Cześć (Goodbye in Polish)

Today we decided to have a very relaxing, typical, Polish Sunday.   But first off we had one last siteseeing box to check off, the Palace of Culture and Science.   This Art Deco monolith is the tallest building between Frankfurt and Moscow.  It's like Vancouver's Marine Building on steroids designed by a Communist.   It was a gift from Stalin to the Polish people. How could they refuse?

We headed off in search of Łazienki Park.  This enormous park was established by Poland's very last king, Stanisław August Poniatowski, as a location for his summer palace.  Following the sounds of piano we settled in on the lawn in the shadow of an enormous statue of Chopin and enjoyed a most amazing Chopin piano concert.

Following a trail down to the river we found the king's summer palace.  He built this on an island accessible by ornate bridges. 

After a brief rest we returned to our favourite Warsaw restaurant, Specjały Regionalne.  Last time we had Margita as our waitress and she was charming with flawless English.  Tonight our waiter was Bartek whose English was equally good.  He took the time to explain the significance of the Polish dishes and drinks and made recommendations.  Judy tried the mead and it was delicious.

It seems rather fitting that our adventure started on a musical note with Mozart in Salzburg and ends with Chopin In Warsaw.  An interesting note is that we stayed in the Chopin B&B and every night at 7:45 they have a Chopin recital in the salon.  

As we leave tomorrow on our way home this is the end for now.  We hope you enjoyed the blog and will join us again next year in Germany.  

One Polish Palm Tree

A drizzly grey day is just the thing to set the post Soviet noir vibe.  I know I've referred to WWII a lot but you cannot travel around Europe (this part in particular) without constantly bumping into a reminder.  In 1944, with the Russians just across the river the Polish Home Army in Warsaw arose.   The Soviets, never ones to let an opportunity go by, stopped and let the Nazis and Poles slug it out.  For two months the outnumbered and under equipped  Poles fought the Nazis.  In the end they were wiped out.  As a symbol of what happens when you oppose him Hitler ordered everyone in Warsaw killed and the city razed.  

In 1945, with 2 out of every 3 Varsovians dead and the entire city in ruins the Poles had to decide whether to start over somewhere else or rebuild their capital.   They decided to rebuild.  With the Soviets in firm control this process dragged on.  Even today it continues.

Starting at the palm tree we headed down Nowy Świat, one of Warsaw's main thoroughfares, the other being Jerusalem Avenue (hence the Palm tree).  This is a modern pedestrian, shopping thoroughfare and could be anywhere.  In front of the Copernicus Science Centre is a statue of Copernicus complete with the Solar System as he knew it.

Another interesting feature we discovered was a Chopin bench.  These benches are placed around the city at points that were significant to Chopin.  The cool bit is that when you press a button on the bench it plays a Chopin number. 

The next stop was the Church of the Holy Cross.  This church is significant because in one of its pillars is embedded Chopin's heart.  We saw the rest of him a few years ago at Pére Lachaise, Paris.

A little side trip down to what once was the Royal Square but now is just a giant concrete field.  At the far side is the tomb of the Unknown Soldier.   We were just in time to see the changing of the guards.

Continuing down the street to the Palace Square in the Old Town we decided to take a palace tour.  On the outside the palace doesn't look like much, just a big pink building.  But on the inside - wow!   

All the grandeur of Schönbrunn and Versailles without the choking crowds.  By skillfully dodging a couple of tour groups we actually had most of these rooms to ourselves.  

Fading rapidly we headed in a homeward direction, stopping in at Blikle Bakery, Warsaw's favourite coffee shop and bakery to try a paczki.  These are a Warsaw specialty and are rose-flavoured jelly donuts.  In Kraków their local specialty is obwarzanek, a ring-shaped bagel-like roll.  These things were everywhere and were cheap, fresh and good.   Because we could never remember their real names I called them "breadchewskies", in mock Polish.

G'bye Gdansk

Before we leave Gdansk I have a thought from yesterday.   When you are on a faux pirate ship there is nothing quite as stirring as a rendition of "What Shall We Do with the Drunken Sailor?" In Polish.

Another travel day.  We say farewell to the picturesque and captivating city of Gdansk.  

We board a high speed Polish train to the capital of Warsaw.   We arrive later in the afternoon and work our way to the boutique B&B Chopin.  We have really lucked out with our accommodation on this trip and this place in another all star.

We haven't had a lot of time to wander Warsaw's streets yet but so far it's just a big, busy city.   Hopefully, like the last two times, our first impressions will be quashed tomorrow.

Har Matey

After breakfast we hiked up to the train station to buy our tickets for our trip to Warsaw tomorrow.   This time it was easy peasy.  Worked our way back to the riverfront, having decided to take a cruise on a pirate ship.  

