Community Highlights Europe Mini-VT Meet in Siedlce

Mini-VT Meet in Siedlce

Our VT friends Matt and Urszula, who had invited us in March 2022 and had given us shelter then, decided to pay a visit to Siedlce in March after their stay in Warsaw. We were happy to see them again and to continue our joint exploration of the city.

Our friends rented an apartment in a newly-built apartment house downtown, where they stayed for three nights. We agreed to meet at the store on the ground floor of the apartment block.
On the way to our meeting point we dropped in at the Spring Fair that took place in the main square. Its motto was, “The artisans are taking over the city…”

The traditional Spring Fair, a part of the Old Polish Fair, took place in Władysław Sikorski Square from March 20th to 22nd. We attended the fair every day on the way to/from our friends’ rented apartment. The visitors, who came to the fair, could discover unique handicrafts, sample local delicacies from the local restaurants and craft brewery, and participate in workshops for the whole family. It was advertised as an opportunity for Siedlce residents who wanted to get involved in creative activities, meet artists, and celebrate spring together in the city, thus entering the world of inspiration, creativity, and joy.

Our friends took us to their apartment, and we were privileged to admire the newly-built “New York style” apartment house from within.

On the first day of our friends’ stay, we took them to the place they had not seen before – the Martyrs of Podlasie Monument, also known as the Papal Cross. The monument stands in an open field on the verge of the Siedlce Ponds State Reserve on the western outskirts of the city in Błonia District. The 33-meter-high cross commemorates the Mass, which was held here in Błonia on June 10, 1999 for 250,000 of the faithful. Here, John Paul II pronounced his Homily dedicated to the Cross and to the memory of the Martyrs of Podlasie. You can see thirteen granite stones around the Cross, the central one being bigger than the others. The stones commemorate thirteen members of the Uniate Church murdered in Pratulin by the Russians on January 24, 1874. The victims were praying in front of the temple confiscated by the Russian Orthodox Church within the framework of the then Russification of Poland.
The memorial plaques explain a lot to us about the Martyrs of Podlasie and about the memorial. The Martyrs of Podlasie became the Blessed of the Catholic Church.
The central memorial plaque attached to the bigger stone that is in front of the cross is dedicated to Blessed Wincenty Lewoniuk, who headed the group of protesters. The memorial plaque reads, “In honor of Blessed Wincenty Lewoniuk, his twelve Martyrs of Podlasie from Pratulin.”
Matt and I carefully read all the memorial plaques at the cross. The upper memorial plaque on the left side of the Cross reads, “This cross was sanctified by Jan Wiktor Nowak, Bishop of Siedlce, during the feast of Trinity, in the Holy Year of the Lord 2001.
Thanks to the efforts of the city authorities, the institutions and workplaces in Siedlce,
the cross was erected on the anniversary of the Apostolic Visit.”
The central memorial plaque at the side of the Cross quotes His Holiness John Paul II, who said in his Homily at the Mass at Siedlce Cathedral on June 10, 1999,
“As in the past, the Cross must continue to be present in our lives as a clear pointer to the path to follow and as a light which illumines our whole being... May it bring forth new and courageous proclaimers of the Gospel, who love the Church and take responsibility for the Church, true heralds of the faith, a breed of new men. May they be the ones to light the torch of faith and to carry it burning brightly across the threshold of the third millennium.”
The lower memorial plaque reads, “The intention of the founders of this holy place is that the Cross unites heaven and earth and men among themselves, flourish in our land and become a great tree laden with the fruits of salvation in Siedlce Land. “

After a short break at the bank in front of the memorial, we went towards Ibis Hotel to have a drink. We went to Lucrecia Restaurant and were very pleased with the service there.

After a snack at Lucrecia Restaurant, we took our friends to a new city church – St.Maximilian Church dedicated on the eve of Christmas last year. The church is run by the Order of Franciscans.

It was only fifteen minutes’ walk to our Refugee Home, therefore we decided to drop in at our dormitory and have some coffee.

After a short break at the dormitory, we walked downtown through Aleksandria Park and saw the good old places we had seen together last year.

We had our first dinner at Brofaktura Restaurant – the one we went to during their first stay in Siedlce last year – and had similar tasty dishes there. Our second dinner was at Kochanówka Restaurant – the restaurant of the Polish-Lithuanian cuisine located downtown. Kochanówka turned out to be a very popular place in spite of the high prices for dishes (well, high for us, at least).

Kochanówka Restaurant is known for its unique homey atmosphere created by its furniture and tables covered with traditional lace tablecloths, burning candles, jazz and relaxing music, flowers, and friendly staff. The menu includes Polish, Lithuanian, and gluten-free dishes, as well as unique coffees, herbs, and teas of the highest quality. The restaurant is famous for its own products: various dumplings, meat dishes, kibins, pielmieni, and cheburek. All spices must be natural. The staff is proud of their alleged ability to use the awakening herbs, which is very important. They somehow manage, using a special treatment to release their taste and health properties. Rosemary and thyme play the first fiddle, but delicate basil or marjoram are very noticeable in solo performances. We did not order any tea, but cocktails and beer for me.

Palce Lizać Restaurant (Finger-Licking Good in English) at 50 May 3rd Street was the place of our farewell dinner. Matt did his homework and chose that restaurant according to its rating among clients. We do not go to restaurants and prefer cooking at home; therefore, we could only recommend a pizzeria, which was not a good choice for our friends.
We saw off our friends on Monday morning and wished them a good journey and a nice Easter holiday.

This featured blog entry was written by Vic_IV from the blog Our Stay in Poland.
Read comments or Subscribe