My Polish Alphabet: N for Navy

Since I lived by the sea for a few decades, the Navy is the military formation which has always been closet to my heart.

The uniforms of the Polish Navy are always of the navy blue color + black shoes, not white as in the US.

During various kind of the Polish Armed Forces parades it was the "sailors" units that caught my attention the most. 

I was so very used to their presence in the area where I lived, and the sight of a Navy officer and/or a regular Navy service person was quite a frequent and usual experience, part of life at the seashore. You could see those men and women on the city streets and on TV all the time.

There is Naval Academy in my home city in Poland. The academy is over 100 years old. Its motto is "Amor patriae suprema lex"/ "Love of the fatherland is the supreme law". 

Another thing is the patriotic part. On All Saint's Day, we always lit lanterns at the monument dedicated to defenders the Polish coast at the WW2 time. It is a pity I do not have a photo of that monument taken on November 1. It was always surrounded by the light of dozens of lanterns.

Monument to the Polish Sailor in Kosciuszki Square, Gdynia

The monument dedicated to the Polish Sailor is a location where patriotic ceremonies take place at various occasions including the Polish Army Day on 15th August.

When I was younger, everybody who lived in our region, knew the song "Sea, our sea" know also as "Although each of us is young". It was the school song of quite a few elementaries but not only. The song was commonly sang by scouts among others. It is one of the tunes played most often by the Polish Naval Forces Representative Orchestra.

The song was written in the 1920s/30s by captain Adam Kowalski at the beginnings of the Polish Navy and the naval port/ city of Gdynia.

Loose translation of the first part of the  song main part:

Although each of us is young, we are called old salty seadogs.

We, the guardians of Polish waters, Polish sailors we are.

Ref. Sea, our sea, we will guard you faithfully.

We have orders to hold you, or at the bottom, at your bottom fall,

or at the bottom with honor fall.

No force, no storm, will take Gdynia from us.

Our fleet, though not big, faithfully guards the port gates.

Sea, our sea, we will guard you faithfully.

We have orders to hold you, or at the bottom, at your bottom fall,

or at the bottom with honor fall.

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Photos taken at the Naval Academy and Kosciuszki Square in Gdynia (2008).

UPDATE

Looking through my old files I have found the photos of the monument to the Defenders of the Coast fallen in 1939.

All Saints' Day. The later during the day it was and more people were coming to the cemetery, the more lanterns were lit

Other posts related to this topic:

"B" for Bosun

"D" for Dar Młodzieży and Dar Pomorza

"L" for Lonely Frigate

"My place in Poland"

"G" for Gdynia

"H" for Hel and Hel Peninsula

"O" for ORP Orzeł

"S" for Seagulls

and more in "My Polish Alphabet".

My British Associations - A

If you follow my blog, you probably notice I enjoy doing "alphabets" - compilations of posts on a certain topic.
This one is a follow-up to the alphabet challenge taken up by Viola, a colleague blogger, and the author of "My British Journey". I have challenged Viola to write entries of the alphabet series related to her life in the UK.

She agreed and asked her readers to share their associations with the country. Since I challenged Viola, I thought I should answer her.

So here it is.

I need to add that, contrary to Viola, I have not lived in GB permanently. My associations are based on my life in Europe and a few visits to the country.

 

A

 

At first, Austin Powers, International Man of Mystery, came to my mind. He is a British character, but fictional, created by American filmmakers. I guess it does not count, then.

 

A British A? Alan Parsons Project has already been mentioned on this blog.

I for Insurgent and U for Uprising

 

As for the Insurgent - I mean the monument to the Little Insurgent dedicated to the children who fought in the Warsaw Uprising that took place in 1944.

To make the story short - the young and younger citizens of Warsaw, then occupied by Nazis, organized an armed action against the occupants. 

The monument to the Warsaw Uprising/Warsaw Insurgents

Since at that time, the Russian Army was stationed on the other bank of the Vistula River, the young Insurgents believed the Russians would support their fight and help them liberate the city. 

 

The uprising started on 1 August and lasted for 63 days, the Russian Army did not take any action and did not support the Insurgents. Sadly, the Warsaw WWII revolt brought tragic results. 

 

During the fights, about 200,000 citizens of Warsaw lost their lives. In the aftermath, Nazi planes destroyed/flattened the city, and its 700,000 inhabitants were expelled from Warsaw.

 

More info about the Warsaw Uprising

• The Warsaw Uprising - Holocaust Encyclopedia
• Wikipedia 

Available on YouTube:

• Documentary about the Warsaw Uprising 
•  Polish drama made in 1957 (with English subtitles): "Sewer" - about the Uprising and Insurgents
  

Available on Tubi:

• Documentary
• Movie: Battle for Warsaw

On a cool July day (the temperatures in the 60s), we thought about it all while visiting Warsaw and watching the monuments.

