My great-grandfather, Jan Jeczeński, who spent the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries in a very, but very distant military bra, somewhere over Amur, found it in his own eyes. He had more than 10,000 km to his family's Rzeków close Radom, so during the six-year service he did not come home for the weekend.
The conscription to the Russian army was in those days a real curse, recruits met with systemic force by officers and elder trainees, dying of illness and even starvation. However, compared to the 25-year military service in force before 1834, it was inactive good. It is estimated that all 4th recruit lived to its end.
The stay of my great-grandfather in the Far East fell on troubled times, on the Russian-Chinese border, and clashes with the Hunhuzes began, or local bandits of robbers. In order not to lose your head, you had to have eyes around her, especially on patrol. I like to think that during 1 of specified expeditions Jan Jeczeński met Vladimir Arsenyev and Dersu Uzała on the trail, possibly they gave him a cup of chaju and warned that there was an highly dangerous “Amba” (grandfather) in the area, or Siberian tiger.
Anyway, the service was yet over and my great-grandfather could come home late completed by the Transsyberian Railway, and the account of this journey (as told by my dad) was a kindling of a child's imagination. The journey from Vladivostok to Moscow then lasted on average 3 weeks, but the military echelon 2 months dragged through the snow-covered taiga. all erstwhile in a while, the depot stopped at the siding for a fewer days, and soldiers, in order not to be bored, cut the firewood into the steamboat.
No wonder that erstwhile he arrived safely, his great-grandfather was relieved. The nightmare of the Russian army is yet over, the time has come to return to average life. For a time, John looked at the local girls until a certain Agnieszka yet caught his eye.
According to the household legend, he was able to marry his chosen one, and the next day they knocked on the window with gendarmes and told him to pack his stuff. A Russian-Japanese war broke out at the end of the planet from which he had late returned.
So my great-grandfather was put on a military train... And for the 3rd time, he traveled the same route. possibly any trees in the taiga seemed acquainted to him.
This full communicative seems like a joke, though it was a horror movie. Fortunately, by the time John arrived, the naval conflict of Cushim was over. The Russian fleet suffered a devastating defeat in it, and the Romanov Empire had to sign with the Emperor of Japan humiliating peace in Portsmouth, 9 September 1905.
So my great-grandfather didn't odor the powder, but he didn't lose his meaningless life either. He had a journey home, but this time there was no boredom. His squad was embarked on a Baltic Fleet ship and set off to return to Europe. John saw miracles over miracles: Hong Kong, Ceylon, Egypt, Suez Canal, Malta and Gibraltar. In particular, 1 of the stories came to mind: small arabian boys jumping into the sea following a silver coin thrown from the deck. “After years I discovered it in 1 of Alfred Szklarski’s ‘Tomków’, it must have been a permanent component of the exotic landscape.
At home, my grandma Marianna was born in his absence. A average life began, most likely interrupted by a restless glance at the cherry - filled road leading home, or that the gendarmes would appear on it.
Thanks to his great-grandfather's warriors, for the remainder of his life, he had something to tell, with apparent harm to the “foreigners” who wanted to shine in company with the information that they visited Warsaw. Jan Jeczeński looked at specified a delinquent with contempt and asked:
- Hm... Is that you, Mundry? Were you in Adena?
Since Jan Jeczeński's journey, 120 years have passed. What changed at the time?
The Transsyberian Railway remains the main artery connecting the Far East to the European part of Russia. Trains no longer halt for passengers to chop wood and are as punctual as the eight-time way allows.
On the another hand, only 4993 kilometres of railway lines were commissioned in China in 2020. A vacuum train test was carried out in the Central State rather recently, and it is intended to decision at a velocity of 1000 km per hour. My great-grandfather could come home in 10 hours!
From Moscow to Vladivostok, you can't cross the highway... due to the fact that she's not here. The construction is prevented by hard weather conditions, eternal frostfall, no bridges on Siberian rivers and general бардак It's in the country.
In China, 5 – 10,000 kilometres of multi-lane highways are built all year. In evidence years, this number exceeded 12,000 kilometres.
So can the Far East be best reached by sea?
Unfortunately, Russia has a serious problem here too. Space ships someway come out, but the another ones – especially the war ones – do not necessarily.
When the Russian "imperium" decided to send a fanfar to Syria their only aircraft carrier, built inactive in the russian Union "Admiral Kuzniecov", the full planet held its breath. No, not out of fear. Everyone prayed that this floating coffin would arrive safely and not sink, causing a giant ecological disaster.
The Russian army is inactive plagued by diedowszczyna, an organized strategy of bullying soldiers, leading recruits to mass suicides and desertion. Since the russian Union, the doctrine of war has besides changed little, and it is inactive based on the belief that the enemy must be suppressed with a human mass, not counting on its own losses. At the most, the transport with coffins with the code name “Group 200” will be larger.
In the end, as Joseph Stalin utilized to say: “People in us are many.”
But how many? Russia's population is inactive decreasing due to low fertility on the 1 hand and advanced mortality on the other, especially in men. 1 of the reasons for the second is alcoholism, which takes its toll all year like regular war.
This all leads to reflection that, if it were not for oil, gas and respective 1000 rusted atomic warheads, it would be hard to talk of the power of Russia. Yes, it is great, even immeasurable, but its essence is best reflected in the Russian - based country: Barachlo.
Should She Be Afraid? Oh, yeah! A hatchet with an axe is always dangerous, even drunk, dirty and wet. We just should be on guard, live well with our neighbours and yet – this may be the hardest – end the Polish-Polish war, at least in east politics.
Because, you know, I wouldn't want my boy to gotta tour Russia through the way set by his great-grandfather... but as a tourist.
