Poland

I spent the first 19 years of my life in Korea until 1954. Even though I spent more than 50 years in the United States, my Korean root plays a strong role in every aspect of my life. This means that I am still working hard to understand my Korean background. It is often helpful to understand my background by comparing with those of others. For instance, Japan and Korea share the same cultural root. Thus, I maintain a keen interest in Japan in order to understand myself. I enjoy watching Japanese movies. I watched 23 of Akira Kurosawa's 33 movies.

Like Korea, Poland is surrounded by big and powerful countries, and had been divided into three different colonies for 125 years until the end of the first World War. Korea was divided into two after World War II. I can write a long story about this similarity, but let us look at some photos.

Daewoo in Poznan (1996). This is a street scene of Poznan. Poznan is the third largest Polish city after Warsaw and Krakow. At that time, there was a talk about setting a Daewoo automobile factory in Poland. I do not know what happened since then. When I went to Poland in 2007, the Korean influence was much more prominent. Samsung cell phones and cameras everywhere. Here are the Korean excavators working hard at one of the construction sites in Warsaw.
In 1945, Koreans knew how to make oxcarts. In less than 50 years, Korea became one of the major industrial countries, and one of the that most educated countries in the world, with a large number of U.S.-educated PhDs.
Does this mean that Korea is ahead of Poland?

Poland's Nobels (1996). Poland is far ahead of Korea in collecting Nobel prizes. This is a photo of myself with Prof. Lidia Skibinska in the lobby of the physics building at Adam mickiewwicz University in Poznan (2002). In the background is a poster listing the six Polish Nobel winners.
Young Koreans complain that it is impossible to get Nobel prizes because Koreans never established their own Nobel culture. True! But it is not enough to complain. You should find a solution. Go to Poland, and find out how they did it.
Then why Poland, not the United States? I am not against the United States. We have been living with Americans since 1945, and many Koreans studied in the United States. We picked up a vast amount of technological know-hows from Americans. On the other hand, things are different at the level of Nobel prize. The originality, stemming from one's cultural background.
The point is that Koreans share many things with Poland. Like Korea, Poland has been and still is surrounded by big and powerful countries. Until the end of World War I, for 125 years, Poland had been divided into three colonies by Russia, Austria, and Prussia. Woodrow Wilson included the unification and independence of Poland in his 14-point peace plan for the world, but did not mention Korea. We all know that Korea's 3.1 uprising in 1919 had something to do with Wilson's declaration.
Then did Wilson give a special favor to Poland while ignoring Koreans? Politicians talk but someone else has to do the real work. What Wilson said is largely irrelevant to Poland. It is very important for Koreans to realize that the unification and independence of Poland were achieved by the Polish people.
Let us look at what Karl Marx said about this world. How about Woodrow Wilson? He was a philosopher to the eyes of politicians. To philosophers, he was a politician. Yet I still like him. He was a man of vision.

Marshal Józef Pilsudski. This is a statue of Marshal Pilsudski overlooking the memorial park in Warsaw. He organized three divisions of Polish army with weapons confiscated from defeated Germans troops going home from Ukraine after World War I. His army had to fight bitter battles against Russian troop. Russia's communist regime ignored Wilson's declaration and sent troops to Poland to reclaim Russia's former colony. At that time, France sent expeditionary troop to help the newly created Polish army. The commander of this French unit was Charles de Galle. This is the reason why there is the Charles de Galle circle at the center of Warsaw. There is also a statue of de Galle in that area. It was a gift from the French government.
1. Tomb of unknown soldiers. Two soldiers stand at full attention for one hour until changes come. Here is another photo. They are holding Soviet-model Kalashnikov rifles presumably produced in Poland.
2. Coming to their guard duties. Here also, soldiers are followed by children.
3. Soldiers and Sailors who came back from their guard duties. I had a photo with them.
  Soldiers relaxing during off-duty hours.
4. High School Students from Gdansk. There are of course many visitors and spectators at this site. I met a group of these boys and girls. They were wearing good old sailor uniforms. What kind of uniform did I wear when I was a student?
5. I seem to look better with soldiers. I am shaking hands with General Maxwell Taylor in 1954. General Taylor was the commander of U.S. Forces in Korea at that time. There were more than 300,000 combat-ready American soldiers under his command.
6. Charles de Galle. Why is he in Warsaw? When Poland was establishing itself as one independent country after World War I, the Russian Bolshevik troops came to reclaim Russia's colonial territory, and Poland needed outside helps. France sent an expeditionary force. The commander of this French army unit was Charles de Galle. There is a major cross road in Warsaw called "Charles de Galle Circle," and de Galle's statue at its south-eastern corner.

