Blogs from Warsaw, Masovia, Poland, Europe - page 2

Bonjour à tous, Malgré les cachets d’hier au soir ce matin au réveil, ce muscle tire encore. Petit déjeuner à 7h, ici les omelettes sont faites à la demande des clients, la petite serveuse bien mignonne et bien jeune m‘en propose une aux lardons. Autant demander à un aveugle s’il veut voir. Bien jeune, mais très douée pour les omelettes. A 8 heure la voiture tourne, je programme Varsovie. J’agrandis la carte, et je m’aperçois qu’elle me fait reprendre les 100 km, que j’ai fait avant hier en plus de 3 heures dans les travaux. Je n’ai pas envie de passer ma matinée dans ce trafic. Je regarde ma carte papier ça va être un peu plus long, tant pis je programme, Turun. Il y a 70 km d’écart. Je sors de la ville très facilement, ... read more

1.06.18. Walk to the Park Today we decided to remain outdoors to enjoy the remarkable weather in Warsaw. A parkland walk to the Botanical Garden and Łazienki Park. We set off from The Old Town past the Royal Castle and the current Presidential Palace as we walked along Krakowskie Przedmieście. Just as the pedestrian street metamorphoses into the traffic based Nowy Street where the university buildings abound, we turned left, away from the exhaust fumes. Thus descending towards the river, we passed the Chopin Museum and Chopin Music School, where the windows of the practice rooms were open for air: a cacophony of classical excellence …… scales, melodies and harmonies from pianos, clarinets, flutes and strings. Then our maps became sketchy: not enough info. for this pair of pedestrians, as we walked south, parallel to the ... read more

This new museum, opened in 2013, is beside the Ghetto Heroes Monument in Warsaw commemorating the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943. The museum is a glass box penetrated by a atrium tunnel by which you enter a story-line corridor telling the History of the Polish Jews. This stunning ‘core exhibition’ opened in 2014. We arrived yesterday just after ten in the morning and stayed until round 4 o’clock, and felt exhausted and that we had only tickled the surface of what is to be learnt. A bit like a trip to IKEA, the trail meanders snake-like through themed rooms, and an audio guide keeps you focussed. Then the lighting, projections, sound and design of the exhibition entice you to investigate a wealth of detail and to interact with touch screens. Polin, means ‘settle here’ in Hebrew ... read more

I had a little difficulty as a child distinguishing between polish and Polish. Perhaps a visit to this largely misunderstood country will help me? A short flight from Prague dropped us off in Warsaw, Poland. Generally, my few recollections of Poland are: 1) Polish jokes (always in bad taste), 2)the holocaust camps, like Dachau, and 3) labor leader Lech Walesa, who became President. But I intend to find out more. Most recent history of Poland revolves around WW2, and the takeovers by Germany and the old Soviet Union. The labor turmoil of 1980 led by Walesa, led to "Solidarity" becoming a political force with over 10 million followers. In the Nineties, the economy grew stronger, then Poland joined NATO in 1999, then the EU in 2004. How is that for a quick history of modern Poland? ... read more

Most of us know that Warsaw is the capital of Poland. But, we probably do not know much else about it. Warsaw is located in the east central part of the country, not far from the border of the Czech Republic from where we arrived. Sparing you some of its storied past, Warsaw is located on the Vistula River, 240 miles SE of the Baltic coast city of Gdansk. The Old Town was designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1980. The heart of Polish French composer Frederic Chopin resides in the Church of the Holy Cross. Remnants of tsarist era remain in various forms. In the early 20th century, the Jewish community accounted for nearly 50% of the population of Warsaw. After the annihilation of the Jews, Warsaw had to be repopulated after ... read more