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Category: Warsaw

  • Warsaw – Metro System : C08 Płocka (Visiting Every Station) PART 1/2

    Warsaw – Metro System : C08 Płocka (Visiting Every Station) PART 1/2

    I haven’t forgotten my plan to visit every station on the Warsaw metro project, it’s just taking me a little longer than expected to actually finish it…

    A very jazzy sign on the platform of Płocka, which is located on the M2 metro line. It’s all relatively new, the station opened on 4 April 2020 and is the first station of the extension to the existing line.

    It’s not immediately evident what this is in the floor near the entrance, but it’s actually a copy of forest elephant bone that was found here during the construction of the station. The bone that was uncovered dated back around 130,000 years and this was the European elephant which was twice the size of the existing Asian ones.

    The whole station feels modern and clean, with the usual lack of visible staff anywhere. But ticket prices for public transport in Warsaw are very cheap, just a fraction of London, and the network feels efficiently run.

    My plan for writing about each station is to find elements that are interesting nearby, but there are so many for Płocka that this is something of a challenge to narrow it down. As such, I’m going to have to split this one into two separate posts. There are plenty of residential properties here, which is in the Wola district of Warsaw.

    The National Centre of Culture building.

    This area was very badly impacted by the German atrocities during the Second World War, particularly towards the end of it. This memorial reads:

    “Here, on 5 August 1944, on the grounds of the Ursus factory, at a site of mass execution, the Nazis shot about 7,000 prisoners.”

    This is part of what became known as the Wola Massacre and was a response to the hugely successful Warsaw Uprising which shocked and terrified the German high command. The Polish resistance and insanely brave locals fought back and made the situation in Warsaw almost unmanageable to respond to. The Germans responded with mass killings. Now is the time to mention Heinz Reinefarth (1903-1979) who was one of the most evil war criminals of his time, but was shockingly allowed to get away with his crimes after the war. Poland hasn’t forgotten him and his involvement here.

    This is the Ursus factory at 55 Wolska Street where the massacres took place of thousands of local residents. Local men, women and children were rounded up and shot, sometimes after being tortured or sexually assaulted.

    On 10 August 1944, the Germans murdered around twenty Poles here, outside where the pasta and instant coffee factory was located known as ‘Bramenko’.

    When I first came to Warsaw, getting on for 15 years ago now, there were many more derelict buildings like this, but most of them have now been developed.

    This memorial on Wolska Street was a little obscured, but it notes the mass killing of many Poles on 23 December 1943 with the full text reading:

    “The place sanctified by the blood of Poles who died for the freedom of their homeland. Here, on 21 and 23 December 1943 in mass executions, the Hitlerites shot many Poles”

    The plaque commemorates the victims of the street executions conducted in the period completed on the orders of SS-Brigadeführer Franz Kutschera (1904-1944). It’s been noted that following further research that the dates on this are slightly wrong, but that takes nothing away from the murder.

    To be continued as they say…

  • Wizz Air (London Luton to Warsaw Chopin)

    Wizz Air (London Luton to Warsaw Chopin)

    After the train journey from Norwich, I had managed to arrive five hours early for my flight. So, that’s just right, no point in rushing these things. The security process was well managed and only took me a few minutes. I was slightly amused as a woman pushed in front of me, which didn’t concern me as I had five hours spare, but I was directed to another security line which had just opened so I went through much quicker. Karma and all that.

    There’s a new menu at Big Smoke, this is the sort of exciting drama that keeps me inspired during travel…..

    And very nice, the chicken tenders with hot honey sauce, alongside a non alcohol Stella. Definitely a menu upgrade.

    Coffee acquired….

    The food selection in My Lounge, which does seem to be getting better. They had the usual dirty cutlery there though, I’m never entirely convinced about their food hygiene standards, although I’d note that they hold a five star rating.

    That’ll do as a snack, with a tea and a non alcohol Heineken which tastes of ditch water. A completely pointless beer, but I won’t go down that rabbit hole at the moment.

