109/365: Grandpa and Grandma

109/365: Grandpa and Grandma, originally uploaded by Magic Madzik.

April 19th

On their balcony. Grandpa doesn't like his planters to be bare, so before real flowers bloom, he sticks in fake daffodils. The hyacinths are real, though!

108/365: The Kościuszko Mound

108/365: The Kościuszko Mound, originally uploaded by Magic Madzik.

April 18th

This hill is an artificial mound erected in 1823 in honour of Tadeusz Kościuszko (Thaddeus Kosciusko for you American types), and it is modeled after the legendary burial mounds of King Krak and Princess Wanda. It's just over a thousand feet above sea level, and you can see the whole city from the top.

When construction first began, most of Poland was under foreign occupation and split into three territories, between Russia, Prussia and Austria. Cracow itself was a Free City, in theory an independent and neutral miniature country, though in reality it remained under the control of the three occupants and was represented by them in all foreign matters. The monument was financed and built entirely by donated money and effort of patriots from the occupied territories- you can see how symbolic the construction would have been to Poles living under foreign rule. Note that among many of Kościuszko's great deeds was the insurrection of 1794, a revolt against the Russian and Prussian occupation. It failed, but was a great and valiant movement of the people.

Soil was brought from many areas to add to the great mound, among them Polish and American battlefields where Kościuszko fought. In the picture you can see St. Bronisława's chapel, the site chosen for the mound being a hill already dedicated to her. A few decades later, the Austrians built a citadel around the mound and used it as a strategic lookout. Part of that citadel still remains and now houses a museum dedicated to Kościuszko.

108/365: The President's Funeral

108/365: The President's Funeral, originally uploaded by Magic Madzik.

April 18th

After the funeral Mass, both caskets are carried out of the Mariacki church and placed on gun carriages drawn by green army Hummers. These will lead the procession through the city all the way to Wawel Hill where the President and the First Lady will be laid to rest in the crypt under the Silver Bell tower. The names of all those who perished in the plane crash on April 10th 2010 will be carved into the sarcophagus.

Lots of videos documenting the funeral available here. Some 150,000 people showed up to say goodbye (which you can see in my other pictures), and though I was not a supporter of this particular president I found the experience very moving. It transcended politics- it was not about opinions, parties or loyalties, save one: that to our country. This may sound pathetic, but perhaps you had to be in that crowd to understand how pure this coming together of people was. I don't expect this solidarity to last, but for one week at least we all seemed to understand and support each other.