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Tuesday, October 3, 2017
Parting reflections on Prague
Perhaps I was a little harsh on Prague in my last blog. Upon reflection we won't have been here long enough to properly assess it. Apparently there is a square but we were unable to find it,unable to even walk around too long because of the weather. Rain and getting wet will do that to you. Stan is also nursing the end of a cold while I caught a whiff of it myself. Not viable excuses but they will have to do. I'm sure Prague has a lot to recommend itself for and has been loved by countless other travelers. We went for a walk in the evening and did see some lovely buildings and a fairy tale looking church complete with turrets. We ate at the Bohemian restaurant, settling for burgers which were very meaty but unfortunately under cooked. It was cool to see kids and dogs in bars, common enough in most of Europe, I had forgotten how great that can be.
It does look lovely doesn't it? Adios for now.
Hello Prague
We are officially in Prague, arrived yesterday courtesy of Polski Bus and first impressions are of the so-so variety but first a few words in praise of Polski Bus. We went from Gdansk to Warsaw, Warsaw to Krakow, Krakow to Prague for the unbelievable sum IN TOTAL of 151 zlotys which is approximately $51.00 and that's for the two of us. These prices are unbeatable, cheaper than Mexico and that's saying a lot considering Mexico has extremely competitive prices. Other travelers appear to have had a somewhat negative experience with this company, rude drivers, delays, cramped seats, "midget size" toilet, WiFi connectivity not great, people who sit where they want etc...That was not our experience. Yes the drivers did not speak English but why is there an expectation that everywhere one goes, all over the damn world, everybody should and must speak English. Frankly it's annoying and disturbing. We travel to experience other cultures not to seek and find the same thing we left at home. Sure it's helpful if one can understand the language and yes Stan speaks Polish but even if he hadn't been there I would have managed just fine. Most of the buses are direct. You get in at one end and off at another. The only bus who stopped somewhere else was the bus to Prague and it was clearly indicated where you were, I don't understand what the problem might have been for other travelers. They're just a bunch of whiny little babies, sorry but some of them expect royal service on a shoe string budget. I've traveled all over the world and made efforts everywhere I went to speak whatever little local language I could without the expectation that they would know mine. OK enough of a rant. If you don't mind long bus rides in fairly comfortable buses I would recommend this company, enough said.
Driving into the Czech country was not much of a contrast except the roads were in much better condition. Poland needs new roads that's for sure. This highway was a paying highway in Poland but stopped being so once we entered the Czech Republic. Noticeably there were no panels filled with ads along the road. Poland is littered with them, they're quite unsightly especially around Zakopane, they were everywhere. In the Czech Republic they filled up the panels with the Czech flag instead of removing them completely.
The arrival at the bus station was a bit complicated. It was dark, we were tired, we didn't have a map of Prague or any of their currency which is the koruna (1 $ equals about 17.64 czk) not the easiest conversion and frankly we haven't been really bothering.
The cab driver knew where the hotel was. The hotel is called the Park Hotel and it's a big, square, glass building, not at all what I expected but good enough. It's not in the old town of Prague but there are plenty of old buildings around. We were hungry and had Vietnamese food, not very good and too expensive for what we got. There are plenty of Asian restaurants around more than in Poland but they all seem a little questionable. We love Vietnamese food and after two experiences here we're not impressed.
The next day it was raining pretty hard. I suggested we take a tramway to the older section of Prague but first we went for breakfast at a coffee shop. Weird breakfast with cucumber slices, tomatoes, two stringy pieces of white toast, slices of ham and cheese plus some bocconcini like cheese and a croissant on the side....like I said weird although the coffee was good. There doesn't appear to be any buses in Prague. The whole public system runs with these very efficient tramways on rails which is great since they're never bogged down by traffic. We took number 17 which did get us close to old town but we continued on since it was still raining. Went all the way to the end where we had to get off and hop back on another number 17 going in the opposite direction. Lots of Soviet era buildings in the burbs and an unbelievable amount of graffiti. It's a pain in most European capitals but I have to say Prague has really outdone itself when it comes to tagging. Every available surface which can be tagged has been, even upright standing poles for electricity, doors to private buildings, buildings themselves, signs, fences, you name it it's tagged. It's extremely distracting. I suppose if you only go to the old part of Prague you might not notice this as much but it was hard to miss for us. We did get off at a bridge into the old city which was again filled, to the brim, with tourists. Lots of beautiful old buildings, shops which sell the usual "tourist" crap, restaurants, cobblestone streets but no big meeting area plazas like in Warsaw or Krakow. We preferred those two cities by a mile and then some. Yes it was raining and shoving your way through masses of people with umbrellas is no fun but the mood of the place is off somehow, sort of sour. It's not a shiny, happy place full of vim and vigor it felt aged and tired frankly we did not enjoy old Prague or the little we saw of it. The weather might have had a role to play but regardless of weather the atmosphere was not "sympathique".
In the afternoon, the sun came out. I went out for a walk by myself. There's a sort of hush to the place, it's all quiet and subdued. Found where they shop for groceries, kind of small, poor selection of fruits and vegetables, the bakery section slightly bigger than our room which isn't very big. The buildings appear to be somewhat neglected, the stores I saw were more on the rundown end of the scale. I found a bustling place with second hand goods, mostly clothes for women. Went in and was not impressed with the quality of the stuff. We sell way better stuff in our cafe in Ste. Adele, much cheaper too. They had coats for around $18.00 (more like jackets) we sell them for about $5.00 to $8.00. In any case it was a popular spot. I noticed a lot of bars. Stan loves the beer Pilsner Urquell one of the best beers around. I tasted it and it is very very good.
I'm sure Prague might be a great experience for other travelers but in our case it just didn't do it. Poland was definitely the highlight.
This will be the last entry for my blog. I've written about Paris before, don't want to repeat myself. I've written quite a bit about France in general. There are many different entries in my blog including some film criticism when I got bored and wanted to write something. Hope you enjoyed reading this those of you who took the time. It's fun to write but it's also great to be read so thank you.
