Destination Warsaw

"The city has put on its white coat. I am delighted by the muffled noise of my steps in the snow as I stroll through the Saxon Garden"

December celebrates the holiday season and the start of Winter. I decide to honor these events by flying to Warsaw, the capital of Poland.

The city has put on its white coat. I rejoice in the muffled sound of my steps in the snow as I stroll through the Saxon Garden. The spectacle of the light decorations is wonderful. A huge garlanded fir tree sits on the famous Rynek Square in the Old Town among the colorful houses. I warm up with a mulled wine at the Christmas Market and peck at some “pierogi”, the Polish ravioli with cabbage and spinach.

I revel in the Warsaw plant food that combines both tradition and innovation. I had the opportunity to taste the beetroot soup "Barszcz" (which is pronounced Bortsch) ... where even the bowl is eaten, to devour a cake ... raw chocolate, coffee ... almond milk or eggplant sushi flambéed with tamarind.
An unmissable place to experience flavors from Warsaw and elsewhere is the Hala Gwardii. Located in the very center of the city, this old industrial hall rehabilitated as a canteen is "the place to be" for the weekend.

These culinary and festive celebrations do not make me forget that the city of Warsaw was almost completely destroyed during the Second World War. The old town has been reconstructed identically. Only the Praga district, which is on the eastern side of the Vistula, was spared somewhat. Take a stroll through this pre-war vestige.

I'm starting to explore Praga at the exit of Dworec Wilenski metro station. I come face to face with a magnificent yellow Byzantine church, Sainte Marie Madeleine, testimony of the Russian presence in the 19th century.
A stone's throw from this superb Orthodox church is the Rozyckiego Bazaar. Hundreds of wooden huts that display with their chipped green paint. This flea market is a vestige of the communist period where there was an abundance of basic necessities. Today, you can find period costumes and evening dresses, and even wigs. Time travel guaranteed!At the exit of the Bazaar, a modern fresco comes to decorate the old brick buildings with worn facades. I enter a few yards of dilapidated buildings that seem to be abandoned in the face of the weed that is taking over. The small flowered and maintained chapels indicate to us that the inhabitants are always present.
This escapade to Praga ends with admiration in front of the Saint Florian Cathedral which is erected in the sky by two bell towers which sound when I arrive.

Warsaw offers this paradox of a heavy past which is undoubtedly felt in a festive atmosphere where Warsaw residents are able to eat with modernity.