Of all the cities we visited, Warsaw was by far the most affected by WWII. Approximately 80 percent of the city was destroyed. Some of the rebuilding has been done in modern architecture. A lot was done during the Soviet era and was done in the Soviet style. And, there is a lot that was done to try and make the buildings look like they did before the war.
Our guides for our stay in Warsaw were Rafal and Marta Partla, owners and operators of Adventure Warsaw. They did a fantastic job of showing us their city.
Rafal and Marta in front of their van. We never rode in the van. Anytime we needed transport, we went in their car.
We started with an introductory walking tour of some of the streets near our hotel. Rafal pointed out some of the few buildings that had survived the war and some where the bullet holes hade been left as reminders. As we walked, I was taken by the contrast between the old and the new. The building on the left is reconstruction not original.
This is the widest street in Warsaw. It didn't start out that wide but the Soviets wanted a wide street for parades.
This is typical Soviet architecture with the large statue of a worker. Depressing isn't it?
Another stop was the Warsaw University of Technology. There we are standing out in front of the building. From the outside, you would never imagine what awaited inside. You walk down a majestic stairway into the center of the building. The entire center is open. You look up and see an amazing glass construction.
Next Rafal took us to an inner-courtyard to show us one of the older houses that had survived the war. I'm not sure how he finds all these places hidden away as they are.
Look at the roof line of the building on the left. Who are these people? Would you want them on your roof?
Time for a break and a little nourishment.
