Where have you been?

Pawiak was a 19th century prision that eventually became the home of the German Gestapo during WWII. It is believed that just over 100000 people passed through Pawiak during the war but like other things in Poland the records have been lost. The dead tree has become a symbol of the many many lives lost during WWII not only at Pawiak but across Poland as well.


Most of the building was destroyed but what remains is now a museum. Unfortunately it too is closed on Sundays so we were unable to see the inside. I have heard it documents some of the torture that went on inside the prision and that it is both very graphic and very moving. Here we can see an original portion of the gate complete with barbed wire.


This picture shows two of the main symbols of Poland. The first is naturally the Polish national flag - White and Red. The other is the PW of the Polish resistance movement during WWII. PW is short for Polski Walczącej or "Fighting Poland".


To see such powerful symbols of freedom during the height of Gestapo action during WWII would have been unheard of, especially just outside the gates. But today it is a reminder of how right can overcome evil.