Disney Day!

Sunday we had a Greek dinner while doing laundry [http://www.mezzamg.com/] and later on went to the Griffith Observatory [http://www.griffithobs.org/] in the Hollywood Hills for some nice nighttime views of the Los Angeles area. When the observatory closed at 10, we went to House of Pies [http://house-of-pies.net/home.nxg].

Monday was DISNEY DAY. We did 1-day park hopper tickets so we could enjoy both Disneyland and California Adventure. We walked a bit through Downtown Disney before going to Disneyland first. After a bit of walking (picture near castle and Walt & Mickey statue), our first ride was Pirates of the Caribbean, which seemed different (added effects and more water to me - I ended up splashed more than once). We went on Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and then we went to California Adventure, where we took passes for the show at night (World of Color for the 10:15 show). Here we saw that Ariel's Undersea Adventure was closed because of technical difficulties (sadly, we never had a chance to go on and only saw the ride outside and inside entrances, with a pretty mural where you board the ride) and then went on Toy Story Midway Mania. We then had lunch (salad in bread bowl for me and Mexican for Jenn and Scott - these were tacos with beans and rice and guacamole on the side). After that we met with a Disney Vacation Club person, who gave us an appointment to talk about the program later in the afternoon. While we waited, we went on Soarin' Over California. After our Vacation Club presentation (free cold drinks and Milano cookies, plus we saw some of the Disneyland Resort hotels and new hotel in Hawaii room models while earning two free fastpasses per person), we rode California Screamin', before going back to Disneyland for a bit. We did fastpasses for Space Mountain and then Mr. Toad's Wild Ride before going back to California Adventure. Once back, we went to the TRON party (elecTRONica, where there is a dj and dancers and an outside club with music and cocktails - alcoholic and non) and then waited for World of Color. This show was being built last time I was here and it was AMAZING. We saw some fireworks at Disneyland while we waited, but World of Color was beautiful; the most gorgeous Disney night show I have ever seen. So colorful and clever with great music and use of characters. After the show, it was back to Disneyland for Star Tours, which is now 3D and has a different story (which is why we waited over an hour and the wait was that long whenever we checked). It was worth the wait. By then it was after the park closing time, so we headed back tired and happy. We may have missed out on some rides and shows, but we hit almost every great/favorite ride. It was a fun day and the park was not too, too busy, which helped.

Today might involve heading to Santa Monica for food truck dinner and checking out the pier and beach. Tomorrow is still being planned as going towards San Diego for a fair. Not sure about Thursday or Friday morning before I head to the airport.

Be Our Guest: Polish Food Favorities

Thought I would give some information about some restaurants and foods I liked while in Poland... It's my extended "Best Thing I Ever Ate..." in Poland edition.

FYI: ** Means I like it a lot. :)

1. Chains (Polish or International)

-Dessert: Ice cream, sorbet, chocolate, etc.

• Grycan: this is all over Poland, so should not be too difficult to find in a big city; I prefer sorbet because I like fruit and the displays for all of the ice creams and sorbets are always so pretty here. http://www.grycan.pl/
  
• E. Wedel: there are candies sold all over and then there are the special E. Wedel cafes (pijalnie czekolady - named because they are meant to be places for drinking the chocolate, but foods are also offered at them); thick hot chocolate, chocolate fondues, and other desserts - made right in Warsaw at the Wedel factory in the Praga district.
  http://www.wedel.pl/

-Vegan, vegetarian, salads...

• Salad Story: decent chain of quick-service salads; the menu is decently large and varied; I've had a smoked salmon salad ("Rybaka") there and a few others looked pretty good as well. The prices are inexpensive and this is a fast meal when on the road or at a mall. http://saladstory.pl/
• **Green Way: great VEGETARIAN chain in Poland, yes, a POLISH chain that is meatless. The USA cannot exactly claim its own and Poland beat the US to it. :-P This place has a set menu and daily specials (meals and soups of the day). I have been to several of these in Poland (Toruń, Łódź, ate at two of the three in Warsaw) and know they are cute, fast, tasty, and inexpensive. I LOVE soup and this place had a lot of great soups, many of them being famous Polish soups (sometimes with the same recipe, but with any meat removed if the directions call for it). Some of the best foods I had in Poland were here: zupa grochowka (split pea soup) and krupnik soup. http://greenway.pl/
• **Loving Hut: the only FULLY vegan place in the city, it is part of an international chain of places serving only vegan foods. I strongly recommend the Heavenly Salad; this place is cute, quick, and inexpensive. Plus, it is healthy, animal-product-free, and mostly Asian-inspired dishes. http://lovinghut.waw.pl/

-And there is always Pizza Hut... at least it's much nicer outside the US: http://www.pizzahut.pl/ ;)

