A little about why I started this blog...

As a migrant, part of me will always remain in my country of birth, and despite feeling Australian and loving my adoptive country, Poland will always have a place in my heart and in my head. A little over a year ago I went back to visit my motherland; I went for six weeks, alone, leaving my partner at home, to have an adventure. I had decided before I left that I would speak only Polish while over there, as I rarely get a chance to speak it in Australia anymore. I was going to visit both of my grandmothers, who live in Warszawa and Gdańsk  as well as visit Kraków, Zakopane, and a host of other towns along the way. I am not sure if my love affair with Gdansk is because my happiest memories of previous visits are there or whether there is something more tangible behind it. My mother’s mother, Babcia Marysia, lives in a suburb of Gdańsk  and I love this woman and respect her immensely. Whether it is the connection with her or the connection to Gdańsk and Poland itself that keeps drawing me back is something I feel the need to explore.

This blog reminisces about that trip to Poland. It explores the things I saw and the things I did by focusing on the photographs I took. I have found that I am not a ‘tourist’ photographer. I tend to not take photos of the buildings and sites that one can easily buy postcards of, and if I do, I take them from my own angle. I do not see the point in taking a photo of something just to prove that I have been there, so my photos have more personal meaning to me. These images all have a personal story behind them, but they are also part of a wider context, a wider history, a wider meaning. By exploring these wider meanings, these meanings that belong to Gdańsk itself and to Poland, and to the Polish people, I hope to understand more about myself, my history, and the history of my family. My background in applied linguistics and studies into bilingual people and communities informs me that I am not alone in this longing for understanding, and this longing to belong, not only to my current culture and country, but also to my motherland.