The letter P with an anchor at its bottom was the symbol of the WWII Polish Underground State and the Home Army. The anchor = letter W. Both P make W (in Polish) are the acronym meaning "fighting Poland". It was also the symbol of the Warsaw Uprising.

Glory to the fallen Heroes!

"L" for Library

The local library is a place we enjoy visiting. Friendly and helpful staff, good book and DVD collections, and computers when needed. Besides that, quite a positive atmosphere can be felt there too.

The library building (designed by Alfred Giles in 1882) was originally Gillespie County Courthouse.

The other side of the building

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More entries of "My Texas Alphabet" here.

J for Jackrabbits

Another letter related-post in "My Texas Alphabet" is dedicated to Texas jackrabbits. We have met them quite often in the countryside. Jackrabbits are considerably bigger than their European cousins. Their long ears give them quite an unusual look.

 I do like those long-eared hoppers.

Video made during our walks in the Texas countryside.

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"My Texas Alphabet" is my, quite a personal, summary of our hitherto life in Texas. 

 

A for Armadillo

Coming back to "My Texas Alphabet" and to the letter "A", it is for Armadillo, of course. 

How could it be different since the animal is one of the symbols of Texas?  
You can meet it in the countryside.  Armadillos tend to be rather slow regarding their actions. They are cute in their own way, though.

Video and photos: One of the Texas symbols met during one of our walks in the country area. 

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"My Texas Alphabet" is my, quite a personal, summary of our hitherto life in Texas. 

G for Gietrzwałd

Have you been to Gietrzwałd?

The place used to be called Dietrichswalde when Poland was under Prussian rule. This religious Sanctuary in east-northern Poland is visited by many pilgrims every day. Among others, it is known from the creek water, believed to have healing/miraculous properties.

More about Gietrzwałd on one of our pages HERE.

The painting (in the above photo) is part of the display in the old Heritage Museum in Panna Maria, TX.

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To read more  "My Polish Alphabet"entries, check out the link below. 

C for Ciechocinek

The letter "C" in "My Polish Alphabet" is for Ciechocinek.

 

Ciechocinek /tche:hotcheeneck/, situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, is a spa town known for its brine sources and related to them graduation towers built 1824/1859.

A graduation tower is used in the production of salt. The process removes water from a saline solution by evaporation. The result is an increased concentration of mineral salts in the product. The tower consists of a wooden wall-like frame stuffed with bundles of brushwood. In Ciechocinek, the brushwood is blackthorn. The wigs have to be changed every 5/10 years. Anyhow, the saline water is pumped up the tower, then runs down the twigs and partly evaporates. At the same time, some minerals from the solution are left behind on the brushwood (1).

There are three graduation towers in Ciechocinek which are 15.8 m/52 ft high. The second one is the longest (719 m/2,359f t long). They are the largest graduation towers in Europe (there are smaller ones in France and Germany).

How it works
The brine solution goes from one tower to another and another, and the concentration of the brine gets greater and greater. The final product of the graduation towers' work is a 30 % brine concentration. From the last tower, the saline water goes by pipes to a salt plant where besides salt, therapeutic lye and sludge are manufactured (2).

The air is so incredibly good and healthy there! It contains several microelements that make breathing easy and clear the respiratory system very effectively. When we walked along the towers, we could feel how greatly our sinuses and lungs got cleared. It was sooooooo nice! 

During the stroll (over 2km/6,000 ft), we could see particles of salt accumulated at the bottom of the towers. Of course, we collected a few pieces as a keepsake. 

Salt of course

The base of the tower is made of oak wood

More salt

 

Inside the last tower, where the concentration of the brine is the biggest, there was an inhalation chamber. The entrance fee was 5zł. We climbed up the wooden wall and, for 30 minutes, sat there watching the brine solution going down the wall and inhaling the healing air. 

Brine going down the wall inside the tower

Salt collected at the bottom of the tower

Standing there, we could feel the brine solution dripping everywhere. The tiny drops refreshed the skin.

It was amazing how much easier breathing was afterward.

In the town, there are spa hotels. In one of them, they had a warm saline water pool, with currents massaging the body. The water is too thick to swim in it, so people just sat there enjoying the warm massage.

After visiting the graduation towers area, we went to see the nearby salt plant museum. Besides the old told used ages ago to make salt, lye, and sludge, there were some restored ancient pieces of gym-type equipment (called in the past therapeutic apparatuses).

 

It was another very, very long walk we did while visiting Poland. Afterward, our legs needed to rest, so  we enjoyed sitting in the town spa park.

 

All in all, due to the towers and the saline water going down the twigs, there is a very special microclimate in Ciechocinek.  I wish we had been able to can some of that local air/pack the tower with the inhalation chamber and bring it here to Texas...

Sources:
1. Wikipedia
2. Ciechocinek graduation towers 

You can find more letters of "My Polish Alphabet" here.