Warsaw, Poland

Warsaw was an interesting place…  It was almost completely destroyed in WWII.  Most of the buildings in Old Town have been restored, but are missing that historical romantic feel to them since they are newer.  We stayed a wonderful bed and breakfast called Boutique B&B just a 20 minute walk from Old Town.  The staff there were very nice and informative, the room had a lot of character, and the breakfast was delicious. 

We only spent one full day in Warsaw, but we did see a lot of the city.  After breakfast, we wandered through Old Town.  We climbed up a church tower to get a good view of the town square.  We heard an accordion being played and trying to find the little old man playing it from the top of the tower was like a real life ‘Where’s Waldo’. 

All over Warsaw there are monuments, memorials, and plaques dedicated to those to lost their lives during WWII.  You’d see them on street corners, in the middle of parks, or on the sides of buildings.  We saw the last standing buildings that used to make the Jewish Warsaw ghetto.  They are now nothing but empty brick buildings but there are large black & white photos of some of the Ghetto residents hung on the building faces.  It was an eerie street.  We visited the Pawiak Prison museum.  The prison was established sometime during the 1800’s, but was a Gestapo prison during the Nazi occupation.  We also visited the Warsaw Rising Museum that commemorates Warsaw’s insurrection against the Nazis in 1944.  The Polish have done an amazing job of preserving the stories and artifacts in both museums. 

We ate pierogis and kielbasa sausage until we had to roll ourselves back to our B&B to get some sleep.  Next, we’re heading 300 km south to Krakow, Poland where we plan to spend four nights. 

Cheers!

View of Old Town from the church tower

'Waldo' the accordion player

Mermaid statue in old town square

Outside the rebuilt Old City walls

Jewish Ghetto Memorial