Tag Archives: Poland

The last Great Escape…

Posted on June 8, 2010 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

In the end, it was only time from which he could not escape. Jack Harrison, the last of those involved in the ‘Great Escape’, has passed away, peacefully and quietly, at the age of 97. The Great Escape men who … Continue reading →

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Reflections on Poland.

Posted on April 14, 2010 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Three years ago I wrote my reflections about Poland: Poland is a land of contrasts, incredible beauty, sad history, and unique resilience. Driving from the Czech Republic to Warsaw, it is easy to understand why it is a land that … Continue reading →

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Poland and its crosses: Freedom is measured in crosses.

Posted on April 14, 2010 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

We happened to know some of the poor souls who died in that horrible plane crash last Saturday.  I cannot stop thinking about the hideousness of the event.     Poland and the Poles have seen so much tragedy. Other than my … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Katyn, Poland, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

The saddest flower!…

Posted on April 4, 2010 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Photo lifted from my son’s collection from his album on Auschwitz…  So, so true…

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Germans, The Holocaust, Poles: raw wounds.

Posted on May 28, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Der Spiegel online had this lede last week: Polish media and politicians have sharply criticized this week’s SPIEGEL cover story about Hitler’s European helpers outside of Germany. They believe the article is part of an attempt by Germans to foist … Continue reading →

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“A shocking insight into the abyss”.

Posted on May 4, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

From Spiegel Online: Original blueprints of the Auschwitz death camp, discovered by chance in a Berlin apartment last year, have gone on display in the German capital. Wladyslaw Bartoszewski, an Auschwitz survivor, said they give a glimpse of “true hell”.

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A Nazi, Wilhelm Hosenfeld, made a Righteous among the Nations.

Posted on May 2, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

After 7 years, I finally watched Polanski’s The Pianist, the story of a Polish Jew, Władysław Szpilman, who was an expert on Chopin. I hadn’t watched the movie, in part, because I was repelled by Polanski’s criminal history. It is … Continue reading →

Posted in Auschwitz, Holocaust, Human Rights, Poland, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Renditions in Poland.

Posted on April 29, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Khalid Sheikh Muhammad supposedly was transferred to Poland for harsh interrogations.  Spiegel Online reports. Clarification:  Muhammed was not waterboarded 183 times. He had water poured on his face 183 times, and was subjected to 5 sessions of “ill-treatment”.

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Blogging Warsaw in spring.

Posted on April 29, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

To understand what Warsaw, Poland is all about, take a virtual tour here, here, here, and here, enjoy it’s people, food, parks, as depicted by an expat Pole who just returned to her city of birth. (Thanks to Althouse).

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Irena Sendlerowa.

Posted on April 21, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

I’m disappointed that I missed the  Hallmark Hall of Fame television docudrama about Irena Sendlerowa.  But I came across these comments from Phyllis Chesler that are worth pondering: … yesterday was the fiend Hitler’s birthday and the day the United … Continue reading →

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On Mathematics, and drowning Turks.

Posted on April 16, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

From Poland’s The News.pl: “We did not try to exhort anyone to hate. What mattered to us was the mathematical model – the historical context was irrelevant. In order to solve the problem one needs to be acquainted with principles … Continue reading →

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Warsaw: “A city that no longer exists.”

Posted on April 16, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

In Poland,  a new exhibit of …two dozen or so black-and-white pictures in “Warsaw from Above” give visitors an eagle’s eye view of the Polish capital as the densely packed, almost honeycomb-like city of tenement buildings, townhouses and palaces of … Continue reading →

Posted in Poland, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Great Escape: fact vs. fiction.

Posted on April 2, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

This heading “‘Great Escape’ POWs remember comrades…and boo ‘silly’ Steve McQueen. summarizes it all. I can understand the frustration of the survivors of the horrific event to realize that most people would only recall what happened 65 years ago through … Continue reading →

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‘Prawo Jazdy’, the elusive Polish driver, is finally caught by the Irish cops.

Posted on March 4, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Here’s an amusing little tale about the unintended consequences of the EU’s  free movement of persons: Mr. Prawo Jazdy, a cunning Pole, got 50 traffic tickets from the Irish police, who were perplexed that Mr. Jazdy seemed to have 50 … Continue reading →

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The Last Jew of Góra Kalwaria.

Posted on February 26, 2009 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

It was 68 years ago to the day that the shtetl Góra Kalwaria lost all of its Jews. According to the Yad Vashem website, the Jews from Góra Kalwaria, or Gur as it was known then, were deported to the Warsaw Ghetto between February 25-26, 1941. Continue reading →

Posted in Auschwitz, Felix Karpman, Góra Kalwaria, Holocaust, Poland, Transformation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments