Back in Warsaw
I had been visiting the great city of Warsaw once before almost 3 years ago, but this was while the city was very cold and a bit grey; it was between Christmas and New Year 2006. It was a nice trip but moving around in the city was a really cold experience, because Warsaw is an open city with a lot broad streets and parks, so there is not much cover. When I was there the last time I was certain that I would come back, but didn't know that I would be hosted by friends living there; things can move fast in a couple of years.
I arrived in the airport late afternoon; I had taken the SN Brussels from Brussels, which is only a two hour flight and I landed 5.
Outside my friends waited for me and besides being happy for seeing them I enjoyed that the weather looked really nice. It was about 25 degrees Celsius and glorious sunshine or 35 degrees warmer than last time I was there. It was nice to arrive at a place, where the first thing you see and get is a smile and a hug!
We drove out to my friends apartment, which was between the airport and the city centre and dropped of my things; it could go fast enough to get in to the city, so 15 minutes later we headed straight for the city centre.
We parked close to the Royal Palace and soon found ourselves in the middle of the 65th celebration of the Warsaw uprising. The uprising had of cause been against the Nazi's during WW II. In midtown people were dressed up in uniforms or in clothing from the war and in front of the Royal Palace you could pass by a copy of an old control gate built like they had them 65 years earlier.
Otherwise the city was full of people walking the streets, this was both locals and tourists but everybody was truly enjoying the power of the sun.
We walked through the old town and in to the new town and found a place where we sat down to talk and enjoy the city. We went for beers and I took a Zywiec, which was a very nice draft beer. I guess we were sitting there for almost one hour and it was truly great and relaxing. I kept on thinking about that I less than six hours ago had been sitting in my office in Brussels. Today eveything is possible!
We had walked by several good restaurants which they had recommended and I chose to try a Jewish restaurant.
After the restaurant we walked slowly back to the Royal Castle and enjoyed the sights in the night with all the lights cascaded on the different buildings. There was still a lot of people in the streets and almost all places that had out door service were full.
My friends recommended a place they had been to just th week before and a place that just had opened. We therefore stopped at Skwer, which turned out to be a very nice and trendy bar. When we came there was no tables free so we sat down like many others on the pavement untile a table was free. We stayed there for some time before heading home after a first great evening in Warsaw. An evening that made me look even more forward towards the following day. :)
The Jewish restaurant Pod Samsonem is serving traditional polish and Jewish food and they both have fish and meat dished. I had a mixed fish dish as a starter, which was terrific. It was a mix of different salads and salmon. As a main dish I had a very traditional hunters stew; it was a lot of cabbage and meat mixed together served with bread, you can chose potatoes as well, but after my days in Portugal, I was holding back on them.
The interior was cozy but still reminding me of many of a beer-stube in Munich. The walls were white and the lighting dimmed. The place was not crowded inside this evening, but all the tables outside was taken.
The waitress was sweet and smiling and spoke good English and the menu was available in English too.
It was a nice place which I was happy that I tried and the waitress was very sweet a little bit shy.
The area called the Royal Route where the bar is situated has gone through a severe renovation and is now looking very trendy and actually quite beautiful. There is wonderful lighting on the different houses along the street and it is a place where lots of people stroll in the evenings.
The bar is well equipped, with both different kind of beverage and many bartenders. The bar is mainly an outdoor bar in the summer where loads of tables are situated outside; the chairs are nice so people tend to stay there for a long time.
They have soft lounge music coming out of the speakers, and it is a good place where you can sit and talk before you find the next place in this lively city centre.
