17 | July | 2024 | Tales from the Hutt

Sunday, 23-June-2024

My time in Warsaw concluded. I’d had a great time exploring the city, relaxing, and recentering myself… it really was a singularly gorgeous area, and I’m exceptionally thankful for the relaxation and recovery I was able to gain during my time there. Amazing art museums, beautiful gardens, and calm evenings cooking dinner at home.

I was ready to leave Warsaw, and step onto the path of my next adventure – a pathway that stayed within Poland for a time, heading in a Southern course toward Krakow. Me being me, I didn’t jump into this adventure unprepared – to the surprise of no one, I’d visited the Warsaw train station on my first day in town to confirm details for my train and train ticket. Everything was in order, and with little fanfare or anxiety I soon found my way whisking toward Krakow.

Various times between Tuesday, 18-June-2024, and Sunday, 23-June-2024

Old Town Warsaw.

Beautiful, clean, cobblestone streets… a large palace at the center, colorful buildings everywhere… you’d never guess that it wasn’t the original.

That’s right – Recalling back to history, World War II was a thing. And, during said thing, the German airforce embarked upon a rather comprehensive bombing campaign against Poland, and Warsaw, leveling much of the Old Town in the process. It was then rebuilt… only to be systematically demolished by the German army after the Warsaw Uprising.

After the cessation of war, Warsaw’s old town was rebuilt, in a project that earned it entry into the UNESCO World Heritage List. Interestingly, much of the reconstruction was based off an old painting by Bernardo Bellotto, entitled Vedute.

All that contributing to the simple statement that I enjoyed exploring Old Town Warsaw quite a bit. The cobblestones, the old buildings, even the (reconstructed) defensive walls and barbicans… all of them were gorgeous, interspersed with beautiful shopfronts, crawling vines, and other little spots of beauty.