2. Non Chains

-Warsaw

• **Malinova: considered the BEST ice cream in Warsaw. The shop is adorable and the place is close to where I lived and my spring semester school. There are rotating flavors and I tend to hear they are either good or amazing, so it seems that anyone wins with whatever is chosen. :) As with Grycan, personally, I go for non-dairy/sorbet and fruity. This place was a favorite among me and my fellow American abroad students.
• **VEGA: not easy to find, but really inexpensive, fast, and tasty. This is another "bar" or quick service lunch spot. I think the soups are pretty good and all of the salads and sides that were made always tasted great (I love me some shredded beets and other "surowki" - sides/salads). http://www.vega-warszawa.pl/index.php
• POLKA: one of the two Magda Gessler restaurants I ended up dining at while in Warsaw. I liked the salad with grilled cheese and tomato sauce. http://www.restauracjapolka.pl/
• **Jumbo Salad: another place that is not so easy to find (it's in an apartment complex neighborhood area, not exactly close to the beaten path since VEGA is at least directly off of a major street), but worth the trouble (sadly, I only went once, but it was pretty close to my area). This is another adorable place with good, fast, inexpensive food. I had a salad with crab meat and vegetables, which was tasty. I wish I had gone again, but I am glad I went at least one time. http://www.jumbosalad.com/
• Giovanni Rubino: I did not go to too many Italian places while in Warsaw, but this is a good choice near Old Town. http://www.giovanni.pl/
• **Literatka: another good choice near Old Town, but this one is mainly Polish food. The outdoor sitting area is very nice when the weather allows (but the inside of the restaurant looks really pretty as well). I really enjoyed the dishes I had on my visit there: fish soup and a salad with sun-dried tomatoes and grilled salmon. http://www.literatka.com.pl/
• **Pod Czerwonym Wieprzem: this is another Polish/Eastern European/Russian restaurant that was well-reviewed by me and others I know who have gone there. It has a neat newspaper menu and the Communist theme is interesting (I loved their website and name-dropped the place a lot before ever going...). I had a tasty meal there of borscht and seasonal salad with grilled chicken and strawberries. This place seems to be pretty memorable and eating outside is recommended if possible. http://www.czerwonywieprz.pl/
• Salad House: another salad bar place with a good-sized menu. This one is similar to Salad Story and Jumbo Salad, but its location is close to city center and the Swietokrzyska Metro station.

-Gdańsk

• Velevetka: This place has dishes that are regional for near the Baltic Sea area and this city in particular. I remember the pickles served to the table were a great combination of sweet and sour. I had a regional (Kashubian) fish soup that had large pieces of salmon in it and was quite tasty. http://www.velevetka.pl/
• **Kresowa: more Polish/Eastern European/Russian cuisine. I drank some clear barszcz (one of the best I had in Poland) and I REALLY liked my main dish: white fish (cannot remember what kind) with cooked, shredded beets on top. Unfortunately, I was with a large group on a busy Restaurant Deal Weekend in the area, so our service was not amazing and we waited a lot, but the food was delicious.

-Kraków

• Da Pietro: good Italian cuisine near the main rynek. I remember having another good fish soup here as well. http://www.dapietro.pl/
• Wesele and Miód Malina: two good Polish restaurants near the rynek (Wesele is in the rynek, but Miód Malina is not too far from it). At Wesele I had a salad with duck meat and was quite surprised at the way duck meat looks and tastes; it was almost as if it were red meat... http://www.weselerestauracja.pl/ and http://www.miodmalina.pl/
• **MOMO: along with many of my favorites in Warsaw, this place is vegetarian/vegan-friendly, with a lot of organic and healthy foods. Plus, it is in a cute little location with great prices, fast service, and a varied (somewhat daily) menu. I had some tasty miso and vegetable soup. Also, I remember having as part of my main dish some zucchini and broccoli in a sauce that was GREAT.
• Horoscope: [http://www.restauracja-horoscope.pl/horoskop.html] I did not eat at the actual restaurant, but ordered my first ever zapiekanka at their to-go window. It was delicious, plus hot and fresh from the oven. Kraków seems to be THE place for zapiekanki, as I also saw (but did not try, though my friends were eating them and offered to give me a bit) a well-known and strongly recommended place called "U Endziora" at Plac Nowy in the Kazimierz district of Kraków. This place may be a little kitchen with a window in a market square, but it also may serve the best zapiekanki in Poland... My friends raved about them as they ate, but they also were a bit under the influence and it was late at night (in Polish, but good pictures: http://prowincjalnawioska.blox.pl/2008/08/Bylam-U-Endziora.html). I encourage the use of garlic sauce, spinach, mushrooms, and chives (but there also could be chicken, bacon, ham, salami, peppers, onions, ketchup, mayonnaise, and other toppings).

