Polska in a nutshell

The last three weeks of my life have been jam-packed-out-of-your-mind CRAZY! In order to fully appreciate the beautiful spring weather, we got nearly 3 weeks for the spring holidays. Such a gift is clearly meant to be taken advantage of and there was no way I was planning on sitting around the whole time. So I got in touch with my friends from the summer and planned a trip of 3's. 3 weeks, 3 countries, 3 friends and... well that's about all the 3's there are actually :)

First trip of the break was a short-but-sweet 4 day trip to Poland to visit my friend Gosia. And when you don't have a million dollars just lying around in your change jar, you tend to look for the... economical travel opportunities. This meant that I was flying into Kraków although Gosia lived in Warsaw. However, she met me at the airport and we killed a couple hours wandering around the city centre before catching the train to Warsaw.

Now, you should know, the train ride to Warsaw takes 3 hours. And there were about 200 people waiting to get on the train. There was some serious duking it out over seats. Luckily we managed to snag a couple and didn't end up sitting on the floor. Phew!

Day 1 in Warsaw started with a delicious lunch of that oh-so-Polish dish: Perogies!

it's a perogie explosion!

There are so many different sorts to choose from. I tried ones filled with meat, potato & cheese, sauerkraut & mushrooms, and cottage cheese. That last one was a new combination since the dough is made from potatoes but it's served with a sweet yoghurt sauce.

On the way into the restaurant I was treated to a view of the Warsaw Palm Tree... erm, right. That's art for you folks :)

if I really concentrate I think I can hear the sea!

Unfortunately, Gosia had to work while I was there, so her friend Madga took me to the Warsaw Uprising Museum for the afternoon. The Poles tried to kick the Germans out of the city at the end of WWII and there is a super interesting museum dedicated to the event. It was one of the most interesting museums I've ever visited in terms of the way the information is presented. For the most part it's crazy interactive - below I'm wandering through a replica of a sewer system.

eep! Small spaces!

Later that night, Gosia and I took a walk around the old part of the city. I can't get enough of cities by night - they're always so beautiful when they're lit up. We stopped by a group of much-loved pubs to try honey beer (delicious by the way) and I'm not going to lie... they looked really dodgy. Bars on the windows, off the beaten tourist track... but quite cozy on the inside. There are about 15 little pubs and each one has it's own theme: luau, bowling alley, retro...

The next day I was given a tour of the old city by Patryk - another Bamberg-ian. Below you can see the old town square:

Interestingly enough, the "old" city was built in 1950. During the war, the city was completely flattened by bombs. I mean, there was nothing but rubble. Nothing. So from 1951-1953 they rebuilt the entire old city. Hows that for fast?!

tadaa...

This is the 'Mermaid of Warsaw' - the emblem of the city. Everyone say hello.

As we wandered along, we ran across a bench. A bench that played music! A bench that played Chopin's music!!

I was impressed.

Here is a shot of the Grave of the Unknown Soldier; a monument to all the men who fought, gave their lives for their country and weren't able to recieve a proper burial. May we never forget.

Things got much lighter after that. Patryk and I strolled through a park and at one point in time I very nearly jumped out of my skin. There I was calmly sauntering along and then... HOLY CRAP THERE'S A PEACOCK!!!

It was like 2 feet from me and ENORMOUS and tried to eat me. Ok, so that's a bit of an exaggeration, but I'm not much of a bird fan (I credit the bluejay who tried to scalp me when I was 10) and so it came as a bit of a shock. Granted they are bea-utiful birds!

Lunch came afterwards and in an attempt to soothe my still racing pulse, I thought I'd try some more traditional Polish cuisine. On the menu this time: Gołąbki. Cabbage leaves stuffed with rice and pork. Delicious.

Last stop of the tour was the Palace of Science and Culture - a gift to Poland from the Soviets while they controlled the city. It's not exactly loved by the Polish people, although the negativity has diminished over time.

Patryk and I went up to the 30th floor (114 m) to the viewing deck for a 360 degree, bird's eye view of Warsaw.

Wandering around the city again later that night, I was treated to a glimpse of the National Theatre all lit up:

Beautiful.

On Wednesday morning, I headed back to Kraków since I was flying back to Berlin that afternoon. I spent a little more time wandering around the city centre:

the Opera House

St. Mary's Basillica

(instead of church bells tolling the hour, they have a trumpeter who plays from the tower)

Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul

I also attempted to check out Wawel Castle, but there were about 10 hundred million people wandering about with stickers and rolls of tape preparing for some sort of race-dealie and I got fed up trying to push through them to find the entrance. Instead I went to the airport, took of my shoes and basked in the balmy weather until my flight an hour later.

And that was Poland. You are now 1/3 of the way through my holiday. Stay tuned for Vol. II

It's epic.

Lots of love,

Sandy