Driving into the Czech country was not much of a contrast except the roads were in much better condition. Poland needs new roads that's for sure. This highway was a paying highway in Poland but stopped being so once we entered the Czech Republic. Noticeably there were no panels filled with ads along the road. Poland is littered with them, they're quite unsightly especially around Zakopane, they were everywhere. In the Czech Republic they filled up the panels with the Czech flag instead of removing them completely.
The arrival at the bus station was a bit complicated. It was dark, we were tired, we didn't have a map of Prague or any of their currency which is the koruna (1 $ equals about 17.64 czk) not the easiest conversion and frankly we haven't been really bothering.
The cab driver knew where the hotel was. The hotel is called the Park Hotel and it's a big, square, glass building, not at all what I expected but good enough. It's not in the old town of Prague but there are plenty of old buildings around. We were hungry and had Vietnamese food, not very good and too expensive for what we got. There are plenty of Asian restaurants around more than in Poland but they all seem a little questionable. We love Vietnamese food and after two experiences here we're not impressed.
The next day it was raining pretty hard. I suggested we take a tramway to the older section of Prague but first we went for breakfast at a coffee shop. Weird breakfast with cucumber slices, tomatoes, two stringy pieces of white toast, slices of ham and cheese plus some bocconcini like cheese and a croissant on the side....like I said weird although the coffee was good. There doesn't appear to be any buses in Prague. The whole public system runs with these very efficient tramways on rails which is great since they're never bogged down by traffic. We took number 17 which did get us close to old town but we continued on since it was still raining. Went all the way to the end where we had to get off and hop back on another number 17 going in the opposite direction. Lots of Soviet era buildings in the burbs and an unbelievable amount of graffiti. It's a pain in most European capitals but I have to say Prague has really outdone itself when it comes to tagging. Every available surface which can be tagged has been, even upright standing poles for electricity, doors to private buildings, buildings themselves, signs, fences, you name it it's tagged. It's extremely distracting. I suppose if you only go to the old part of Prague you might not notice this as much but it was hard to miss for us. We did get off at a bridge into the old city which was again filled, to the brim, with tourists. Lots of beautiful old buildings, shops which sell the usual "tourist" crap, restaurants, cobblestone streets but no big meeting area plazas like in Warsaw or Krakow. We preferred those two cities by a mile and then some. Yes it was raining and shoving your way through masses of people with umbrellas is no fun but the mood of the place is off somehow, sort of sour. It's not a shiny, happy place full of vim and vigor it felt aged and tired frankly we did not enjoy old Prague or the little we saw of it. The weather might have had a role to play but regardless of weather the atmosphere was not "sympathique".
In the afternoon, the sun came out. I went out for a walk by myself. There's a sort of hush to the place, it's all quiet and subdued. Found where they shop for groceries, kind of small, poor selection of fruits and vegetables, the bakery section slightly bigger than our room which isn't very big. The buildings appear to be somewhat neglected, the stores I saw were more on the rundown end of the scale. I found a bustling place with second hand goods, mostly clothes for women. Went in and was not impressed with the quality of the stuff. We sell way better stuff in our cafe in Ste. Adele, much cheaper too. They had coats for around $18.00 (more like jackets) we sell them for about $5.00 to $8.00. In any case it was a popular spot. I noticed a lot of bars. Stan loves the beer Pilsner Urquell one of the best beers around. I tasted it and it is very very good.
I'm sure Prague might be a great experience for other travelers but in our case it just didn't do it. Poland was definitely the highlight.
This will be the last entry for my blog. I've written about Paris before, don't want to repeat myself. I've written quite a bit about France in general. There are many different entries in my blog including some film criticism when I got bored and wanted to write something. Hope you enjoyed reading this those of you who took the time. It's fun to write but it's also great to be read so thank you.
Sunday, October 1, 2017
Auschwitz Birkenau and a few random thoughts upon leaving Poland
Left around 10:00 for our final tour, the most momentous one, to Auschwitz Birkenau. We were picked up in a brand new mini Mercedes bus and the irony wasn't lost on me although it appears to have been lost on everybody else. German efficiency at its best efficiency which we would soon encounter in Auschwitz where around 6,000 people a day were ruthlessly murdered. Auschwitz was one of the biggest concentration camps with Birkenau functioning as a sort of satellite camp where people were housed in the most appalling, inhuman conditions. Both camps had gaz chambers as well as crematoriums, the ashes were dispersed in ponds on the Birkenau site. The Nazis never dug any graves, everybody who died was cremated so as not to leave any traces of what was being done under the "cover of war".
I don't have too much to write about the visit, it's too horrific to contemplate and even more horrific to imagine. Even being physically there doesn't give you the full scope of how truly awful it must have been with the dogs, the constant barking, the crying, the mud (it was very muddy where grass is now found) the big lights, the incessant screaming in German, the smell of rotten bodies, the fear the smells coming from the crematorium, the ash falling like flakes. The crematoriums worked on a 24 hour schedule especially during the last year of the war when Hitler was desperate to carry out his "final solution". It truly is amazing to contemplate the ingenuity, the skill, the intelligence, the efficiency, the organization which went into the act of killing untold amounts of people on a scale never before imagined.
The most horrifying was seeing mountains of human hair used for all manner of things which I prefer not to think about. People were taking a lot of pictures but I didn't feel like taking a single photo. There are many photos on the internet for those of you who want to see what it looked like. We were pretty horrified to discover some graffiti on the wood in some of the barracks and on one entire wall in a barrack housing young children ages 2 to 14 in Birkenau. Silly graffiti of names, hearts, so and so loves the usual drivel which certainly smacks of disrespect in a place where so many have died. It really pissed me off. We were glad we went, it wasn't a pleasant visit but the memory of the horror perpetrated there must live on. It's essential lest we forget.
