Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: Poland

Warsaw – Warsaw Ghetto (Leszno Street and Żelazna Street)

I’ve tracked a lot of the Warsaw ghetto wall, but I can’t remember seeing this specific signage before and as the sign says, this is where the Leszno Street entrance to the ghetto was located. The Warsaw Ghetto was established by by the Nazis following German occupation and the area was formally sealed on 16 November 16 1940. There were initially 350,000 Jews walled into the ghetto, but that number soon increased to 460,000 as deportees from other areas arrived in the city.

These maps are located in numerous places across the city, over-laying the location of the ghetto onto the current street plan. Leszno Street was one of the major pre-war streets enclosed within the initial ghetto boundaries established in November 1940. When the ghetto was effectively split into two sections (the “Small Ghetto” south of Chłodna Street and the “Large Ghetto” to the north) following boundary adjustments in late 1941 and early 1942, notably the exclusion of a section west of Żelazna Street between Leszno and Grzybowska Streets, Leszno Street remained a key east-west axis within the Large Ghetto.

The incredible web-site at https://getto.pl/en gives a clear indication of what is happening here.

What the area looks like today, with the line of the ghetto wall visible on the pavement of Żelazna Street.

There’s the line of the former ghetto.

The crossing today and, as ever, it’s very hard to try and envision what this area looked like in the early 1940s.

April 19, 2025
Warsaw – Potential Arson at the Wooden Bell Tower at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Victory

I frequently go on about the quality of life in Warsaw, the low crime, the low level of anti-social behaviour, the strong policing, the low litter and all manner of other positive attributes about the city. However, one of the historic buildings in Warsaw was lost a few days ago and arson has yet to be ruled out from the investigation.

This bell tower is located next to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Victory and the wooden construction dated to around 1817. For reasons relating to German and Russian occupation, there’s not a huge amount that is old in Warsaw, so the loss of this is highly sub-optimal. It took fire fighters around two hours to put out and they have been able to save around 25% of the wooden structure and the bells in their steel frame also held up.

The two bells, one of which dated to 1772, did quite well not to fall down and so it seems that they can be repaired and there is some excellent documentation of the structure from a few years ago. I don’t know the official titles, but the heritage people have already been on site to work out how to fix the situation. Knowing Poland, it’ll be fixed the next time that I go by and I rather hope that it transpires not to be arson.

And a couple of graves located near to the bell tower.

April 19, 2025
Wizz Air (London Luton to Warsaw Chopin)

I usually don’t write anything about the flights I take, but a change is as good as a rest and all that. I’m not sure that Luton Airport has really mastered the art of returning flights efficiently, but the security process is now quite efficient. I have to confess to pure idiocy during security when I managed to leave my belt on during the security scan. I blame the confusion on their policy of leaving liquids and laptops in the bag which throws my system. The member of security staff was though not deterred and, thankfully, my brief masterclass in how not to do security seemed to escape wider notice, preserving my fragile dignity in aviation matters.

They announced the gate quite early, an hour before the flight, the delights of Gate 32 beckoned. Having endured the boarding methodologies back in my BA days, which often resembled a polite but ultimately confusing game of human Tetris, Wizz Air’s approach felt refreshingly straightforward. Every passenger knows, or should know, where to go from signage and they didn’t take long to board everyone. Admittedly, that leads to a lot of waiting on the stairs in the airport terminal to board, but at least it feels efficient although it’s less ideal for people who prefer to have a little sit down rather than balance themselves and their luggage on steps.

The aircraft was ready and for the sake of completion, the registration is 9H-wNE, the same aircraft I went from Gdansk to London Luton on a few months ago. It’s hard not to make that sound quite geekish, but as a reminder, for my two loyal blog readers who can’t remember, it’s an Airbus A321 which was delivered to Wizz Air in March 2024. Feel free to use that aviation nugget of information at your next dinner party, instant social success guaranteed…..

I’ve had a long series of good fortune from the seating Gods where I’ve been aisle or window seats, but that luck had run out for this flight when I was randomly given a middle seat. I always vaguely hope that one of the passengers doesn’t turn up, but they both did. Both were Polish, the one by the aisle fell asleep for most of the flight and the other managed to consume several Polish beers and then needed me to wake up the aisle guy from his hibernation for obvious reasons. I’m not sure that they entirely managed to follow my rule of letting the middle seat passenger have the arm rests, but since that’s a rule I’ve created it’s one that’s hard to enforce. Fortunately, this isn’t a long flight and two hours later we were landing into Warsaw.

