early autumn in the Łazienki Royal Park

It's still only the begining of October, so the "Polish golden autumn" has hardly begun. The glory of colourful leaves will be at its peak later this month.

Whatever the season though, the Łazienki Royal Park is always a place to admire.
I went down along Agrykola Street. This is the first place in Warsaw where gas lanterns were installed.

I was greeted by Jan III Sobieski, a Polish king and a renowned army commander. (I love how his glory is highlighted by the tree in the background ^_^)

The Palace on the Island. Where will you find a palace such craftily designed to reflect in the mirror of water?

On the front terrace of the Palace a lot of activities is taking place. Either a nymph is wooing a god by the name of Hermaphroditus (alas, she was rejected)...

 ...or a Satyr is dancing with a Bachante...

Two sculptures in the terrace corners represent two great Polish rivers: Bug and Wisła.

 King Stanisław, who had the park arranged, was keen to have open-air theatre plays - not only for himself and his court, but also for Warsaw citizens. Plays took place here...

 ...where the audience is surrounded by play-wrights and poets of all epochs.

 After climbing the escarpment I arrived at the modernist part of the garden where the best-known monument of Chopin can be found.

Previous sneak-peeks of Warsaw autumn: in Łazienki and around the city centre.

Old Town churches...

...graciously posing all together in one photo:

• Święty Marcin (St. Martin's), in Piwna St. The narrow street makes you look up at the flowing baroque facade and admire it at a sharp angle - which is exactly how it should be done.
• Jezuitów (Jesuits') in Świętojańska St., with the unexpected modern entrance door designed by Mitoraj.
• The Cathedral just beside - the red brick suggests a long history - and even though the bricks are much less than a century old - the temple indeed holds centuries of Warsaw and Polish memories.

Oh yes, you can't know all this just from a glimpse of the roofs~! Go and see for yourself!

Marx, Engels, Lenin...

...the list of fathers of the rightly begone political system... shouldn't there be somebody more?

Who's another important person whose presence in the history of central-eastern Europe cannot be overlooked?
Yep, there is still enough space on the book cover for one more name: Stalin.

The name was erased already well over 60 years ago at the period called "the Taw", which commenced after the death of the dictator.  It was a time when the communist top decided to give up the "worship of an indivdual", which had been all the rage over the 40s and early 50s, while "the sun of nations" was still alive. And so his name dissapeared from the list of forefathers.
(some sources claim that it happened in the 80s, during the surge of the opposition movement.)

The statue adorns the most emblematic symbol of the communism in Warsaw - the Palace of Science and Culture. When you walk around the Palace, you will find other statues representing arts, technologies, continents... all enlightned by the only right idealogy.
The Palace itself was constructed as a gift from the Soviet Russia - upon its completion in 1955, it was honoured with Stalin as its patron - his name is still there in the offical title, though unspoken...


About 10 years ago a member of the city council suggested that the names on the statue's book should be erased - at least the current last name. The founders of the socialist theory could be left as are, but Lenin, who was forcefully implementing the ideology both inhouse and abroad, must dissappear. Lenin's name in a public place, went on the council member,  is a disgrace, as well as an instance of promoting communism - which is actually a crime, just like promoting nazizm...

The suggestion arose controversies: should this be done?
Yes - because the city and the land which suffered so much from Lenin's politics should not bear his name in a public place. We have already removed names of communist politics from our streets and squares, this one still remians here.
No - the palace is already a monument and there should not be any ingeration into its form. As a monument it is  a witness of the begone era - its ornaments tell us about our history.

Apparently the latter approach prevailed, if the statue with its book is still here.

However the idea of pulling down the palace altogether still keeps returning! As said, the building is often perceived as the most consipucous remnant of the Russian past domination. Will its status of a monument save it?
Personally I hope so.

New Year in Warsaw

Hello 2019!
The new year started rainy and sombre, but the Christmas illuminations which adorn the Royal Route and other popular places light up the night!