Parting thoughts on Poland:
I don't have too much to write about the visit, it's too horrific to contemplate and even more horrific to imagine. Even being physically there doesn't give you the full scope of how truly awful it must have been with the dogs, the constant barking, the crying, the mud (it was very muddy where grass is now found) the big lights, the incessant screaming in German, the smell of rotten bodies, the fear the smells coming from the crematorium, the ash falling like flakes. The crematoriums worked on a 24 hour schedule especially during the last year of the war when Hitler was desperate to carry out his "final solution". It truly is amazing to contemplate the ingenuity, the skill, the intelligence, the efficiency, the organization which went into the act of killing untold amounts of people on a scale never before imagined.
The most horrifying was seeing mountains of human hair used for all manner of things which I prefer not to think about. People were taking a lot of pictures but I didn't feel like taking a single photo. There are many photos on the internet for those of you who want to see what it looked like. We were pretty horrified to discover some graffiti on the wood in some of the barracks and on one entire wall in a barrack housing young children ages 2 to 14 in Birkenau. Silly graffiti of names, hearts, so and so loves the usual drivel which certainly smacks of disrespect in a place where so many have died. It really pissed me off. We were glad we went, it wasn't a pleasant visit but the memory of the horror perpetrated there must live on. It's essential lest we forget.
Parting thoughts on Poland:
- The Poles like to visit their own country many of them in groups here and in Warsaw, in Gdansk as well.
- Polish food is not very varied with heavy emphasis on meat, not too many options for vegetarians or vegans although apparently Warsaw is the capital of vegans in Poland. We only saw one vegetarian restaurant there.
- The country is mostly white, even in Krakow not too many foreigners of a different color or immigrants. Stan's relatives are deathly afraid of immigrants mostly Muslim, even though there are hardly any in Poland.
- Poland is probably one of the most affordable countries to visit in Europe especially for Canadians, good value for the exchange rate.
- Generally service is not of the highest quality especially in ordinary stores which don't cater to a tourist clientele. They can be sort of surly, ok that was our experience and probably a gross over generalization.
- I will never ever become conversant in Polish, it's too damn hard to pronounce.
- There are a lot of cars, too many, the traffic is horrendous.
- KFC is very very popular especially in the countryside although it's also found in the cities with Macdonald having a premier place.
- Everybody is wired to the max, hardly anybody without a phone except us.
- There's a lack of good highway but the more roads they build, the more cars will travel on them. It's the same where we live.
- The Russian nesting dolls are very very popular. Stan had assured me we would never find them here, he was wrong. They're everywhere.
- Paczki (polish donuts) and cheesecake both are way better in Montreal, at Jean-Talon market. They were a huge disappointment.
- We enjoyed our time here, we discovered a lot of new places, there is a lot to see and do in Poland.
Side note: Running shoes are the shoes of choice of the entire planet (it seems). No matter what the nationality or gender or age, most people are wearing sneakers brand name sneakers.
Saturday, September 30, 2017
Zakopane and the Wieliczka Salt mine
The Zakopane tour was a huge disappointment and it was the costliest at 300 zlotys per person it comes out to about $204.00 Canadian. What you basically get is a long drive to the mountains in a car. The car was a Mercedes surprisingly not all that comfortable. We were the only two taking the tour that day. The Zakopane tour depends a lot on the weather. We left Krakow with foggy weather, the sun did turn up but the mountains remained shrouded in mist. We were only able to see a tiny bit of a mountain with snow on it. Zakopane is a ski/snowboard destination but it's also popular in the summer. It's a bit of a tourist trap with a market selling mostly stuff made in China year round. OK there are a few things produced in Poland like sheep skin, some good quality leather, amber jewelry of course and some folkloric clothing items. The rest consists mostly of cheap toys, trinkets etc...such that you find everywhere all over the world.
The trip there took forever. It's only 100 kms. but again the traffic was pretty bad, there's a general lack of highway, too many secondary roads, the result being at least over 3 hours to get there. Once there we took a short ride in a funicular down to the main square which had more of the same in terms of shops, gadgets, tourist crap and food.
We met our laconic guide again, he had to go park the car, and took a little walking tour of Zakopane. Our guide by the way did not like Zakopane and couldn't understand why people would want to go there. Guess he was right.
The highlight was this old house, the oldest in Zakopane built in the traditional style of the area. It's all made of wood with a very peaked roof, less ornate than the Tyrolean style but resembling it with just a "je ne sais quoi" of something different Truly impressive architecturally. I took photos which I can't download right now so you'll just have to imagine it. Zakopane does have an impressive setting nestled in the mountains but I think Mont Tremblant in Quebec is just as pretty although the mountains there are not as high. Not a total waste of time and money since we got to see a different more "country" side of Poland.
The Wieliczka Salt mine was a tour we took the following day. Impressive is too small a word, it's stupefyingly grandiose in scope, design, ingenuity and sheer brute labor. It's one of the oldest salt mines in the world having been started in the 13th.century when rock salt was discovered. It led to Poland's fortune for many many years to come. The mine has been declared one of Unesco's world heritage site and along with the city of Krakow itself, it's easy to see why. There are over 800+ steps going down, endless kilometer long galleries, huge cavernous chambers, chapels, all meticulously maintained. It's hard to underscore what a mammoth undertaking this must have been, with pic and ax as primitive tools. Some of the galleries are so huge they are used as ballrooms and concert halls. They're also very popular for wedding ceremonies and special themed events.
There is a lot of walking involved and of course it's to be avoided at all cost if you're a tad claustrophobic. The areas we walked in are wide enough and high enough but there's still that sense of pressure from the earth pressing down on you with its incredible force. Nevertheless there's nothing dangerous about the mine, security is at a premium with millions of visitors per year of all nationalities. It's a popular place indeed and well worth the visit. I don't think my puny little camera will do it justice. The best thing is to go online and check it out yourself.