The crew on the flight were well presented, engaging and efficient, although that’s the normality for Wizz Air flights I’ve found. Announcements from the pilots were in Polish with a shorter English version following soon after and the safety briefing was completely in a way that the CAA would be pleased by.

The delights of Warsaw always excite me, so I didn’t even mind that it was a bus that took us to border control. Most passengers on the flight were Polish or had EU passports, so the queue for my passport to be stamped was relatively short. The border agent was friendly and for this visit didn’t require a detailed explanation of my life before letting me into Poland. The flight is with my Multi Pass, which I’m still moderately obsessed with, so it cost just £8.99. Armrest battles aside, Wizz Air delivered the goods once again as far as I was concerned.

April 19, 2025
Warsaw – Reason Behind Hotel Bristol Name

This is an aside, just because it loops back to a post I wrote a few days ago about Frederick Hervey, the 4th Earl of Bristol (1730–1803). This rather decadent hotel in Warsaw was constructed between 1899 and 1901 on the site of the former Tarnowski Palace, opening to the public on 19 November 1901. Unusually for central Warsaw, some of the structure remained standing after the Second World War as the Germans had been using it themselves, meaning that it could be re-opened relatively quickly at the end of the conflict. It was taken over by Orbis, who today are known for running all Accor hotels in Poland amongst numerous other things, with plans to demolish it in the 1970s fortunately disregarded. It’s now part of the Marriott chain, but I rather like the link to Ickworth House with the hotel name, which has remained unchanged since 1901.

April 19, 2025
Warsaw – Metro System : C4 Bemowo (Visiting Every Station)

Next on my expedition to visit every metro station in Warsaw was Bemowo, at the western end of the M2 line. Construction of the station started in 2019 and it opened for passenger usage on 30 June 2022, with the station name being simply the name of the district that it’s located in, although during planning it was named after the street it’s on, ‘Powstańców Śląskich’. It’s a residential area of the city and something of a transportation hub, so the extension out here seems rather sensible.

The Church of the Roman Catholic Parish of St. Luke the Evangelist which was constructed in 2001, with the parish having been established in December 1992 by Cardinal Józef Glemp. The first Holy Mass had been celebrated on May 31, 1990, at the site of the future church.

It might have my initials, but I can’t imagine me starting a construction company on the grounds I’m not keen on changing light bulbs.

The sculpture of General Józef Zachariasz Bem (1794–1850) who was a Polish military leader and national hero of both Poland and Hungary. He began his career in the Napoleonic Wars and rose to prominence during the 1830–1831 November Uprising in Poland, where he earned a reputation as a skilled artillery commander. Later, he played a key role in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, leading forces in Transylvania to several significant victories against Austrian and Russian troops. His leadership, courage and tactical brilliance made him something of a beloved figure in both nations given how much he had surprised and delighted the populations. Following the collapse of the revolutions, Bem sought refuge in the Ottoman Empire, where he converted to Islam and continued his military career under the name Murad Pasha. He died in exile in Aleppo in 1850, although his remains were later brought back to Poland. Despite his exile, Bem’s legacy endured as he is remembered as a symbol of cross-national solidarity and the shared fight for independence, with statues and memorials honouring him in both Poland and Hungary.

Looks a bit industrial. This was on my way to look at the nearby Górczewska Park.

This text reads “SÁNDOR PETŐFI 1823 – 1849, Outstanding Hungarian poet Adjutant to Gen. J. Bem, Fell for freedom”. Unless my two loyal blog readers have already forgotten from two paragraphs ago, they already know about General Bem. Sándor Petőfi was a legendary Hungarian poet, revolutionary and something of a national hero. He is widely regarded as Hungary’s national poet and was one of the key figures of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848. Petőfi’s poetry, full of passionate calls for liberty and national pride, inspired revolutionary fervour among Hungarians. His most famous poem, “Nemzeti dal” (“National Song”), played a central role in igniting the revolution.

The park’s amphitheatre which was opened in 2008 and which can seat up to 1,000 spectators. From 2009, it was named the Michael Jackson Amphitheatre, which didn’t delight everyone and they took the name away in 2019 as it became too controversial. It was originally given this name because he did some sort of musical event at the nearby airport, Warsaw-Babice Airport.

Some trees and a park seems a sensible place to put them.

A hill in the park with a playground on it.

It started raining so I thought that I’d better get back.

Going down the steps.

The station design which seems less decadent than they could have made it given that it’s a new station and the ones before looked, well, more jazzy. The plan was to use weathering steel, or Corten Steel, as apparently this rustiness looks interesting. I’m not entirely convinced, but there we go.