    The lounge was pleasant enough, it was quite quiet, but all of the power points worked and there was food and drink.

    That’s my flight at 19:45.

    And safely at the gate where everything was clearly signed as usual.

    The boarding process was smooth and efficient, with a friendly welcome from the cabin crew. As usual for Wizz Air aircraft, it was all clean and looked in a decent state of repair. The seating Gods gave me an aisle seat, but they also gave me an elderly lady in the seat next to me who fidgeted far too much and spent the flight tearing up bits of the in flight magazine so that she could keep the articles. It would have been easier to take the in flight magazine rather than leave the mutilated copy that she did.

    One person clapped as the flight landed, but I was pleased to note that other passengers just looked annoyed at him and so hopefully he won’t do that again. The flight was otherwise as usual for Wizz Air, no drama and no delays, with the crew being friendly and efficient as they completed their service.

    The aircraft was HA-LGI, yet another one that I haven’t been on before. This is an Airbus A321 which Wizz Air has had since early 2024. I could have done without the bus gate as I had just 32 minutes from landing to get the last train. This took longer than I would have liked if I’m being honest.

    The border was relatively quiet, although there was a problem with the passenger in front of me and his European Entry System arrangement. Fortunately another desk was opened up and I was asked if I was aware I could only spend 90 days out of the last 180 days in the EU. I’m very aware of that and it annoys me, but it’s nice that the border control staff remind people. I did think for a while that the delay would mean that I missed the train, but I was fortunate on this occasion.

    With that, I scuttled off to buy a 24 hour day ticket for the public transport in the city and meandered quickly to the railway station at the airport.

    With around five minutes to spare, I made it, the last train into Warsaw city centre. This saved me faffing about with night buses…. And for £8.99 for the flight, I was once again pleased with the whole Wizz Air experience.

  • Wizz Air (Warsaw Chopin to London Luton)

    Wizz Air (Warsaw Chopin to London Luton)

    I’ve already mentioned that there was a bit of a delay getting to the Etiuda lounge, but it was peaceful and calm when I got here.

    The food selection which was all looking nicely presented and appetising.

    Delicious.

    With all my devices charged and having had enough food and drink, I departed for the gate. The bad news is that it was a bus gate.

    The good news was that I was nearly the first to board the second bus to the aircraft, which meant I had some space to stand in the corner. Little victories and all that.

    There was a group of quite loud British people who were excitedly telling each other what marvellous drugs they’d taken in Poland and they were going to get drunk on the plane. More of that soon.

    Anyway, the aircraft was 9H-WNY and I haven’t been on it before, but it’s yet another new aircraft having only been delivered to Wizz Air in 2025. Their fleet is certainly mostly new and shiny….

    The flight was smooth and, yet again, free of any issues. The seating Gods gave me a middle seat, but the people either side were both quiet and didn’t fidget about, so it was a smooth flight.

    Back to the lads who claimed that they were going to get drunk on board…. They didn’t expect the Polish crew to reject their demands. Impeccably handled by the crew, the whole arrangement felt safe, well managed and professional.

    And back at Luton Airport….. Wooo. We were actually slightly early and there were minimal delays at the border, which meant that I was rather early for my train.

    The flight cost £8.99 and Wizz Air didn’t let me down here. A clean aircraft, efficient boarding, a friendly crew and everything felt well managed.

  • Warsaw Airport – Delays at the Border

    Warsaw Airport – Delays at the Border

    After a week in Poland, this was the rail journey back on Sunday morning to Warsaw Airport to fly into London Luton. It’s the usual SKM train from the city centre to the airport, which takes around thirty minutes. I never really like making this journey as it means that I’m leaving Warsaw….

    The security process was smooth, or it was for me anyway. The three passengers in front of me all had large containers of liquid which were taken from them. One was very argumentative, although it wasn’t a battle that they were ever going to win.

    My flight was at 13:15 and I arrived at the border control area around three hours ahead of that, because I always feel the need to avoid any risk.