These photos should give you a little taste of what the mine looks like inside. It truly is magnificent and well worth seeking out on the net for extra photos.
We came back very tired but satisfied. Stopped at a market near the main square which was thronged with people since it's the weekend. We were hungry after our long day and had Polish sausage with potatoes and vegetables from this stand which is incredibly popular with locals and tourists alike. I'm not sure if anybody is reading my blog. I do still enjoy writing it and it will remain as a souvenir of our travels in Poland. Tomorrow we will be visiting Auschwitz and Birkenau and that will be the end of our trip to Poland since we will be gone on the Polski Bus to Prague on Monday.
The trip there took forever. It's only 100 kms. but again the traffic was pretty bad, there's a general lack of highway, too many secondary roads, the result being at least over 3 hours to get there. Once there we took a short ride in a funicular down to the main square which had more of the same in terms of shops, gadgets, tourist crap and food.
We met our laconic guide again, he had to go park the car, and took a little walking tour of Zakopane. Our guide by the way did not like Zakopane and couldn't understand why people would want to go there. Guess he was right.
The highlight was this old house, the oldest in Zakopane built in the traditional style of the area. It's all made of wood with a very peaked roof, less ornate than the Tyrolean style but resembling it with just a "je ne sais quoi" of something different Truly impressive architecturally. I took photos which I can't download right now so you'll just have to imagine it. Zakopane does have an impressive setting nestled in the mountains but I think Mont Tremblant in Quebec is just as pretty although the mountains there are not as high. Not a total waste of time and money since we got to see a different more "country" side of Poland.
The Wieliczka Salt mine was a tour we took the following day. Impressive is too small a word, it's stupefyingly grandiose in scope, design, ingenuity and sheer brute labor. It's one of the oldest salt mines in the world having been started in the 13th.century when rock salt was discovered. It led to Poland's fortune for many many years to come. The mine has been declared one of Unesco's world heritage site and along with the city of Krakow itself, it's easy to see why. There are over 800+ steps going down, endless kilometer long galleries, huge cavernous chambers, chapels, all meticulously maintained. It's hard to underscore what a mammoth undertaking this must have been, with pic and ax as primitive tools. Some of the galleries are so huge they are used as ballrooms and concert halls. They're also very popular for wedding ceremonies and special themed events.
There is a lot of walking involved and of course it's to be avoided at all cost if you're a tad claustrophobic. The areas we walked in are wide enough and high enough but there's still that sense of pressure from the earth pressing down on you with its incredible force. Nevertheless there's nothing dangerous about the mine, security is at a premium with millions of visitors per year of all nationalities. It's a popular place indeed and well worth the visit. I don't think my puny little camera will do it justice. The best thing is to go online and check it out yourself.
These photos should give you a little taste of what the mine looks like inside. It truly is magnificent and well worth seeking out on the net for extra photos.
We came back very tired but satisfied. Stopped at a market near the main square which was thronged with people since it's the weekend. We were hungry after our long day and had Polish sausage with potatoes and vegetables from this stand which is incredibly popular with locals and tourists alike. I'm not sure if anybody is reading my blog. I do still enjoy writing it and it will remain as a souvenir of our travels in Poland. Tomorrow we will be visiting Auschwitz and Birkenau and that will be the end of our trip to Poland since we will be gone on the Polski Bus to Prague on Monday.
Thursday, September 28, 2017
The magnificent city of Krakow
We arrived in Krakow yesterday courtesy of PolskiBus once again. We were meant to leave Warsaw at 11:00 but ended up leaving around noon instead. It was a very tiring bus ride although we did notice a lot of new highway construction happening, Poland is definitely booming or at least it's not "busting". Buses are not as comfortable as the ones in Mexico or South America. Getting to the washroom might be hazardous to your health. You have to go down a steep flight of stairs and the washroom is tucked in right at the exit door. If you have a mobility issue this could be a serious problem especially with all the rocking to and fro going on. I had to brave it a couple of times. I try to limit my liquid intake before boarding so I won't have to go too often.
The ride to the hotel was easy, once again by cab but this time the bus station was very close to our destination, not a huge outlay of cash.
The hotel is small in an older building not in the old town proper itself but extremely close by. Our room has a very high wooden ceiling with wooden beans. The wall are white stucco. There's a little balcony which looks out onto a private courtyard, three twin beds and a good size bathroom. It's very cute. Once again we lucked out on accommodations. It's always a bit of a crap shoot when you book via the internet.
We settled in and then went for a walk to get our bearings. We were hungry and decided on an Indian restaurant where the food turned out to be excellent. Apparently Indian cuisine is quite popular in Krakow as well as pretzels. Pretzel vendors are on every street corner. I had no idea, a little taste of New York in Krakow. The old town is absolutely magnificent. It hasn't been touched by the war,none of it was destroyed and it's in impeccable shape, everything beautifully maintained in pristine condition. The whole of the old town functions as a bit of a museum with many spectacular houses, restaurants, well appointed boutique hotels, shops etc.... The main square is huge with the Krakow Cathedral at one end with its magnificent ornate turrets and bell tower very similar in style to what one might find in Russia. The Cathedral itself is sumptuous with a lot of gold inlay, statues, marble, reliquary and religious iconography. We've seen a lot of churches in our travels and this one definitely stands out. At night the plaza hums with people and performers, it's a busy, happy place with restaurants all around and terraces. They have heat "lamps" to keep patrons warm and they also provide you with a red blanket you can wrap yourself in while eating your meal. It's magical at night with all the buildings lit up.
