Pałac Kultury i Nauki imienia Józefa Stalina

Sunday May 14th. Day 4

This is only part 1 of today as its late, we just got back from dinner with our group and we are leaving early tomorrow morning.

This morning we walked across the street to the Pałac Kultury i Nauki or The Palace of Culture and Science. Constructed in 1955, the building was originally known as the Joseph Stalin Palace of Culture and Science (Pałac Kultury i Nauki imienia Józefa Stalina), but in the wake of destalinization (Poland’s release from communist control) the dedication to Stalin was revoked. Stalin's name was removed from the colonnade, interior lobby and one of the building's sculptures.

The Palace of Culture is a notable high-rise building in Warsaw. It is the center for various companies, public institutions and cultural activities such as concerts, cinemas, theaters, libraries, sports clubs, universities, etc. It is the tallest building in Poland, the eighth tallest building in the European Union and one of the tallest on the European continent. It is 237 metres (778 ft) tall, including the structural 43-metre high spire.

Construction started in 1952 and lasted until 1955. A gift from the Soviet Union to the people of Poland, the tower was constructed, using Soviet plans, by 3500–5000 Russian workers and 4000 Polish workers. 16 workers died in accidents during the construction.

As the city's most visible landmark, the building was controversial from its inception. Many Poles initially hated the building because they considered it to be a symbol of Soviet domination, and at least some of that negative feeling persists today. Some have also argued that, regardless of its political connotations, the building destroyed the aesthetic balance of the old city and imposed dissonance with other buildings.

Socialist realism in Poland was a social, political, and esthetic doctrine enforced by the pro-Soviet communist government in the process of Stalinization of the postwar People's Republic of Poland. The official policy was introduced in 1949 by a decree of the Polish United Workers' Party minister. As in all Soviet-dominated Eastern Bloc countries, Socialist realism became the main instrument of political control in the building of totalitarianism in Poland. However, the trend has never become truly dominant. Following Stalin's death in March 1953, and the subsequent De-Stalinization of all People's Republics, Polish artists, writers and architects started abandoning it around 1955.

Złota 44 http://zlota44.com/en/ is a residential skyscraper (192 meters high) in central Warsaw. It was designed by Polish-American architect Daniel Libeskind. It had been developed by a US real estate investment corporation which pulled out at the topped-out but unfinished stage. The building was sold to another US real estate investment company for about $81m USD which was less then the estimated construction cost of $180+m USD.

The name Złota 44 comes from the building's address - Złota ("Golden") Street. It is one of the tallest residential buildings in Poland and the European Union. It is a luxury 52-story skyscraper contains 287 condo/apartments which are equipped with the home management system which facilitates control of the air conditioning, roller blinds, heating, illumination and allows the possibility of placing online orders from restaurants or other service. Residents received a security card, which allows them to reach only the floor where their apartment is.

At the turn of the 19th and early 20th centuries, a Fotoplastikon was a popular device that allowed viewers to watch changing three-dimensional images. The Warsaw Fotoplastikon is unique, in that it is the only one in Poland – and one of the very few in the world – that is still in perfect working condition. Built in the early 20th century, it stands in its original spot (and with only a few breaks due to historical circumstances, it has always been here).