-Lublin

• **Mandragora: this is a Jewish restaurant in the main area of Lublin. It was here that I had another fantastic soup, this time a great cabbage soup. Also, I finished off with a warm Israeli drink that had cinnamon and bits of apple. Yum. http://www.mandragora.lublin.pl/

-On the road

• Brovaria (Poznań): great location in the main rynek. I really liked my lunch here: a grilled tuna salad with fruit slices and vegetables. http://www.brovaria.pl/EN-H28.html
• Random food/milk bars (Legnica & road): Now, milk bars are a mixed bag... some are nicer than others in looks and some are better than others in dishes, while at one place alone there could be both great and inedible foods. The price is so cheap that you may be given what you pay for, but it is an experience whether your food turns out well or not... at least the price was not so high that it would be a complete waste of money and time. Give them a chance and they could surprise... and maybe even give a second chance if the first time does not turn out so well. I am a fan of borscht (well, I am a soup lover in general), especially Ukrainian borscht, which I had at a bar on the road and at a restaurant in Legnica. Both were great.
• **Don Giovanni (Legnica): good Italian food in the rynek. I had a grilled salmon salad that was really good and the entire menu looked great. http://www.dongiovanni.legnica.pl/
• **Krotoszyce Palace (near Legnica): gorgeous palace and grounds, commonly used for weddings and other important events. The restaurant is great with a wonderful menu. I really liked my lunch main dish of a green bean salad with sun-dried tomatoes and sliced turkey (usually served with grilled tuna, but the waitress said they were out of tuna or some issue and asked if I could replace it with turkey) http://www.palackrotoszyce.pl/

3. Products

-Eko chipsy: dried apple chips

http://www.bioavena.pl/

-Cisowianka: lekko gazowana (lightly carbonated water)

-Whomus: Hummus

http://www.whomus.pl/

-Sonko: rice cakes/waffles and other crisps

-piernik/gingerbread

4. Street food

-gofry: freshly made waffles with or without toppings. Warm with strawberry jam, that's how I did it. I also would have tried with other jams or with fruit (not really into whipped cream or other syrups and sauces).

-zapiekanki: PLEASE do not eat any ho-hum zapiekanka. Seek quality, which may mean waiting in a line and/or for a fresh zapiekanka to be made for you on REAL baguette bread, toasted in an oven with your toppings of choice (cheese, mushrooms, chicken, etc), with sauce(s) (ketchup, mayonnaise, garlic sauce), and seasoning (chives). I trust certain fresh ones made in Kraków. Go for the real deal, a big and fresh one over the sad wannabes at any gas station or stand.

-kebabs: I am not much of an expert and they are everywhere. It seems there are a lot of good places to go for these and they are common in any city with at least a few people (from big cities to smaller towns). If there is a line waiting for them, then that might be a good indication for taste. I wish I could say more, but I went to a pretty good one in Kraków and I heard of many good ones in Warsaw. I just do not eat much meat, so I had to wait to find a vegetarian version, which means I was not a good judge of where to eat them. Sadly, there are probably a lot more bad or mediocre ones than good ones, but that goes for anything.

-pączki: I am not really a fan of these Polish baked goods (I find it difficult to call them donuts), but this is another item where I stress looking for freshness and quality. Please go to a good, known place where they are warm, soft, and delicious. It does not matter too much about large selection versus no selection over fillings, but what does matter is quality. I know, based on recommendations and Fat Thursday/Pączki Day, that A. Blikle is good (only one filling, but this place is a chain considered to sell the best pączki in Poland) [http://www.blikle.pl/] and Cukiernia Pawłowicz (MANY filling choices from rose jam to chocolate and cherries) in a stand on Chmielna Street in Warsaw.

-cupcakes: recently popular in the US, now becoming very popular in Poland. My first-hand recommendations: Cupcake Corner in Kraków [http://cupcakecorner.pl/], Lola’s Cupcakes in Warsaw [http://www.lolascupcakes.pl/], and Goodies in Warsaw [http://www.goodies.pl/]. All have interesting flavors, fillings, and toppings in cute, little shops.

Polish Favorites: Bookstores

1. Traffic Club, Warsaw (there is at least one other in Wroclaw, but the Warsaw store is pretty epic)

http://www.traffic-club.pl/

Over 4 levels of merchandise

Basement has music and movies, ground has cafe, periodicals, gift items/cards, and some top sellers of music, books, and movies, next two floors have books, and the top floor had a birthday party when I was there once. This place has materials in both Polish and English (the amount of English is not too much, but still very good).

2. Empik, all over Poland (I particularly like the Megastore in Krakow's rynek)
http://www.empik.com/

Ahh, the memory of walking in here and stumbling into the Sephora 5 years ago...

Empik is basically a good Barnes & Noble or Borders (since I think Borders beats BN in the free rewards program and the media area - music and movies - but BN seems better in atmosphere, cafe, and ties for overall and books). However, Empik also advertises and sells tickets for concerts in Poland and offers classes in foreign languages (I know people who take English lessons offered).

3. Massolit, Krakow
http://www.massolit.com/

Want books only in English? Then this place is great. It offers a good selection of Polish authored books translated into English, plus a wide variety of genres (poetry to specific area studies to general literature). I was saddened to leave empty handed, but my list of books to buy did grow. And, yes, there are comfy seats, couches, and a cafe in this two-level store.

