Photos from Poland

• Click here for Krakow.
• Click here for Gdansk.

Let us first talk about the people of Poland who made contributions to the world as well as to their own country.

• Poland's Nobels (1996). Since 1905, Poland has collected seven Nobel prizes. This is a photo of myself with Prof. Lidia Skibinska in the lobby of the physics building at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan (2002). In the background is a poster listing the six Polish Nobel winners. Since 2002, another Polish writer received the prize.

• Until the end of World War I, for 123 years, Poland had been divided into three colonies by Russia, Austria, and Prussia. At the end of World War I,
• Woodrow Wilson, then the president of the United States, included the unification and independence of Poland in his 14-point peace plan for the world. However, his plan was only a theory.

  Michelson was born in Poland.

  Indeed, the important task of unification and independence of Poland was carried out under the leadership of

• 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 troops. 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 troops to help the newly created Polish army. The commander of the 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 Charles de Galle in that area. It was a gift from the French government. Here is another photo of de Galle's statue.

  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. This is a photo of myself taken in 2009 with at a classy seafood restaurant in Gdansk. I am with the NATO admirals, including the chief of the Polish navy. On my right is an American admiral who studied at the U. S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. We became closer to them when I said Michelson was born in Poland and studied in Annapolis.
  6. 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.

• 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 reached the eastern bank of Warsaw's Vistula River, there was an armed uprising against Germans in the center of the city. Those Soviets waited on the eastern side for four months, until Germans completely crushed those Polish freedom fighters and burnt down the city. Here is another monument commemorating those brave Polish fighters.

  This is one of the places where Polish fighters were executed by Germans. This original brick wall stands at a bus station near the the Novotel Hotel in the city center. I spotted this site while waiting for a bus to Jablonna in November (2013). This is a photo of myself in front of the wall.

  This Palace of Culture and Science is often called the Stalin Tower. This Tower is now accompanied by many capitalistic comrades!

• 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 government 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 building serves many useful purposes for the Polish people and the people of the world.
  1. It hold excellent exhibitions. I was able to obtain this portrait of Einstein's parents from an Einstein exhibition held here.
  2. There is an assemby Hall attached to the bottom of this tower.
  3. This is a statue of a young communist carrying a book entitled Marx, Engeles, Lenin.
  4. The main conference hall inside. This hall can accommodate 3,000 people. It can also be used as a theater.
  5. A view of the city from the Tower. The Novotel Hotel is seen.
  6. A view of the Marriott Hotel, from which this photo of the Tower was taken in 1994.

• 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.

• 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 was born in Warsaw. I visited her Warsaw house in November of 1996. She was not there. Her remains are in the Pantheon of Paris. I went to her Warsaw house again in 2007.

  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 wall, which used to protect the area now called the Old Town.

  1. Here are the remains of the Warsaw Wall.
  2. The north gate is not far from Curie's house.

  There are many interesting shops and restaurants in the Old Town. 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. While Poland was divided into three colonies, namely those of Russia, Prussia, and Austria, his poems impressed the Polish people that Poland is one country. He kept the Polish spirit alive.

  Adam Mickiewicz is universally respected in Poland, and his statues are everywhere in Poland. Here is a photo of myself with Polish students in front of his statue in Krakow.

• Frederic Chopin's Statue the Lazienkowski Park in Warsaw. There are always interesting people visiting this site. Chopin is of course a hero among Polish youngsters, and they come to his statue and admire him. I took a a photo with them when I went there in 2007.
  1. Piano Concerts are held frequently at this Chopin site. I was there in 1994. After the concert, while workers were removing the piano, I talked with several music-loving Polish friends. 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 .
  2. 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.

• In 1962, there was a very important meeting of physicists at the Jablonna Palace about 60 km north of Warsaw. for a detailed story.

Photos from Krakow

During World War II, Warsaw was completely destroyed. After 50 years of the communist rule, Warsaw is becoming an international city. On the other hand, only five percent of Krakow was affected by World War II, and the Polish people maintained their own life style during the communist era. Thus, if you are interested in seeing Poland, you should go to Krakow. I went there three times.

Krakow was the capital city of Poland from 1038 to 1572, and and hosted the Mongolian invasion during the 13th century. It then became the capital city of Jagiellonian Dynasty (1386-1572), combining Poland and Lithuania. With its territory extending from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea, it was the most powerful empire in Europe. The Jagiellonian Empire was destroyed by Ottoman Turks, and Swedish influence came in from the north. The capital city was then moved to Warsaw. There are many things to see in Krakow.

