Warsaw

Tuesday 31 December 2013 continued...

When last we posted we were about to head off with the crowds to celebrate Sylvester (NYE in Poland). Given the temperatures, we did in fact 'frock up' with our thermals, beanies, scarves and gloves. Caught a tram to the National Stadium and followed the hundreds of people to... wherever they were going...

We walked, and walked with the crowds - not sure where we were heading. On our journey though, loads of fireworks were being set off all around us - usually from empty champagne bottles.

Turned out we were going to a great open air concert in parklands beside the stadium. To our delight, John Newman (one of our favourite English musicians at the moment) was the headline act, so we enjoyed lots of dancing with the locals. The countdown to midnight was lots of fun - and the fireworks display was pretty awesome.

No trams were running after midnight, so we walked with the crowds (for about an hour!) back to the city centre. A great, fun crowd. This was certainly up there in terms of fun NYE we've had!

Wednesday 1 January 2014

Happy New Year! We've come to realise that New Year's Day around the world is a day of peaceful walks throughout cities. Consequently today we (along with many Varsovians) enjoyed a stroll through the old town. This part of town is certainly testament to the spirit of the Polish. It was established in the 13th century, but was almost completely destroyed by the Nazis in 1944. After the war, however, between 1945 and 1966, the old town was reconstructed - and it looks amazing.

One of the highlights of the day was (with a glass of mulled wine of course!) watching the delight of the locals as they took advantage of the temporary ice-skating rink that had been set up in the square.

Managed to successfully navigate the cobbled laneways - even found an Irish pub! Of course Phil had to sample the Guinness.

Thursday 2 January 2014

Don't think we've ever walked so much. The distances in Warsaw are vast - and today we mostly tackled the streets on foot (only resorting to trams at the end of the day when we began to run out of time).

Our focus was largely on the area that was once the Jewish ghetto. It should be said that Louise walked these streets 23 years ago and can't believe how much Warsaw has changed. Where massive, larger than life Soviet memorials once stood, new commercial and residential blocks have now been constructed.

Our first stop was to a tiny courtyard behind an apartment block, where a section of the ghetto wall has been preserved.

 
From there, we headed to the Warsaw Uprising Museum where we spent a good couple of hours looking at displays which chronicle the operation run by the Polish resistance Home Army to liberate Warsaw from Nazi Germany.

Then we walked to the street that the Nazis decided should be excluded from the ghetto because it was a major thoroughfare, so the ghetto ran to the north and south of that street - connected by an overpass.

We then paid a visit to Pawiak Prison museum, which has housed political prisoners since the 1800s. Most of these, however, were held during WWII.

Walking further still, we stopped by the Ghetto Monument, and the Leaving Monument (which marks the spot where ghetto inhabitants were transported to concentration camps) and made our way to Mila 18 (the headquarters of Jewish resistance fighters - also the title of a novel by Leon Uris set in German occupied Warsaw).

We then took the tram to Praga - an area across the wide Vistula River - which wasn't totally destroyed by the Nazis but still bears the scars of war. As soon as you cross the river you notice the difference. The streets and buildings haven't been restored. The cobbled streets are rough and machine gun bullet holes can still be seen - peppered across the front of brick buildings. This is the Warsaw of old.

Tonight's (and our last night's!!!) entertainment was our traditional, annual performance of The Nutcracker at Teatr Wielki. This grand theatre is officially one of the largest theatres in Europe. It was inaugurated in 1833 with a production of The Barber of Seville. After its bombing in WWII it was rebuilt and reopened in 1965. The ballet tonight was one of the most impressive we've seen.

Have thoroughly enjoyed our time here - sad it's ended. Tomorrow we head home via Dubai. Is this trip really over already??? Oh well... time to plan the next one! :)

Our Two Weeks in London

Tuesday 31st December 2013

And so it's now New Year's Eve and here we are in Warsaw ready to head out with the crowds to ring in the new year with music and fireworks. We've had a brilliant two weeks in London - loads of new experiences. London is just so diverse, there's never any shortage of new things to discover. Here's a snapshot of how we've spent our time here - we'll travel back in time to our last post...