Passing down a tributary of the Vistula River, we passed the sprawling shipbuilding complex.   Apparently they are building two ferries for B.C. but there must be one hundred ships that are being built or repaired in this amazing complex.   We got off for an hour at Westerplatte.  This is the place where the first shots and first casualty of WWII took place.   A brave band of some 200 Poles held off the might of the German armed forces for a week, before surrendering honourably.  Walked across the peninsula for our first view of the Baltic Sea.   Returning on a different pirate ship we cruised around and finally arrived back at the main town.   After a light lunch we strolled back to our room and put our feet up. 

After dinner we wandered along the river front, both sides, looking at the yachts and shops.  An interesting feature is the 15th century crane used for loading ships in those days.

The power for these cranes was applied by men in enormous squirrel cages which turned gears.  They could apparently lift 2 tons 90 feet or 4 tons 30 feet.  Quite a feat of engineering in those days.

Solidarity

For the second time in Poland I've learned that arriving at a late hour does not allow you to form a clear impression of the city.   Our quick walk along the riverfront last night left us less than awed by Gdansk.  

That impression changed immediately this morning.  Gdansk is apparently the least Polish of all Polish cities.  In its 1,000 year history it has been an independent city state for 700 years.   It has been a major trading and shipping centre and joined the Hanseatic League of traders, which included such cities as Hamburg, Torun, Tallinn and Brugges, which it reminds me of.   This resemblance is no accident as many Flemish and Dutch traders moved here.  Because of its trade it has mostly been a wealthy and prosperous city.  This is reflected in the beautiful houses along its Royal Way. 

There are just so many beautiful old houses it would be impossible to show them all. 

So far Gdansk hasn't appeared very high in the tourist radar but you can't help feel that this is going to change very soon.   Getting started early we managed to avoid any crowd and enjoyed strolling the streets and gawking and pointing at all the amazing sights.  The Royal Way is incredibly picturesque.   

If you were wondering when we would start talking about churches, that would be now.  St. Mary's Church is the largest brick church in the world - over 400 feet long and 200 feet wide.   

It was apparently covered from floor to ceiling in frescoes, but in the 16th century the Lutherans whitewashed the whole thing.  They have started to restore a few samples of the frescoes.  A couple of the interesting features are an amazing astrological clock and a modern chapel dedicated to the victims of the 2010 plane crash which wiped out most of Poland's government.   

Along our walk we hit two more churches.   The first was St Catherine's Church (Katy) and behind it St Bridget's which is the home church of Lech Wałęsa.

The amazing thing about Gdansk is that it survived the Nazi invasion in 1939 intact but when the Russians "liberated" it in 1945 they felt it was the first German city they had conquered so they obliterated it in revenge.  The one exception was St. Nicholas Church only because St. Nicholas is the patron saint of Russia.

Speaking of Lech Wałęnsa we headed to the sight of some of the most important events in modern history.  Gadansk shipyard .... Gate #2.  This is the shipyard where Lech Wałęnsa led the ship workers on a strike which opened a crack in the Iron Curtain which eventually brought down Communism in Eastern Europe.  The spark that started the uprising happened a decade before when 44 (apparently quite a few more) were killed by police opening fire on a peaceful demonstration.  This spot is marked by a moving memorial, designed and built entirely by the shipyard workers. 

The shipyard no longer exists. In its place is the large European Solidarity Centre. 

On our way home we met a young girl walking her two dogs.  One of them a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever.  Who knew?

On the Road Again

Today we left the captivating city of Kraków.   Taking the Polish high speed train we followed the Vistula north across the Polish plain to the Baltic Sea and Gdansk.   Tomorrow we begin to explore.

Holy Kraków

We woke up this morning with a bit of an emotional hangover after our exposure to an unimaginable glimpse of pure evil.  Today we took it a lot easier.  Part of of our mind was made up by Wawel Castle being closed.  

We taxied out to Schindler's Factory which has been converted to one of the best Musuems anywhere.  Lots of English, lots of hands-on and as real a look as you could get of Kraków leading up to and during the Nazi occupation.   Insightful and tastefully done.

Heading back into town we stopped at the Ghetto Heroes' Square, a bleak but moving memorial to the 68,000 people who were deported from the (Kazimierz) Jewish district, consisting of 68 empty chairs.

If you don't have plans to ever visit Kraków you might have a different thought.   This is an energetic, friendly, entertaining city that quickly gets under your skin.   Judy has fallen in love with the elaborately decorated horse-drawn landaus.