• 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 Square. 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 (2007).
  2. Another photo of mother and boy with grandmother (2002).
  3. Fire dancers blowing out fire from their mouths (2007).
  4. Visitors from Scotland with their own dresses. I asked them what they have in their Kiltie bags. They said "money of course" (2007)
  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 (2002).

• Market Square with Snow. I was lucky enough to be there on a snowy day (February 2009).
  1. Without Snow, the place looks like this. St.Mary'a Cathedral and the market building.
  2. Horse Carriage in front of St. Mary's Cathedral.
  3. This Building is the market in the Market Square.
  4. Inside the Market, there are numerous stores selling Polish items, especially amber products from the Baltic coast.
  5. Statue of Adam Mickiewicz, with Polish students from Gdansk.
  6. Snow-covered Statue of Copernicus, on the campus of Jagellionian University near the Market Square.

  7. This snow-coverd structure is St. Adalbert's Church with its history.
  8. Visitor from Italy and two Polish friends. There are many stores in the yellow building in the background.
  9. Trams on a snowy day.
  10. Snow-covered Park on a snowy day.

  11. Trams in Krakow play the major role in city transportation.
  12. Trams do not all look the same. There are many different-looking trams. More trams.
  13. Carriages with stylish horses.

• St. Andrew Chuch is Krakow's oldest church. Here is another view viewed from the Church of Peter and Paul.
  1. The Church of Peter and Paul, with the statues of the twelve disciples plays an influential role not only in Krakow but also in Poland. Here is another view of the church, with snow-covered disciples.
  2. This photo contains both the Chruch of Peter and Paul and St Andrew Church.

  3. This humble-looking structure at the Market Square is the second oldest church. This The church is called St. Adalbert's Church.
     • Here is another view of the church.
     • Interior of this church looks like this.

  4. Jonh-Paul II Route is the monestery where Pope John-Paul II used to stay whenever he came to the Krakow area.
     • Entrance to the monastery.
     • Inner Garden of the monastery.
     • Church of Francis of Assisi, in front of the monestery. John-Paul II used pray at one of the back seats in this church. Here is the entrance to the Church.

  5. Church of Holy Trinity, a Dominican church constructed in the 13th Century.
  6. Church of the Wawel Castle viewed from a fifth-floor room of the Hotel Radisson SAS.

  7. Click here for a comprehensive list of the churches in Krakow.

• Jagiellonian University is one of the oldest universities in Europe. This university produced many important persons for Poland and for the world. Copernicus studied there, and Pope John-Paul II spent his freshman year there. When I was there in February of 2009, it was a snowy day.
  1. Statue of Copernicus on the campus of Jagiollenian University. Nicolous Copernicus was born in Torun, but his he studied at in Krakow and also did his creative research here. It was a pleasure to have a photo of myself with the statue. I was there also on a snowy day in 2009.
  2. Nicolaus Copernicus portrayed in a postcard. I purchased this postcard from the University library/museum with permission to post to my webpage.

  3. Collegium Maius, meaning Great College, is the original courtyard of the university. I took this photo on a snowy day in 2009.
     • This wall plate lists important event that took place since the opening of the University.
     • I was there in 2002, and had this photo with students. They were graduate students in physics.
     • I was there again 2013, but the place was closed for the weekend. I took this photo of the wall plate saying "Collegium Maius."

  4. School of Linguistics, where Pope John-Paul II spent his freshman year. He was interested in becoming an actor.
     • One of the stairways this school building.
     • One of the decorative items. in the building.
  5. Administration Hall. I do not know when this building was constructed, but it has its unique style. A large snow flake between the camera lens and the building.

• The Wawel Castle was originally built as a palace of the royal family during the 14th Century, after the Mongolian invasion. This place served as the royal palace during the Jagiellonian Empire. The Castle was destroyed and reconstructed since then. These days, this castle serves as the place where one can learn Polish history. Let us look at some photos.
  1. Walls of the Wawel Castle.
  2. Church towers of the Castle.
  3. The church seen from a fifth-floor room of the Hotel Radisson SAS.
  4. Old stone structure. This structure indicates how old the place is.
  5. Residential Section and it quadrangle.

     Gen. Kociuszko in Krakow (top), and in front of the White House (Washington, DC, USA)

  6. General Tadeusz Kociuszko's statue is at the entrance of the Wawel Castile, south of the Market Square. Who was Kociuszko? Among the numerous military achievements, he served as the commander of the engineering corp of George Washington's army for American independence.
     • His statue is proudly standing in front of the White House in Washington. Kociuszko was also a great champion of human rights. Before returning to Poland, he spend used all the money he had to buy Afro-American slaves, and freed them all. He went back to Poland to fight against the Russian invasion. The base of his statue says Son of Poland.