    There are two lounges at Warsaw Airport that I can visit, one is in the Schengen area and the other is in the non-Schengen area. Given the delays with the new Entry-Exit System (EES) that have been implemented, I decided to go through the border control immediately and visit the non-Schengen lounge. Traditionally this has taken three to five minutes.

    Anyway, this time, it took just over an hour. This was fine for me, I played games on my phone whilst shuffling forwards, but not everyone decides to arrive three hours early. The border control staff were friendly, but overwhelmed and I did look slightly enviously on those with EU passports who sailed straight through.

    Numerous passengers started to panic and asked to be escorted through the queue to avoid missing their flights. The airport staff weren’t keen to let them do that, but some passengers did it anyway. To be honest, if you’re about to miss your flight, you don’t have much choice.

    It’s all a little sub-optimal, especially for those with kids or other needs that don’t make it easy to wait in line for an hour. It’s an extra stress for passengers that they probably don’t need. Hopefully it’ll speed up as more people are registered on the system, but it’s all just a little chaotic at the moment.

  • Warsaw – Warsaw Beer Festival Spring 2026 (Browar Markowy)

    Warsaw – Warsaw Beer Festival Spring 2026 (Browar Markowy)

    This is the tempting arrangement from Browar Markoway at this year’s Warsaw Beer Festival. They’re located at Hajnówka, which is near the Ukrainian border and a little to the south of Białystok.

    Some of the beer options, cutting nicely across a range of beer styles.

    And from top left to bottom right:

    (i) New Zealand Grodzisz with Riwaka Hops, little a gentle rauchbier, I like the smokiness and it was quite punchy for the ABV.

    (ii) Kornik, this was less twiggy and more full on pine branch, with some ginger added into the equation as well.

    (iii) Białowieskie Lato, this is a nice lemon flavoured blonde, quite gentle.

    (iv) Wilczy Szlak, hop forward, punchy, like a big fluffy cat.

    (v) Owocowy Szlak Kwasna Wisnia, lightly tart, nice cherry flavour and a bit of bite in the finish.

    (vi) Puszczyk Białowieski, a sweet and cream milk stout, lingering coffee flavour.

    It’s the first time that I’ve had beers from the brewery and I thought that they were all pretty decent. That’s another one that I’ll visit at the next beer festival….

  • Warsaw – Warsaw Beer Festival Spring 2026 (Browar Sarabanda)

    Warsaw – Warsaw Beer Festival Spring 2026 (Browar Sarabanda)

    This is the selection from Browar Sarabanda, who I can’t find out a great deal about, but they appear to be from the Warsaw region. I had several of their beers at the 2025 Warsaw Beer Festival, so it seemed only polite to see what they had this year.

    I went for the tasting set of six beers, and also a praline stout that looked rather tempting.

    Unfortunately, although this is a very handy way to try a number of beers, the vibrant colours aren’t really visible when served like this. Nonetheless, it’s still exciting to receive beers like this. Well, it is for me, the voyage of discovery and all of that. So, excluding the one that looks like hot chocolate on the left, from the top left to the bottom right:

    (i) Peach Guava Playground – this was obviously nicely peachy, it was gentle and lightly sour.

    (ii) Hoppy Wheat – quite rustic, some bitterness, a slightly quirky wheat beer.

    (iii) New Gold Dream – hop forward, bit of fruit, slightly thin but a decent aftertaste.

    (iv) Dressed in Black – quite dry with a harsh bitter finish, not perhaps entirely well rounded.

    (v) Exciter – full flavoured hops, bitter finish and a bit of a tropical taste.

    (vi) Cofeeco – brewed just for this festival, it was a coffee IPA and I liked it, although the coconut element was lost on me.

    But, let’s go back to the drink by the side….

    That’s Pralines #4, another special just for this festival. And this was quite brilliant. Slight sweetness, intense creaminess, coconut, chocolate, coffee and punchy, one of the best of the beer style that I’ve had. Pure decadence and like an adult Mullermilch.