Kraków in the Middle Ages was known as "Small Rome" for its many churches.  Today, there are 142 churches and monasteries within the city limits and 32 in the Old Town alone.  It is not unusual to see cassock priests on the streets and nuns are plentiful.  Our visit to Kraków has made us realize what a small and weird world we live in.   You can sit in one of the oldest town squares in Europe and watch them film a Bollywood music video.  You can dine in a cowboy and Indian themed outdoor restaurant while being serenaded by a tight jazz band with a wailing female vocalist singing "Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho" in Polish.

Today

Today we went on a tour of Hell.

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."  George Santayana

Polskie Ogorki

Arriving in Kraków in the drizzly dark at a sketchy bus station Kraków exudes all the charm of a box of used sweat sox.   Our mood was brightened considerably by a friendly and helpful cab driver. 

Awaking to a nice healthy breakfast and a bit of rain we started exploring.  It didn't take long to totally change our first impression.  We cut through a seminary to the Old Town Square and were blown away.  Kraków started drawing us in almost immediately.  We started off our tour at an amazing statue commemorating the Battle of Grunwald in 1410 where the Poles defeated the Teutonic Knights (read Germans), a big point of Polish pride.  In 1939 it was the first thing the Invading Germans tore down.   In 1945 it was the first thing the Poles re-erected.

Walking past the Barbican, a fort defending the main gate we entered the Old Town.  We stopped at Jama Michalika (a coffee shop) opened in 1895 and has not been significantly updated since.  The walls are decorated by art students back in those days who couldn't afford to pay their bill.  A real experience.  Further down the street we stopped at Staropolskie Trunki (Old Polish Drinks) to sample a mess of different vodkas.  A little early but still yummy.  

On to the main town square where the Saturday market was in full swing, as well as a movie (it might be movie video) was being filmed.  Into St. Mary's Church.   We are running out of awe-inspiring descriptive adjectives so we'll just let you see the photos.  On the hour a trumpeter (a fireman) plays the hejnal, which at the first Tatar invasion was a warning.  Unfortunately, at least for the trumpeter back then, half way into his warning he took an arrow in the throat.   So even today, symbolically, the trumpeter stops abruptly mid song.   

Continuing to wander we stopped at St. Francis Basiclica, the home church of St. John Paul II.   As he was a Kraków native son he has become, aside from being a saint, the most beloved and famous Pole.   This is reflected in numerous memorials to him around Kraków.  

We needed to get train tickets for our next leg so one hour later, having endured the slowest bureaucratic process known to man, we headed back to our B&B.  

It was laundry time again, so we headed to Frania Café, the most civilized idea we've seen yet.  A laundromat in another subterranean cellar where you can chill and have a beer or coffee whilst doing your laundry.   Back to a main Town Square for a dinner in an outdoor café. 

Lost in Translation

The last two days we have had some wifi challenges but we are good to go again.  Leaving the quaint and peaceful village of Telč we hopped on a bus and travelled through the beautiful, green, pastoral countryside.  We used a "Student Agency" bus line (student is just a name) and could these guys teach Greyhound a thing or two.  Modern, clean buses with airline style seats complete with personal entertainment system.  They even had a "stewardess" who passed out complimentary coffee, tea or hot chocolate as well as newspapers (which is fine if you read Czech).  

Leaving the countryside behind we headed into the industrial heartland of the Cech Republic.  Brno is a bustling, somewhat worn working man's city.  We browsed the streets for awhile then settled into a dinner at the Wood Eagle Steak House, another subterranean vaulted cellar.   As we were heading out at the crack of dawn we packed it in early.  

The Next Day.

We knew from the very start that this leg of our journey was going to be the most logistically complex bit.  We boarded the bus in Brno at 7:15 and headed to Ostrava where we had a connection to take us to Kraków.  We had planned for an hour layover in Ostrava, but as everything was going way too smoothly, fate intervened.  Two traffic accidents delayed our bus so that we arrived late and through language difficulties and general confusion we ended up having to take the tram all the way across town to the train station.   Arriving at the ticket office we were told the only available seats were on the 5 o'clock bus, and it was now 11:30.   Having no other option we settled in for the 5 1/2 hour wait.   If anyone ever asks what there is to do in Ostrava the quick answer is, "not too damn much".   The time passed and we boarded the bus.  We finally arrived in Kraków at 9 p.m.   No pictures today.  Plenty tomorrow.

Holiday

Today we left the totally captivating city of Prague.  It's easy to see why it is one of the most visited cities in the world.  It's nickname is the City of 100 Golden Spires.   We would call it the city with one million interesting buildings.

