Dear students,
You all know that tomorrow Poland celebrates its Independence Day. We do not want to go into any deep historical background here – if you are really interested, you may find any information on the Internet. Nevertheless, there used to be times when Poland was under occupation of different empires. Only in 1918, after 123 years of such injustice, Polish leader Józef Piłsudski took advantage of weakness of the occupying powers and restored the State independence. November 11 was announced a national holiday in 1937.
What do people do on this day? All over the country in towns and cities you may witness ceremonious gatherings and parades. The churches hold special masses, sport races are organised and the festive fireworks can finish the day.
You should keep in mind that it is an official public holiday in Poland, so all schools, banks, government offices and private businesses are closed. Moreover, you will not be able to buy anything, as all the trade centers, supermarkets and most of the shops (except for some minor local ones) will not work either.
There is one important thing we want to warn you about: in the recent years the Independence Day in Poland has been accompanied by nationalistic parades, which in most cases have ended up with outbreaks of violence and clashes with police (mostly in Warsaw). You may learn about some Poles’ attitudes these days herehttp://discoversociety.org/2016/11/01/contemporary-polish-racism-the-development-of-neo-communism/ It will help you to understand what some “bad” people’s actions are motivated by.
Although, Opole is quite a peaceful town, wherever you are on November 11, we strongly recommend you to be careful. Keep in mind, that this is not the best time for travelling through Poland.
Be safe and enjoy one more long weekend.
