Poland: Warsaw (Old Town, Lazienki Park)

Warsaw Insurgents' square where the insurgents began their heroic but tragic battle



Macdonald flag flying high



Palace of Cuture & Science is dubbed "The Wedding Cake" and is a 1955 "gift" from the Soviet Union.



Ice-skating @ the Parade Square



It's amazing how Warsaw could rebuild...



... its historic buildings and many skyscrapers from the ruins of WW2



One of the last remnants of the Ghetto Wall. The Nazis destroyed the entire Ghetto in 1943 after the uprising



Nozyk synagogue: the only surviving synagogue of the several hundred existing ones b4 the WW2 (much like the one in Auschwitz)



Poland has v strong Catholic faith. Passersby(usu older ones) 'll pause in front of this statue of John Paul II, pray for a while and continue their way



Warsaw Uprising Monument:
1 depicts an attack by an insurgent unit...



The other, an "exodus"-a withdrawal thru underground sewers



Barbican, entrance to the Stare Miastro(Old town)



I was quite surprised when I first saw this



Maria Curie who discovered radium & polonium(named after Poland)



Mermaid @ Old Town Square



Little Insurgent monument honouring the youngest soldiers of the 1944 uprising



Staue of Zygmut IV Waza(King) who moved Poland's capital from Krakow to Warsaw. Behind is the Royal Castle.



It's amazing how this entire old town was impeccably rebuilt & restored from the Ruins in the above pic(model from Warsaw Uprising Museum). In fact the restoration was so well-done that it was recognized as UNESCO world heritage site even though it was entirely rebuilt.



I passed by many riot police. But they were not behaving like riot police->laughing, taking photos. They explained to me that they are actually normal Poles dressed as riot police to commemorate martial Law declared in 1981. During the martial law, anti-communist Solidarity was disbanded.



Politically-active University of Warsaw



Copernicus who discovered earth revolves around the Sun



A pity that the Chopin museum was closed. I would have liked to see the tribute to a man who, in my opinion, was the greatest pianist.



Lazienki Park



Chopin monument



There are many peacocks and ducks wondering around



Gorgeous Palace on Water



This amphitheatre supposedly hosts free Chopin concerts but too bad it does so only in summer.



I really love this Park cos it's just too beautiful



Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport

Thoughts:
The poles are really helpful people and most young poles know English so asking around for direction isn't a problem