4. American Bookstore, all over Poland
http://www.americanbookstore.pl/

Again, only in English. BUT, this one is a chain! There is one on Nowy Swiat in Warsaw, plus several in many malls across the country. Helping English-reading expats and travelers (or those fluent enough in English looking to improve their reading skills) find books easily.

5. Museum Bookstores/Gift shops
Many museums, especially art ones, have great bookstores/gift shops. I was surprised that many had English-language books as well. I remember some cool books at the Zacheta National Art Gallery and the Center for Contemporary Art.

There are definitely many other bookstores that I did not have a chance to see or did not know about. There were also many cities that I visited and did not stop at bookstores. But these are some definite good ones if in need of a book, in Polish or in English. If another language is needed, well... that depends.

Tulips

Happy Mother's Day [in the US, but not for a couple of weeks here in Poland]! :-D I almost forgot after being tired the last couple of days...

Today, I finished some Polish work and I eventually went out to buy some groceries before then going on a walk to enjoy the nice (warm and sunny) weather. I went from one park near our dorm to another park where there is a large mound with a monument to the Warsaw Uprising on top (read about this place in my Do It In Warsaw! book]. The first park has the same name as a place in the Zakopane area (Morskie Oko). It was there that I saw a dog that resembled my former dog Maggie. :-P There were some nice views of the city from up the "kopiec" (mound). I also walked by a stand with strawberries and flowers; I really like tulips and the berries smelled so nice and sweet. I later walked on Swietokrzyska and Nowy Swiat Streets and the smaller streets that jut out from Nowy Swiat (stopping at a place for a banana-apple-pineapple smoothie). I ended up looking around inside one of my favorite bookstores, Traffic Club. After that, I walked a bit to Centrum before heading back to the dorm, where I will now be doing some homework, listening to music, watching TV or movies I missed, and plan to do laundry today or tomorrow. I hope the weather stays nice so I can catch up on visiting the parks I missed out on in the winter.

Today's photos on my Photobucket.

Disney Crazy

Podoba mi się...

"I like..."

As the previous post notes, I had an amazing time in Wroclaw. Podoba mi się tego miasta. It was my meetup with the sons of my mother's childhood friend in Poland. I left Warsaw on Friday morning for a train trip that was about 6 hours long. I had a very nice ticket clerk fellow who told me that I paid too much for a ticket because it was only reduced by age group and could be even cheaper for student price. He also told me to sit in the pregnant/child/baby cabin again. :-P Because of this, I had an interesting experience with a strange family that spoke Polish and some other weird language. There were two parents and one baby, which called me "Ga" more than once. She even said some "words" that were almost English-sounding words, but only through baby gibberish. She was not so well-behaved and had a bad habit of kicking bags, people, and other objects; she (well, could have been a he...) nearly broke her father's phone more than once. At one point the girl (?) dropped part of the phone under the seat and the father seemed a bit short tempered. It was a strange family to be with during the trip, but it could be worse. I had a seat. There was one man with us for a little while and later two militaristic-looking fellows came in for the remainder of the trip. I received a text from one of the people I was meeting and did not have enough money on my cell phone to reply. I used my "witch powers" to summon my mother to call me, even though I had spoken to her the day before and she said she would not call again until Sunday, and she did! Because of that, she was able to be a conduit of sorts between me and the people I was meeting. I made it to Wroclaw Glowny around 715 (I was supposed to be there at maybe almost 7 :-/). I was called shortly before making it there to hear that my "princes" (my word, not theirs) were waiting for me at the station. This station, similar to the main one in Warsaw from which I had come, is under a lot of construction. This makes finding the right platform difficult. I found my friends waiting for me on the platform and we headed to their apartment. There, I was given a bed to sleep in and gave gifts before we headed to the movie theatre at the nearby mall for "Sucker Punch" (it was OK) and then we walked around Wroclaw some (saw some neat sites: the rynek, some of the university buildings, etc.) before stopping at a little pub/cafe for mulled beer: warm, spiced with cinnamon. When we finished the drinks and chatting, we headed back to their apartment around 2am. The next day we had breakfast and decided to go to the National Museum there since it was raining (original plan was to see the zoo). Most of the museum's exhibits are free on Saturday, so we walked around and saw some great art and treasures. We took some pictures outside the museum and around the city; there were interesting churches, buildings, monuments, and even a bridge that has a romantic tradition: people in relationships can put locks on the bridge as a sign of importance to their relationship. It was cute and very original. We went out to lunch at a cute little cafe/restaurant that one of the guys recommended. I had a salad with chicken, hard-boiled egg, dressing, potato wedges, and assorted salad vegetables (lettuce, tomato, etc.) It was good. The guys had barszcz soup with dumplings and meals that included fried fish for one, fried chicken for the other that came with fries and coleslaw, sliced carrots, and beets. After that, we headed back to their apartment to chat while two of us had coffee. Later on, we went to see "The King's Speech" (it was very good and we agreed Colin Firth deserved his Oscar) and then stopped at a grocery store for some items. We then went off to our rooms for some computer time and then bed. Sunday we pretty much had breakfast and talked until we had to go to the train station around 3:30pm for my 4pm train. It was nice how one of them handled my pulling suitcase (packing with my backpack failed, sadly) on both occasions of going to and from the station and then they both wanted to come on the train to bring my luggage on and find me a seat. It was rushed at the end because the train was about to leave and they both had to hurry off so that they did not end up riding the train for a bit. They waved to me from the window and I was off for a long train ride. I was SO sad to go and I did not expect this strong reaction. Maybe it was lady hormones, who knows. I did not do much on the train other than look out the window and listen to music. I made it back at almost 11pm and took a tram and walk back to my dorm before telling my mother and the guys I made it back to Warsaw okay. Unfortunately, I also came home to an email for a reading assignment. :-/ I also felt the effects of "train lag" (what form of travel does not have it? I have had it from planes, cars, boats...)