Saturday 21 December 2013

When we last posted, we were sitting in a cafe on a drizzly Saturday morning. The time soon came for us to leave the warmth and venture out for our annual pilgrimage with the Fulham faithful to Craven Cottage - this year to watch Fulham play Manchester City.

 

 

It was a great close game. Two trusty ponchos purchased from Boots on the way ensured we weren't bothered by the pouring rain! Warmed up after the game with dinner at The Hop Poles - a great pub in Hammersmith.

Sunday 22 December 2013

Today was our East End day. Starting with a walk through Shoreditch (one of our favourite places - with in our opinion some of the finest street art in London) to Brick Lane for the Sunday markets and then on to Dalston - Louise worked here in 1990. There is a square in Dalston which is said to have been the inspiration for Albert Square (of EastEnders fame).

Spent some time at Whitechapel art gallery before heading out for a look at the West Ham area. Finished our afternoon with a visit to Bow Church.

Tonight's entertainment was the much anticipated annual Rosemary Branch Pantomime (our fourth). This year the Charles Court Opera performed 'Buttons' - inspired by Cinderella. This was the best one yet - absolutely hilarious.

Monday 23 December 2013

Woke up this morning and decided to have a day out of London. There were many options available to us, but Cardiff won in the end. It's about a 2 hour train journey from London Paddington station - through some lovely countryside.

Enjoyed a walk around the town and a visit to the amazing Cardiff Castle (original motte and bailey still standing - built in the late 11th century by Norman invaders).

Keen to venture further into Wales, we then took another train out to the small coastal town of Barry which has two claims to fame: 1. It is where much of Gavin and Stacey was filmed and 2. It is the birthplace of former Prime Minister Gillard. Had dinner in Barry before heading back to Cardiff and on home to London.

 
The weather in much of the UK turned nasty today with many transport services disrupted. Lots of people heading home for Christmas were stranded. Luckily all that happened to us was a one hour delay on the train home. No problem at all in the scheme of things, given some people missed connecting trains and flights. Everyone was in typically positive spirits though.

Tis the season to be jolly!

Tuesday 24 December 2013

Christmas Eve - perfect for a walk on Hampstead Heath. Did our usual thing of getting lost (well the Heath is huge!), however this time as we were enjoying the usual maze of muddy paths it decided to blow a gale and storm - a very different feel!

Fortunately we were able to find shelter by a fire in - you guessed it - a pub! Well when there's one on every corner they're hard to avoid!

When the rain eased we walked to one of our old favourites, the Spaniards Inn.

Walked home via Finsbury and Islington (including the town hall where we were married), doing some last minute Christmas shopping.

Had a quiet Christmas eve in with wine, cheese and Christmas carols. Perfect.

Wednesday 25 December 2013

Christmas Day - one of the nicest days to be in London.


Started off with the wonderful morning service at St Paul's Cathedral. This is quite an experience - almost overwhelming. We did this two years ago and were just as excited second time around. The sound of the choir and the organ and the sight of hundreds of people from around the world singing carols together is very moving. And yes - most of us were there to admire the building as well!

Walked, and walked, and walked. Down Fleet Street, via the Strand and Covent Garden, through the royal parks to visit the ducks and squirrels and then onto Buckingham Palace. Found ourselves in Chelsea after a few hours. Fortunately the weather was perfect!

Enjoyed traditional Christmas dinner (turkey not duck!) in a gorgeous old pub on Fleet Street.

Happily ended the day with a glass of wine and a mince pie in front of the TV, watching our favourite English Christmas specials. Great end to a great day.

Thursday 26 December 2013

Just three words to say - Boxing Day Sales!


Started early at Cheapside, just near our place and right beside St Paul's (history lesson - while Cheapside sounds like a strange name, it of course has its origins in London's fascinating past: 'Cheap' means 'market' in medieval English and during the middle ages Cheapside was one of the main produce markets in London. The surrounding streets are named after the goods once sold in the area (Honey Lane, Mild Street, Bread Street, Poultry). Now they would be more appropriately named Clothes Street, Shoe Lane, Handbag Avenue etc...).