The ever useful metro map. The task of constructing the C4 Bemowo station, along with the preceding C5 Ulrychów station and connecting tunnels, was awarded to a consortium comprising the Turkish company Gülermak Ağır Sanayi İnşaat ve Taahhüt A.Ş. as the leader, and the Italian company Astaldi S.p.A., both of whom had experience in building other bits of the network in the city. While the station box itself was constructed using the cut-and-cover method, typical for Warsaw Metro stations, the connecting tunnels were bored using Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs), which were named “Krystyna” and “Elisabetta”.

April 18, 2025
Warsaw – View of the City from 1850

Slightly randomly, as is the central theme of this blog, I rather liked this view of Warsaw from around 1850 as I hadn’t seen it before. Created by Adam Pilinsky, it’s from the Praga side (or east bank) of the city looking into the central area that is now known as the Old Town.

April 13, 2025
Ciechanów – Choo Choo Train

This is a narrow-gauge locomotive from 1957, a legacy of the need to Poland’s heavily damaged transport infrastructure rolling stock quickly and efficiently following the damage done during the Second World War. Minimising development time and utilising existing, reliable engineering principles allowed Fablok (then operating under the name Fabryka Lokomotyw im. F. Dzierżyńskiego ) to initiate mass production relatively swiftly. This locomotive was linked to the Ciechanów Sugar Factory (Cukrownia Ciechanów) which was a significant industrial enterprise in the city for over a century. Its establishment in 1882 coincided with a period of notable industrial growth in Ciechanów, which also saw the founding of a brewery in 1864 and the arrival of the standard-gauge Vistula River Railroad in 1877.

The front of the locomotive. Following the cessation of regular narrow-gauge operations and the closure of lines like those around Ciechanów, the Narrow-Gauge Railway Museum in Sochaczew became the principal repository for withdrawn locomotives and rolling stock. Established formally in 1986 on the site of the former Sochaczew County Narrow Gauge Railway, the museum amassed one of Europe’s largest collections of narrow-gauge vehicles. This train was sent there, but was purchased by the authorities in Ciechanów in 2011 and it was installed at this site in 2018 after some repairs to the locomotive.

The translated text reads:

“1896 – Construction of the railway line from Jawor to Chełmsko Śląskie begins (extended to Lubawka in 1899)
1899 – Opening of the Lubawka – Krzeszów section
1900 – Opening of the Krzeszów – Kamienna Góra section
1945 – Railway taken over by PKP (Polish State Railways)
1954 – Change of track gauge from 750 mm to 785 mm
1960 – Closure of the Jawor – Chełmsko Śląskie section
1979 – Suspension of passenger transport on the Kamienna Góra – Krzeszów – Lubawka route
1986 – Closure of the Lubawka – Krzeszów section
1988 – Closure of the Krzeszów – Kamienna Góra section
1991 – Railway liquidation

The Chełmsko narrow-gauge railway, initially steam-powered, reached from Jawor to the town of Ciechanów.”

Translated, this sign reads:

“The narrow-gauge steam locomotive, series Px48, number 1784, from the Feliks Dzierżyński factory in Chrzanów, was produced in 1954. In Ciechanów, it worked on the sugar factory railway until 1993. After the liquidation of the sugar factory railway, it was transferred to the Museum of Narrow-Gauge Railways in Sochaczew. In 2011, it was repurchased by the city of Ciechanów and restored. It is currently exhibited on Sienkiewicza Street. In 2012, it was entered into the register of movable monuments.”

It won’t surprise either of my two loyal blog readers to discover that I’m not an expert in redundant railway lines in Ciechanów, but the former line is evident from this overhead map.

April 10, 2025
Ciechanów – Ciechanów Castle (Memorial to Hanged Members of the Polish Home Army)

Located in the grounds of Ciechanów Castle, this is a memorial to four members of the Polish Home Army who were hanged here on 17 December 1942. The translation above refers to the “patriots hanged on the gallows” and the four killed were:

Kazimierz Grzelak
Zenobia Jelińska
Tadeusz Jupecki
Bolesław Noużykowski

This was all a planned process and, on 17 December, German occupation authorities carried out simultaneous public executions by hanging in four key towns of the Regierungsbezirk Zichenau: Ciechanów, Mława, Przasnysz, and Pułtusk. These acts were not isolated incidents but part of a wider, centrally planned operation designed to decapitate the leadership structures of the Polish underground, specifically the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa – AK), and to terrorise the local Polish population into submission. The executions took place during a particularly harsh winter, marked by temperatures plummeting below -10°C, coinciding with German military setbacks on the Eastern Front and intensified, often brutal, requisitioning campaigns, such as the notorious collection of winter clothing (“zbiórka kożuchów”), from the Polish populace.

