Trip to Poland (Warsaw, Krakow and surroundings)

This is the first time i visited this beautiful country with lovely people, rich and quite sad history, at least concerning its recent past. Located between Germany and Russia, during the second world war it suffered greatly mostly from the Germans but also from the Soviets. After the end of it

Palace of culture and science

 the Soviets, which actually came as liberators, stayed and installed a communist government which lasted until 1989 when it  collapsed and free elections were proclaimed.

Since then the country has gone through a huge transformation process and the results are visible to the visitor instantly. Being a member of the EU, the Poles are quickly building a country which will soon have nothing to envy from other Northern European nations!

I flew to the Warsaw Chopin main airport with Ryanair from Eindhoven, Netherlands. Despite from what i had read about Ryanair, their service is just fine and their prices unbeatable. I even booked with my name misspelled and when i called them they changed it in 5 minutes free of charge (stating on their website that such an error costs 80euros!).

Warsaw Old town

Upon arriving at the airport there are a number of ways to reach the city center, easiest one being the train. The ticket costs less than 1 euro (4.4 zl) and can be purchased at the special machines. The trip lasts approximately 20minutes.

Warsaw was completely destroyed during the Second world war mostly by the Germans but also the Soviets so whatever the visitor sees is pretty much built after that period. Even the so called Old Town is not actually old but it was re-built after the war to resemble the original. One cannot fail to miss the combination of various architecture style dominant in the city such as soviet type apartment blocks, modern skyscrapers, baroque style etc.

Having said that, one of the most interesting attractions is the city itself. It has not yet been

Warsaw Old town

discovered by hordes of tourists and therefore even the Old Town is never crowded. The city center is not that big and actually can be enjoyed on foot. Very safe with constant presence of police i walked all over the place with my camera hanging and never felt any threat. Its worth mentioning that i never saw any beggars which is rather weird considering the large number i encountered in cities like Paris and Berlin.

The big surprise was a bike sharing system, with access point spread all over the city, easy to use and extremely cheap (1,3euros a day - 7zl). The registration process is straight forward and can be completed on site. The user enters the phone number (does not have to be a Polish one) and the credit card number. That's it! You can hit the streets of Warsaw with a bicycle which is highly recommended!

Warsaw has a number of important museums but due to limited time i had only time to visit a few.

• The Warsaw Uprising Museum which is a must for those who want to get an idea of how life was during the German occupation, the events leading to the uprising and the aftermath. One interesting fact to understand how devastating was the war for the city is that in 1939 the city had a population of 1.300.000 and in 1945 around 1000 people were living in what was left of it
• The Palace of Culture and Science a gift from the Soviet union to Poland, once dominated the skyline but now has been dwarfed by the number of skyscrapers that mushroom in Warsaw. Still worth visiting to enjoy the view of the city and some Soviet era style architecture
• The Lazienski Palace located in the park with the same name is a Baroque style palace. There

  

  Lazienski Palace

  apart from the beautiful architecture i enjoyed the quiet park and the company of many squirrels (which you can feed!)
• Finally i visited the Gestapo Headquarters, a small museum located in what is now the Polish Ministry of Education. Very interesting to understand how Nazis interrogated and tortured members of the Polish resistance

Warsaw still has plenty more to enjoy but i had plans to visit Krakow, the Wieliczka salt mines and Auschwitz concentration camp all of which are located in the south of Poland.

Krakow

The train trip from Warsaw to Krakow lasts around 3 hours and tickets can be booked online. Make sure you have the printout with you. In the train there a round of free coffee, juice and water and the ticket costs 30 euros(127 zl) one way.

Krakow escaped bombing during the Second world war and therefore it is preserved at large. Locals have done a pretty good job maintaining their city and creating a very nice atmosphere. It is much more touristic than Warsaw and there is an abundance of things to see and do.

Wieliczka salt mines are a Unesco world heritage site located 30min by bus from Krakow. Bus

Salt mines underground church!

number to take you there is 304 and it runs almost every 20minutes. The entrance to the mine is 17 euro (70zl) plus 2.5 euro (10zl) if you want to take pictures. Believe me, its worth every zloti!

I walked for almost 3 hours in a magnificent network of underground tunnels complete with sculptures made out of salt, amazing halls (up to 35m high!) and a museum displaying the history and details of the mine. This is a highly recommended site to visit but it requires some physical abilities. You will have to decent almost 150 meters into the ground using a staircase and from there it is almost 2.5km walking in the tunnels.

Hope (Auschwitz - Birkenau II)

Next morning I visited the Auschwitz concentration camp, located 1.5hr by bus from Krakow. The buses leave from the bus terminal located behind the station. For some reason there are no frequent buses and the route took us through villages, stopping at each and single one. The ticket price is 3 euros (13zl).