The next day we walked to the world famous Wawel Castle. It dates back to the 13th and 14 th century and was originally built at the behest of King Casimir III the Great. Architecturally it's a blend of Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque. It's a bit of a mess but it all seems to blend beautifully. The location itself is spectacular overlooking the Vistula river and the city of Krakow. The most wonderful thing was the bell tower. The tower is very high, you have to climb all these steep wooden steps. There are bells along the way but the most incredible one is at the very top. It weighs approximately ten tons,takes eight people to ring it and is only rung 25 times out of the year for special occasions. With all that is involved we can understand why. The mystery is how they ever got it up there, not only that one but the other ones as well. The main cathedral is well known for its crypt where a lot of Kings and Queens are buried as well as other famous historical Polish figures like Stefan Batory and a general who fought in America during their war of independence. There's also a museum named for Pope John Paul which houses religious vestments and other religious artifacts which we don't really care about but are still representative of the period and the value which the Poles attach to their Catholic faith.
Tomorrow we have booked a trip to Zacopane which is about 100 kms.from Krakow, in the high mountains. It's going to be another gorgeous sunny day. It should be a good trip.
The ride to the hotel was easy, once again by cab but this time the bus station was very close to our destination, not a huge outlay of cash.
The hotel is small in an older building not in the old town proper itself but extremely close by. Our room has a very high wooden ceiling with wooden beans. The wall are white stucco. There's a little balcony which looks out onto a private courtyard, three twin beds and a good size bathroom. It's very cute. Once again we lucked out on accommodations. It's always a bit of a crap shoot when you book via the internet.
We settled in and then went for a walk to get our bearings. We were hungry and decided on an Indian restaurant where the food turned out to be excellent. Apparently Indian cuisine is quite popular in Krakow as well as pretzels. Pretzel vendors are on every street corner. I had no idea, a little taste of New York in Krakow. The old town is absolutely magnificent. It hasn't been touched by the war,none of it was destroyed and it's in impeccable shape, everything beautifully maintained in pristine condition. The whole of the old town functions as a bit of a museum with many spectacular houses, restaurants, well appointed boutique hotels, shops etc.... The main square is huge with the Krakow Cathedral at one end with its magnificent ornate turrets and bell tower very similar in style to what one might find in Russia. The Cathedral itself is sumptuous with a lot of gold inlay, statues, marble, reliquary and religious iconography. We've seen a lot of churches in our travels and this one definitely stands out. At night the plaza hums with people and performers, it's a busy, happy place with restaurants all around and terraces. They have heat "lamps" to keep patrons warm and they also provide you with a red blanket you can wrap yourself in while eating your meal. It's magical at night with all the buildings lit up.
The next day we walked to the world famous Wawel Castle. It dates back to the 13th and 14 th century and was originally built at the behest of King Casimir III the Great. Architecturally it's a blend of Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque. It's a bit of a mess but it all seems to blend beautifully. The location itself is spectacular overlooking the Vistula river and the city of Krakow. The most wonderful thing was the bell tower. The tower is very high, you have to climb all these steep wooden steps. There are bells along the way but the most incredible one is at the very top. It weighs approximately ten tons,takes eight people to ring it and is only rung 25 times out of the year for special occasions. With all that is involved we can understand why. The mystery is how they ever got it up there, not only that one but the other ones as well. The main cathedral is well known for its crypt where a lot of Kings and Queens are buried as well as other famous historical Polish figures like Stefan Batory and a general who fought in America during their war of independence. There's also a museum named for Pope John Paul which houses religious vestments and other religious artifacts which we don't really care about but are still representative of the period and the value which the Poles attach to their Catholic faith.
Tomorrow we have booked a trip to Zacopane which is about 100 kms.from Krakow, in the high mountains. It's going to be another gorgeous sunny day. It should be a good trip.
A Little Taste of Warsaw
It's only going to be a little taste since we didn't get to spend much time in this fabulous capital. We arrived around 3:30 on Monday. PolkiBus is efficient but not overly comfortable, it gets you where you want to go although it's not exactly fast. There doesn't seem to be huge stretches of super highways in Poland. There are little stretches here and there and then you're off on secondary roads with lots of trucks and two way traffic, like I said...slow but cheap we therefore have to settle in for the ride and not be in too much of a hurry.
Warsaw is a very modern capital. A lot of shiny new buildings in the downtown core which we had to visit in order to deal with the computer connection issue. Everybody is very wired,nothing unusual about that. It's a world wide phenomenon, the IPhone is definitely king of the roost. We took a cab which overcharged us. It cost more for the ride to the old town than for the PolskiBus from Gdansk to Warsaw. OK it was a considerable distance and we did hit a lot of traffic but when we did the same direction in reverse, it cost about 30 zlotes less, live and learn. It was a metered fare not much we could do about the price.
Our apartment was in the old section of Warsaw. The instructions to get in were a little complicated but we managed. Seriously we could not have found a better, cuter location and right in the heart of everything. Only problem it was on the third floor up rickety stairs thus a little difficult to handle with the heavy suitcases. The apartment consisted of one open area, living room, dining room, kitchen, with a fold out couch. There was a separate bedroom and a big bathroom with shower and bath, very well appointed. The apt. cost about $75.00 a day, pretty reasonable considering what we got.
The old town is not very big but was entirely rebuilt. If you've seen The Pianist you must know that the Germans left nothing but rubble behind them as they were busy decamping. It's pretty amazing that the Polish government decided to rebuild the area as it was, they could have erected crappy, newer buildings instead. It turned out to have been a wise investment since it appears to be a favorite tourist magnet. There is a great big plaza, the Presidential Palace is not far away. There is a museum which details the Warsaw uprising, lots of little shops, plenty of restaurants which serve traditional Polish food. We finally got to eat pierogies, twice. Still haven't eaten bigos but it's on the menu for this evening in Krakow. Somehow hard to find on the Warsaw menu.
We mostly walked around and took in the sights. We took a ride on a tramway. They have a very efficient public transit system, the cars all look shiny and new. We never got to take the subway. You have to buy your ticket via a machine prior to boarding. Each regular fare costs about $2,00 per person and is valid for 75 minutes. You compost your ticket on the bus. It appears to be based on some kind of honor system. Some people get on with no apparent ticket maybe they know something we don't know.
