Grutas Things to Do

There is seperate wooden house which houses Soviet picture gallery (Sovietines Dailes Galerija) in Grutas Park. There are numerous propaganda pictures from the Soviet era.

I remember similar pictures (few) from my country, Poland in 70' and 80'. They were sometimes put in some state offices, schools and especially in communist party headquarters. I think they were more numerous in the former Soviet Union including Lithuania.

There are numerous propaganda banners and flags, from the Soviet era, displayed in the Grutas Park Museum. Among them, this one on my picture. Red colour dominated there.

Each communist (there weren't others) organisation had to posess its logo and flag/banner. Each state-owned (there weren't others) company/factory, each communist (there weren't others) party organisation, each school etc. had its own flag/banner. They were used at least during communist parades on 1 May or 7 October.

There are numerous propaganda posters, from the Soviet era, displayed in the Grutas Park Museum. Among them, a few devoted to the holiday of 7 October.

7 October was celebrated as anniversary of bolshevik revolution 1917 in the Soviet Union and its "allies". In Poland, it wasn't a public holiday, though. There were massive parades (including huge military parade in the Red Square in Moscow) in all Soviet cities and towns. In Poland, not that much celebrations... but always state-owned (there weren't any other) mass media were full of information on that "event".

And surely there were a lot of slogans like on those posters: we, loyal to workers' traditions (poster on the left) or 7th October - birthday of the USSR.

There are numerous propaganda posters, from the Soviet era, displayed in the Grutas Park Museum. Among them, a few devoted to the holiday of 1 May.

There was wtitten in Russian (poster on the left): 1 May - Day Of International Solidarity Of Workers. I remember millions of similar posters from my country, Poland in 70' and 80'. Hmm... many Polish workers immigrated to the West that time. Those white doves symbolized so called "peace" (doves of peace) in... the least peaceful state I ever knew. Hmm... no words... Soviet propaganda was cynical and full of blatant lies.

There is school corner in the Grutas Park Museum. These slogans painted in white on red reminded me my own primary school in Krakow, Poland.

The main purpose of Soviet school was not to educate pupils they to become wise (never!) but to brought them up to be good... communists and always to be loyal to communist youth organisation. More: wise people could be (and were, indeed) dangerous for the communist state and its unwise authorities, often chosen from simple never educated (except short course of... communism) peasants and workers. Well, at least they taught them to write and read.

Unfortunatelly Soviet education system achieved the goal, at least partly. Even in relatively "rebellious" Poland, I personally know two communists, well older guys now.


MY SOVIET EDUCATION
My primary and secondary school in Krakow, Poland was not at all Soviet in style in 70' and 80'. There were communist slogans, pictures of fake "heroes" but I was not forced to become a member of any communist youth organisation and many pupils didn't join them, at least in my schools in conservative and relatively "rebellious" Krakow. Teachers with some confusion tried to realize official school program but most added something not that official like some literature not supported by authorities (for example Milosz - Nobel prize winner in literature later).

The key problem was teaching history esp. of 20th century. Official programm included fake history full of obvious liers. Well, we were taught real history... at home and later as teens from unofficial (strictly forbidden that time) books which were secretly shared and from... Radio Free Europe. In times of first Solidarity movement (1980-81) my history teacher started to teach real history which was brave and great for us pupils. He was released when communist authorites introduced martial law and imprisoned thousands of Solidarity activists.

There is the part of exhibition devoted to youth communist organisation (Konsomol) and the holiday of 1 May in the Grutas Park Museum.

1 May was more than the public holiday in the Soviet Union. It was also the day of obligatory parades in all the cities and towns. The communist party establishment used to observe the parades from the specially built, huge platforms. Later they celebrated "The Worker's Day" at free banquets. Newspapers used to publish slogans (aproved by top communist rulers 1-2 weeks in advance) in honour of the Party, like: never ending union of peasants and workers, the beloved comrade Stalin, stop the imperialism etc., etc. These slogans used to be broadcasted by loudspeakers during the holiday to be answered by the loud or silent Lithuanian "vallo" or Russian "ura"... Well, when I was in former communist Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union (western Ukraine), I noticed loudspeakers put on each pole in many towns and villages. They were surely used during such celebrations like 1 May. Hmm... they weren't in Poland though, at least since 70'.

There are many Soviet orders displayed in the Grutas Park Museum.

The Soviet Union was probably the most "ordered" country in the world. I don't mean order as correct behaviour or tidiness, never. I mean that the communist party and state-owned factories used to award many party activits and workers with orders and various decorations, distinctions. Hmm... instead of just money (what for as the stores were often empty) the outstanding workers were given awards. They were given during special propaganda celebrations organized esp. at each anniversary of the bolshevik revolution. Some outstanding war veterans (war both against Nazis and war to... strentghen the communism inside the huge state) were given the title of so called "Hero of the Soviet Union".

Matt-kiddy in the Soviet Union
I was in the Soviet Union as a kid in 70', in western Ukraine by a car with my parents and brother. Gas/petrol was much less expensive than in Poland there. But there were very few gas/petrol stations and there were always queques. Once my father noticed one petrol/gas pump put a little bit away were there was no queque. He thought that it was maybe better (a little bit more expensive) petrol which locals didn't use (costs).

Well, when he stopped a car and went to pay first, the gas seller run out and started to shout something in Ukrainian to my father. Well, the guy looked really outraged about my father's behaviour and it all didn't look pleasant in any way. In a while my father came back to a car and explained us that the pump was exclusively for... heroes of the Soviet Union. We turned back to a queque and when we were waiting one old Soviet car (called Zaporozetz) fueled at the forbidden pump for the heroes. I remember that the car had pictures with a portrait of someone (maybe him - the hero) decorated with red flags put behind back windows. It all looked so strange for me that I remember it well till now.

This post-Soviet street plate is displayed in the Grutas Park Museum. Looking at these Russian letters (V. Lenin Street) I realized how huge (and expensive) was the operation of removing all Russian street plates and writings, changing papers, stamps in all offices etc. in Lithuania when it became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Well, the similar operation (but far smaller) had to be undertaken in my country Poland to change names of streets, and esp. to remove numerous communist criminals and organisations whose names were on street plates. Additionally, say in Krakow, word "Saint" came back to names of numerous streets in a downtown/centre. Even the street I live now in Tychy was named after Alexander Zawadzki in the past. Hmm... he was communist president of Poland since 1952, nothing to be proud of...