Saturday, August 29, 2026

8-27 Vistula River and the Praga District

 

Today we decided to do something different and walked down to the waterfront walkway by the Vistula River.  There were a few walkers and bikers on the pathway - but not much more.  It looked like their were docks and fairly spaced restaurants on the water and a place for river tour boats to dock.  None were open.  There were 1 or 2 restaurants on the land along the walkway which were open.  



Views back of old town from atop a viewing platform.



Then we noticed this walking bridge to the other side of the river.  Michael looked on his map on his phone and found that we would be close to the Praga District if we walked across.

Pictures from the bridge.




A view back.  Old town on the very right.  And a couple of tourist boats finally out on the water.


Our first stop was at the Cathedral of St. Michael of the Archangel and St. Florian the Martyr.  One thing you should know - things on this side of the river are real - they are old.  They somehow escaped the attention of the Nazis and were not destroyed.

There was a funeral going on so we just took a couple of photos from the very back of the church.




We thought we would grab something to eat at the kiosk below and take it into the park Praski - directly behind it.  And maybe after we finished our food the funeral would be done and we could view the church.

Benches in the park

This was perfect - as our goal today was to try street food - and these are very popular in Poland.  And turns out this little food stand has a 4.8 rating on TripAdvisor!


We had the flat one on the left.

We had a spinach one and a chicken one.  Both were delicious

This dry pool in the park,  has many plastic fauna - covered in lights - must be nice at night.  I must say the Poles love their plastic flowers - so many things outside, restaurants and stores were decorated on the outside with plastic flowers.

The funeral at the Church of St Michael - etc - was still ongoing.  So we headed on to the next thing on our agenda.

We next headed up the hill towards the Metropolitan Cathedral of St. Mary Magdalene.  Their was a christening being held there - so no photos inside.



Both the church and the street scene above were on the same street corner.

Rozyckiego Bazar ( their are other spellings as well)

It really seemed like this was a bazar to go to if you were getting married.

Shoes

Outfits for the mother of the bride and guests.  There were men's suits, wigs and hairpieces and bridesmaids gowns.

This market has lasted since the 1880's - it is no longer in its heyday!

I found these buildings no longer in use - very interesting.  I would loved to wonder around all the closed shops - but we are tired.

Art work behind the shadow of a gate.

That was so much walking - we took an uber home and took naps!









Thursday, August 27, 2026

8-26-2026 A Much Better Day

 After yesterday's misadventures - we were hoping for a much better day.  We were both able to get much needed rest and having no set agenda - there was no need to rush.  We had found a nearby grocery store in our explorations of the neighborhood yesterday - and we purchased enough bread, cheese, ham and fruit for our next two breakfasts.  

Before I start on our day - a bit of history is important.  Warsaw was almost completely destroyed in WWII by the Nazis.  Of course they did not have the original building plans.  But they were determined to bring back as much of Old Town as they could.  They researched by going back to original artists renditions of what the town looked like.  So even the old city walls they now have or replications of what was there before WWII.

We had also found a self-guided tour we could follow and be guided on our phones that was about a total of 3 miles.  We headed out to the furthest point and then planned to make our way back towards our bnb through Old Town.  We only have two full days in Warsaw.  We saw many "famous" buildings, here are a few.





The yellow and orange city buses reflect well

Another reflection.



Church of the Holy Cross


This is just a random building I thought interesting.


City streets

St John's Arch

Much to do about Fryderyk Chopin in Warsaw.  He used to play the organ in some of the churches.


There are a lot statues here as well


Our reflections are in the window behind Michael.



And the most famous view going towards the main square in Old Town.









St Annes Church



Church of St. Joseph of the Visitation

Castle Square



The palace with long lines of people waiting to enter.



Sigismund III

A replica of the old city walls


Cathedral of St. John the Baptist







It is hard to see the details on the building - sun in the wrong place.





Old Town Market Square

Statue of the little Mermaid