Travels through History - Poland and the Baltics

By Julian Worker

This is a short travel guide for independent travellers to Poland and the Baltic countries of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. In particular, this guide covers the Polish cities of Gdansk, Wroclaw, Poznan, and Torun and describes the history and the sights that can be seen there. These places were chosen as the most interesting based on the guidebooks the author had read.
When visiting Gdansk, Poznan, and Wroclaw it’s difficult to believe that these cities were largely destroyed during WWII by both sides in turn.
The author describes the sights that can be seen in Lithuania including the unique places called the Grutas Park with its collection of Communist statues and the Hill of Crosses with its millions of religious symbols. He also visits Riga and Tallinn as well as the Rundale Palace in Latvia.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AG Books
• Release date: Dec 5, 2019
• ISBN: 9781789821994

Julian Worker

“Little Known British Traditions” is my first book of humourous stories. One of my stories, Safari Sickness, has been recently published in an anthology called “Leave the Lipstick, Take the Iguana” by Travelers’ Tales. Other articles have recently appeared in the Expeditioner online e-zine, and in Americas the magazine of the Organization of American States. My travel stories have appeared in The Toronto Globe and Mail, The National Catholic Register, International Travel News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Southern Cross newspaper in South Africa. On the Internet my writing has appeared on the following websites: In the Know Traveller, Go World, Paperplates, Intravel, and GoNomad. I have also taken many photographs that have appeared in travel guides/articles by National Geographic, Thomas Cook, The Rough Guides, and The Guardian.

Book preview

Travels through History

Poland and the Baltics

Julian Worker

First published in 2019 by

AG Books

www.agbooks.co.uk

Digital edition converted and distributed by

Andrews UK Limited

www.andrewsuk.com

© 2019 Julian Worker

Julian Worker asserts the right to be identified as the author of this work. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the express prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser. Any person who does so may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. Any views and opinions expressed herein belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher or any other party.

Gdańsk, Poland

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The trains run from Gdańsk airport to the main station, Gdańsk Główny, every 15–30 minutes depending on the time of day. Visitors should follow the red arrows from the west end of Terminal T2 via a covered bridge to the platform where the ticket machines are found. The station is called Port Lotniczy and the trains to Gdańsk go from the platform closer to Arrivals and head eastwards. There are a few direct connections to Gdańsk Główny, but visitors will more likely need to change trains at Gdańsk Wrzeszcz station. The trains are brand new and all the stops are illustrated on the TV screens inside the spacious, airy carriages. Gdańsk Wrzeszcz is not easy to pronounce and I would suggest pointing at the name rather than attempting to say it, otherwise who knows where you might end up. It is three stops from Gdańsk Wrzeszcz railway station to Gdańsk Główny. The destination of this train will almost certainly be Gdańsk Śródmieście.

I stayed at a hotel close to the station as I was continuing my journey by train to Toruń two days later. After checking in, I walked to a large monument visible over the tops of the trees and buildings. Anchors were suspended at the top of three tall, grey columns.

This is the Monument to the Fallen Shipyard Workers 1970 unveiled on 16th December 1980 near the entrance to what was then the Lenin Shipyard. This huge structure was created in the aftermath of the Gdańsk Agreement, about which more later, and was the first monument to the victims of communist oppression erected in a communist country. This memorial commemorates the 42, or more, people killed during events in Gdańsk, Gdynia, Elbląg, and Szczecin in December 1970. Polish citizens had protested after the government suddenly announced massive increases in the prices of basic foodstuffs, especially dairy products, after a bad harvest throughout the course of the year.

This monument is by the entrance to the European Solidarity Centre where I headed next. I rarely use audio guides, but I must recommend them here as the information provided was clear, concise, and fitted in almost perfectly with what I saw. This may seem obvious but there is so much information to process that you must concentrate all the time during the visit.

In 1980, the Lenin Shipyard was the 5th largest ship manufacturer in the world and the largest in the Baltic region. 17,000 people worked there on a site covering 150 hectares with its own hospital and cinema. Electricians such as Lech Wałęsa would use bicycles to move around. The industrial scale of the museum is emphasized at the start by the presence of hard hats covering an entire ceiling, an attendance control board with hundreds of available slots, and a wall full of individual lockers for workers’ essentials.

In the next room is