     • Casimir Pulaski was another Polish general who made contributions to America's independence. He was the commander of George Washington's cavalry force. Since horses ran fast, many of the major highways are named after him, such as Pulaski Skyway in New Jersey going into New York City, and "Pulaski Road" which in Chicago from the south to north. There are many immigrants from Poland in Chicago, and "Pulaski" means something important to them. To some Americans, he is known as General George Pulaski.

       General Pulaski's statue is also near the White House in Washington, DC. Here is a photo of his statue.

  7. Statue of Saint John-Paul II. I am standing next to the statue.
  8. View of the Krakow skyline from the high ground of this Castle.

• 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. 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.
  3. Jarema. I was there in 2002 and 2007. This restaurant also has its history, and was designed 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.

• Jewish Community. There used be many Jewish communities in Poland. Most of them were eradicated during World 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 necessarily run by Jewish people. They just reproduce Jewish flavors. Jews are reluctant to come back to this area.

• This is one of the Jewish buildings which survived the storm of World War II. This building houses a Jewish gift shop and a Jewish restaurant called Noah's Ark.

  Not far from Krakow is a Polish town called Oswiecim, where Hitler maintained a Jewish death camp called Auschwitz. Many Jewish people visit this place, via Krakow. There is a direct LOT Polish airline flight between Krakow and Tel Aviv.

  When I was in Krakow 2002, I met a group of high school students from Israel and had this photo with them. They also said Krakow is their ancestral homeland. Their great grandparents came from this area.

  Before World War II, about Jews constituted 30 percent of population in southern Poland. Many of them were eliminated by Hitler's atrocity, but many were wise enough to escape to settle down in the original homeland now called the state of Israel.

Photos from Gdansk

like a town in Germany

• After World War I, Poland gained its unification and independence according to Woodrow Wilson's 14-point declaration. Who was Wilson? Click here.

• On the other hand, the city of Gdansk became an international city under the mandate of the League of Nations (an UN-like organization) invented also Wilson. This city could not be integrated into Poland because there were so many German residents. The city was run by an independent city council, but its postal system was run by Poles, and its railroad system was run by Germans.

  1. This is a photo of the Gdansk railway station originally built by Germans.
  2. This statue of passengers shows their destinations in Germany, including Berlin, Bremen, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Koeln, and other German cities. This stature does not include any Polish cities.
  3. Since the Gdansk railway system was so oriented to Germany, it takes 8 hours to reach Gdansk from Warsaw. It takes only three hours from Warsaw to Krakow. If you look at the map of Poland, Krakow and Gdansk are at the same distance from Warsaw.

• Toward the end of 1930s, Germany's Hitler became greedy enough to annex Danzig to Germany, he sent his troops to the Westeplatte peninsula (Baltic peninsula) of the Gdansk region in 1939. The Polish troops fought valiantly there, but they ran out ammunition in three days, and the city of Gdansk became integrated into Hitler's Germany. This is a photo of the memorial monument dedicated to those Polish soldiers who fought against the German invasion in 1939. Poles say that World War II started here. Here is another (older) monument in the same area.

  However, the Polish postal workers, along with many citizens, put up a credible resistance to the German troops. It is not difficult to guess what happened to them if you know about Hitler. They were ordered to stand facing the wall shown in this photo, and were shot in the back. The memorial stands these days. I was there in November of 2013 to have this photo of myself.

• After World War II, Gdansk was fully integrated to Poland, but the city with its ship-building facilities, was effectively under control of the Soviet navy. Their primary shipyard was called "Lenin Shipyard." This is the reason why there are no direct railway connections to Warsaw, while Soviets extended their wide-gauge railroad system to southern Poland in order bring high-quality coals to Russia.

  Thus, the citizens of Gdansk, especially the workers in shipyards, had enough to complaint against their Soviet-controlled communist regime in Warsaw. They started expressing their discontents as early as 1960s, and their was a major revolt in 1970, and they were of course brutally suppressed in the communist style. Let us look at some photos.

  1. Entrance to the Lenin Shipyard, now called Gdansk Shipyard.
  2. Memorial to the 1970 Protest, with the name of those who lost their lives.