Today (weather being sunny and only a bit chilly and windy) I had three classes (stopped by the vegetarian quick service restaurant VEGA for some tomato soup (with other vegetables) and salads (one cabbage with pumpkin and sunflower seeds, one with green beans, red peppers (blah), tofu, peas, chickpeas, and sauce, and a third with red cabbage and raisins) in between Polish and history) and then did some laundry (only had one machine open, so I still have dirty clothes leftover... but as long as I did some I can always do more another day this week). I skyped with my sister and now I have some reading before bed. Ballet on Wednesday! Our Jewish class may take a trip to tour the Jewish cemetery next Tuesday.

Act Like A Vegetarian Day ;)

... or vegan/pescaterian depending on what is consumed (dairy/no dairy/fish as only animal, etc.). ;) I tend to be pescaterian or vegetarian most of the time, so today I made sure not to have any poultry (since I don't go into red meat, pork, or anything else other than occasional chicken and turkey and seafood in terms of animals; animal-related products that are a bit more difficult to give up include yogurt/fro yo and honey and eggs/egg whites or anything else that happens to have some milk or any aforementioned items in it). But, it is a Friday during Lent (Wielki Post), so that means no consumption of animals who lived with Jesus (or, simply put, you can have seafood/fish and dairy, but lay off other meat and poultry on Fridays, please).

The Browns are now on THREE continents! I am here in Europe, my Dad's over in Asia, I have a lot of family on the East coast of the US, while Jenn is reppin' West Side over in sunny LA. ;)

Today, some people on my program had to be up VERY early to ride a train or bus to Zakopane. Others are in Lublin and Prague. I, instead, went out to lunch at VEGA, a vegatarian place on my foodie hitlist:
http://www.vega-warszawa.pl/
I had some vegan soup (called red lentil flavour, but also called dhal soup, so curry/Indian-like ;) ) and some different salads - one was boiled shredded carrots with coconut flakes and raisins, another was shredded beets (not sure what other flavors), and the last had chickpeas, kidney/dark beans, peas, and green beans in some kind of brown sauce. I especially liked the chickpea salad. There were a couple of other salads I thought of trying, but the plate looked fine with those three (as the server placed them). I would go back again since the price was not bad at all and the place is cute (plus there are more foods to sample). The food is healthy, Polish-meets-Indian-meets-typical-Vegetarian. I liked it. :)

I choose BEET over MEAT ;)

After lunch, I went to the Jewish Historical Institute, but for some reason I was told it was closed? (The sign said 4 PM...) and I was even encouraged to come on Sunday, when it is free. :-P I then explained that I was mainly interested in genealogy. I was told that I had to go to an adjacent building for this office (which is also at the site of the former Great Synagogue and now is maybe an office building or bank). I had to wait a bit and then, unfortunately, I experienced some fierce genealogists. :-P I gave them the info I had, but I was told it was not enough and I could contact them when I had more. Maybe next time. :-/

Then I considered going to the Copernicus Science Center, but when I looked at nearby buses from where I was I recognized one of the bus numbers and later realized I had recalled it because... it goes to a mall I wanted to check out sometime. :-P So that is where I went!
http://www.wolapark.pl/index,2.dhtml

I bought some leggings and a new cotton dress at C&A: http://www.c-and-a.com/uk/en/corporate/fashion/

and then I checked out Auchan.

