At the first half of the 19th century Bialystok’s economy started growing fast. German and Jewish manufacturers began arriving here to set up textile facories, especially after 1831 – the year when customs border between The Polish Kingdom and the enormous part of former Polish and Lithuanian lands was established by tsarist government as a kind of repression for Polish independence uprising in 1830 – 1831 (November Uprising). It was the time of huge influx of German and Jewish textile manufacturers and highly qualified German workers. Bialystok became at that time one of the most important industrial towns in whole Russian Empire, it was even called “Manchester of the north”.
Unfortunately many of the old textile factories have been in so pitiful state that it has not been possible to save and renovate them, some of them were just knocked down, onle a few survived and it is difficult to predict how long they will stay as a part of the town landscape. Some of them are now converted into the lofts and probably it is the only way to protect those old buildings, though there is a great danger that they may lose its original character.
Below I present pictures of two untouched old plants and one being under way of converting into lofts.
It seems that real spring has sprung at last. Today we had almost 20 degrees Celsius and a lot of sunshine. We could take off our shirts, sweaters, jackets and wear only t-shirts. After a long break – lasting almost 6 months we were able to take a bike trip to Knyszynska Forest, set off at 2 p. m. across the busy town. To go through the busy, jammed town may be a really traumatic expereince, and in fact it was so today. Fortunately thanks to EU funds municipal authorities build more and more bicycle paths in Bialystok and we used one of them to reach Suprasl – small, picturesque town, about 15 kilometres from Bialystok.
It is an Orthodox church in Suprasl. First Orthodox church in Suprasl was built in the end of the 15th century. It was blew up by withdrawing German Nazis in 1944.
In Suprasl bicycle path ends and later on we went the road to Krynki, all the time across beautiful and old Knyszynksa forest. After passing a few kilometres we turn right, asphalt ended and we entered the real kingodm of the primeval forest.
Road to Budzisk Reserve in Knyszynska Forest.
“Entrance” to Budzisk Reserve in Knyszynska Forest.
As far as I am personally concerned, especially bike trips makes me fell free, they provide me with a kind of methaphysical sense of happiness and freedom. Forest itself in turn appears to be a real sanctuary for me, it is a place when I am able to believe in God and get rid of all my fears; a place for a deep contemplation and meditation. Real sanctuary…
In the middle of Budzisk reserve.
On our way home we started joking that this forest reminds us of “Blair Witch Project” and for sure it also has its witch whom one day we will meet đŸ˜‰ There are many interesting and mysterious forest stories told by forest village inhabitants about ghosts, devils, but about them next time…
Together with my friends I resolved to immortalize places, buildings, gardens, streets which were witnesses of the most tragic and cruel events in history of our native town. We are Polish inhabitants of Bialystok – town of many cultures, religions, languages in the north – eastern Poland. This is the place where the East meets the West; towers of Catholic and Orthodox churches soar above the town, Protestant churches, muslim mosque enrich Bialystok’s face.
Poles, Belarussians, Tatars, Russians, descendants of Germans are still hosts of our town, but Jews who before the II World War made up 50% of Bialystok’s population are absent. Majority of Jewish inhabitants was exterminated by German Nazis in 1941 – 1944. Only a few hundreds of Jews were able to save their lives. Presently there are no open and functioning synagogues or houses of prayer, no lively Jewish community in Bialystok.
This post is dedicated to places which during the II World War found itself in the borders of the ghetto area, where German Nazis gathered about 50.000 Jews.
Evening in Czysta street. View from Czysta street, on the left – house in ghetto were Samuel Pisar lived.
House in the courtyard in Czysta street no 5
Old buildings in Czestochowska street, near Czysta and Warynskiego street.
Warynskiego street, near Cytron Synagogue, in front of – yellow and brown building was a school for Jewish girls before the Second World War
I have always been amazed by the contrasts included in beautiful places. How is it possible that place that witnessed most cruel events in the world history may at the same time include so much beauty? I mean contrast between internal appearance of a place and history it contains.
The most beautiful gardens in my native town are on the areas of the former ghetto. Bialystok’s history has not witnessed more cruel period than time of the II World War, when about 50.000 Jews were gatherd in interior part of the town, where German Nazis organizied ghetto. Those beuatiful gardens, wooden small houses, old bulidings, old trees, lush green of the gardens, many colurs of flowers, picturesque paved streets, red brick factories were witnesses of unimaginable cruelties in human kind’s history – murders of hundreds of innocent children, women, men; later on uprising in Bialystok ghetto and deaths of further hundreds of persons.
Now spring has just come nad those places start again to be the most beautiful places in the town. They are still grey, but in a short time they will explode with lush green and many other bright colurs of the Bialystok gardens.
Is it possible to understand such an indifference of nature to human kind suffering?
On the left – part of the synagogue in Warynskiego street, on the right – old building, both from the begining of the XX century, on the area of former ghetto.
Small wooden house in Czysta 5 street, where Samuel Pisar – surviver of Bialystok ghetto, later on adviser of John Fitzgerald Kennedy – lived in inferno of Bialystok ghetto.
Wooden remnant of the ghetto gate between stones in Czysta street.
View of the Czysta street from the place were ghetto gate stood.
Houses in Czysta street, on the left – Czysta 5 – wooden house where Samuel Pisar lived.
Recently Slovakians were celebrating 20th anniversary of the Candle Manifestation.
On the 25th March 1988 more than 2.000 people gathered in “Hviezdoslavovo nĂ¡mestie” – main square in Bratislava to show their internal freedom, freedom from fear, from communist terror. They held in their hands fired candles.
In Slovakia opposition was grounded in and supported by Catholic Church, unlike in Czech Republic, most members of Slovakian opposition were catholics, whom supported part of Catholic Church hierarchy. After the Second World War Slovakian catholics were severely persecuted by communist regime.
After the long period of apathy connected to suppressing the “Prague spring” in 1968 – prodemocratic movement on behalf of the real freedom, Slovakian society dared to show their stance toward communist government. They started to demand real religious freedom, preventing the government from interference in the internal matters of the Catholic church and last but not least – obeying the human rights by the state.
As in many other similar manifestations in communist countries militia extremely brutally dispersed peaceful demonstration with using truncheons, water cannons, many demonstrators were cruelly beaten. Afterwards Slovakian secret service started apprehensions on a large scale. Many manifestation’s participants were persecuted for their brave behaviour.
Let’s pay tribute to all members of that manifestation, all persons engaged in democratic movement and persecuted in Slovakia during communist period.
******* All the pictures above were taken from the website of Slovakian magazine “Tyzden” – http://www.tyzden.sk
Today morning I take a short break and read an interveiw with famous and respected Polish actor. He speaks about his fascination with villains in theatre. Later on journalists recalls actor’s words: “Once You told that for good actor intelligence is only an obstacle and good actor has to be a m…ucker.”
At once I recollected an interview with an American young actress read a few years ago – I do not remember her name and surname – who was talking about one – sidedness and unambiguity of goodness and attractiveness of evil.
Tha fact is, many people consider goodness a boring thing. Undoubtedly in our contemporary culture fascination with evil exists and appears to be strong.
Several times I was even suprised by my friends who stated that evil gives the life taste and colour. But with regard to them I had an occassion to see how they behaved and how they got indignant when some kind of harm or injustice touched them. They were not able to understand how it could happen that evil met just them, raised hue and cry about such an evident insult and injustice, spoke about unethical and immoral behaviour of their evildoer, forgetting thier words about intriguing and healthy dose of evil.
So, for sure, evil is OK, is nice, gives the life taste and colour, makes life bearable and more interesting, but only on condition that does not concern us.
The sunrises 
