Today was a gift. You could argue that I deserved it, after the tough winter, after a chaotic trip, after the rush and tumble into Polish life (so that Polish phrases kept swirling in my head for a long time (too long!) as I tried to fall asleep in the wee hours of the night..). But I'm glad of this gift, too, for the people of Warsaw: a beautiful spring day in March is always special and on a Sunday, it's a treat, as it allows for a full enjoyment of that great Polish institution: the Sunday Promenade.
I don't head out right away. My awesome apartment architect and friend comes over for a coffee (and light breakfast for me!): I deftly push away any signs of post party mess and we sit down to a cleared table! A small miracle.
And immediately after, I meet up with my loyal and precious friend for a real brunch meal at my favorite local place, Rabarbar. Their shakshuka is totally awesome.
And now it is time for us to partake in that glorious institution -- The Sunday Walk. I've been in the throngs of Sunday strolling folk of Poland since I first moved from the village to the city at the ripe age of three. My father, who for any number of reasons would not typically immerse himself in family life, did rise to the occasion on Sundays: while my mother cooked, he took his two girls to the park. A million Varsovians, all headed for the park. For a kid raised in the quiet of an isolated, deeply rural village (no electricity, no indoor plumbing, long winters, dark days), suddenly being a part of this mass of humanity was thrilling! Like Coney Island for New Yorkers, only better!
My friend and I are close to the river this morning, so we walk to it, talking, trying to fit in all those words, because the next time wont be until... August.
The city has just opened another segment of the beautiful riverside promenade and people are curious about it. We are curious about it. There are a lot of people walking along the river today!
(Even on a fine weather Sunday, you'll always find a quiet spot...)
We walk for a long, long time. I'm moving on way too little sleep, but this walk actually energizes me. And the sunshine is sublime! Every once in a while, we sit down on a bench, faces upturned to that delicious sun, as if we were on an Alpine summit, taking in rays of light that we hadn't felt for years.
As we turn west, away from the river, we come up to Ujazdowski Park. The park I grew up with during my early school years in Warsaw. You probably think I took this photo to show off the fact that the grass is green here already. (It's completely brown in Wisconsin.)
Actually, I'll zoom in so that you can see what really delighted me!
It's 60F, or 16C outside. I always am very amused that parents and grandparents here regard that as cold. I don't see a single little kid without a cap and many are bundled tight in winter coats.
Funny habits that haven't carried over to the other side of the ocean!
And now I wind down. It's late afternoon. I catch the bus back to my familiar blocks (where, too, people stroll on this day)...
I finish tidying the apartment, my sister comes over, I eat leftovers for supper, we talk. It's much funner talking on the arrival side of things than on the departure. What if I forgot to tell her something?? (Because, you know, we live in a world of no electricity, no computers, no WiFi, no email...)
It' my last post from Warsaw... Just as the tulips are really opening up!
Ah well. It's always like this.
Tomorrow, I'll catch a predawn flight to Paris, only to connect to another flight to Milan.
I don't head out right away. My awesome apartment architect and friend comes over for a coffee (and light breakfast for me!): I deftly push away any signs of post party mess and we sit down to a cleared table! A small miracle.
And immediately after, I meet up with my loyal and precious friend for a real brunch meal at my favorite local place, Rabarbar. Their shakshuka is totally awesome.
And now it is time for us to partake in that glorious institution -- The Sunday Walk. I've been in the throngs of Sunday strolling folk of Poland since I first moved from the village to the city at the ripe age of three. My father, who for any number of reasons would not typically immerse himself in family life, did rise to the occasion on Sundays: while my mother cooked, he took his two girls to the park. A million Varsovians, all headed for the park. For a kid raised in the quiet of an isolated, deeply rural village (no electricity, no indoor plumbing, long winters, dark days), suddenly being a part of this mass of humanity was thrilling! Like Coney Island for New Yorkers, only better!
My friend and I are close to the river this morning, so we walk to it, talking, trying to fit in all those words, because the next time wont be until... August.
The city has just opened another segment of the beautiful riverside promenade and people are curious about it. We are curious about it. There are a lot of people walking along the river today!
(Even on a fine weather Sunday, you'll always find a quiet spot...)
We walk for a long, long time. I'm moving on way too little sleep, but this walk actually energizes me. And the sunshine is sublime! Every once in a while, we sit down on a bench, faces upturned to that delicious sun, as if we were on an Alpine summit, taking in rays of light that we hadn't felt for years.
As we turn west, away from the river, we come up to Ujazdowski Park. The park I grew up with during my early school years in Warsaw. You probably think I took this photo to show off the fact that the grass is green here already. (It's completely brown in Wisconsin.)
Actually, I'll zoom in so that you can see what really delighted me!
It's 60F, or 16C outside. I always am very amused that parents and grandparents here regard that as cold. I don't see a single little kid without a cap and many are bundled tight in winter coats.
Funny habits that haven't carried over to the other side of the ocean!
And now I wind down. It's late afternoon. I catch the bus back to my familiar blocks (where, too, people stroll on this day)...
I finish tidying the apartment, my sister comes over, I eat leftovers for supper, we talk. It's much funner talking on the arrival side of things than on the departure. What if I forgot to tell her something?? (Because, you know, we live in a world of no electricity, no computers, no WiFi, no email...)
It' my last post from Warsaw... Just as the tulips are really opening up!
Ah well. It's always like this.
Tomorrow, I'll catch a predawn flight to Paris, only to connect to another flight to Milan.
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