Moved on to Covent Garden and surrounds - probably our favourite shopping district.

Ended up in Chelsea - another favourite shopping area.

Capped off a great day at a new find - Philomena's - an Irish pub in Covent Garden. Met some fabulous local people and danced the night away. Heaps of fun!

Friday 27 December 2013

Spent most of today with our friend Stephen. Highlight of the day was lunch at The Shard - Europe's tallest building (87 storeys high), which opened to the public this year.

 
We've been watching this being built since 2009 and have eagerly anticipated being able to visit. The view from the restaurant is amazing. The food is also pretty great! Highly recommend dropping in.

Said goodbye to Stephen and made our way to Ronnie Scott's for a Cuban night. Again - more dancing with a really fun crowd.

Saturday 28 December 2013

Our third last day in this wonderful city and still so much to do! Having made a list, we made sure we paid one last visit to Oxford St, Carnaby St, South Molton St, Regent St and Chelsea. Had dinner in our favourite Chelsea pub - one last time! That's it - no more shopping.

Sunday 29 December 2013

Gorgeous weather today so did some more exploring. Today ended up being 'The Day of Ten Thames Crossings'.

Phil has always wanted to walk under the Thames via the Greenwich foot tunnel. Louise did this some years ago so hasn't had it as a priority (it's all about Louise!). And so today was the day. So:

Crossing #1: via the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) (rail tunnel under the Thames) to Greenwich for breakfast.

 
Crossing #2: first Greenwich foot tunnel crossing - from Greenwich back to the Isle of Dogs on the north side. A cheerful event with quite a few other people - tourists and locals alike.

Crossing #3: enjoyed #2 so much so went back the same way - through the foot tunnel.

Caught a bus from Greenwich to the O2 where we got on the new cable car which goes across the Thames at a height of up to 90 meters. And so:

Crossing #4: cable car. A great experience - awesome views!

Now back on the north side, took the DLR further down the river to the station of King George V (way, way out in the East of London). Hmmm. Interesting. But an essential stop because here is the entrance to another foot tunnel under the Thames - the Woolwich foot tunnel. Not only would Phil get to do the Greenwich tunnel, he would get a bonus one as well! This was not quite the same experience though - we were the only ones in the tunnel and it was eery - no scary - to say the least. Perhaps visiting at a busier time would have made a difference. Anyway - we survived and resurfaced after Crossing #5 at Woolwich. So how would we get back to the north? Follow the signs to:

Crossing #6: the Woolwich Free Ferry - a ferry service that has operated across the Thames since at least the fourteenth century. Currently, it takes both cars and foot passengers.

Back at King George V DLR station, we headed back west to Canning Town where we picked up the Jubilee underground line - straight to London Bridge station for the Design Museum. This is where we did Crossings #7, #8 and #9 (cheating a bit, but the tube does actually go under the river three times on this journey!).

Enjoyed a lovely few hours at the museum which currently has a Paul Smith exhibition, which we thoroughly enjoyed.

After dinner at the Oxo Tower, we walked back across Blackfriar's bridge (Crossing #10!!!) and home to get ready for our night out. Tonight's entertainment was a fantastic play 'The Upstanding Member' at the Old Red Lion Theatre in Islington. This is pub theatre at its best - a great play in an intimate setting (maybe 40 people??). Perfect end to a perfect day.

Monday 30 December 2013

Our last day in England! Can't believe how quickly it's flown.

Decided to go to spend the morning in Canterbury - such a beautiful town. Enjoyed a visit to the Cathedral and just generally enjoyed the cobbled lanes of the town. The weather was atrocious, but we've become used to that this trip!

Back in London for the afternoon - enjoyed a visit to the National Gallery. No trip to London would be complete without doing so. This truly is an amazing place - and very easy to take for granted. Here, under one roof, are amazing works by Van Gogh, Picasso, Degas, Canaletto, Da Vinci, Rembrandt, Van Eyck, Constable, Gainsborough, Stubbs.... and on..... and on..... And yet we all hurry by on a daily basis. It's nice to stop and appreciate the enormity of this collection - and so we did.