I had not been to one since 2005 in Legnica. It was similar to the other big hiper/supermarkets I have seen here so far (TESCO, Carrefour). Each place has postives and negatives. Not sure why I am going on a search to find the "best" or "perfect" grocery store [will always be Wegmans to me, and not all of those are even created equal! Whole Foods is also quite nice and Trader Joe's has its moments. :-P] since I don't mind the European way of shopping - going to separate stores such as the meat deli and the bakery and then the fruit and vegetable store, etc. But, I still keep trying out several. :-P This place is probably one of the better places I have been to, but not good enough to become my exclusive grocer. It had free bags (! just in case I need them. ;) ) and self-checkout (TESCO has the former, while some Carrefours have the latter). Also, there was a large selection of just about everything, but I did not see sweet potatoes (did not look too hard) or my new faves - EKO apple chipsy (basically crunchy organic apple slices that were dried with nothing added, except sunshine and Magic). As nice as this mall is, I think going to an easier to access one is fine as well since most of the other places are available closer, except this grocery store (there are H&Ms, Zaras, Camaeius, C&As, Sephoras, Empiks, Green Ways, etc.). It was a good mall. I think it is easier by tram versus bus next time. I enjoyed just walking around since only the grocery store was busy. The travel back took so long that I did not have a chance to go to see the science center today since I would not have enough time to make it there (I made it back to the dorm at almost 5 PM and the center closes at 6 today). So, I will do that tomorrow or Sunday. Now, I am waiting on laundry. I think that's all for now. :) I thought it was supposed to rain today, but I am glad it did not. I enjoyed the teeny bit of sunshine, but not the crazy wind.

Photos are updated at: http://twitpic.com/photos/kab1221

Pączek i Praga

Some of today's photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/60142466@N03/sets/72157626106465663/

Today the weather was Spring-like, so I had to spend time outside from the time my class ended until the sun began to set. Once I finished my informative Polish lesson, I headed towards downtown to have lunch at Salad House, where I had planned to go after passing it on a walk a few days ago. I had a "Green Kiss" salad with smoked chicken, lettuce, red and yellow peppers, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, sun-dried tomatoes, and balsamic dressing. It was good. :)




Some of the inside of Salad House

After Salad House, I decided to have my belated pączek - Polish donut filled with some kind of jam/marmalade/filling. There was no line today. :-P I asked for apple - of course - and was told there weren't any, so I decided to do the one of the more "standard" fillings, rosehip jam (I guess that is what it translates to). The paczek was a bit warm - which I hoped for - and super soft. The donut tasted identical to Krispy Kreme and was glazed, not powdered, with a hint of the red-colored jam. Not sure what the flavor could be compared to... but that was a good donut from someone who is no longer into donuts. I am glad I didn't wait in a long line or settle for just anything on Pączki Day -  Fat Thursday (which was the Thursday a few days ago). Instead, I chose this place and celebrated belatedly (both Fat Thursday and yesterday's Fat Tuesday). :-P I also know of two other places in the area who are known to make good pączki, but I am not really a donut-person, so I am not sure I will go on a taste test myself.

Paczek with random sprinkles (only a couple)

I walked around a bit (saw a 4-door Mini Cooper!) and decided to head to the other side of the Wisla/Vistula River into the Praga area. I walked through a nice park and saw the E. Wedel chocolate factory - it actually DOES smell of chocolate in the air right nearby - and its special chocolate store. I used my local's guide map to see some interesting sites around Praga - a weird cultural area with pagodas and dragons and other Asian-themed architecture - for people from Vietnam I guess it is said, a statue to Mary [Mother of Jesus], a mural, the longest building in Warsaw, a vodka factory - and even saw a mall in the area (nothing special compared to ones I've seen before that are a bit easier to access from my dorm).

Tomorrow includes one class in the afternoon with some laundry and Skyping beforehand. I also will try and make it to the Jewish Historical Institute, Copernicus Science Center, and Warsaw History Museum on Thursday, Friday, or Sunday (leaving Saturday as the main day-trip day). I am planning on having a somewhat Copernicus-themed weekend with going to Torun and his science center being the main points. I have some researching and a bit of homework ahead of me.

From a great one:

"A day without sunshine is like, you know, night." —Steve Martin

:-D

Bittersweet Symphony

Not my picture, but the entrance to the store

Today I was feeling tired this morning, so I thought the best time to head out would be after a quick lunch around noon. I headed towards city center, with an intent to go to the National Museum and a multimedia store, Traffic Club, as two of the main places to visit. I ended up passing by Traffic first, so I headed inside.
http://www.traffic-club.pl/



 The store is really cool; the outside I wanted to take pictures of (but did not) because the side I came from had a lot of paintings of people along the wall. The inside has several levels and it is really pretty (colored Church-window-like glass, staircases, lights, music playing, chairs) with tons of books, music, DVDs (I saw Dexter on DVD), and even a cafe. I am pretty sure I heard a Star Wars birthday party on the top floor with a moving R2D2. I found a Warsaw travel book that Gosia has and I thought was neat, so now I have my own copy. :) I REALLY like this store, Empik, and American Bookstore. I am glad books in English are easy to find. This one is in English and Polish and I will be looking at it more in-depth soon:

Looked through it at the store, but decided to just buy it and take it with me instead :-P