  • Warsaw – Jabeerwocky Craft Beer Pub (Visit 4)

    Warsaw – Jabeerwocky Craft Beer Pub (Visit 4)

    I won’t linger too long on this, as I’ve visited before and anyone interested can read about that here. The welcome here was, once again, very friendly and they enthused positively about their beers. I love the presentation of their beer boards, it just feels exciting. I came here after the third day of the Warsaw Beer Festival, to get a bar vibe at least once in the weekend.

    The pizza was delicious, but it’s the beer that particularly surprised and delighted me here. It’s the Carrot Fever pastry sour from Browar Stu Mostów and I visited their taproom in Wrocław a few months ago. This, yet again, shows how healthy beer can be, it’s full of carrots and mango with a creamy texture. It’s brewed in collaboration with Mikkeller, so I probably shouldn’t have been surprised with good this was.

    Anyway, once again, a pleasant visit to Jabeerwocky, and I’ve definitely missed Poland.

  • Warsaw – Curry Leaves

    Warsaw – Curry Leaves

    Before heading off to Warsaw Beer Festival for a third day, I went to one of the new more decadent food courts in the city centre that I haven’t been to before, Hala Koszyki Warszawa. More on that in another post.

    There were a number of tempting units, but it was the Indian one that I opted for.

    The food menu. The service was perhaps just a little brusque, but it was all efficient and the prices were towards the higher end of the scale, but not unreasonably so. Customers are given a buzzer so that they know when to return to the unit when the food and drink is ready. The online reviews are generally positive although there are some rather direct and unfortunate replies from the venue on reviews that they don’t like.

    I went for the Chicken Guntur, which is a curry made with green chillies, fresh curry leaves, mustard seeds and dry coconut. The curry was quite thick, with plenty of chicken in it, with a decent level of spice. There was a punchy and enjoyable flavour, and the rice was light and fluffy. The mango lassi was also creamy and delicious, it all combined well together.

    Anyway, I was happy with this whole arrangement, it was served promptly, it looked appetising (well, as much as you can really do with paper plates) and it had a depth of flavour. I’d certainly come to this food court again, the general food reviews all seem very positive for most of the units here.

  • Warsaw – Warsaw Beer Festival Spring 2026

    Warsaw – Warsaw Beer Festival Spring 2026

    This is the third time that I’ve been to Warsaw Beer Festival, although it’s the first time that I’ve got a three day pass. The entrance is all well managed, just scan the QR code on the ticket and they hand visitors a wristband to keep on so they can come and go as they wish.

    The advertising poster for the beer festival that took place in 2014.

    And from the 2015 festival, with others lined up along the entrance gates.

    There’s always plenty of seating as visitors can sit in the football stadium seats and watch whatever is taking place on the stage.

    Inside there are three floors where breweries occupy their own stand, along with other merchants selling a variety of items. There are also games such as this, and also computer games.

    And there were sometimes computer games that were taking place on the stage. It all added to the excitement.

    Anyway, I had a lovely time at the beer festival, which costs around £13 for a three day ticket. Beer and food is then sold at prices that I thought were always reasonable, with everything feeling clean, organised and well managed. Although it could get very busy at times, there was also sufficient space to sit or stand, with everything clearly signed.

    I’ve written about some breweries who were at the festival (and will likely write about some more), but so far that’s:

    Funky Fluid

    Nepo Brewing

    Green Head

    Browar Moczybroda

    Browar Sarabanda

  • Warsaw – Warsaw Beer Festival Spring 2026 (Nepo Brewing)

    Warsaw – Warsaw Beer Festival Spring 2026 (Nepo Brewing)

    Nepo Brewing is another one of my favourite breweries with some quirky and intriguing beers. The brewery is located off towards Wrocław and they have been trading since 2014, now having their own taproom.

    It was the mango sticky rice beer that caught my eye, I mean, what more could someone want from a beer? This was a special beer brewed just for the festival, a 6.8% punchy little number.

    And this was the decadent treat that I hoped it would be. It was creamy, it had lots of mango, it was thick and slightly sweet. Delightful, and look at the lovely healthy colour.