A July Dreamer

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{Travel} Weekend getaway to Warsaw

A few months ago I promised my friend Stan that I would visit him in Warsaw where he’s studying to become a cardio-thoracic surgeon. After talking about it I decided to book the weekend getaway to Warsaw for the first weekend in March. Unlike my other weekend getaways, this one I was more interested in actually seeing my friend and catching up than exploring the city as a tourist. But Stan still managed to show me around and it was magnificent.

 

weekend getaway to warsaw

Arriving in Warsaw my flight was surprising early, my private airport transfer came about 5 minutes after I arrived which was fine since I was early. During the drive to my hotel he gave me a history lesson on Poland and the Polish uprising. During this journey I learnt the Polish uprising evoke Hitler’s rage and he literally wipe Warsaw off the face of the map, he made sure everything of cultural importance was destroyed and set on fire so much that everything in Warsaw was flattened to rubble and had to be rebuilt. It was an interesting and emotional history lesson, it was an eye opener because I knew nothing about Poland apart from my ex is Polish. Though I did not go to Warsaw for sight-seeing I was able to check out the following locations.

The Old Town

Warsaw Old Town
Warsaw Old Town

 

Warsaw Old Town
Warsaw Old Town

 

The Old Town faced the Nazi malice more than any other part of the town, nowadays the Old Town Square is popular with tourists than any other part of the town. At the edge of the old town is the Royal Castle which was reconstructed from rubble, near the centre you will find St John’s Cathedral. There is so much to see in the old town but one museum that is not to be missed is the Warsaw Uprising Museum, this museum commands respect and it is a must see for museum lovers.

Holy Cross Church

Warsaw Holy Cross Church
Warsaw Holy Cross Church

 

Throughout Warsaw’s history, the church has played its role in both calamities and glories of the town. It was first built-in the 15th but was destroyed during the Swedish deluge of 1650 and it was later rebuilt in 1682. The Church then suffered a devastating during the Warsaw uprising where it was destroyed and had to be rebuilt after the war.

Nicolaus Copernicus Monument

Nicolaus Copernicus Monument
Nicolaus Copernicus Monument

 

Nicolaus Copernicus Monument
Nicolaus Copernicus Monument

 

Founder of modern astronomy, back in the day he postulated ideas which nowadays seem obvious but that resulted in many astronomers being burnt at the stake and the Catholic church put he’s book De Revolutionibus on banned books.

Palace of Culture and Science

Palace of Culture and Science
Palace of Culture and Science

 

Palace of Culture and Science
Museum Teckniki

 

Stalin commissioned this building to be built though he never got the chance to see it finished before he died. He had sent architects to America to copy the empire state building and it had to wait to be built as the WWII broke out. In 1952 the work to build this gigantic building started, from the little that I learned from the Polish people this building is most hated because it reminds the people of the soviet rule upon Poland where young men were taken from different states of the soviet union and kept for over 3 years to build the building.

Presidential Palace

Warsaw Presidential Palace
Warsaw Presidential Palace

 

Since 1994 the palace has been used as the official home of the Polish President and is guarded by armed guards.

It was fun seeing my friend and also seeing some amazing parts of Warsaw, I can not wait to go back and explore some more. Poland is much more than I though and I am glad I had this weekend getaway to Warsaw to give me the push that I needed.

Have you ever been to Warsaw or any part of Poland?

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Comments

  2. Yona Williams says

    People are so lucky when they have a friend or relative that lives in a travel destination of interest – it really helps. The buildings in Old Town look like they were painted in a postcard.

    Reply

    • Miranda says

      Yep, it’s very lucky to have friends or family in destination weather cities or towns and yes the old town is way beyond the post card

  3. nicole says

    I love historical destinations. When we travel I do my best to make sure we enjoy all that the destination has to offer. Thank you so much for sharing.

    Reply

  4. Rosey says

    You did get to see some nice things. Hurrah for visiting friends and double hurrah for getting to go out and about on the town with someone who knows where everything fun/nice/interesting is to find. 🙂

    Reply

  10. Elizabeth O. says

    This place has such a rich history. It feels amusing to see it this way and not in black and white like in most WWII documentaries I have watched in the past. I would love to see this for myself one day and just enjoy it’s beautiful structures.

    Reply

  19. Fi Ni neachtain says

    I think it’s great that you get to travel so much. Warsaw looks like it’s steeped in history. My other half is Polish (born and raised in South Africa) so I’m sure we’ll be visited Poland one day as a family.

    Reply

  24. Roxy says

    I was totally prepared to leave a comment about how gorgeous the palace of culture and science was and then I read the part about Polish people hating it so much. It’s really interesting to me that had you never said that and I visited Warsaw I’d have loved ever minute of visiting this hated building.

    Reply

    • Miranda says

      I learnt as I was passing by that it’s the most hated and I am glad I never went into it. As magnificent as it is it’s not something with good memories for the Polish people

  25. Audrey says

    I feel that the clouds and over cast weather really plays well to the quaintness of these photos. Looks like a nice place to visit with lots of history

    Reply

  28. Barely Vegan says

    Beautiful pictures. I have never been to Poland before, but I would love to visit. Thanks for including some history in your post. I learned a lot. Thank you 🙂

    Reply

  29. Elizabeth O says

    You did a fantastic job of melding your photos with a report on the history of Warsaw/Poland. It’s a grand city with a painful past. Yet, the people and their city remain vital … and beautiful. 🙂

    Reply

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