Some Things That I Have Learned In Poland

“You are in a country that comes and goes, where the people have been mistreated but rarely oppose. Borders have changed by rulers from afar, although sometimes closer than neighborhoods are. Their religion is sacred and the heavens smile down, but the history they keep will lead you to frown…” Sean F Hogan, Painting Angels

Burek is the most popular name for a dog.

When you are on the road in Poland, McDonald’s has a very clean bathroom and makes a decent cup of coffee.

Poles marry at the youngest ages in Europe.

Polish astronomer Nicholas Copernicus was  the first to propose that earth was not the center of the universe.

The best time to visit the Warsaw Museum is not during the largest rally since the fall of Communism.

Opposition leaders, including two former presidents, led a rally against what they describe as the government’s anti-democratic policies.

The first floor is 0 so press 1 when you want to go to the second floor.

Polish is considered one of the hardest languages for an English speaker to learn.  City and street names are not easy to pronounce. The collection of consonants together are so difficult for me. I cannot fight the urge to pronounce them as they are written which is always totally wrong.

Poland is the world’s biggest amber exporter.

Polish people seem to love statues.

Wroclaw is home to over  three hundred miniature gnomes. I was into finding them. 

 There are statues for everything throughout Poland. 

Frédéric François Chopin (Fryderyk Franciszek Szopen), is Poland’s most famous composer.

Muzeum Slaskie (Silesian Museum) in Katowice  is built on the site of an old coal mine. Architects successfully connected new architecture which houses art, historical objects and stories with the mining traditions of Silesia and its identity.

The extraordinary architecture by the Riegler Riewe Architekten office from Graz – can compete with the best museums in the world.

It houses a collection of famous Polish painters. The gallery of Non Professional Art represents Silesian life. Many of the paintings are done by the coal miners in the region.

Poles do not consider Poland as Eastern Europe but Central Europe. It feels a lot like Eastern Europe.

The Metropole Hotel in Wroclaw has hosted Marlena Dietrich, Picasso and both Adolf Hitler and Stephen Spielberg.

Roman Catholicism is so popular in Poland that there is a television channel dedicated to the pope.

In Lodz (pronounced Woodge) ,Manufactura was an old cotton mill that has recently been converted into an impressive entertainment and cultural complex. The oldest Modern Art Museum in the world Museum Stzuki houses its collection here .It is called MS2.

It was a long day for me and I was so glad that I was able to see it. They have a really nice collection of Polish and International artists with a lot to say.

The Art Hotel located in the Manufactura complex is one of the coolest hotels I have ever stayed at and wished I had spent more time there.

Dumplings filled with blueberries, blood-red soup, potato pancakes, pizza eaten with ketchup and sausage are among the foods to try in Poland.

If you are a dumpling person and even if you are not, there is always pierogi.

I do not really want to admit this but I ate a lot of fast food on this trip. I didn’t have much free time and there was a lot I wanted to do. Restaurants like slow food here. I happen to know now that Burger King in Poland does not have diet coke and McDonald’s has a special burger on a Polish bagel. I also  have Starbucks mugs from six cities in Poland. I will not be writing any food blogs about this trip.

Poles are proud of their vodka. Poles drink, on average, 92 liters of beer a year, which places Poland third in consumption in Europe behind Germany and the Czech Republic.

Fly safe,

JAZ