Warsaw Uprising against German Occupation (1944). Alas, Pilsudski's Polish army was destroyed by Soviets in two phases. First, during the early stage of World War II, Soviet troops murdered 6,000 elite officers of the Polish army. Toward the end of World War II, when Soviet troops came to the eastern suburb of Warsaw, there was an armed uprising in the center of the city. Those Soviets did not move in to help those Polish fighters. They let Germans completely destory all remaining Polish troops. Here is another monument commemorating those brave Polish fighters.

Stalin Tower at the center of Warsaw. Soviet troops were in Poland more than six months before the fall of Warsaw. During this period, Stalin was quick to set up a communist government in the city of Lublin. This puppet goverment moved to Warsaw after the War. The communist rule then continued until 1990.
Even these days, Warsaw's No. 1 landmark is this Stalinist structure, called "Palace of Culture and Science" by Polish people. This tower was built by Russians in the early 1950s as a gift of Soviets to Polish comrades. Polish people decided not to tear down this Stalinist structure because it still serves many useful purposes, and because they do not want to upset their Russian neighbors.
This communist rule very seriously impeded the economic development of Poland. Koreans can understand this very clearly. Compare the communist North with the South.
On the other hand, this brutal communist rule could not destroy the rich Christian history of Poland. Nicolaus Copernicus was a brilliant young boy. His theory was against Catholic authorities, but he was able to do his research because of the existence of church institutions. In 1978, during the communist rule, a Polish cardinal from Krakow became Pope John-Paul II.
I took this photo of the Palace of Culture and Sceince in 1996 from a hotel room of the Marriott Warsaw. This photo of the hotel was taken from the Palace in 2008.

Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543). This is a statue of Copernicus. I do not have to explain to you who he was. This statue is at a corner of the campus of the University of Warsaw. Across the street is the
1. Church of Holy Cross. I was inside this church when I went to Warsaw for the first time. I went to the church again in 2007, and took this photo.
2. like Hillary Clinton. when I went to Warsaw in 1994. There, a very kind Polish lady explained to me the history of this church. She became very happy when I told her she looks Hillary Clinton. At that time, Hillary was a young first lady of the United States.
3. Events going on in this area. I like fun-loving people because I am one of them.
4. Przy Trakcie. There is also a good restaurant serving traditional Polish dishes.
Nicolaus Copernicus University. Copernicus was born in Torun. Quite rightly, there is a university named after him. Every year, this university hosts a conference on mathematical physics.

Maria Curie

Her remains

her Warsaw house

Her daughter was also an outstanding scientist and received the 1935 Nobel prize in chemistry. Here is her photo with Einstein.

Her house is just outside the old Warsaw castle, which used to protect the area now called the Old Town. There are many interesting shops and restaurants. There is also the house where Adam Mickiewicz (1798-1855) used to live. He was a Polish a writer, poet, and visionary. There is a university in Poznan named after him. I do not have enough expertise to say beyond this, but I would like to study more about him in order to have a better understanding of Poland.

Frederic Chopin's Statue

a photo with them

Piano Concerts are held frequently at this Chopin sites. I was there in 1994. After the concert, while workers were removing the piano, I talked with several music-loving Polish ladies. One of them was a music student, and the other was a Polish actress who became very happy when I showed her a photo of my wife with Actress Brooke Shields .
After Chopin's death in Paris, his body was buried at the Pere LaChaise Cemetery in Paris. Chopin's heart was extracted from his body and transported to Warsaw to be entombed into the wall of the Church of Holy Cross near the stature of Copernicus.

Henryk Sienkiewicz. Not far from the Chopin place, there is a statue of Henryk Sienkiewicz. Do you know who he was? Sienkiewicz was the recipient of 1905 Nobel prize in literature. He is the author of "Quao Vadis." He wanted to talk to God. How? He wrote a book "Quao Vadis."
Indeed, he gave me the wisdom of talking to unreachable persons. I was too young to meet Einstein personally. Then how could I talk to him? According to Sienkiewicz, I should write a book. But, I have a better method. Construct a website for Einstein.
I was there in November of 2002, and met this young lady who has a great respect for Sienkiewicz. She became very happy to meet a non-Polish man who also respects this great Polish writer.

Polish Student in Warsaw I was talking with this Polish student while waiting for a bus. She was born in 1984, and she knows her country was under communist domination until recently.
This student seems to have a correct vision for her country. She says she worked as a waitress in London last summer and made a handsome amount of money. There are advantages of Poland being a member of European Union. At the same time, the economic expansion is not everything. Everybody knows fresh air is disappearing. But most importantly, she thinks Polish people should preserve their beautiful Polish hearts and minds in the coming years.
Koreans can hear Polish hearts and minds through Chopin's music, largely based on farm lands of Poland. Like Korea, Poland has a very strong agricultural tradition. Since Poland is so like Korea, I can tell Polish men and women from others around the world. Polish ladies become very happy when I ask them whether they are from Poland. They say YES readily when I invite them to have a photo together. They also seem to feel a resonance frequency from me, and they treat me like a brother. Here are some photos.
1. Polish Nuns: with nuns from Poland proud of their Pope, at St. Peter's Square in Rome (June 2000). Pope John-Paul II came from Poland.

