I live in Poland. If you look at the map of Europe you
can easily find my country which is situated in Central Europe, bordered by
Germany to the west, the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south, Ukraine and
Belarus to the east and the Baltic Sea, Kaliningrad Oblast and Lithuania to the
north. Have you already found my country? Can you see it?
My country has long and very difficult history. Many
historians trace the establishment of a Polish state to 966, when Mieszko I, ruler
of a territory roughly coextensive with that of present-day Poland, converted
to Christianity. The Kingdom of Poland was founded in 1025. We have lots of
legends that give us an idea of where our nation has derived from. And the
legacy which is preserved.
The Polish nation experienced the age of partitions. The
First Partition of the Commonwealth by Russia, Austria-Hungary and Prussia
(Germany) took place in 1772 followed by two more partitions and Poland
regained its independence as the Second Polish Republic at the end of World War
I, in 1918.
Two decades later, in September 1939, World War II
started with the invasions of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union (as
part of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact). More than six million Polish citizens
died in the war. In 1944, a Soviet-backed Polish provisional government was
formed. It started the age of post-war communist Poland which existed much too
long.
Labour turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the
independent trade union "Solidarity" ("Solidarność" led by
Lech Walesa, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate), which over time became a political
force. Despite persecution and imposition of martial law in 1981, it eroded the
dominance of the Polish United Workers' Party and by 1989 had triumphed in
Poland's first partially free and democratic parliamentary elections since the
end of the Second World War. Lech Walesa, a Solidarity candidate, eventually
won the presidency in 1990. The Solidarity movement heralded the collapse of
communist regimes and parties across Europe.
Despite the vast destruction the country experienced
during World War II, Poland managed to preserve much of its cultural wealth.
There are 14 heritage sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage and 54
Historical Monuments and many objects of cultural heritage. Since the end of
the communist period, Poland has achieved a "very high" ranking in
terms of human development, as well as gradually improving economic freedom.
Poland is the sixth largest economy within the European Union and among the
fastest rising economic states in the world. The country is the sole member
nation of the European Union to have escaped a decline in GDP and in recent
years was able to create probably the most varied GDP growth in its history.
That`s why I will try to present you my wonderful Poland – a country of the
“Miracle of the Vistula”. You will see the most beautiful, popular and less
popular but worth seeing places of interest. First “must-see” place is Royal
Lazienki Park in Warsaw. I have been there a week ago and took lots of
pictures. I will share them with you very soon.
