Shortly after landing in Warsaw, we caught a train to Gdańsk, riding first class when no other seats were available. "Who knew there were Real Housewives in Poland?" I texted to Thom. We soon discovered that women disdained pandemic wear, usually wore make-up (sometimes lots of it) and if young, generally fell into two broad categories: Barbie or Morticia.
We met Barbara in Gdańsk. She managed a very cool anti-Russian bookstore and spoke excellent English. "Isn't the climate better here after the recent elections?" I asked. "Yes and no," she answered. "People don't seem to be reading as much."
I wish we'd had an opportunity to chat with more of the people we encountered, but the language barrier proved a hindrance. Although many spoke English, particularly in stores and hotels, many didn't.
Poles shop early at the butcher shop. During more than four decades of Soviet rule, meat often was scarce and lining up for food was part of daily life.
This restaurant worker couldn't understand why I would want to take her picture at 8 a.m. "Too much caffeine," I said.
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| EMS Workers, European Solidarity Center |
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| Cafe, European Solidarity Center |
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| Stare Miasto |
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| Kraków, Stare Miasto |
Kids on a field trip played peek-a-boo on a balcony at Wawel Castle.
"Show me the most Polish ornament you carry," I told these women at a stall in Cloth Hall. The younger selected one decorated with roses. "You'll always be my Polish roses," I teased after they agreed to be photographed.
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| Kraków, Stare Miasto |
This pedestrian's erratic behavior would have been more troubling if she hadn't been so chic. I couldn't tell if she was exhibiting attitude or paranoia.
"Is that a flare in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" Outdoor posters featuring heroes of the Polish resistance are a common sight on the streets of Warsaw.
Bored teenagers look the same everywhere but in Poland, an extraordinarily homogenous country, nearly all are white.
Three security guards standing outside the Presidential Palace refused to pose for me.
A bald spot added poignancy to this lonely photo.
Nearly everyone at Zacheta, a museum of contemporary Polish art, was younger than we were.
More Poland
Gdansk:
Kraków:
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