because of black clouds,
raining seriously and we already felt the fatigue of a busy day!
The next day we were greeted by the host school, the Gymnasium in Korycin.
Here we attended various attractive activities, games of knowledge,
communication and interesting workshops, along with our colleagues from
the countries affiliated to this project. We worked as a team, focusing on
elements of history, culture and tradition joining the four participating
countries. There followed a meeting with the mayor of Korycin, who showed
us the most beautiful places in the area and told us the story of this
settlement. I remember as targets of local interest Korycin Church , the park
near the church, a modern sawmill, a plantation of strawberries and a
meeting with a producer of cheese, during which guests saw how the cheese
was made and found something about the tradition of the famous' bryndza
".
The following day sightseeing in the town of Bialystok has given us the
possibility of broadening the cultural horizon by knowing many things and
places that you are very likely to never visit again. On our way to the town
we stopped at the Village Museum ,we admired the panoramic view from the
highest point, from Rocha Church, and then see the Church of St. Nicholas,
Zamenhof Market, Branicki Palace and the Palace Gardens.
On the last day of our meeting with students and teachers from host school I
spent wonderful moments with great people feeling as if I had known them
for years . I participated in the festival "Sobermind" where I noticed the
beautiful folk dances presented by students from "Krakowiak" band dance,
the interesting exhibits of traditional objects and photographs from the life of
Polish families. We realized our project objectives, we set the date of the
subsequent visit to Turkey and we were awarded certificates of participation.

We then had a meeting integration on Korycin Lake, a special moment that

made me want to stop the time , to enjoy as much beauty of those places. I
did not want to leave that wonderful frame ... Finally, I entered through the
gate of the past to the present one , trying to keep as much unalterated the
grace of those moments ...
Teacher: CIRSTEA
ELENA DANIELA