• Yet, their movement became stronger and better organized to form a trade union called "Solidarity." In 1980, Lech Walesa became the leader of this movement. He received the 1983 Nobel peace prize, and became a world figure. He then became the effective political leader to liberate Poland from the Soviet domination. He became the president of Poland in 1990 to serve his five-year term.
• Gdansk is known to the world for the home base for the Solidarity movements that eventually brought down the Iron Curtain.
  1. The Solidarity Square is the place where many meetings of the labor union took place. At the center of the square is a tall monument dedicated to those sacrificed their lives in 1970.
  2. The 1970 protest is not well known to the rest of the world, but there are still many Poles to come their respect for those shipyard workers. Here is a photo of the bottom of this monument.
  3. The square is surrounded by many items illustrating the history of the movement. Among them is a portrait of Pope John Paul II. He became the pope in 1978, and gave a great inspiration to the Polish people for freedom from the communist atrocity.
  4. I am standing with two Polish friends at the entrance to the Solidarity Square
  5. I am with two Polish citizens with an armored car in the background. I assume Polish authorities used this vehicle to control the crowd.
  6. I am with German visitors to this spot in this photo. They were carrying Japanese cameras. I asked them why they are not carrying German-made Leica cameras. I told them I am also carrying a Japanese camera with a Leica lens. They said they did not know such a camera exists. Go to my camera page to see how crazy I am toward the cameras.

• Indeed, ship building used to be Gdansk's main economic engine, and the workers of this industry was powerful enough to produce a major political change in Poland. Their shipyards are no longer building ships. However, those facilities are now used for providing maintenance services to the ships in the Baltic Sea. This is also a profitable business.
  1. This is a photo of myself with two Russian engineers who are taking a liberty from their Russian ship while it goes through a maintenance service. I met them at the entrance of the shipyard.
  2. These are the ships being serviced.
  3. There are many available service spots ready for business. The ship in the photo is a sightseeing boat going through this area. Here is another photo with empty service spots.

• Gdansk's Old Town is a special place. Gdansk is like Venice consisting of networks of rivers connected to the Baltic Sea. Those rivers are deep, and allows big ships to navigate. This is the reason, why the ship-building industry was developed there.

  Even before they started building ships, Gdansk was a commercial center among the Baltic countries. The commercial center was developed along the banks of the Motlawa River.

  1. This is a photo of a crane used during the medieval era. This is a close-up view of this crane.
  2. This is a photo of Many shops and restaurants are along the bank.
  3. This is a luxury hotel converted from an old warehouse.
  4. This is A treasure-island sight-seeing ship sailing along the Gdansk rivers starting from the Motlawa River. It reaches the Westeplatte peninsula where I took this photo and and this.

  5. This is a photo of Many shops and restaurants are along the bank.
  6. This is an an American restaurant. I did not go in, but it looks OK.
  7. Here are portraits of American characters hanging on the wall of a building.
  8. These high school students were very happy to speak English to me, based on what they learned in their classrooms.
  9. There are many Amber shops along the riverbank. This shop owner is very happy, because I paid 60 Euros in cash for a amber-decorated tie pin. Merchants there do not like credit cards, and they produce every reason to get cash from the customers.

• Indeed, Gdansk is the Amber capital of the world. The amber stones are collected from the sea along the Baltic coasts. They have been developing skills to convert them into expensive jewelry items. There a street consisting only of amber shops. They are competitive, and thus prices are reasonable.
  1. Entrance to the amber street. There apparently was a wall along the river bank perhaps 500 years ago. If you enter through one of the wall gates, there is the amber street of Gdansk.
  2. On-street displays and bargain hunters.
  3. Tourists are always there even during the winter months.
  4. This is one of the shops, and another shop.
  5. This shop is apparently in one residential apartment buildings
  6. Ambers and ambers in one of the shops. Here is another photo.

  Long Market of Danzig (1906), photo from the public domain.

• There is another street parallel to the amber street, thus perpendicular to the river and the wall. This place was known as the Long Market when Gdansk was a German city of Danzig before World War I. I do not know how this place is called these days.

  This area is still a busy market place with expensive shops and international restaurants. The are many many tourists, and local people who want to show off their talents.

  1. First of all, I would like to show you a photo of myself taken during my visit to Gdansk in November (2013). The tall building in the background is the town hall.
  2. This fountain of Neptune is near the town hall. It was constructed by a Dutch artist in 1617. I assume there was an extensive maritime trade route between Amsterdam and Gdansk, before Germans came.

  3. The Green Gate at the western end of the Long Market was also influenced by Dutch architecture. Beyond this gate is a shopping street along the Motlawa River. I do not know why it is called "green" gate.
  4. The Diamond Gate is at the eastern end of this long market.

  5. It is crowded place during the summer months.
  6. These two girls dressed to attract attention. They were conservatively dressed.
  7. This man in white shirt does not know he is being followed by a stranger.
  8. This is a street of everything for everybody.
  9. From this store, what can you buy?

