Tropical (and not only) islands, holiday time and traces of the Polish presence? One and the other seem quite distant from each other, and yet here are some islands where you can spend your holiday and find Polish traces. Here are selected examples of Polish artefacts from Zambia, India, Peru, China and even the Pacific islands.

Let's start, however, in a rather predictable manner, by following in the footsteps of Marshal Piłsudski's travels to Madeira. Unaware tourists may be surprised by the presence of a Piłsudski monument in Funchal . Yet it was here that, in December 1930, the Marshal, struggling with health problems, arrived for a therapeutic stay and spent three months living at the Quinta Bettencourt villa.

His time was filled with walks, reading, playing chess and working on his 'Historical Corrections'. He was accompanied by his doctors, including the controversial Eugenia Lewicka, and his adjutant, Capt Mieczysław Lepecki, who left colourful memories of his stay.

Piłsudski's stay on the island was commemorated with plaques (1934, 1992), the name of a roundabout and a bust erected in 2009. The villa itself, now privately owned, is not open to the public, as described in a separate text.

Maurycy Beniowski in Madagascar

Madagascar is another 'almost Polish' island. It is all thanks to Maurycy Beniowski, a nobleman born in the mid-18th century on the territory of present-day Slovakia, the son of a Hungarian hussar, who tied his fate to the Republic of Poland as a participant in the Bar Confederation.

Although today we remember him mainly through the works of Juliusz Słowacki, Beniowski himself left behind diaries in which, with a great deal of fantasy, he described his turbulent life. After being captured by the Russians, he was to escape from exile, make his way to Japan and then to France, where he was entrusted with a colonial mission to Madagascar.

He landed on the island in 1774, established the settlement of Louisbourg, developed the infrastructure and tried to win over the local tribes. It was in this context that the most controversial episode of his biography, the 'coronation' as King of Madagascar, was born. Perhaps he was simply recognised as an ampansakebe or charismatic leader.

On his return to Europe, he tried unsuccessfully to interest Austria and the United States in his project. In 1785, he returned to the island as self-appointed ruler, but was killed a year later in a clash with French troops. Although some claimed that he had faked his death, most scholars regard it as authentic.

In Polish culture, Beniowski went down in history as a Romantic rebel and personification of the nation's restless spirit. Juliusz Słowacki dedicated his drama Beniowski to him, making the hero of the confederation a symbol of the fight for freedom even at the end of the world. Today, his memory is commemorated by a plaque in Antananarivo, the capital of Madagascar.

It is now time to wander even further afield - Kiritimati Island in the heart of the Pacific Ocean in the Republic of Kiribati. Here there is a settlement called Poland. The Polish trace has taken the form of a toponym, a local legend and the St Stanisław Kostka parish, which has existed since 1995.

Until the early 20th century, the island remained uninhabited and under British protectorate. The situation changed with the establishment of coconut palm plantations hundreds of thousands of trees were planted, but soon there was a problem with irrigation.

One local story has it that Stanislaw Pełczynski, a plumber from an American ship, helped solve the irrigation problem. Is this story true? Dariusz Zdziech, a researcher of the island's history, discovered that around 1915, the plantation manager was Charles Malinowski - and it was he who may have given one of the settlements the name 'Poland'. Today, the village of a few hundred inhabitants is home to the aforementioned parish, which is one of the most distant polonics in the world .

The Trobriand Islands and Bronislaw Malinowski

The geographically closest Polonik to Kiribati is the commemoration of Bronislaw Malinowski (1884-1942 ), an eminent anthropologist and founder of modern social anthropology. Between 1914 and 1918, he conducted pioneering field research among the inhabitants of the Trobriand Islands, particularly in the village of Omarakana on Kiriwina Island. Although the villages of Poland on Kiritimati and Omarakana are separated by more than 5500 km, they are linked by the presence of Polish traces. The coincidence of the names Malinowski Charles and Bronislaw is coincidental.

Bronislaw Malinowski, creator of the participatory observation method, revolutionised the social sciences, moving away from so-called 'cabinet anthropology'. He lived among the communities he studied, treating their culture with the same respect as European culture.

In 2007, a commemorative plaque was unveiled in Omarakan, on the site where his tent once stood. It bears the local title 'Toboma Miskabati' ('worthy of highest respect old man') and an inscription in Polish and English:

"Great scholar, son of the Polish nation, founder of modern social anthropology, friend of the peoples of the Trobriand Islands and populariser of their culture."

The plaque, prepared in Poland, arrived at the site after a journey of several years: it was transported by yacht, then by air and sea from New Zealand via Australia, and finally, thanks to sailors Monika Bronicka and Mariusz Delgas, it was placed in Omarakan. The unveiling ceremony was attended by only one government representative, the Supreme Chief of the Trobriands, which symbolically underlined the local respect for Malinowski.

New Zealand

One of the most poignant Polonics in the islands of the world is the footprint of 'Little Poland' in Pahiatua, New Zealand. During World War II, a settlement was established there for more than 700 Polish children and 105 guardians evacuated from the Soviet Union via Iran as part of the Anders Army.

Thanks to the efforts of the Polish consul Kazimierz Antoni Wodzicki and his wife Maria, New Zealand welcomed the children, creating a safe and friendly environment for them. The settlement had a Polish school, scouting, a church, a chapel of Our Lady of Czestochowa and residential houses. The icon of the Black Madonna was painted by a soldier and former prisoner of the camps, Feliks Krzewinski.

Although there were plans to return the children to Poland, after the war most of them remained in New Zealand. Today, you can still see reminders of that community in Pahiatua: a chapel, a mother and child statue (1975), a local museum and a plaque in St Brigid's Church. Every year, on 26 August, a celebration is held in honour of Our Lady of Czestochowa - the patron saint of this unique group of refugees.

Finally, we invite you to the 'Polish island' in Croatia - Šolta .