We noticed a lot of Asian tourists, Japan and China otherwise there was still a distinct lack of visible minorities. Warsaw is resolutely white in color with the odd splash of brown here and there. The gypsies are still around begging. They're a common site in most European big cities.
Warsaw is very clean with huge boulevards. It feels wealthy and cosmopolitan. It's no longer a Soviet backwater. We enjoyed our brief time there. I would definitely recommend a visit.
Warsaw is a very modern capital. A lot of shiny new buildings in the downtown core which we had to visit in order to deal with the computer connection issue. Everybody is very wired,nothing unusual about that. It's a world wide phenomenon, the IPhone is definitely king of the roost. We took a cab which overcharged us. It cost more for the ride to the old town than for the PolskiBus from Gdansk to Warsaw. OK it was a considerable distance and we did hit a lot of traffic but when we did the same direction in reverse, it cost about 30 zlotes less, live and learn. It was a metered fare not much we could do about the price.
Our apartment was in the old section of Warsaw. The instructions to get in were a little complicated but we managed. Seriously we could not have found a better, cuter location and right in the heart of everything. Only problem it was on the third floor up rickety stairs thus a little difficult to handle with the heavy suitcases. The apartment consisted of one open area, living room, dining room, kitchen, with a fold out couch. There was a separate bedroom and a big bathroom with shower and bath, very well appointed. The apt. cost about $75.00 a day, pretty reasonable considering what we got.
The old town is not very big but was entirely rebuilt. If you've seen The Pianist you must know that the Germans left nothing but rubble behind them as they were busy decamping. It's pretty amazing that the Polish government decided to rebuild the area as it was, they could have erected crappy, newer buildings instead. It turned out to have been a wise investment since it appears to be a favorite tourist magnet. There is a great big plaza, the Presidential Palace is not far away. There is a museum which details the Warsaw uprising, lots of little shops, plenty of restaurants which serve traditional Polish food. We finally got to eat pierogies, twice. Still haven't eaten bigos but it's on the menu for this evening in Krakow. Somehow hard to find on the Warsaw menu.
We mostly walked around and took in the sights. We took a ride on a tramway. They have a very efficient public transit system, the cars all look shiny and new. We never got to take the subway. You have to buy your ticket via a machine prior to boarding. Each regular fare costs about $2,00 per person and is valid for 75 minutes. You compost your ticket on the bus. It appears to be based on some kind of honor system. Some people get on with no apparent ticket maybe they know something we don't know.
We noticed a lot of Asian tourists, Japan and China otherwise there was still a distinct lack of visible minorities. Warsaw is resolutely white in color with the odd splash of brown here and there. The gypsies are still around begging. They're a common site in most European big cities.
Warsaw is very clean with huge boulevards. It feels wealthy and cosmopolitan. It's no longer a Soviet backwater. We enjoyed our brief time there. I would definitely recommend a visit.
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Leaving Gdansk
This part of the trip has been a little different since we've ben visiting and staying with Polish relatives. In a way it's a unique opportunity to see Poland from a non tourist perspective. The relatives we stayed with,a lovely couple of retired academics, live in an apartment in a Soviet era built huge complex. The buildings are rather ugly, squat cubes or rectangles with huge numbers printed on the size of each building. Most buildings are around 6 to 7 floors, no elevators. You get into the building via a code and each apartment is locked with a double door. Apparently there were a lot of thefts, break ins earlier on. These apartment complexes dot the city of Gdynia but they are also found in Gdansk. They actually look pretty good now, they're very well maintained and the grounds are also maintained very well with a lot of trees, shrubbery and flowers. It's one thing the Soviets did quite well make renting and owning relatively affordable.
I was curious about life under a communist regime but could only get a little bit of the history due to my limited Polish conversational skills.
During the Soviet era food was more scarce. Poles were encouraged to tend their little gardens in community plots. We visited such a plot. It was huge with about 1000 garden spots which one can buy and pass on to next of kin. Each plot has a little cabin for washing up, relaxing, drinking vodka after a hard day's work in the garden, a toilet and a glassed in fair size greenhouse. Obviously this is prime land but it's original purpose remains. It cannot be developed for another purpose, that's fantastic.
In the Soviet era health and education, even higher education, were free and there were no long delays for major operations. The interesting thing was that solidarity was more evident. People were in it together, there was less of the dog eat dog mentality, everybody had a job even if that job produced inefficient results. Everybody had housing, there was nobody on the street but life was still rather grim and humorless. The Soviets didn't go for a lot of sparkly, shiny stuff and fun.
Regarding modern Gdynia and Gdansk, Gdansk itself was a bit of a disappointment aside from the old town, it's very very spread out, sort of hard to actually "visit" if one doesn't have a car. The port of Gdynia was equally unimpressive compared to other beautiful ports visited in France like St. Malo and Concarneau. It was all right but there wasn't much to write about beside the fact that there was a tourist Pirate boat just like the ones they have in Mexico and an old navy boat left over from the war with a newer one on which young recruits train.
In general Poles do not seem to like immigrants especially older Poles who are weary of anything new disruptive to the old way of life. In Gdynia we din't see any visible minorites. The town is very white. That trend more or less continues in Warsaw. Poland is a very Catholic country, the dead Pope Polish John Paul still enjoys en enduring popularity, his picture is very very present. It was in both the homes we were in. People still go to church on Sunday and this includes young people or at least the young people we met. It was a lovely time, a different time for me since I didn't get to share a lot or ask a lot of questions. I always have a lot of questions but had to be satisfied with the limited way I was able to participate. Meanwhile I had fun trying to pronounce words like wszystko (everything) Pszcszyna (a town in Poland) bezwzgledny (fittingly this means rutheless). Polish is loaded with czs sounds and lots and lots of w, easy roll off the tongue it is not, definitely a challenge. We're in Warsaw now ensconced in out lovely apartment, you can't find hotels in the old town. There are none. I'll be writing on our stay here in the next installment.