  10. How about November? The street is not crowded but not empty. There are still many people.
  11. This young hostess standing in front of her restaurant was urging me to come into her place while showing me the menu. I told her I would dine at her place if she agreed to have a photo with me.
  12. This is one of the Russian restaurants in this area.
  13. Potato Love. Poland and other Baltic countries are potato-eating countries, like China and other Asian countries are rice-eating countries.

• The University of Gdansk is located in a town called Orlowo, 20 kilometers north of Gdansk's mail railway station. You do not have to wait more than five minutes to be on a tram going to the University.

  The University of Gdansk was established in 1970 by the amalgamation of the Higher School of Economics in Sopot (north of Gdansk) and Gdansk College of Education.

  Gdansk Univ. of Technology (top), Gdansk Medical University.

  1. Gdansk has a long history, why was it so late to have its own university? Furthermore, it has an outstanding engineering university. There is also an outstanding medical university with its hospital. Why not a combined campus?

  2. I raised this question to one of the informed Gdansk residents. He gave me the following answer. Gdansk was a colony of Germany for many years, Germans built many good things, but a not a university. Colonialists do not like local leadership growing up in their colonies. Germans also used this formula. Yes, universities are the places for research and education. Not many people know they are places where the local people cultivate leadership.

  3. He was surprised when I was able to digest what he says so easily. Yes, I have enough personal background to understand this point. If you are interested some other parts of the world where the colonialists practiced this formula, you may contact me personally. my email address is yskim@umd.edu.

  The University of Gdansk has everything needed for future growth. It is close to the city, and it has a vast open space, all the campus buildings are equipped with everything high-technology can offer.

  Since the city of Gdansk was developed as an international city, the university also thrives to become a truly international institution. It has an excellent language school.

  Let me stop talking, and let us look at some campus photos.

  1. The Library is at the center of the campus. Look at the empty space around the building. This empty space is the most valuable asset. It allows future growth.
     • Three jet engines are attached to this building. They look like these during the night. What purpose do they serve? They let you wonder. This is the purpose of modern architecture.
     • Three more engines on the other side. I was told they are for extra office spaces.
     • This high-tech library was running its Shakespeare exhibition in a traditional way.

  2. Social Sciences Hall is a cylindrical building. Many conferences are held in this bundling.
     • Central lobby
     • Ceiling of the lobby
     • Entrance to one of the lecture halls.

  3. School of Law and Administration teaches how to run their government properly. This program was not available in Gdansk during the colonial periods.
     • He wants to become the king. I asked this student whether he is interested in becoming the president. He said No. He wants to become the king. I told him Poland does not have a king. He said that is precisely why the country need a king like himself.
     • Another photo. We had another photo with two female students. I forgot to ask what they want to become.

  4. This physical Science Building does not show any artistic elements. It is thus called the ugliest building on campus. It houses physics, chemistry, and information science.
     • One of the physics corridors. Since this university is new, it is strong in new physics, such as quantum optics and quantum information. The university also has strong programs in biophysics and biotechnology although they are in a separate building.
     • Cafeteria at the entrance lobby. Students are always hungry.
     • Jobs in U.S.A. sounds good everywhere in the world.

  5. The Pancake House is the best among the many eating places on campus. In addition to the standard Polish menu, it serves various pancake sandwiches. What is the pancake sandwich? It consists of two standard-diameter pancakes Polish and other delicacies in between. You need a fork and a knife to eat.
     • Always crowded with students, faculty, and visitors.
     • This visiting professor is from Sweden. He is here to teach Swedish language. We invited one of the servers to join the photo. All the servers are students.

  6. The Hotel Olivia is a decent hotel which can accommodate many people attending conferences held on this campus.
  7. Tram Station. There are many trams stating from different places in Gdansk, going to many different places in the northern suburbs. But they all have to go through the Gdansk main station and then the University station. Thus, there they come very often. The tram station is not crowded.

More Poland Pages

• Poland for Physicists. Paul A. M. Dirac and Richard P. Feynman met in 1962 at the Jablona Palace near Warsaw. What did they talk about?

• Poland for Koreans. I use Poland to study my Korean background. I was born in Korea and came to the United States after high school graduation. This Korean background has been pivotal in developing my scientific wisdom in the research world.

• Polish Friends. Thanks to my keen interest in Poland, I enjoy talking with Polish friends in Poland and in other countries.

How did he talk to Einstein?

• copyright@20013 by Y. S. Kim, unless otherwise specified.
  

• Click here for his home page.

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