I decided to go to the National Museum today (student discount price that will be reimbursed eventually), which was great. It is something I would more recommend for people with longer stays in Warsaw, such as local residents and people who come to the city a lot, or people who really enjoy museums. The reason for this is that it takes some time to see everything inside - which is fairly easy to navigate through, but not an amazing layout since I was always wondering if I missed something or was retracing my steps. All-in-all, there were a lot of amazing artworks and artifacts. I loved the mix of ancient pieces from Egypt with very Christian pieces from Poland and Italy with the more modern works of the 20th Century. It was a great museum and just made me wonder how it would be to live in different time periods. I also saw progress in terms of skill and quality of the pieces. There were paintings that I wish I could climb into or know more about. Several were religious and so many would be amazing to buy and put up somewhere important in your home to look at whenever. It was nice how much care goes into the upkeep of all of the pieces. There was a person in every room to look over the works - probably in case someone tried to steal or damage something. There was a temporary exhibit that had really neat pieces (including not just art, but furniture, silverware, and other items) of mod-art from the 1950s to 1980s. I even saw some classic E. Wedel candy boxes and wrappers. I saw a lot of porcelain China, Polish stoneware and other pottery, gold, silver, elaborate wood pieces and furniture, marble, glass, sculptures/busts, and other items from various time periods. There was a lot themed around Jesus' crucifixion, which I am not sure would be that appropriate for the several young children I saw at the museum. :-/ (I saw a LOT of pregnant women today as well. :-P) It was very quiet and respectful inside the museum, so it did not seem as though photography would be allowed and I chose to simply walk, look, and admire instead. It made me wish I could be a muse, haha. Or hire someone to do a portrait of someone I know as a gift, the way people might have before. A lot of the art was done by Polish artists, which was cool. I saw some 18th century clothes and furniture that were beautiful. I really enjoyed all of the great artwork, some as big as the wall of a room or bigger. The museum also has a cute shop with a lot of art books, both Polish and other artists. I especially liked a painting of Nowy Swiat street and another showing near the Zamek, both from centuries ago. There was a neat section with a mummy and mummy tombs/coffins and hieroglyphics.
Museum: http://www.mnw.art.pl/index.php/en/
The current modern-art exhibit: http://www.mnw.art.pl/index.php/en/temporary_exhibitions/exhibitions/art58.html

After the museum I headed towards the Wisla (Vistula) River and took a picture of the stadium being built for the 2012 Euro Cup: http://www.eurocup.org/en/euro-2012-poland/euro-2012-warsaw/

Reminds me of the Beijing Olympics

After that, I was not sure where to go since it was later in the afternoon. I ended up going to the Arkadia Mall for a bit (saw it when it was dark enough for the lights to come on and it was VERY pretty). I bought some water at Carrefour - it is "lekko gazowana," which means it is lighly carbonated. I headed back after that (since it was darkening out I could see some of the lights on, such as the ones shining on the Palace of Culture & Science - more pretty views ;) ) and now I am resting a bit since I am a quite tired and now that it is dark out, I am sure it is not too warm anymore, but luckily it was warmer than yesterday. The sun was even out. :) Tomorrow will include the Warsaw Rising Museum and other fun. :) Now it is time for relaxing and Polish homework.

Will Do

Cool Warsaw website:
http://www.warsawinsider.pl/

Luckily today was not quite as cold, but I still was not up for doing much since I did laundry (took FOREVER) between the library tour and literature class; the teacher is really nice and knowledgeable. It is always admirable to have extremely well-educated teachers; these ones are basically fluent in at least Polish and English, but most know more. Ahh, I wish I were a polyglot. :-P I think I am still not too old to try a bit more language education. ;) My politics professor said he began learning English around the age of thirty, so that gives me a glimmer of hope.

I was wondering when the day would come that at least one of the woman at the front desk would recognize me (there are at least two or three and I've seen a guy) so that I would not have to take out my residence card every time I entered; I think that day has come. The woman I have seen the most nodded in recognition as I took out the card on the way back from class (she had seen me a bit when retrieving the laundry room key several times hours before). Maybe I will not have to take the card out eventually. :-P

Tonight I looked over most of the maps and info booklets I have about Warsaw. I will probably stay here again this weekend, so I made a more coherent list of the TONS of places I have yet to see. My map is looking pretty rough from the amount of usage it has had. I like to think that as others on my program are anxiously booking trips to different places - mostly outside of Poland - I am okay with not going all over Europe this time around. My main focus is being in Poland and as I am in Warsaw, I really want to savor and admire this city more than simply taste it and other locations. I want to make sure that I leave and have done as much as possible and really experienced the city and as much of the country as possible. If I do not have a chance to travel outside of Poland to other important places around Europe very much, then I will not be heartbroken. I see myself as more of a temporary resident of Poland and an admirer of my surroundings than someone who just wants to be a brief tourist in several places. While others I know are jumping around, I think I am gaining more of a feel for the city. I know that opportunities to come to this continent may or may not happen too frequently, but the same goes for this country in particular. Now I just need to work on my Polish a bit more. :-P Of course, I want to go to so many places around the world - it is more where would I NOT go than where would I go. However, I am more dedicated to certain places for these few months and I know that I want to always make traveling an important component in my life. Here's to hoping many returns and many new arrivals.