I was curious about life under a communist regime but could only get a little bit of the history due to my limited Polish conversational skills.
During the Soviet era food was more scarce. Poles were encouraged to tend their little gardens in community plots. We visited such a plot. It was huge with about 1000 garden spots which one can buy and pass on to next of kin. Each plot has a little cabin for washing up, relaxing, drinking vodka after a hard day's work in the garden, a toilet and a glassed in fair size greenhouse. Obviously this is prime land but it's original purpose remains. It cannot be developed for another purpose, that's fantastic.
In the Soviet era health and education, even higher education, were free and there were no long delays for major operations. The interesting thing was that solidarity was more evident. People were in it together, there was less of the dog eat dog mentality, everybody had a job even if that job produced inefficient results. Everybody had housing, there was nobody on the street but life was still rather grim and humorless. The Soviets didn't go for a lot of sparkly, shiny stuff and fun.
Regarding modern Gdynia and Gdansk, Gdansk itself was a bit of a disappointment aside from the old town, it's very very spread out, sort of hard to actually "visit" if one doesn't have a car. The port of Gdynia was equally unimpressive compared to other beautiful ports visited in France like St. Malo and Concarneau. It was all right but there wasn't much to write about beside the fact that there was a tourist Pirate boat just like the ones they have in Mexico and an old navy boat left over from the war with a newer one on which young recruits train.
In general Poles do not seem to like immigrants especially older Poles who are weary of anything new disruptive to the old way of life. In Gdynia we din't see any visible minorites. The town is very white. That trend more or less continues in Warsaw. Poland is a very Catholic country, the dead Pope Polish John Paul still enjoys en enduring popularity, his picture is very very present. It was in both the homes we were in. People still go to church on Sunday and this includes young people or at least the young people we met. It was a lovely time, a different time for me since I didn't get to share a lot or ask a lot of questions. I always have a lot of questions but had to be satisfied with the limited way I was able to participate. Meanwhile I had fun trying to pronounce words like wszystko (everything) Pszcszyna (a town in Poland) bezwzgledny (fittingly this means rutheless). Polish is loaded with czs sounds and lots and lots of w, easy roll off the tongue it is not, definitely a challenge. We're in Warsaw now ensconced in out lovely apartment, you can't find hotels in the old town. There are none. I'll be writing on our stay here in the next installment.
A Cautionary Tale
I'll be writing a little more on our departure from Gdansk but first a cautionary tale for travelers. We packed on the Sunday to leave for Warsaw on the Monday. In the middle of the night I realized I had packed my computer but not the connecting cable for the power source. I got up, disconnected it and put it in the back pack. We arrived in Warsaw around 3:00, our apartment is fantastic (more on that later) and I wanted to connect my computer. I took the computer out, took out the power chord only to soon realize that the little jack which fits into the two prong European socket had been left behind. I've had that little adapter since South America and now it was gone, without it no way of connecting the computer.
Being my usual optimistic self I thought it might be easy to find a suitable replacement, Stan w(as more circumspect and much less enthusiastic, turns out he was right. In the old city, there was nothing, nada. We were directed to a mall where there was a huge store which dealt in electronics called Saturn. We made it there after a short cab ride. Again no success, lots of adapters but they are all from Europe going to somewhere else none for stupid Canadian coming to Europe. Without the computer I didn't even know which hotel I had booked in Krakow, no way to make other reservations, no communication with family, no banking etc... We spent a long time in that store to no avail. Went to check out another much smaller store, same result. Finally I decided to go back to Saturn and seek out another solution. It turns out we could buy a "universal" type cable which I could plug into my power jack instead of the north American version. We had to return the next day with the computer so they could sell me the one which wouldn't fry my computer.
Since I'm writing this the solution worked out well but we spent quite a few fruitless hours. The best thing to do is to carry a few of those, they don't cost much and they don't take up any room. And now for a few more thoughts on leaving Gdansk followed by our stay in Warsaw.
Being my usual optimistic self I thought it might be easy to find a suitable replacement, Stan w(as more circumspect and much less enthusiastic, turns out he was right. In the old city, there was nothing, nada. We were directed to a mall where there was a huge store which dealt in electronics called Saturn. We made it there after a short cab ride. Again no success, lots of adapters but they are all from Europe going to somewhere else none for stupid Canadian coming to Europe. Without the computer I didn't even know which hotel I had booked in Krakow, no way to make other reservations, no communication with family, no banking etc... We spent a long time in that store to no avail. Went to check out another much smaller store, same result. Finally I decided to go back to Saturn and seek out another solution. It turns out we could buy a "universal" type cable which I could plug into my power jack instead of the north American version. We had to return the next day with the computer so they could sell me the one which wouldn't fry my computer.
Since I'm writing this the solution worked out well but we spent quite a few fruitless hours. The best thing to do is to carry a few of those, they don't cost much and they don't take up any room. And now for a few more thoughts on leaving Gdansk followed by our stay in Warsaw.
Saturday, September 23, 2017
Gdansk, Poland, First Impressions, September 2017
The trip getting here was relatively painless. Lately I've dreaded getting onto airplanes. Spaces are getting smaller, tighter, meaner, suffocatingly hot with endlessly recycled air although too cold for comfort as well, at times. Many have never had the luxury of flying it seems a little churlish to complain, I'm moving on.
No complaints about KLM performed effectively and Amsterdam airport was a pleasant surprise. Spacious and airy with a lot of nooks and crannies where one might plonk down and relax, much better than Heathrow or Frankfurt which are both pretty dreadful.