Arriving to Auschwitz after 10:00 and you must follow one of the guided tours. These are offered in a number of languages and are frequent. Entrance ticket is almost 10euro (40zl). From 8:00 till 10:00 you can enter the site without a guide and wonder around at your own pace. If you have plenty of days for the site, visit once with a guide and once with one as you get to see more things.  The guides have to go through extensive education and take a number of tests before they can qualify for the job so be assured that the one that will show you around has extensive knowledge of the historical facts and probably has met some of the survivors.

The tour itself is very emotional and be prepared for disturbing exhibits and images, which

Wired fence at Auschwitz I

unfortunately is history of this camp. As our guide explained, this is not a museum but rather a mass grave site, considering around 1.400.000 people were exterminated here by the Nazi regime. As in the salt mines, be prepared to walk a couple of kilometers.

And with that i concluded my trip to Poland. I was lucky cause i had a friend there who knew the whereabouts and that always makes a trip easier. Still with minimal effort one can have a pleasant stay in the country. Poland is a country of nice and very friendly people, a variety of activities and sites worth visiting which i would strongly advice to visit. I will surely do so again in the near future..

Weekend in Brussels

After the amazing trip in Northern Scandinavia, a weekend in the capital of Belgium, Brussels awaited. 

Having heard lot of conflicting opinions about this city we had mixed feelings and, to be honest, low expectations (which i guess always works as an advantage cause one ends up appreciating things more).

Brussels Gare Central

So we had bought tickets a few days ago but there is always a chance to show up at Amsterdam Centraal and buy tickets there. Seats are not numbered, we saw many people standing so i guess there are always available tickets. The journey lasts 2:30 hours and there are trains every hour!

So leaving on Friday evening we could enjoy a full weekend in the capital of Europe! The first impression after coming out the (impressive i would say) Brussels "Gare Central" station is that of an open and friendly city. People were sitting outside, enjoying their drinks and dining in the fine weather! 

The city itself is by no means a place one would call "beautiful" (compared to other Northern European capitals) but certainly enjoys a special character. The "European air" blowing can be felt all around and gives Brussels a special status. Worth paying a visit at the European quarters and the newly opened Parlamentarium for understanding how the European parliament works, what are the foundations of the European Union, key people and even (with the help of technology) participate in one of European Union Parliament sessions! It is for sure a "must no miss" in Brussels and tours are offered in all of the EU official languages. Unfortunately, although we really liked to visit, EU parliament is closed for visitors in the weekend. Promised to visit again on a weekday just for that!

Parlamentarium

No visitor can miss the Grote Markt, the Central square of Brussels which is (totally justified!) one of the most beautiful in the world! It is amazing how the Belgians have managed to create such a nice place but have neglected to update everything that is 5min walk away from that! Possibly Grote Markt raises standard so much that one would expect all Brussels to be like that (and of course are not!). A stone throw away lies a small alley with around 10 Greek restaurants! It surely feels like being to an island. Having tried souvlaki at the one called "Plaka" i can certainly tell that this is nothing compared to what you find in Greece but i am pretty sure it was as good as it can get. What surprised the most is that we met the owner who came to our table, sat with us and even treated us the drinks. It was certainly a nice surprise!

Grote Markt

While researching what to do in Brussels, i had looked up the monuments and came across this church, Sacre Coeur. We had no clue where is was so using our GPS navigator it wrote something around 3km so we decided to walk there. Nice walk to a part of Brussels that tourists seldom will go but we ended at some tiny church which was by no means what we were looking for! Asking locals we found out that the real thing was nowhere close but was at the other side of the city!! We finally visited but it was late and the church had closed long time ago. Even from outside looks impressive!

Atomium (Detail)

Atomuim

Other places worth visiting in Brussels is the Atomium, located outside the city but easily accessible with metro. The monument is pretty impressive from the outside but we decided not to visit as time did not allowed and we had made up our minds to visit Mini-Europe which lies close by. Its an impressive museum that has miniature buildings from all EU countries! Spent a good 2 hours in there before we returned to Brussels for our last stop, the Cinquantenaire park and the Museum of Armed forces. Having built a lot of model planes as a kid this was like a paradise! So many planes i had seen only at a scale of 1:72 or 1:48 all of a sudden were there in 1:1! This brought a lot of memories back but had no chance to complete the tour as the place closed (we entered just 15 before it closed and no-one said anything!).

In the evening after buying a bag full of chocolates and Belgian beers (the best!) we embarked on the train back to Amsterdam! This city challenged us to study and find out more about the EU, its history and the big European family.