Enjoyed a lovely, last walk home to prepare for our final night out - dinner with Tim and Stephen at The Jugged Hare - just around the corner from home. The theme of the restaurant is 'game' and most things on the menu comply. Louise had pheasant - complete with the claw still attached! Stephen's woodcock dish took the cake though - it still had both claws and the head intact! All very delicious though!

Can't believe London's over - but new adventures await.

Tuesday 31 December 2013

And so - Warsaw! We arrived this afternoon and have had a walk around and some dinner. We're now busy planning how we'll spend the next couple of days here, but first we need to party with the locals! Must go now and don the thermals (it's freezing here!) ready to head to the square to hear the bands and watch the fireworks. Happy New Year! 

Brisbane to Istanbul

Hello loyal followers. Apologies for the delay in posting. We've been packing so much into each day, but here we are on a beautifully drizzly Saturday morning in London (our home for the next two weeks) in a cosy cafe with wi-fi - the perfect time to blog.

Those of you who have followed us on our previous travels will notice a difference this year. Rather than darting here and there, we've made a conscious decision to stay put here. Each year when we visit our favourite city for just a few days, we wish we'd spent longer. So this is the year. The year of LondonPhloss.

We are topping and tailing the visit with two exciting cities, though. We travelled here via Istanbul and will venture home through Warsaw - a lovely blend.

The journey so far...

Saturday 14 December 2013

Our journey got off to somewhat of a false start. After rising very early for our flight from Brisbane to Istanbul via Hong Kong, we were just putting on our flight socks ready to leave home when we got a text from Qantas – our flight was delayed by 5 hours. The good news was that we could go back to bed for another few hours! The bad news was our layover in Hong Kong had now been reduced to less than an hour – not very promising for the successful transfer of luggage from Qantas to Turkish Air. As we disembarked in Hong Kong, ground staff were waiting for us and made us run through the airport to make the plane to Istanbul. Before getting on board we had to sign a document to say we understood our bags might not necessarily get there with us! It was an eager wait at the baggage carousel in Istanbul, but all was well. Our two familiar suitcases had made it on to the flight with us, which was fortunate given that our coats were inside and it was a freezing cold morning in Istanbul.

Sunday 15 December 2013

We packed heaps into our first day in this fascinating city. Having visited 23 years ago, Louise noticed some familiar sights along with the inevitable changes. The warmth and genuine hospitality of the people hadn’t changed a bit though.

We walked and walked – from the old town across the Bosphorous to the new town. It was very early on a beautifully clear Sunday morning, and it seemed as though only we and the local fishermen were out and about. It wasn’t too early for some traditional Turkish sweet delights though! We couldn’t resist the temptation.

 

Spent the afternoon enjoying Aya Sofya – built in the early 500s. A wonderful example of Byzantine architecture, it started its life as an Eastern Orthodox cathedral, spent some time as a Catholic cathedral and was then a mosque for about 500 years (until the 1930s). After being desecularized, it became a museum in 1935.

Visited another fascinating sight – the Basilica Cistern. Built in the 6th century, and lying 150 m below the ground, this is one of several hundred cisterns that exist below the streets in Istanbul. Apparently 7000 slaves built this incredible structure, which was designed to provide a water filtration system for the Great Palace of Constantinople. It holds around 80000 cubic meters of water. 336 marble columns hold up its ceiling.

 Spent the evening wandering with the locals through the colourful Spice Market.

Monday 16 December 2013

There’s no such thing as a sleep in here. From 6am, the wailing starts from all the local minarets, calling people to prayer. It’s wonderfully atmospheric – reminds you of where you are before you even open your eyes.