On the plane to Gdansk noticed a lot more men getting on, a possible 3 to 1 ratio, 3 men for every woman but I'm no mathematician so this might be more of an impression than an actual bona fide statistic. I suspect that men are one of Poland's frequent export. They go where the jobs are in Europe. Although Poland is part of the European union they have chosen to stay with their currency, the zlote, which is about three times less in value than the euro. Coming back with pockets full of euros is therefore an attractive proposition. We are staying with relatives therefore haven't been able to fully test out of the costs in terms of buying power. This will become more apparent once we start to travel on our own. We're leaving Gdansk for Warsaw on Monday, courtesy of PoliskBus big red double decker affairs, cost for two 56 zwote which is about $20.00, pretty cheap so far. I rented a do it yourself apartment in the heart of old Warsaw. There is no host to greet you. They send you instructions via email on how to get there and into the apartment. It's a cozy little arrangement hopefully it will work out just fine and we won't be stranded in the street. Apparently there are a lot of these triple A rated apartments around in Europe. Poland seems to have quite a few of these.
We're not actually in Gdansk proper. We are in Gdynia with the Baltic town of Sopot further south. This is where Poles come to play and relax. We took a little drive through the forest to get to Sopot but didn't actually visit the town itself. We went instead to the heart of old Gdansk with its magnificent beautifully preserved buildings some of which were destroyed during the war but have been rebuilt or restored to their former splendor. A lot of the buildings are intricately decorated some with nautical scenes, historical figures or Roman mythological creatures. A number of buildings have these mythological statues standing guard at the top. There were a lot of tourists ambling about,not that unusual even for the month of September. Along with the usual trinkets found all over the world (fridge magnets, postcards, little costume dolls etc... possibly all Made in China) the main currency here is definitely amber. Amber shops are everywhere with amber on display in all shapes and sizes. I have a few amber necklaces from Poland at home although I'm not a huge fan. I know I shouldn't say this but I don't like its "plastic" appearance. Of course there are big differences in the quality of the amber, mine is probably on the cheap end of the scale.
Since we are staying with relatives it's a little different experience. My Polish is insufficient for my needs which can be very frustrating. It's hard listening to a conversation you don't actually understand but appearing to nod in all the "right" places as though you might have understood at least a little. Sometimes they forget I don't speak Polish and talk to me as though "I get it", it's fine, we just pretend I do. It's been a while since I've traveled in a county where I didn't speak the language. We mostly traveled to Latin America, Mexico and France so NO PROBLEM. This is motivating makes me want to learn more so I don't feel so foolish. We're so dependent on our words, I can't share little anecdotes, have to resort to other means to make my personality come through, don't shine as bright, I'm a little duller penny. Stan has to do most of the heavy lifting, it can be a bit trying for him as well.
I'm being called to eat. They're constantly prying us with food. Poles love to eat,anytime, anywhere, anything ok well maybe not anything but they certainly don't restrict themselves to habitual eating times like the French. They manage to stay quite thin, women love to wear makeup. More on the geography, culture next time. For now do widzenia.
No complaints about KLM performed effectively and Amsterdam airport was a pleasant surprise. Spacious and airy with a lot of nooks and crannies where one might plonk down and relax, much better than Heathrow or Frankfurt which are both pretty dreadful.
On the plane to Gdansk noticed a lot more men getting on, a possible 3 to 1 ratio, 3 men for every woman but I'm no mathematician so this might be more of an impression than an actual bona fide statistic. I suspect that men are one of Poland's frequent export. They go where the jobs are in Europe. Although Poland is part of the European union they have chosen to stay with their currency, the zlote, which is about three times less in value than the euro. Coming back with pockets full of euros is therefore an attractive proposition. We are staying with relatives therefore haven't been able to fully test out of the costs in terms of buying power. This will become more apparent once we start to travel on our own. We're leaving Gdansk for Warsaw on Monday, courtesy of PoliskBus big red double decker affairs, cost for two 56 zwote which is about $20.00, pretty cheap so far. I rented a do it yourself apartment in the heart of old Warsaw. There is no host to greet you. They send you instructions via email on how to get there and into the apartment. It's a cozy little arrangement hopefully it will work out just fine and we won't be stranded in the street. Apparently there are a lot of these triple A rated apartments around in Europe. Poland seems to have quite a few of these.
We're not actually in Gdansk proper. We are in Gdynia with the Baltic town of Sopot further south. This is where Poles come to play and relax. We took a little drive through the forest to get to Sopot but didn't actually visit the town itself. We went instead to the heart of old Gdansk with its magnificent beautifully preserved buildings some of which were destroyed during the war but have been rebuilt or restored to their former splendor. A lot of the buildings are intricately decorated some with nautical scenes, historical figures or Roman mythological creatures. A number of buildings have these mythological statues standing guard at the top. There were a lot of tourists ambling about,not that unusual even for the month of September. Along with the usual trinkets found all over the world (fridge magnets, postcards, little costume dolls etc... possibly all Made in China) the main currency here is definitely amber. Amber shops are everywhere with amber on display in all shapes and sizes. I have a few amber necklaces from Poland at home although I'm not a huge fan. I know I shouldn't say this but I don't like its "plastic" appearance. Of course there are big differences in the quality of the amber, mine is probably on the cheap end of the scale.
Since we are staying with relatives it's a little different experience. My Polish is insufficient for my needs which can be very frustrating. It's hard listening to a conversation you don't actually understand but appearing to nod in all the "right" places as though you might have understood at least a little. Sometimes they forget I don't speak Polish and talk to me as though "I get it", it's fine, we just pretend I do. It's been a while since I've traveled in a county where I didn't speak the language. We mostly traveled to Latin America, Mexico and France so NO PROBLEM. This is motivating makes me want to learn more so I don't feel so foolish. We're so dependent on our words, I can't share little anecdotes, have to resort to other means to make my personality come through, don't shine as bright, I'm a little duller penny. Stan has to do most of the heavy lifting, it can be a bit trying for him as well.
I'm being called to eat. They're constantly prying us with food. Poles love to eat,anytime, anywhere, anything ok well maybe not anything but they certainly don't restrict themselves to habitual eating times like the French. They manage to stay quite thin, women love to wear makeup. More on the geography, culture next time. For now do widzenia.
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