We worked hard seeing what we had to see in Prague, so we are taking a vacation within our vacation.  Out into the lovely Czech countryside to the bucolic and charming baroque town of Telč.   Very peaceful and quiet and nary a tour group in sight.

If You Ain't Got Culture ......

My plan was to arise before dawn and head out on the scarcely populated Charles Bridge for some photos of the bridge in the mist at sunrise.  Unfortunately it seems that the Czech weathermen are no more proficient than their Canadian counterparts.  It was pouring.  Oh well, a little sleep-in never hurt anyone.  

As it was raining we decided to do as many indoor activities as possible.  First stop Church of St. Nicholas, conveniently located just around the corner.   This church is the best example of High Baroque in the city.

As we arrived just at opening we had this most beautiful church to ourselves.  This is quite probably the most ornate church we have been in, and we have been in some bling-encrusted beauties.   

The only outstanding sight on our list was Alfons Mucha's "Slav Epic".  This being located some distance from the Old Town we decided to try the Prague tram system.  It was easy to figure out and very efficient but the real shocker was the price.  The cost for a 30 minute tram ride was an astonishing  12 cents Canadian.  Translink, you got some explaining to do.  Mucha is famous for his turn of the century posters of beautiful women (i.e. Sarah Bernhart).  You would recognize them if you saw them.  The Slav Epic was his magnum opus.  It is gigantic in theme and physical size.  20 enormous canvases depicting the history of the Slav people.

The detail and quality of these monstrous paintings is astonishing.  We were convinced by a museum worker that we had to see at least 3 of the 5 remaining floors of the vast modern art exhibit.  We complied.  I did find some modern art I liked.

It was after 1:00 o'clock when we exited the museum in bright sunlight.   We boarded the tram back into Old Town and decided to try the Art Deco Grand Cafe Orient for a very light lunch.  We found a nice table on the outside balcony and watched the world go by.  What a civilized way to live.

One last thing to see was the so-called "Fred and Ginger" building.

This interesting structure was designed by the famous American architect Frand Gehry.  The locals prefer to think of it as depicting the nation's 2 greatest 20th century heroes, Joseph Gabčík and Jan Kubiš.  These were the two British trained Czech commandos who assassinated Rudolph Heydrich in May of 1942.   We found out there was a memorial to them a few blocks up the street.  Walking up we found it in the basement of a non-descript church.   This small gem of a museum illustrated the background, preparation, execution and the aftermath of this event.   We were amazed to find that this was the actual church where these heroes died in a fire fight with the Gestapo and SS.  Very moving.

We ambled home along the riverbank. 

King of the Castle

A few comments about the Jewish Quarter from yesterday.  The Jewish Museum holds many displays and many artifacts which illustrate Jewish culture in Europe for the past few thousand years.  That these artifacts are assembled here is because the Nazis "acquired" them for their proposed Musuem of the Extinct Jewish race.  I find it quite incongruous that a Hugo Boss store is located directly across from the Jewish Cemetary.  (He produced the uniforms for the SS, brown shirts and the Hitler youth.). 

Today was Castle day.   Starting off with the Prague grind, a staircase of over 200 stairs leading up to the castle.  Prague Castle is considered the largest in the world. 

  

Passing through the ornate and guarded gates we got our tickets and proceeded to St Vitus, the highlight of Prague Castle.  Stunning!

Construction began in 1344 and with many interruptions by little things like wars, it was not completed until 1929.  This is the Czech state church and contains many aspects of Czech history through the centuries.  It is where Czech Kings were crowned and where the Czech Crown Jewels are kept.   Completing our tour of the church we ambled through the Great Hall and down the Golden Way.  The Golden Way contains many preserved quarters and shops from an alchemist workshop to a torture chamber.  Winding up our tour of Prague Castle we managed to catch a changing of the guard ceremony at the main gate.  

Next stop Strahov Monastery which holds two points of interest to Judy and I - a baroque library and a brewery.  As it was well past noon our first stop was the brewery.  The brothers started brewing in the 1500's but I opted for some newer suds.   The lovely summer red ale was perfect to wash down one of the best schnitzel we have ever had.   

Across the street to the monastery library.  These baroque libraries are filled literally to the ceilings with 10th to the 15th century books and are heartbreakingly beautiful.

In the rain we took a back route (no tourists) down the hill and home.  After a brief rest we snuck around the corner for yummy crepes.  Last stop, the Lennon wall, a seemingly non-descript wall where someone painted a picture of John Lennon as a protest against oppressive Communism.   The police quickly painted over it but the next day it was back.  This cycle continued until the Czechs gained their freedom.  The original "Give Peace a Chance" and "Imagine" have long been covered over by graffiti but the wall still stands for a symbol of hope and freedom for the Czevh people.