Serena in Poland Part I - Warsaw
It was a jam packed day in Warsaw. After taking Ser to sample some Polish food, we walked down Nowy Swiat street towards Old Town. Along the way, we bumped into my buddy Agata. You see, Agata is studying at 2 universities at the same time and she was making her way from Warsaw University to SGH(Warsaw School of Econs). Since there was still time, she decided to show us the brand new library of Warsaw University. Compared to SGH, this school is so much larger and newly restored. Kinda has the old SMU feel except with more intricate colonial buildings. Anyway the library was way cool, there was a beautiful garden tucked away at the top of the library and boy the view was so pretty. It's now officially my favourite place in Warsaw. Without Agata, Ser or my roomie and i wouldn't have found our way here, it was the ultimate place to sit and read a book or just simply admire the view.
After that, Agata left us to explore Old Town on our own, which wasn't much of a problem since i have been there before. In the evening, we stopped by this place that Agata recommended for cakes. This cosy place was called "To Lubie", and the staff were so friendly. Already before we even stepped in, they were posing for us as we were trying to take pictures from the outside.
After Old Town, we walked to Warsawa Centralna to get our train tickets for the next day to Krakow. Decided to drop by Jincai and Jasmine's place since we were in the vicinity, it was a great opportunity to show Serena their nice apartment with the million-dollar view of the Palace of Culture and Science. Also met up once again with Agata and her boyfriend, who invited us to a house party at Regina's(Agata's best friend) pad in Praga.
Praga is located on the other side of the Wisla River. It was apparently known as a rather dangerous district but still we made it there and back in one piece. The party was really fun, there were about 9 of us and as we toasted to drinks, we taught them our style of toasting..YAMMMM SENG! I think they were very amused to learn how long we could actually hold our breath. Also taught them the Animal game and it was so hilarious, even Ser said she hasn't laughed so hard since she left Singapore. As a forfeit, Adam had to call his room mate and sing "I believe i can fly" to the tune of the Polish anthem and that was really funny too.
It was 2.30am when we got home and 3.30am by the time i had showered and packed for the trip. Bedtime was at Jin's room (which had a spare bed) while Serena slept on my bed. 
View from the garden on top of the Warsaw University Library
Great place for dates too
Behind some alley in Old Town
Mermaid of Warsaw!
Act Cute
Act Cool (Esther, for you again)
The Barbican. "My Heart Will Go On" was playing in the background..i wondered where that came from
So all this time it was this fiddler playing all those classic songs.
Farewell Baltic Hostel, we will miss your comfy beds but not your unisex-shower-rooms-with-no-doors
Part III - Gdynia
Part II - Sopot
...yeahhhh
Trip to Krakow(Oct 5 - 7)
Krakow - the ancient capital of Poland, where the kings lived and the only major city here to come through World war II mostly unscathed...
1st Stop: Salt mine at Wieliczka.
Inside the mine, we entered various chambers filled with chapels and statues carved by the miners during their free time, and underground lakes as well.
Square at old town. Bigger and better than the old town in Warsaw.
Candy floss
The Rynek Glowny looks lovely at night.
Inside lies a marketplace that houses several stalls selling accessories and souvenirs.
Kosciol Mariacki
See the window on the taller tower partially covered by the shadows?
Legend has it that the early Tartar raids, a watchman positioned there saw invaders approaching and used his trumpet to alarm the rest. His warning was, however, cut short by a Tartar arrow that pierced through his throat. This legend therefore lives on, where every hour, a lone trumpeter plays the bugle call and halts abruptly at the precise point where the watchman was supposed to have been hit
Mother and child seated at the church entrance
Church interior
Wawel Castle
View of Krakow from bell tower of the church
Hae Ran, Jesus, and me.
Fire performers
Lody time again! 2 zloty for a huge scoop!
Jewish District
Decided to explore the jewish district after we checking out of the hostel.
Fresh food stalls
True blue flea market. Selling vintage cameras, old passports and other neat stuff.
Unscramble this.
Dream car!
Auschwitz Concentration Camp
This was the place where many Jews all over Europe were transported too. Many were deceived by Nazi propaganda thinking that they were on their way to seek work in German factories or farms. After a torturous journey in sealed goods or cattle trucks, the dazed survivors were inspected and divided into two categories. The "fit" and "unfit". Those placed in the latter category (up to 75 percent of them) were told that they had to take a bath. They were then ordered to undress and then herded into the "shower room", and gassed with the deadly "Cyclon B", through the ceiling attachments. Valuables like earrings, gold tooth fillings and even hair were stripped from the dead bodies before they were thrown into the furnaces and cremated.
Yes I saw the gas chamber for myself, and the crematorium as well. It was horrible to imagine anyone put in this gruesome fate.
German saying of "Work makes one free". What a tragic irony.
Some prisoners were tied to the post and left to die
Others were shot at this wall
Death sentence was a slow painful process where most died from exhaustion and hunger.
Dinner at Mcdonalds. Check out my Big and Tasty Bekon Burger sizing up the fillet-o-fish.
Burger under siege!
I think Krakow is pretty. And after the trip I feel better exposed to and more informed on various forms of architecture like Renaissance, Gothic, and Baroque. Still, I look forward to Prague.
Hello, I was supposed to post this earlier but the internet connect in my dorm was down for the past 2 days due to heavy rain on Sunday. Anyway, the trip to the Summer House was grrreat! How often in Warsaw does a foreigner get a chance to join the locals at their house party in the countryside? It was a golden opportunity we knew we had to jump at. At about 6pm, we were picked up by Chris and Aga near our place. By Chris's F1 driving standards, it was a 40-minute drive from the city. After a roller coaster ride, including a sharp 90 degree turn from the railway tracks into the driveway, we finally arrived at the house. It was abit of a grand entrance. Chris pumped up the volume of his car stereo as he approached, and we were shortly welcomed by Rafael and the rest of the guys standing at the patio.
Candles lined the steps leading to the inside of the house, which turned out to be a small but extremely cosy place. For the rest of the night, it was food, drinks, and endless music. Drinking was a Polish culture we Singaporeans could not escape from. Our welcome drink was Polish wine, then every now and then, shot glasses would be filled with Slovakian vodka, and everybody would gather for a toast.
Rafael also took us for a walk outside the house all the way to the railway tracks. Because the outdoors were so dark, you could almost see the entire constellation in the sky. Rafael pointed out the "Big Bear" to us, which really didn't look like one to me. But it really didn't matter because the view was totally breathtaking. We would have stayed out longer if it wasn't so cold and all we had was one thin sweater on.
The next morning, we woke up to find that there was no water supply in the house because the pump was broken. Nevertheless, we managed to get by with mineral water to clean and wash. After a homemade breakfast of scrambled eggs with sausages and some time spent hanging out by the gardens outside the house to take in the fresh air, we said our goodbyes and headed back to civilisation.
Apple tree outside the house. Picked one right off the tree in the morning to try, and it was sweet and juicy.
Getting the grill ready for the barbeque. We had grilled zucchini, meat patties and sausages. Excellent stuff!
That's Aga, I think she's really pretty.
The guys with their props
The girls and one guy, no props.
Reheating sausages by the fireplace
Like the cottage?
The bedroom upstairs
And the view when you wake up in the morning.
Welcome to the garden. See the Christmas trees?
Hangover
Bad Hangover
Gangster wannabes, but actually they're really nice folks
Hope you like the pics. Im heading off to school for my International Marketing case presentation on ...Manchester United!