Goodbye, Poland

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 Got up early on Sunday the 29th since or flight out of Warsaw was at 450 pm and it was about 1.5 hours from Łódź--and I don't like to cut it close.  We were all packed up and weighed to make sure we met the luggage requirements.  Fe was getting ready and we wanted some more paczki, so I went out while she was getting ready.  Unfortunately, on an early Sunday morning (about 7 am) not much is open here--not even Starbucks!

Here are some sights from my early morning wanderings:

Jesuits Church of the Most Holy Name of Jesus.  Went inside but with Mass being celebrated, I didn't take any pictures.

Walking along Franklin D Roosevelt Street.



Street Art

Solidarity Plaque.  It honors the Łódź teachers and educational workers persecuted by the Polish People's Republic (PRL) from 1945-1989.  

Another early 20th century tenement building.

My cell camera may have been full of photos but I still needed to get croissants and coffee.  Luckily the Etno Cafe was open by this time (8 am) and I was able to complete my mission.  Two cappuccinos and two chocolate croissants.

We drove back to the Frederic Chopin Airport in Warsaw (WAW), I returned the Enterprise car at this location--I paid extra for that convenience to maximize our sightseeing time--and then went in to wait.

Fe and the Instagram-ready airport sign.

We ate lunch in the airport and while it was more than it would have been in the city, it was nowhere near the astronomical prices you pay in most American airports.  We flew LOT back in the same type of plane--a Boeing 787-8--and just like last time, I hardly slept a wink on the 5.5-hour flight.  Oh well, that's why we use the sleep and fly hotel near Newark International.  We drove home on the 30th.  

Final thoughts:  

Poland was great, but there is so much more to see--Gdansk, Poznan, Katowice, Szczecin, Lublin--even the immigration officer on our entry had a suggestion for us.  Those are my favorite discoveries, but we couldn't figure out what he said.  Hopefully we'll stay more than nine days next time.

Of the four cities we visited, we agreed that Wrocław was our favorite.  I would say that Warsaw was the easiest to get around with the metro and trams.  

Driving was a pleasure, but it is a more expensive way to go.  You pay extra for hotel parking and the gas is high but it gives you more freedom to plan your schedule and maybe discover something along the way.  

We had very little trouble not knowing any Polish (other then hello, thank you, yes, etc).  Even the least touristy city--Łódź--had many English-speakers.  And when they didn't we used sign language and our iPhones for translating.  I did think along the way how convenient the Internet, cell phones, and all the computing power we have now has made things easier.

That's all for now, see you next trip!

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