Warsaw and the Great Nothing

5th to 8th February 2018

Actually, I didn't want to fly anymore, but here I am on a plane to Stuttgart, listening to the captain telling us that we will be flying through bad weather. But the sun is shining, isn't it? Why Stuttgart? That's another story.

After my short trip to Rügen, I went to see an ENT doctor on Monday, who confirmed that my ears are healthy. Then I took the train to Warsaw. Why Warsaw? Well, pierogies, beer, vodka, and everything else in the world were too expensive. Flights to North Korea, Brazil, or Iran were no longer in the budget. When I arrived in Warsaw, I was hit by the flu for three days and didn't leave my room until the fourth day. I bought new contact lenses, went to the cleaner, and then to the Uprising Museum. As the only German there, I learned why Warsaw has such boring architecture, why there is nothing to see, and why it's twice as boring in winter.

The reason lies with us. As we all know, Germany invaded Poland in World War II to break through to the Soviet Union. When the political underground army dared to defend itself after a certain period of time, the Nazis decided to destroy the entire city of Warsaw. And as the Germans are, of course, thorough and systematic. They quickly defeated the political army and then destroyed 90% of the whole city. They blew up one house after another. It was supposed to be a deterrent example for everyone else. How many people died in the process? I forgot among all the casualty figures. But certainly more than one.

The Red Army stood on the other side of the river and watched. They were happy to have an empty city once the Germans were gone.

After that, I felt really bad and understood why many Poles have reservations about Germans.

Besides this history lesson, I had a better time in the evening. Pierogies and lots of beer with locals and other backpackers.

The next day, I visited Łazienki Park and took photos of ducks. Then I decided to move to Krakow, where the old town was spared from the war and is said to have a great nightlife.

So I packed my things again and got on the train.

p.s. On February 8th, I was surprised to see long queues outside the bakeries. In Poland, "Weiberfastnacht" (Fat Thursday) is celebrated with pastries like Berliners. Friends are visited. I did the same. See photos.