My first day in Warsaw, Poland after fleeing from the war - War Story

The country that gave me shelter and the opportunity to flee from the war was Poland. I haven't written about my Poland journey and war story still but I will. There is so much to share and so many stories to tell and write and I still don't know where to start. I still need to process many incidents and I need the courage to write my whole war story or about the journey, I have made so far. Whenever I think about my war journey and experiences, I feel overwhelmed thinking about how I made the entire journey alone with my dog. No matter how long I have been staying in Ukraine, I have never been outside of my city Kharkiv. So to make the journey from Kharkiv to Lviv and then Poland alone, has taken a lot of courage and bravery. I don't have any relatives in Ukraine who could have helped me flee from the war, I had no idea where to go or stay so when I left my home, the only thought in my mind was to "escape", that's it. Many people went to the west side of Ukraine from the east part of Ukraine but for me, there was nowhere to go. So, just imagine, I made the journey to Poland alone, a completely new country for me where I didn't know anyone.

After crossing the Ukraine- Poland border, the first location I reached was Medyka Village, Poland. I remember a lot of people, and volunteers were waiting for us with help, on another side of the Ukraine border. I was unable to walk with my dog because of my weakness and I was sitting on the grass after crossing the border. It was a cold evening and I had no energy left after spending 9 days and 36 hours in the Ukraine war. When volunteers saw me sitting near the border, they came to me, helped me by holding my one bag and my dog, and gave me food and water. From "Medyka to Warsaw" in Poland, the entire journey I have made with the help of Volunteers. I wanna thank them from the bottom of my heart and I wish I could thank those kind people in person who had saved me and my dog from severe cold winter and from the war.

I went to Warsaw because Bangladesh Embassy arranged a temporary shelter for the people who fleed from the war and Bangladeshi people who used to live in Ukraine. I stayed there for 3 days and that's all the Bangladeshi embassy did for Bangladeshi-Ukrainian refugees. I was broken and devastated and I needed rest so it was almost impossible for me to explore the beautiful city of Warsaw of Poland. Besides, I was dealing with PTSD, and mental issues moreover I didn't know anybody in Poland at that time. Many people from Hive contacted me and helped me when I had to leave my shelter provided by Bangladesh Embassy. Because of the Polish Hive community, I was able to stay in Poland for 2 more weeks.

I would love to write about Warsaw but unfortunately, I have been to only a few locations. Most of the outside visit was for work purpose and document purpose. I took some photos from here and there and that's all.

My second day in Warsaw was hectic and stressful because Gigi was sick. She had got injured her head because of the journey and I had to take her to the veterinary. Well, a kind person who helped me to travel from the Medyka border to Warsaw had come to my shelter and took me and Gigi to the veterinary clinic. The treatment was free because of Gigi's Ukrainian passport ( I don't have a Ukrainian passport though :D). We choose to go nearest veterinary clinic so we walked there. On our way, we saw this beautiful Place of culture and science (Palac Kultury I Nauki).

The name of the person who was with us was Andrew. Andrew told me that this structure is a gift from Stalin (in short) and many polishes don't like this building at all. They have somehow kind of mixed feelings about this beautiful building and it reminds them of something which they don't wanna remember. My brain was out of the world, I was not even there mentally so I didn't focus on what Andrew was telling me at that moment. I am writing what I remembered, I might be wrong. Correct me, please...

I took some photos though...

This picture was taken early morning from the shelter in Warsaw. Our first early morning in Warsaw. Finally, we were able to open our window and Gigi was able to look around...

I also went to "Złote Tarasy", a renowned shopping mall in Warsaw. My target was to buy a sweater and a pair of pants because I had nothing to wear. I said before that I left home with one bag and I left 99% of my belongings at home. I also needed to buy food for Gigi and a collar for her but I ended up buying only her food. I would say if you want to do some shopping or want to experience the nice shopping mall vibes, you should keep "Złote Tarasy" on your list. My situation was not like a tourist's that's why I was there to buy necessary things like a sim card, and warm clothes. I have a future plan to travel to Poland again, that time definitely I will spend more time there...

I am going to keep this story unfinished for now, will write more about my 2 days in Warsaw later...

Thank you so much for reading...

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Love

Priyan...

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^{I am @priyanarc.... An architect, a dreamer, and a passionate writer who loves to write about life. I try to present my own perspective and experiences. Please leave your feedback and criticism because it's the only way I can know and reach your mind and thought easily...}

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All images used are captured by the author...