UpDate - Vol. 11, No. 8, Page 6
October 24, 1991
Notes from afar

     Excerpts from a letter by Charles Marler, 1990 Vienna Program
director, after a trip to Poland, capture the richness of study
abroad:

     I'm still completely taken with memories of four magnificent
days spent in Poland with our students.
     Shortly after arriving in Vienna, I contacted Polish faculty
at the University of Silesia in Cieszyn in southwestern Poland,
with whom I was acquainted, and asked whether they would be
interested in jointly planning a student trip to Poland. Prof.
Wosinski's reply was enthusiastic, and 15 of our students were able
to go. Subsequently, we agreed on a student-to-student focus, by
including English-speaking Polish students in our activities.

     April 4-We had an easy trip from Vienna across Czech Moravia.
University staff members met us at the frontier. After lunch,
formal greetings were offered by the dean of the art and music
education faculty, and we toured the campus. Supper and a concert
by the Academic Choir and Chamber Orchestra completed the day.April
5-The stories we've heard about ecological disasters in Silesia are
true. We drove to Cracow through the most horrible smog I've ever
experienced. On every side were blackened and damaged trees as well
as slag. One cannot drink the water in Silesia; even milk must be
boiled due to chemicals ingested by cows. The skies perceptibly
lightened as we left Silesia. Cracow remains (challenged only by
Warsaw) the intellectual heart of the nation and was the only major
Polish city not leveled during World War II. We toured Wawel
Castle, seat of Polish kings-glorious Renaissance architecture and
art collections-then moved on to the cathedral so associated with
the present pope. After reaching the medieval market square, the
largest in Europe, it was time out for some shopping. On returning
to Cieszyn, a real treat awaited us-"A Music Evening with Candles"-
piano music by Chopin and Paderewski.
     April 6-A fascinating lecture on the constitution and economic
background of contemporary Poland was given by a law professor. Our
odyssey then took us to Auschwitz, now a memorial museum. Joining
people of all nationalities, we saw exhibits, cell blocks, gas
chambers and places of execution. Needing a change of pace, we
traveled to a mountain village, almost missing the picnic site,
until we spotted a sheep roasting over an open fire. A barbecue
followed, with music played by a band in costume. That last night,
there was a party in a student club.
     April 7-At the appointed hour, the American and Polish
students were on the bus. Quite a leave taking...warmth, tears,
gifts, hand-kissing (I'm getting pretty good at it).

     Impressions: To use a surfing analogy, "We caught a big wave
and had an unbelievable ride." The students and I experienced
something that will not happen again. We were the first group of
Western visitors at the University of Silesia, but it won't be long
before American students are as familiar to the Poles as they are
to the Viennese. Being first, everyone put his or her heart into
it, and everyone had an experience that will never be forgotten.