Grote Markt

Overall it is hard to say i did not like Brussels. Even as a tourist i have visited cities that i enjoyed but could not live there. Although this was not one of my favorite places, the European Union atmosphere is very appealing and would enjoy going back there again just for that...

Trip to the land of the Saami

This page tells the story of four Greeks visiting the northernmost part of Sweden (the land of the Saami...) in January 2012. It is in form of a Journal but links are provided where necessary to help those wanting to perform a similar trip. Hope you enjoy!

Day 1:

The trip started from Amsterdam around 11:30. We had carefully planned our arrival to Eindhoven airport (as the flight was with Ryanair to Skavsta) and took the car after having secured a parking spot at the TomTom office which is located only 5min walk from the airport! Driving took almost 1:30 hours and at 13:00 we were there! The suitcase was pre-weighted so we lost no time there and since there was no cue (NO ONE!) this took only a few seconds! The luggage control was fairly simple and they seem to check only the hand luggage that one cannot carry in their back. Ours was less than 10kg so no problems there!

Plane was on time and at 16:50 we were in Stockholm! We had booked tickets for the bus that would take us to the city. The suitcase was on the belt as we entered the terminal (those Swedes….) and the bus to Stockholm left on time. The ride is 1:30 so around 18:00 we were at City Terminalen which is also the Stockholm train station!

The train left with a short delay of 20mins so this was around 21:25. It was really comfortable and the 6berth cabin shared with 2 Swedes was a great experience. At 23:00 lights went off and we took a long sleep after a tiring day as the train slowly approached the Arctic Circle!

Day 2:

Eagar to get a glimpse of the landscape we set our alarms at 8:00 and got a chance to view the beautiful Scandinavian nature until 10:06 when we reached Boden and had to change trains! What an experience to get from +25 to -10 and wait there for 40mins!
 
Luckily our connecting train was on time (10:43) and we sat comfortably to an almost empty of passengers wagon for the next 3 hours until we reached the mining town of Kiruna at 13:59 sharp!

We had book rooms at a place called Logikonferens which is some kind of school that has apartments for students and whatever is left they use it as a hotel. Still, it was a great choice, very clean, great facilities but a bit far from the city center (around 10min walk). We settled there and started out to explore the city! Don’t expect amazing nightlife, bars everywhere and crowds of people taking their evening walk. You should be happy to spot 1 person and 1 dog every 30min! Still it is nice to explore the town and grab what it can offer.
In our case the church was a place to visit and spend some time there.

When it was 18:00 and we finally started to get hungry the big quest of what to eat started. Don’t expect many choices here..The only place within walking distance (in -12) we found was the Scandic hotel restaurant, a cozy place with nice food (try their Swedish meatballs…). Bit expensive but definitely worth it (as we went there the next day too).

This long day ended with a warm sleep back at our nice hotel room.

Day 3:

The third day started with a wonderful idea! Why not renting a car?? So we did! We tried AVIS and got a good deal (a Dacia SUV) for the day.

We drove off to Nikkaluokta and along the way we had a chance to spot a few wild moose and some reindeers! The village was after a long bridge but not much to see or do there as everything was closed.

At 15:00 we had booked tickets to go to the mine tour which lasted 2:45 and took us underground in the world’s biggest ore mine, just 10min outside the town of Kiruna. The tour itself was very impressive and our tour guide extremely educative and willing to explain everything in detail. In there we had the chance to see a small presentation on LKAB, understand all about the mine (and why it is so important to the economy of Sweden), have a cup of coffee and visit a museum.

Once again over ground we decided to drive to Jukkasjärvi the village famous for its Ice Hotel! I guess it was much more impressive that anyone of us ever imagined and even though we had a drink on one of their ice cups (“on the rocks” has a true meaning here…) we could not stand much the -5. Thankfully the reception is a lot warmer so we spent some time there recovering from the bitter cold!

On our way back we tried a couple of restaurants in Kiruna but nothing was open so we went to our safe place (Scandic, meatballs, you know!).

Day 4:

On the fourth day we checked out the Logikonferens around 09:00 and went to the train station to pick the train to Narvik (leaving at 10:36). It was a cold morning but the sun was bright and sent its warm rays all over the place creating a wonderful atmosphere. On the train we viewed the wonderful scenery consisting of mountains and frozen lakes until we reached the Norwegian border where the fjord started! The view offered by the train is amazing!

We arrived at Narvik at 13:19 and went straight to our hostel. It is a small place called Spor1, nothing fancy, fairly simple but well located. If you thought there is nothing to do in Kiruna well this place is the capital of nothing to do (at least in the winter time). Still one can find nice walks and the view from the mountain is breathtaking. Too bad the day is too short. I guess in the summer time and having a car must be very exciting!

Anyways, we had a relaxed walk, dinner at Peppes pizza (as much as you can for 99NOK!), a drink and then straight to bed!