The four individuals publicly executed by hanging in the courtyard of Ciechanów Castle on December 17, 1942, were confirmed members of the Polish Home Army , the dominant resistance organisation in occupied Poland that caused such havoc to Nazi occupation. Their names were Kazimiera Grzelak, Zenobia Jelińska (using the pseudonym “Teresa”), Tadeusz Jurecki (using the pseudonym “Wrona”), and Bolesław Nodzykowski (using the pseudonym “Mały”).

Kazimiera Grzelak (1912-1942)

Born in 1912 , Kazimiera Grzelak had roots in the Tarnów region, her mother hailing from Siemiechów. After completing commercial school in Krakow, she settled in Ciechanów in 1937. Before the war, she found employment working for Franciszek Trzeciak, the deputy Starost (county administrator) of Ciechanów. In 1939, she married Władysław Grzelak, a local Ciechanów butcher. Their daughter, Maria, was born in 1941. Almost from the beginning of the German occupation, Kazimiera and her husband joined the underground, initially the Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Union of Armed Struggle – ZWZ), which later formed the core of the Home Army (AK). Within the resistance structure, she served as a liaison officer (łączniczka) for the AK’s Ciechanów district. Some sources also identify her role as distributing underground press (kolporterka prasy). In late August 1942 , Gestapo officers raided the Grzelaks’ home on Płońska Street. Their arrest stemmed from betrayal as a Polish woman reportedly accompanied the Gestapo and pointed out their exact address. Kazimiera was separated from her husband and subjected to harsh interrogation and torture at the Gestapo facilities in Ciechanów and Płock. Accounts emphasise her remarkable resilience and she refused to divulge the names of fellow underground members, reportedly earning the grudging label “Twarda Polka” (Tough Polish Woman) from her German captors and she consciously took the blame herself in an attempt to shield her husband. I suspect that a lot of German Nazi officers were surprised and entirely not delighted by just how brave so many Poles were. Subsequently, she was imprisoned in the notorious Działdowo transit and concentration camp (KL Soldau). Her husband, Władysław, met a tragic fate, being sent first to KL Soldau, then to Auschwitz, and ultimately dying in the Dachau concentration camp in 1944.

Zenobia Jelińska (1903-1942), ps. “Teresa”

Born in 1903 , Zenobia Jelińska hailed from the nearby town of Przasnysz. Within the underground, she operated under the pseudonym “Teresa”. Her involvement in resistance activities predated the full formation of the AK. She was a member of the K-7 diversionary organisation, having received training in Modlin as early as May 1939, even before the outbreak of war. During the occupation, she served as a vital courier (kurierka) for the ZWZ-AK Przasnysz district, maintaining communication lines along the critical Przasnysz-Ciechanów route. Furthermore, she demonstrated leadership by heading her own women’s section within the local AK structure. Her active role placed her at significant risk, leading to her arrest on September 8, 1942. Like Grzelak, she was subsequently imprisoned in both Płock and the Działdowo camp (KL Soldau).

Tadeusz Jurecki (1920-1942), ps. “Wrona”

Tadeusz Jurecki was born in 1920 and came from Grudusk or the adjacent village of Pszczółki Szerszenie. He was a young man, identified as a student at the Gymnasium (secondary school) in Ciechanów. His chosen pseudonym in the underground was “Wrona” (Crow). Despite his youth, Jurecki held a position of significant responsibility within the local resistance network. Most sources identify him as the Head of Intelligence (Szef Wywiadu) for the Home Army’s Ciechanów district , although a few mention Head of Communications. His family was also involved in the resistance; his sister, Joanna Jurecka (who used the alias “Teresa,” potentially causing confusion with Zenobia Jelińska’s pseudonym), was also active. Tadeusz Jurecki was arrested by the Germans in August 1942.

Bolesław Nodzykowski (1905-1942), ps. “Mały”

Born on January 16, 1905 , Bolesław Nodzykowski was from Pułtusk. He used the alias “Mały” (Little One). Nodzykowski brought valuable military experience to the resistance. Before the war, he served as a non-commissioned officer (plutonowy, equivalent to sergeant) in the 13th Infantry Regiment (13 pp), which was garrisoned in Pułtusk. Leveraging his military background and connections within the former regiment and the local rural community, Nodzykowski became a key organiser of the underground in his area. He served as the Commandant (Komendant) of the ZWZ-AK Pułtusk District (Obwód Pułtusk, code-named “Pstrąg”) until his arrest in mid-1942. The Pułtusk AK district was noted for having a particularly high concentration of NCOs from the pre-war 13th Infantry Regiment among its members. Nodzykowski was arrested by the Gestapo on September 10, 1942. He was subsequently held in prisons in Pułtusk and Płock before being transferred to KL Soldau (Działdowo). For his service and sacrifice, Bolesław Nodzykowski was posthumously awarded the Cross of the Home Army (Krzyż Armii Krajowej).