I like to fancy myself as one who really wants to see a place when she goes. One of the issues I have about cruising is that it spends only a few hours at each port; to me, this does not give quite as much of an opportunity to really explore the location. I like looking at maps and walking/wandering around to see as much as possible. That is why I was glad to come for an entire semester because I felt that the brief two-week period I had here in Poland last time was, sadly, too short.

The weekend has begun; I am now just going over what I plan to do with these three days. :) Some places to visit include the Jewish Historical Institute, the Literary Museum, the National Museum, the Warsaw Uprising Museum, and so much more from which to choose.

FYI: I guess the shot I had last night was part of rounds of Kamikaze shots.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4809275_blue-kamikaze.html

Cosmic Love

Not much going on today. Polish class was informational and interesting as usual and the weather is pretty good since the sky is blue and the sun is out; it seems warmer than the last few days, but maybe the sunshine is playing tricks on me. :-P I even did my first reimbursements today. The assistant director gave me money from buying dorm supplies that I will leave for future CIEE students (mostly kitchen-related) and money from cultural activities - Chopin and Curie museum tickets (the supplies do not count against the 300 or so zloty we are each given to spend on activities and some transportation in Poland).

I only have one longer Polish lesson on Wednesdays, so after class ended I went to Galeria Mokotow because it is one of the malls that has buses traveling from there directly to my dorm. I figured out a tram that goes from my school to the mall and then there are two buses that go from the mall to my dorm. At the mall, I only went to Empik and Carrefour (I might check out TESCO sometime for groceries since my Polish/Ukranian buddy seemed to sound more favorable towards TESCO and has somehow worked at each). At Empik, I bought a CD; I had been nervous about buying certain electronic items because of a fear of compatability - DVDs need a special European player for example - but I now know CDs are safe. :) I purchased Florence + the Machine's "Between Two Lungs" - the name for a 2-CD version of "Lungs" with extra songs and remixes. Currently putting this onto my iTunes playlist. :-D

My sister Jenn and I are pretty addicted right now. :-P Lucky girl is seeing Florence in concert!

Not much else going on other than a birthday party at a chocolate lounge this evening and one more class tomorrow afternoon before weekend commences. :) I might throw in laundry somewhere and begin some homework - which is mostly just Polish exercises right now (Jewish reading assignment should come sooner-or-later). :)

Also, the pub I went to the other night: http://www.podbarylka.pl/index.php?page=1 The bartender is going to be in a flair competition and my buddy said she went last year and is going again this year if I want to watch.

Cold Hands, Warm Heart

Falling asleep a bit early threw off my sleep schedule a bit, but all's well!

Today was another day of exploration and indoor activities; yesterday was more mall, today was more museum. And sometimes not having definite plans can allow for the good unknown to occur.

Wandering on my way to New Town (Nowe Miasto):

Cool graffiti by a soccer field/stadium

More graffiti



I like artistic graffiti, so I apprecited these ones



This is for my Mom, lover of roosters

I decided to check out the Maria Sklodowska-Curie Museum in New Town today. It is located in the place she lived in here in Warsaw (16 Freta Street). I received a discounted ticket price since I am a student. :)

Poster celebrating the anniversary of Marie's solo Nobel Prize in 1911

Cool quote by Mr. Pierre Curie, Marie's husband

It is neat to see locations being celebrated for former inhabitants

The museum is on the second floor of the address. The first floor has a cool store that I think my sister would like as well. It had "oriental" decorations and statues and gifts.

Cool store

Some of the Buddha-related statues

After the museum stop, I decided to head towards Old Town and maybe see if I came upon another museum (I know the Literature Museum is near Marie's).

MILK BAR - I saw one on Nowy Swiat Street as well, so maybe I will check one out sometime

View walking near the river

Back of the castle, turns out there was a neat art sale by local artists in the downstairs - made me wish I had a place to put some of the great artrwork I saw; so beautiful I wanted to buy some :)

Turns out it is FREE to visit the Royal Castle on Sundays. ;-) I now want to live in a castle. Why can't I be Belle and "Beauty & the Beast" actually happen? :-/

Throne + cute little boy (his Mom was taking pictures of him)

What a ceiling

Every room was amazing and a few took my breath away or made my jaw drop

 Pictures do not do it all justice; going in person is highly recommended if possible. :)

Eagles. :)

Chandeliers and pretty ceiling

Chapel

SWORDS

There were tons of portraits throughout the castle tour

More fun painted ceilings

This room's name? The MARBLE room. (After the green room and the yellow room among others) :-P

That's a lot of marble

Coat checks are everywhere. :-P

After the castle, I decided to do a bit more wandering and the sun was starting to go down :-( The snow today was pretty, but it began to become quite cold around this time.

A lot of accordion players out on the streets, this one had a wicked beard

One of those street statue-guys who sometimes don't move - he both moved and spoke :-P

This was a scary street statue-guy. Is it a monk? Death? A priest? Just creepy?

I decided to head back when I felt super cold and thought I should be inside before dark. :-P Now it is tea time.

I live and go to school in Mokotow; Old and New Town and Centrum are in Srodmiescie