The Horse Adjutant Even though I am describing my life in the 1930s, I lived in a nascent modern world, the kind that could let your imagination soar. Radios and telephones were beginning to be deployed, and engines of all kinds powered planes, cars, and giant machines. One of the highlights of this industrial society was a high-speed train system that ran through Grybow where it slowed to climb up to its destination in Krynica. It was called The Lux Torpeda, a national treasure. That train could ap- proach speeds of 115 miles per hour! Painted white over red, with our State colors, it was something that made all of Poland proud. Standing on the side of the tracks while the train went by, the color I saw was a blur because it moved so fast. This was the state-of-the-art in rail services with an inte- rior that was something out of a fancy magazine. The result was easy access for the elite to visit the countryside while being served in luxury. I always wished I would have had a chance to ride in one of those trains, or at least clean its windshield. The local people loved tourists. Grybow wasn’t just a winter wonderland. It was also a beautiful place in the warm months. During the springtime, wildflowers grew abundantly. I remember stumbling across large fields of wild purple violets with their unmistakable fragrance. Breathing deeply, I enjoyed those fields immensely. Sometimes, I would take the time to lie down in the bed of purple and ponder the sky. Surrounding this quilt, the bedposts were forests filled with trees of all kinds. They had distinctive smells too. Among them, in abundance, were chestnuts and lilacs. It’s no wonder I had little interest in school. The summer tourists were attracted to the health spas; the center attraction was the springs, rich in different kinds of minerals. They were said to be good for a variety of ailments. Others found their own reasons to visit, like hiking and fishing. For
those travelers that arrived by car, it seemed that every one of them would stop at our only automotive station to fill up with benzene. It was the smart thing to do because we were the last stop before the ride up the mountain. This is where you could find me. As the cars lined up, my friends and I, the local urchins, would beg to clean wind- shields. We gladly did this with the hope their owners would reward us
Krynica Ski lift 1930s
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