november-2011

*PRICES QUOTED ARE FOR A RETURN TICKET IN B.LIGHT ECONOMY FROM OR TO BRUSSELS, ALL TAXES AND FEES INCLUDED, IF BOOKED ON BRUSSELSAIRLINES.COM. TICKETS ARE NOT CHANGEABLE, NOR REFUNDABLE. PRICES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE †PER COUNTRY PER CAPITA
POLAND Population 38,441,588 Currency Złoty (PLN) GDP
WARSAW
† €13,550 Dialling code +48
Airport code WAW Flight frequency Twice daily Average temp (Nov) 2°C
Known as the ‘Phoenix
city’, Warsaw has risen
from the ashes of World
War II and is now bursting
with style and diversity.
This month get better
acquainted with Japanese
culture in the historic
Wilanów area. Martin
Klipp is our city guide
PRAGA
This is the oldest of Warsaw’s 18
districts. Now undergoing a rapid
regeneration this is one of the
most vibrant and youthful areas.
CULTURE The centrepiece of culture in
Praga is Fabryka Trzciny (14 Ulica
Otwocka, fabrykatrzciny.pl) which you
will find in a renovated factory. The
creative hub now hosts fashion shows,
art exhibitions and film shoots.
SHOP Design store Magazyn Praga
(Soho Factory, 25 Ulica Minska,
magazynpraga.pl) sources its collections
from new Eastern European designers.
LATER W Operach Absurdu (6 Ulica
Zabkowska, oparyabsurdu.pl). You will
know you have found this joint when you
see a giant black spider climbing the
outside wall. Inside you can expect to
hear Gypsy folk songs blended with
Gaelic chants and Bob Dylan.
ŚRÓDMIEŚCIE
Warsaw’s city centre contains the
vast majority of tourist attractions
– including the Old Town, New
Town and the main railway station.
SLEEP Castle Inn Warsaw, (2
Swietojanska Street, castleinn.pl, tel.
(0)22 425 0100, rooms from €63/PLN
275) is a romantic boutique hotel across
from the Castle and close to the Old
Town Square. Comfortable, modern and
reasonably priced. Rialto Hotel (73 Ulica
Wilcza, rialto.pl, rooms from €70/PLN
300) is a five-star hotel in a turn-of-thecentury
townhouse just 700m from the
Warsaw’s many cultural
events help make the city
vibrant and diverse
INFO
Frederic Chopin
Airport is 10km
from the centre.
Bus The 175 and
188 go into the city
centre every 10
minutes, or at
night take the N32
to Warsaw Central
Station (Dworzec
Centralny). Tickets
for the bus cost
€0.65/PLN 2.8 and
can be bought at
any kiosk or from
the driver for an
additional PLN
0.50. The journey
takes about 25
minutes.
Taxi A taxi to the
centre will cost
about €13/PLN 50.
Beware of the
so-called ‘mafi a
taxis’, which do
not have a sticker
of the Warsaw
mermaid on
their doors.
Tourist offi ce
There are offi ces
at the airport, the
main hall of the
Central Train
Station (54 Aleje
Jerozolimskie
(tel. (0) 22 19431,
warsawtour.pl)
and 39 Ulica
Krakowskie
Przedmieście
(warsawtour.pl)
Palace of Culture and Zlote Tarasy
shopping mall. Sleek and luxurious, the
hotel also has a reasonably priced finedining
restaurant (€15/PLN 65 for three
courses) and its own cigar room.
SHOP Czuly Barbarzynca (The
Gentle Barbarian; 31 Ulica Dobra,
czulybarbarzynca.pl) is a wonderfully
artsy bookshop. It hosts regular poetry
readings, mini concerts and has guest
authors discussing their latest works.
Perhaps most importantly in this chilly
month, it serves the most amazingly
thick hot chocolate.
CULTURE Kino Kultura (21-23 Ulica
Krakowskie Przedmiescie, kinokultura.pl)
is the oldest cinema in town, showing cult
and indie movies.
TIP Secret Gardens (56-66 Ulica Dobra
buw.uw.edu.pl) The huge roof gardens
above the main University Library offer
tranquillity in the heart of the city.
CULTURE The Centre for Contemporary
Art (2 Ulica Jadów, csw.art.pl)
in Ujazdowski Castle showcases Polish
designers and has a beautiful restaurant.
EAT The Mielzylnski wine warehouse
and bar (5-7 Ulica Burakowska, tel. (0)22
636 8709, mielzynski.pl) is always full of
IMAGE HUBERT CZARNOCKI
beautiful people, which is largely due to
its proximity to Warsaw’s biggest
modelling agency, D’Vision. U Kucharzy
(The Chefs; 7 Ulica Ossolinskich, tel.
(0)22 826 7936, gessler.pl) is built
around a pre-war industrial hotel kitchen
near the Old Town. The steak tartare is
the best you’ll ever eat, and its
preparation is pure theatre as a huge
slab of meat is sliced and diced at your
table. Its sister bar Bistro à la
Fourchette serves everything from
borscht to apple cake and Krupnik Honey
Vodka shots. Even better the entire
menu costs €2/PLN 8.
LATER Plan B (18 Aleja Wyzwolenia,
planbe.pl) is pure hedonistic fun. The
party gets going about 2am in this
dilapidated old embassy where you’ll
never see a velvet rope. Public Enemy
and Led Zeppelin blare from giant
speakers placed around the venue, where
beaten-up sofas and graffiti dominate.
It’s a mess but at €7/PLN 30 for 4 shots
of vodka it’s a glorious mess!
WILANÓW
Wilanów is a small district about
six miles south of the city centre,
which contains the botanical
gardens and the astonishing
Wilanów Palace.
CULTURE The Palace Museum is the
final point on the historic Royal Road,
which led from the Old Town with its
Royal Palace to what was King Jan III
Sobieski’s country residence in Wilanów.
This month the palace looks east with a
range of Japanese cultural events (until
13 November, wilanow-palac.pl),
including calligraphy and bonsai
exhibitions, haiku workshops and
performances of traditional Japanese
theatre. To make a reservation call (0) 22
842 07 95 or email rezerwacja@
wilanow-palac.pl.
€119 *
FROM JUST
RETURN,
TAXES INCLUDED
Fly to Warsaw from just
€119* return, taxes included.
brusselsairlines.com
Brussels Airlines b.there! magazine November 2011 83