Warszawa Centralna

I think it would be cheating if I titled this post 'Warsaw', having spent only a few hours wandering around the area close to the central train station and not even making it as far as the old town square.  Despite that I have spent some time in Warsaw previously and seen a bit of what it's got to offer.  For me, in terms of my love affair with Poland, that is very little.

East meets West

Warsaw is, as capital cities tend to be, a very poor reflection on the rest of the country.  It's as big, rich and western as any capital in Western Europe, conflicting with the quaint, eastern feel to much of the rest of Poland.  Huge modern glass sky scrapers instead of high rise flats and massive junctions to replace the infamous Polish road system.  On Sunday I looked out of the window of my hotel and felt like I'd already left Poland.  How very depressing.

Don't get me wrong though, Warsaw is not a bad place.  There are certainly things to do and see there and I have it on good authority that it's an excellent place to live but I believe it's something very different to the rest of Poland.  Warsaw's Palace of Culture is a huge distinctive landmark smacking of Poland's communist past under Stalin's rule, but it is surrounded by so many western buildings, companies and influences that it's quite clear to see that the eastern feel is very much part of Warsaw's history.

Trójmiasto

After a 10 week stint in work without a break ( :-( ) Easter finally arrived a brought a 6 day respite along with it. I spent a few days visiting Poland's Trójmiasto, otherwise Gdańsk, Gdynia and Sopot.  The three cities could easily be one huge place; they are quite distinct from each other and all have some different to offer but they are so close and well connected by a rail network that constantly runs from place to place, you can see all three in a day no problem.

Gdańsk is the obvious 'jewel in the crown.'  The centre is really beautiful and big and buzzing, but full of tourists and therefore very expensive.  I nearly fell off my seat when a few beers, two ice creams and a soup came to 77zl, this place is not Polish wage friendly.

Gdańsk was also the birthplace of the Solidarity movement, when an electrician made a speech at a shipyard that led to the eventual overthrowing of communism and the Soviets, he was Lech Walesa.  One stop from Gdańsk central on the train you can see the exact place that that happened.

I spent a day in Gdańsk a few years ago and my first impression was that it was some kind of Eastern Disneyland, it could be one of Poland's most beautiful cities.  It was destroyed and reconstructed after the war but for me it hasn't lost any of it's charm.

Gdynia in comparison is perhaps one of the least touristy cities in Poland.  It's a nice place, home to the Polish navy and seemingly a good place to live, but it's difficult to find anything to say about it beyond that.  We took a walk down the marina and had a look at the huge ships, some still used and some old relics, and had a gofry z bitą smietaną - mniam mniam!  We didn't stay long in Gdynia, Sopot is only ten minutes away by train and much more attractive on a sunny day.

Sopot is one of the most popular seaside and spa resorts in Poland.  It's easy to see why; beautiful beach, huge pier (the longest in Europe by the way), clear sea and a lovely town centre.  Unfortunately the lovely town centre is currently undergoing a huge reconstruction, but it's going to be great when it's finished.  Being so popular it's another place that's a bit out of budget for the average Polish wage but it's a great place full of cafes, restaurants and bars and really made for a perfect break.

The sea around Sopot is sheltered by the Hel peninsula only about 30km away by sea so the water in Sopot is warmer than most other places along the Baltic coast.  Not only that but the sea in between the two is only about 150 cm deep so it's popular for watersports and could become a tourist walk in the near future.  Hel is a huge tourist attraction, although how much of that is based on the name I've no idea.  I didn't make it to Hel and back this time but it's an excellent excuse to visit the area another time and see a bit more of what it's got to offer.  With pleasure.

Wielkanoc w Polsce

Wesołych Świąt!  Happy Holidays.  Easter in Poland is a very big deal; both religiously and traditionally it's on the same scale as Christmas.  It's easy to confuse the two in some ways, I've always translated Wesołych Świąt to mean Merry Christmas, but it's a little broader and Świąt refers to holy times rather than just Christmas.  I was on the train on Sunday and somebody asked me why I hadn't gone home for Christmas..  The supermarkets are as much a buzz too as they were around Christmas time, full of chocolate!  And of course eggs, painted eggs are a must.

Every Saturday before Easter families prepare a special basket full of the traditional Easter Sunday breakfast food of white sausage, eggs, chocolate, bread, salt and so on.  The basket is taken to church on Easter Sunday to be blessed by the priest and this marks the official end of lent.  The meal is a huge feast.

I was awoken on Sunday morning by a number of loud canon blasts at around 6am, at first I thought it was thunder.  I walked into town and there was literally not another person around, I've never seen Torun so quiet.  Of course everybody was in church, by midday there were people strolling around town in their absolute Sunday best, and everything was closed (except McDonalds).

Easter Monday is a bit of a strange one though, it's called Dyngus Day or Wet Monday and is a huge excuse for a water fight.  The boys walk around town with buckets of water and soak the girls, the idea is that the girls who are soaked will marry within a year.  Your guess is as good as mine...!

Golub-Dobrzyn

After a very disappointing start to spring (I was still wearing gloves until a few days ago) we've finally had a lovely sunny weekend here in Torun.  Today I went to Golub-Dobrzyn; a small town only an hour away by bus, to visit the 14th century castle and enjoy a walk round in the sunshine.

The castle's quite small, but we had a good wander round and there's a really nice but a bit too expensive restaurant inside.  From the castle there's an excellent view of the town, or towns if you like.  Golub-Dobrzyn used to be two towns divided by the Drweca river.  Golub was owned by the German's until 1920 and Dobrzyn was Russian until 1918, they became one town in 1951 but the divide is still pretty apparent from the top of the hill.  The Golub side looks much prettier and well looked after whereas Dobrzyn was kind of a mess in comparison.  The square was a very normal, pretty Polish town square, and there were lots of people out enjoying the sun.

It's nice to get out of Torun and see somewhere new, and me and Sarah have been well entertained by Damian's jokes today.  After a good walk round it's back home for some kotlet schabowy, another traditional dish I can add to the growing list of things I can cook.  Smacznego!

Zupa piątek

Mushroom soup in a bread bowl + tylko one lesson + vodka = Friday: my favourite day :-)

A Quiet Life

I guess I haven't been up to much lately.  At least I've done nothing I've felt was exciting enough to post about, but I've found a new contentment in my quiet, day to day living.  Spring is well and truly here, the days are getting warmer and longer and I feel like Poland has never been so beautiful.  I've stopped hurrying here and there and developed a stroll.  I guess I've stopped trying, stopped searching, and Polish life has found me instead.

I'm still aware and becoming ever aware of the differences between life here and at home, but the lightening bolts of information that I had when I first arrived have become dawning realisations.  I feel much healthier than I used to and I hope when I get back to England I keep the mentality I seem to have adopted unknowingly here.  I walk every day; if there is anywhere to go it's generally my feet that take me there, and while I still snack often and pig out occasionally, food isn't the same issue here that it is in England.  I've lost 9lbs without trying.  I also drink more, much more! Which of course isn't so healthy but it certainly is Polish; piwo z sokiems and 4 o clock finishes are becoming habitual.

The differences are very subtle.  I don't feel like I'm in a strange place or able to make any strong cultural comparisons, but things seem to go at slightly a slower pace here which is nice.  Shopping on the market, buying fruit and veg from locals who grow their own food on their allotments, teenagers roller-blading along and 80 year olds on bicycles are normal, everyday occurrences.  I hope I'll always see and still appreciate these kinds of things when I come back to Poland in the future, because even though it isn't so different, I can't stop noticing these tiny little day to day things, and they really brighten up my quiet life.