This was explicitly intended as a “pokazowa egzekucja”, a show execution, designed to instill fear and deter any further resistance among the Polish population. To ensure maximum impact, German forces forcibly rounded up residents from Ciechanów and the surrounding villages, compelling them to witness the hangings. Accounts suggest a crowd of at least 2,000 people was assembled in the castle courtyard. Some reports mention the presence of the victims’ families , and one particularly harrowing, though perhaps difficult to verify precisely, account claims that Kazimiera Grzelak’s one-year-old daughter Maria was among the unwilling spectators. The atmosphere was described as one of profound cold, fear and tension, with witnesses reportedly murmuring curses against the perpetrators and prayers for the condemned

Before the execution commenced, the formal verdict was read out, translated for the crowd, accusing the four AK members of engaging in conspiratorial work against the German state and collaborating with partisans. As they faced their final moments, the condemned displayed remarkable courage and patriotism in a way that so many Poles did during the Second World War. Eyewitness accounts consistently report that they issued a collective, defiant cry: “Niech żyje Polska!” (Long live Poland!). One account adds a grim detail: a German official allegedly kicked the plank or support from beneath their feet just as they began the second shout, cutting off the word “Polska” mid-utterance.

A significant and well-documented incident occurred during the execution, involving a local Polish farmer named Roman Konwerski from the nearby village of Kąty. The Gestapo officer supervising the execution, identified by witnesses as Ernest Wolf (nicknamed “Kopikostka”), apparently decided to amplify the horror and humiliation by forcing a Pole to act as the executioner. He singled out Konwerski from the crowd and ordered him to place the nooses around the necks of the condemned. Konwerski, despite the immense pressure and danger, refused. His defiant words, “Braci swych wieszać nie będę!” (I will not hang my brothers!), echoed through the courtyard. This act of profound moral courage had immediate and severe consequences for Konwerski. He was instantly beaten by the Germans, arrested on the spot , and incarcerated in the police prison in Ciechanów. After enduring several weeks of brutal interrogation, he was deported, likely first to KL Auschwitz and then transferred to the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp complex. According to official records from the Arolsen Archives, Roman Konwerski was shot and killed in the camp on July 29, 1943, allegedly during an escape attempt – a common Nazi euphemism for murder.

In the immediate aftermath of the execution, the bodies of Kazimiera Grzelak, Zenobia Jelińska, Tadeusz Jurecki and Bolesław Nodzykowski were treated with contempt. They were taken down and buried unceremoniously in a common grave at the local Jewish cemetery (kirkut). It was only after the war, in 1945, that their remains were exhumed and given a more dignified burial.

There is an annual ceremony held on 17 December in the castle’s courtyard to remember the bravery and courage of these five Polish patriots, but it’s hard today to imagine the terrors that took place here.

April 10, 2025
Poland – PKP Railway Map from 1939

As a random aside, I haven’t seen this map of the Polish PKP railway system from 1939 before. It’s always odd looking at maps like this as the country’s borders have shifted, but it’s an interesting piece of history….

April 9, 2025
Warsaw to Ciechanów Train – PKP

For reasons unknown to me, the hotel prices in Warsaw were excessively high which is unusual, so I thought I’d spent a night in Ciechanów as it’s only one hour away by train. I started from Warszawa Centralna, which I’ve written about numerous times before.

Mine was the 11:00 to Kołobrzeg, which cost the equivalent of £6 despite booking in on the morning of the journey. I’ve also noted many times before that I love these yellow sheets of paper, they’re clear and informative.

There we go, platform 2.

Down the escalator.

The UK have these screens, but they rarely work correctly in terms of getting you to stand in the right place for the carriage you’re booked into. This one worked perfectly for me.

There we go and the train started in Łódź, it reminds me that I want to go there again soon.

They still have corridor trains, although much of the seating is more as it is in the UK. The seats are comfortable, they come with double arm-rests so each person has one each (not that there was anyone else in my cabin thing) and power points.

And arriving on time….

The train departing off to northern Poland.

And the new and shiny railway station.

April 9, 2025