Day 5:

Not knowing how amazing this day would be, we started at 09:00, slowly walking towards the Narvik station to pick the train at 10:02. Around 13:22 we arrived at Abisko Ostra, where we had booked rooms at a little place called Abisko Mountain Lodge. This was an amazing place, small, warm, nicely decorated with very friendly staff and highly recommended! All of us wished we had not spent the last night in Narvik and instead had one more day here!

Abisko is nothing more than a couple of hotels, a school, a train station and a huge (I mean HUGE) supermarket. All you can enjoy here is nature and the great outdoors. Considered to be one of the driest places in Europe, it is the perfect place for spotting the Northern Lights.

Having though so we booked an activity that would take us up a hill to see the Northern Lights. We had no idea that the previous day the sun had been unusually active and that all forecast was saying the sky would be full tonight. In the meantime we went to the super market close by and got some goodies! Around 19:00 we heard some aurora activity was going on so we quickly wore our warmest clothes and headed for an open space close by. And indeed! The sky was green and lights dancing everywhere! No words can describe what we saw! It lasted half an hour until it disappeared as magically as it had come.

At 21:00 we were ready (given special warm clothes from the hotel) for our walk. Our expectations were not high as we thought our luck had run out for the day. What a mistake! Our guide took us through the forest stopping every now and then and telling nice stories about the animals living there, the aurora itself, Abisko etc until we reach the top of a nearby hill. There was no activity just a greenish dark cloud in the sky. Our guide lit a nice fire (it was -23 by then) and offered warm drinks. All heads turned in the sky and hopes really high, the god of Aurora Borealis (whoever this might be!) heard us and the sky literally exploded! Green lights with a touch of purple started dancing all around us. The so called “night curtain” unraveled itself on the dark starry sky. No matter where we turned our heads there was some green light dancing. It was a sight one can never forget. After an hour, having frozen but so amazed, we started walking towards the hotel. On the sky above the Northern lights did not stop so I decided to have a warm cup of tea and head out there with my camera. After having completely frozen (me and my camera) I decided to go back to bed. The lights kept going on..

Day 6:

Waking up satisfied and happy with previous night, we had our breakfast and prepared for the 12:08 train that will take us back to Kiruna. We had booked 3 nights at Camp Alta with quite few activities. Before being picked up, we headed for the ICA supermarket to prepare for the cabin.

Our cabin (7 person one) was bit isolated from the campus so it was quite difficult to participate on the offered activities (ice fishing, sauna etc). Still on the first day we managed to have a barbeque (!) outside. Oh, yes! We lit a fire on the ground and cooked some delicious sausages, chicken wings and steaks. Best barbeque ever!

Day 7:

We woke up around 08:00 and prepared for the first activity which was snow scooter! We got a chance to drive one all the way from Altajärvi to the Ice Hotel in Jukkasjärvi through dense forest and lakes (around 38km both ways). Those machines can go up to 100km/h! Once again at the ice hotel we had the chance to have a guided tour but decided to skip as it was too expensive (375sek for 30min) so we went around in the village and all the way to the lovely church. Meeting on time we took the snow scooters back to the cabin and after lunch we decided to head to the frozen Altajärvi for ice fishing.

At first we tried axe and shovel but I think we would still be there trying to dig a hole! The ice was half a meter thick and using the axe to break it seemed impossible. So we decided to head to Alta main area (2.5km walk) on the frozen lake where we knew a drilling tool was available. Indeed we got our hands on it, drilled the holes and used our rods in hope for a nice fish in the oven. The result, after 30min waiting in -20 was to abandon the site and head for the warmth of our cabin!

Day 8:

After a good night sleep, we woke up and prepared for the next activity which was dog sledging. We were picked up around 09:00 and headed in the forest where our dogs awaited! After getting warm clothes and instructions on how to drive the sledge, we started our journey! It sounds difficult, but those smart creatures really know their way so the driver’s main task is to let them know when to stop and when to go!

Our journey lasted for an hour until we reached a warm cabin where our driver prepared some mushroom soup, toast and warm coffee. It was really refreshing and gave us power for the way back. At -15 and windy, it was not such an easy task. But we managed and got all the pleasure from riding the dogs in the vastness of the Swedish Lapland!

Upon returning to the camp, we had booked for some sauna but we never managed to light up the fire. It was a pity and we really needed that after a cold day. Instead, when we run out of matches and lighter fuel we walked the 2,5km on the frozen lake to our cabin. Luckily we found some warmth and prepared our nice food.

Day 9:

Feeling happy and full of great memories we took the morning flight at 07:10 from Kiruna to Stockholm, where we stayed for 4 days before returning to the Netherlands...