"Stolica wolności 1918-2018" - "the capital  of independence" reminds us that the last year was an anniversary of the Polish rebirth as a state.

On the Old Square an ice rink surrounds the mermaid. After a skating ride you can stop at one of the Christmas market stalls and recharge your batteries with

• a piece of "grilowana kiełbasa" - grilled sausage, 
• "chleb ze smalcem" - a slice of bread with lard,  
• "oscypek" - salty cheese from the Polish mountains,
• "grzane wino" - mulled wine...

Anyway... no matter the festive illuminations, many buildings present their better self at night...

Here - Zachęta, the National Gallery of Art.

Warsaw West Station

Warszawa Zachodnia - one of the main gates into and out of the city (although located quite near its very heart).
The station as we know it dates back to the 1920s and 30s., but when you look around you can still find some remnants of the first railway line from the latter part of the 19th century: red brick, siloses etc...

Equally rare are remnants from more recent time. Here you are, a modernist signalling control from the 1930s. Can you see its oblong shapes, likening the building to a ship? Now it is (mis)used as a storage:

Let's bounce to the 1960s to see another example of a signalling control building. If the sea and ships were all the rage in the 30s, now it is the space that inspires architects to create spacecraft-like towers like this one:

When I was taking the pictures two years ago the station was being renovated. A new entrance, a waiting hall and underground tunnels were built or rearranged. Around the station new office buildings were built.

Now after over two years there are still some places for improvement, for example the neighbouring bus station or some of the underground tunnels... Yet its current image is lightyears away from what it looked like not so long ago. It is now closer to the centre in the sense of its function and atmosphere.

...but even though you can see the modern centre not so far away, you know you're in a differet era here.

...or to be more precise: different epochs blend right in front of your eyes.

Christmas theme metro train

Have you been lucky to get on the special Christmas train in the Warsaw underground?

The themed train was launched on Dec 6th (St Nicholas day - that is Santa Claus's!) and it will continue until January 6th.
Actually there are two - one at each f two Metro lines.
Both trains can be spotted between 7 am and 8 pm. Apparently it's easier to get on one on M2 line - because the second line is shorter, so statistically... ;-

Personally - I am a happy person who does not travel by metro too often,at least not during the rush hours!
Photo credits - Ola D.

Museum of Polish Vodka

You hear Poland, you think... vodka?? during my encounters with foreigners vodka was often one of the first things that came to their mind. I wasn't always sure how to interpret it, whether the association could be positive...

From now on, though, it will surely be! Somebody has finally decided to present the alcohol as a part of culture, as something varied, with its own history and as a part of our traditions. Welcome to the Museum of Polish Vodka!

It opened its gates in June 2018. It's located in an old rectification pavilion in the former factory vodka - to be found in the district of Praga, on the right-hand side of the Vistula river.

The museum is a walk through the history of vodka, in particular the history of the beverage on the Polish soil; through development of the indcustry; customs around vodka-drinking and how it's present in our traditions.
You will find out about its origins...

 ...you will learn about the iron rules of the production needed to obtain the real thing...
...you will verify your knowledge regarding alcohol consumption and its effect on your body...

...you'll see for yourself the machines and containers used in the production process...

 ... you'll see a collection of vodka bottles...

 ...finally you will taste three types of vodka - degustation is included in the ticket.

At the same time you walk around a historic building, where all the production details you are learning about did take place. Most of the rooms have beeen adapted to needs of the museum, but there are some moments when you find yourself in a truly historical environment.
This post-industral ambiance can be felt more in the neihbouring Zoni cafe / resto.

The place is surely going to be an attraction which will attract tourists to this part of the city. The museum occupies only a part of the old factory; other parts will  be used as offices, shops, apartments... The complex is still under construction, but partially it's already in use.

A number of cultural events have already taken place here this year. I suppose this is the idea behind it, to make it a lively place which will be attracting both visiters and Warsaw inhabitants.