Unfortunately the rain found us today, but it didn’t stop us enjoying a fabulous morning at the Topkapi Palace, where rich architecture, incredible Ottoman treasures and magnificently decorated interiors abound. The palace was the main residence of the Ottoman sultans for around 400 years, from the mid 1400s to the mid 1800s. At the end of the Ottoman empire in 1923, the palace became a museum.

 

Spent the afternoon at the Grand Bazaar where exotic goods have been haggled over for around 550 years. It is one of the world's largest and oldest covered markets, with over 60 streets and more than 3000 shops. Managed to escape without a carpet in tow (much to the disappointment of the many merchants who offered us tea and called out ‘Aussie Aussie – where you from?’ as we walked past their stalls. 

  

Finished the day at a beautiful little restaurant that we had read about and wanted to visit. The entire ceiling is covered with beautiful Turkish lamps – a great effect.

 

Tuesday 17 December 2013

A little rainy again this morning, but it cleared up to a lovely day. First stop today was the fabulous Blue Mosque, so named because of the gorgeous blue tiled interior. This amazing structure was built in the 1600s and has over 20000 hand painted Iznik tiles decorating its walls.

 

Next we walked to Suleymaniye Mosque – less frequented by tourists and yet probably our favourite of all the mosques we’ve seen. It was built between 1550 and 1558.

  

Exited the mosque grounds via the back gate and suddenly found ourselves off the beaten track in a part of Istanbul the tour buses don’t visit – steep, windy, narrow streets lined with houses that were literally falling down but were inhabited by families. Notwithstanding there was quite a sense of community and the children were playing happily in the street.

Caught one of the very efficient trams to the Galata Tower which affords fabulous views over Istanbul. Fortunately the rain had completely cleared allowing us to enjoy the full viewing experience.

All this sightseeing certainly increases the appetite – and just as well. After stopping at a great little family run café down a cobbled laneway and ordering some local beer, wine and a cheese platter, we were presented with a cheese mountain! Heaven.

 

The highlight of the day, though, was attending an authentic whirling dervish ceremony. We were certainly the odd ones out as everyone else in the congregation chanted together as the dervishes did their thing. Absolutely amazing.

Had dinner at one of the local restaurants near our hotel in the old town. Istanbul is full of cats - all very friendly and well cared for. One decided to share the table with us - how could we refuse?

Despite common sense telling us we should head back to the hotel to pack for our early morning start tomorrow, we couldn’t resist having one last night out in Istanbul. Found a great little pub and sampled some more local fare. Some things just have to be done.

Wednesday 18 December 2013

After a very easy flight from Istanbul, we arrived in London with enough time to enjoy an afternoon outing to Chelsea. Wandered the high street and then checked out this year's Christmas tree at our favourite pub. Fell asleep on the bus on the way home - absolutely shattered after a long day's travel. Worked out we'd been up since 3.30am London time so no wonder...

Thursday 19 December 2013

Don't think we've ever walked so much. Started by walking to St Paul's (a short distance from home), down Fleet Street to Charing Cross - up through Leicester Square to Oxford Street. Walked via South Molton Street in Mayfair, Saville Row, Bond Street, Carnaby Street, Neal's Yard and Soho to Piccadilly. Ended up at Bloomsbury. All in all, eight hours of walking. It feels great to be back. There was a bit of a freak storm in the evening -  thunder, lightning and light hail - not often seen in London. Had to seek shelter in a wonderful establishment by the name of the Jugged Hare. Very lively. It seems all of London is having work Christmas parties tonight!

Friday 20 December 2013

Set off to explore a new neighbourhood today. Caught the tube to Tooting Bec and walked all the way back through Balham to Clapham. So much diversity only streets apart. Picked out lots of places we'd like to buy if we won lotto!

Spent the afternoon in Knightsbridge. Not even lotto would help to buy here! Had the usual champagne at Harvey Nics and did some high street shopping.

Had a fabulous night out with our friends Tim and Stephen - attending our annual performance of a Matthew Bourne ballet at Saddler's Wells. This year we were lucky enough to see his world renowned interpretation of Swan Lake - a very fine production. As usual, had a great time with our mates.  Our London sojourn is off to a fantastic start!