Easter Weekend in Warsaw

Wesołych Swiat

albo

Wesołego Alleluja! 

Happy Easter!

Our 3-day Easter weekend began on Saturday.  In Poland the Easter holiday is celebrated from Saturday to Monday.

On Saturday we decided that our weekend date would be a trip to a mall that we hadn't been to before - the Arkadia Mall.  It is in the northern part of the city and is the largest mall in all of central Europe.

I convinced Mark not to drive to the mall but to take a tram...a 5 minute walk from our home and then the tram would drop us off very close to the mall.

We are waiting for the tram dressed in our winter coats...and yes it is April 7th!

We were able to get on one of more modern types of trams...lucky for us....the more modern trams are clean and comfortable! This is how Mark usually goes into work each morning...on a tram. He likes to be able to see where he is going and the tram drops him off very close to his office. 

Easter is one of the most important holidays in Poland...there are many traditions, events, and special foods during this Easter weekend.

On Saturday (often called Holy Saturday), people take special baskets filled with mostly food items to the church to be blessed. While on the tram we saw people carrying their baskets into the church. 

After about 18-20 stops we arrived at the Arkadia Mall.  We learned that since this was the Saturday before Easter, the mall and most businesses would be closing by 4pm, and then be closed the rest of Saturday, all of Sunday, and all of Monday.

In Poland, when there is a national holiday...the people take it very seriously! I can't think of any holiday that would span 2 1/2 days in the United States!

Most malls we have been to in Warsaw are very large...with multiple floors and numerous stores.  There are over 220 stores in this mall. 

We arrived in time for lunch...and we noticed that although there were numerous restaurants to choose from in the food court, the longest lines were for the American chains such as KFC, Burger King and McDonalds!  But we chose spinach lasagna from a local shop we hadn't tried before.

I found The GAP...the only one in all of Poland! The GAP came to Poland last fall and I remember seeing large advertisements around the city announcing its arrival. When we found The GAP the mall was about to close so I will need to return again sometime. 

Another find....chocolate chips! We walked by an international food store, went in and started exploring....happy day when I found little tiny packages of chocolate chips! It will be fun to see how they work out in our cookie recipes.

Another find....The Grycan Lody shop!  Our favorite ice cream here is Grycan and we found a restaurant selling just ice cream and desserts.

I purchased a mint chocolate treat and Mark ordered a delicious Polish apple cake with vanilla ice cream!

Simply delicious!

Another sight...while I was looking at the mall information map, Mark snapped a picture of a man he thought was wearing odd attire - matching plaid trousers and sweater top.

We enjoyed exploring this mall for a few hours...and then headed over to a large, domed church we had seen in the distance while we were eating lunch.

We walked over to the church to see if we could see any other people bringing their baskets to be blessed.

We did see more people leaving the church with  their baskets (swieconka).

Inside these baskets are usually samplings of...salt, bread, sausage, butter (often in the shape of a lamb), ham, a candle, eggs, cheese, bacon, and colorful ribbons and sprigs of greenery. A linen or delicate cloth covers the top of the basket.

Here inside the church is the table where people are placing their baskets (swieconka) to be blessed. 
All the foods have symbolic Easter meaning and are blessed at the church, then taken home and saved until the Easter meal.

The church is next to a very old and very large cemetary. 

I later found out it is the oldest cemetary in Warsaw, and many famous Polish citizens are buried here. 

Next to, in front of and near the cemetaries are many different flower shops. Now that it is officially spring, there is even a greater abundance of flowers out for sale.

After visiting the church, we took the tram back home.  

Here are a few pisanki (Polish Easter eggs) in our home...the eggs are wooden and are  hand painted with bright colors.

The egg below is made of special hand cut stickers that cover the egg.

In so many shops, stores, windows, and restaurants one can see a variety of different lambs...I purchased a small ceramic lamb to remember our first Easter in Poland.

Wesołwego Alleluja!

On Sunday morning, we woke up to church bells ringing in our neighborhood...ringing continuously from 6:00 - 6:30 a.m. I told Mark they were calling people to church, and he said it was also proclaiming the good news of Easter.

Here we are on Easter morning....it was cold and we actually wore our winter coats to church! You can't tell...but it is actually snowing little flakes behind us! Ahhhhh....springtime in Warsaw!

Our church service was wonderful...remembering our Savior Jesus Christ and what he has done for each of us! Though our congregation was small....our time in church was very good and I left very thankful for my belief and testimony that Jesus Christ lives!

In Poland the most important meal of Easter is breakfast on Sunday morning.  I decided to have an Easter breakfast...but it would be American style and we would serve it in the afternoon after our church service.

I invited 8 missionaries who serve in our congregation to come for our Easter meal.  We served egg frittata, German pancakes (monsters), blueberry muffins, an assortment of yogurt, fresh fruits and homemade syrup.  Though not completely Polish, it was delicious!

We were so glad we could welcome these guests into our home for a few hours on Easter Sunday!

We ended our Easter Sunday making Skype connections with Melissa in D.C. and Jamie and Caroline in Houston. We love our Sunday evenings and the time we have to chat with our children!

We had a good first Easter in Poland!  Wesołych Swiat!