Daria Zieminska. She came to the Univ. of Maryland from Poland in 1979 as a post-doc in high-energy physics. This photo was taken in the spring of 1980 in Annapolis, while her husband and son were still in Poland. Together with them, she is now an exemplary citizen of the United States. Click here for Daria's home page.
Are you from Poland? There are many Polish ladies in the United States. Thanks to my special interest in Poland, I can tell whether they came from Poland by looking at them. I asked this question to this Polish lady at one of the trendy restaurants in Columbia, Maryland (not far from College Park). She was very happy to say YES (September 2004).
Polish Ancestry. In June of 2005, I met this lady at the Stockholm Airport. She was working for SAS Scandinavian Airlines, and she checked me in for a flight to Kaliningrad (Russia). I asked her whether she is from Poland. She said her parents are from Poland and become happy whenever she meets someone who regards her as a Polish lady. She asked me how I knew it. I simply said "I know" and took this photo. She was very busy in her job.
European Union. Polish folks in front of the European Congress Building (Brussels 2008). They are mighty proud of their country playing a major role in the European affairs. There is a statue saying Euro uber Alles.
While Warsaw is becoming an international city at an alarming rate, the city of Krakow is and will hopefully be a traditional Polish city.

St. Mary's Basilica is Krakow's No. 1 address. You heard about a bugler being hit by an arrow from a Tartar Mongolian soldier in the 13th Century. We can still hear the bugle sound every hour on the hour coming from the top of the taller tower of this church building. This church is at the center of old Krakow surrounded by the Krakow castle. This old town is now called the Market Place. This is indeed an interesting place especially after the sunset. Let us look at some photos.
1. Here is a mother with her son while feeding a pigeon on her arm.
2. Another photo of mother and boy with grandmother.
3. Fire dancers blowing out fire from their mouths.
4. Visitors from Scotland with their own dresses. I asked them what they have in their Kiltie bags. They said "money of course."
5. Students. There are always students interested in meeting new people. It is a pleasure to talk with them. After all, it is my life-time job to talk to students.
Jaggiellonian University. If you are in Krakow, how can you skip this university? Nicolaus Coprponicus studied there. More recently, Pope John Paul II started his college years there. He was first enrolled as a student majoring in drama. I once walked through the campus, but was not able to take many photos. I am able to find one of my photos with Jagiellonian graduate students in physics taken in 2002.

Wierzynek Restaurant in Krakow. Who ate in this restaurant before you did? George H. Bush, Fidel Castro, Charles de Galle, Gerald Ford, Mikhail Gorbachev, Francois Miterand, Steven Spielberg, and click here for a longer list (by no means complete).
1. I was there in 2002 and dined in one of their VIP rooms, and I was asked to sign my name in their guest book. But my name was not on their list when I visited again in 2007. I became so angry that I decided not to eat there again, but I changed my mind. I decided to eat like a king again.
  There are many other excellent places serving traditional Polish cuisine near the Basilica at reasonable prices.
2. Jarema. I was there in 2002 and 2007. This restaurant also has its history, and was desinged to serve "ordinary" people. Tables are served by Polish students, and it is refreshing and educational to talk with them and learn about Poland. When I was there in 2002 and 2007. In 2002, I learned a history lesson from the student who served me. In 2007, I was talking with another student. She was telling me about the current thinking trend among young Polish students. Become international and become affluent.
3. Kawaiarnia Restaurant, near near St. Mary's Basilica, which seems to be a gathering place for young people. This restaurant also has its history. They say it used to be the living room for a Polish princess. I dined there in 2007.

Jewish Community. There used be many Jewish communities in Poland. Most of them were eradicated during Worl War II, but there is still a trace of the rich Jewish town in Krakow. One of the Jewish Synagogues was being reconstructed there. There are Jewish shops and restaurants there, but they are not necessarilu run by Jewish people. They just reproduce Jewish flavors. Good enough for me. I dined at a resaurant called Noah's Ark.
Not far from Krakow is a Polish town called Oswiecim. This place is widely known as Auschwitz, where Hitler used to operate a Jewish death camp. There are therefore many Jewish people visiting Krakow. There is a direct LOT Polish airline flight between Krakow and Tel Aviv. When I was in Krakow 2002, I met high school students from Israel and had this photo with them.