In February Magdalena made her first field trip to northern Poland, and her destination was Piła (formerly German Schneidemühl) and the surrounding area. During this time, she tried to find the German ghosts that were related to the church sphere, and so she visited the churches of Piła. Among them were the formerly Protestant churches, which now belong to the Roman Catholic Church, but she also tried to seek for those that are no longer there. St. John’s Church (Johanneskirche) was such an example. Magdalena was looking for its story. After the Second World War the church deteriorated, was demolished and now there is an apartment building. However, after more than 50 years the Protestant parish in Piła was reactivated and a new church was built just a few meters next to the the place of the destroyed one. It also bears the name of Saint John as a memory of the old one. Magdalena could see a new building during the Sunday service. She also found some pre-war postcards and she made an interview with the pastor. 

Another example was the formerly Protestant church in Stara Łubianka (formerly German Lebehnke) converted into a Community Center. Currently it is in private hands. Its image has changed so much that locating it was not an easy task. 

Magdalena heard a lot about the earlier adherents of Protestantism from local Catholic priests and the members of Catholic parishes. She searched for German ghosts not only in churches, but also by climbing up the steps leading to church towers in search of bells and by trying to locate old Protestant cemeteries. Magdalena also spent part of her stay in the archives, museum and library.  

dzwon z poewangelickiego kościoła p.w. Matki Bożej Częstochowskiej w Motylewie (Küddowtal)/bell from the formerly Protestant church of Our Lady of Częstochowa in Motylewo (Küddowtal)
jeden z nagrobków na starym ewangelickim cmentarzu w Motylewie (Küddowtal)/one of the tombstones in the old Protestant cemetery in Motylewo (Küddowtal)

Moreover, in order to get a sense of the local atmosphere, Magdalena took part in the celebration of the so called “return of the city of Piła to the Motherland”, i.e. commemoration of the incorporation of the town into Poland in 1945, where it was possible to listen to a lecture on the conquest of the city, and its underground shelters, but also to see an exhibition of military equipment and vehicles.  

Magdalena has collected a great amount of material, but this is certainly not her last field research in the area; she will continue her research in the coming months.