Vodka together, or not at all. Warszawa

The BJ Tour continues as Brian and Jeff join us on a visit to Warsaw. As none of us had been to Poland before, we began our visit with a walking tour of Old Town from the orange umbrella company and our sassy guide, Michal. We learned of history, architecture, and the proper way to drink vodka. Yes, Michal brought us to a pub for a snack of Smalec (pork lard spread on bread with a pickle- delicious!) and instructed us on the proper way to drink vodka, and also the only ways to refuse vodka. Because drinking vodka together is a social tradition, you cannot simply refuse without risking offending your host.  Jeff suggested claiming to be pregnant, but since that only works for some of us, Michal also suggested claiming allergies to potatoes, barley, grain, and corn. And you must claim allergies to all, or your host will simply bring a different kind of vodka. Our favorite was Zabrowka, although I don’t know how anyone gets used to drinking that much vodka. My stomach is still burning.  He also explained the importance of giving a toast before the shot, and how it’s key to go on for far too long, until the arms of all guests are quivering. Jeff, Brian, Chris and I insisted on bringing this tradition to every meal.

My favorite part of the walking tour came at exactly 11:15. According to Michal, every day at 11:15 a trumpeter appears in the window of the Royal Castle to play a national tune in honor of the exact time the clock stopped when the palace was bombed, the beginning of the complete destruction of Old Town in WWII. However, 11:15 is also the exact time the clock was restarted when the building was rebuilt, so the powerful moment carried both a happy and sad story.

We also took a bike tour visiting key sites of Communist occupied Warsaw. This was particularly interesting to me because I had very little knowledge of this time in Poland’s history. Our guide took us to many controversial areas, including a monument to the Soviet soldiers that died in Warsaw during WWII. Our guide explained that since Warsaw was under Communist control, honoring these soldiers was the same as erecting a statue for the Germans. To­ make matters more complicated, we were there on the 75^th anniversary of the Soviet army invading the city so there were cops on site to prevent vandalism or a demonstration. He also led us through very busy, heavily trafficked parts of town, which for some of us who were recently in a horrific bike accident, was pretty stressful. But he also led us through several beautiful parks and gardens, which far made up for the extremely perilous cobblestones of death.

Brian and Jeff enthusiastically joined our quest to try as many new beers as possible. We probably bought 40 different .5L bottles to try during our late night activity planning sessions. My favorites were Sloty Kat, Teskie, and of course anything that tasted strongly of strawberries (great choice, Brian). We tried new beers and vodkas in cafes as well, often per the suggestion of our server. It was fun to eat in Old Town square, even though Michal told us that’s where tourists go, not locals. But Old Town at night looked like an old time postcard and the people watching was exceptional so we went a few times. We also wanted to get a more local feel, so we visited a small café in Praga, a neighborhood a bit dodgier than the other parts of Warsaw we visited, however felt much more like a place we would live in than the touristy Old Town. Claudia, an extremely pleasant, enthusiastic server with enough English to help us translate the menu, took us back through a hidden-door bookshelf into a beautiful secret back garden where we enjoyed soft pizzas, beer and of course, vodka.

We discovered a very exciting activity while in Warsaw called “Room Escape”. Similar to video games the boys claim to have often played (get a job, am I right?), Room Escape gives you 60 minutes to, you guessed it, escape a room. We chose the Indiana Jones style excavation theme, where we had to work together to solve puzzles, find keys and use more math than our beer focused vacation minds were used to. We escaped the tomb with three minutes to spare! Great job, team. While this activity had nothing to do with history, culture, or even Warsaw, (we found a similar company in Minnetonka), it was still one of our favorite adventures.

As I said, none of us had visited Warsaw before, and I for one left far more educated about Warsaw, the war, and most importantly, the Warsaw Uprising. I would highly recommend a visit to the Warsaw Uprising Museum. The people of Warsaw showed such bravery and resilience when being attacked from all sides with little assistance from the Allies. We learned that 85% of Warsaw was completely destroyed by 1945, although less than 70 years later and you would never know it. Some buildings were recreated to look exactly as they did before the war – many funded by the Polish people themselves when the government moved too slowly - while other buildings, like the new Warsaw Spire, are adding a modern spice to the classic city.

We were unable to see more of Poland on this trip, so we’re of course planning a return to visit Poznan, Krakow, and more of Warsaw. Until then, we will have to see if they sell Zabrowka in Minneapolis.

Na zdrowie! lovefromkatie