Polish media called it ‘the pervert’, wonder why?

Sometimes, there are few options to save yourself….

Connections. You have to know somebody from the inside, then you have a very big change of premium care. But not always. I have a friend whos dad is a surgeon. My friends girlfriend had inflamed appendix, even though he had good connections and usually he doesn’t wait in the line. This time, when he really needed those connection for his girlfriend…He had to wait, and she suffered for a couple hours, before operation.

Money. You walk in and you ask, where do I pay? If someone doesn’t give you the answer, ask someone else. A little bribe can change the attitude of doctors to you. Of course you have to be diplomatic about it. Remember that this is not legal.

Go to private hospital. That’s very expensive. It can cost you more then 1000 Euros. But if you have the money, don’ hesitate.

Go back to you country. Seriously, Germany isn’t that far. What do you prefer: few hours in hospitals corridor and then shitty healthcare, or few hours in a car/ plane, and then civilization?

In a few days, I’ll probably write some useful addresses. See you then.

But, it’s just a renovated old communist building with lots of leaks, poor energy management, cheap materials, isolation falling from the roof etc. The western gallery won’t be refreshed before Euro 2012 championships. The security level of this facility is very poor and fire alarms and other emergency systems probably don’t work even if they exist. Few months ago there was a huge blackout on the station, and guess what, it turned out there was no working emergency power in this station, no emergency ventilation. It was dark for about 3 hours…

Ohh and I almost forgot, in a couple of years they’re planning to demolish the station and build a new one. I wonder how much is that going to cost…

You can easily locate the Warsaw’s city center – bright area in the center of the picture, with Old Town, in it’s upper border. Above it, Zoliborz district is located. Right next to the city center, but on the other side of Wisla river is Praga district, another interesting place with lots of pubs and clubs.

The author (Ron Garan) first thought this is Mokrany on the Belarus-Ukrainian border, but Polish-Internet agents corrected him soon. After all, who could knew better then us :) Full resolution version: here

Be advised – this is not a tourist attraction, this is not a beautiful place, this is not a place for everybody, but it’s real. If you want to taste famous fresh Polish strawberries or some apples (depending on the season of course) this is the best place to get them.

Hale Mirowskie were constructed in 1899-1901 in Mirów district in Warsaw. Until their destruction during Warsaw Uprising in 1944 they were the largest trade centeres in Warsaw. They were rebuild in the period of 1950s-1960s. Currently they were restored to their original function as trade centers. – That’s what Wikipedia says, inside the halls, you will find a medium grocery market, few shops and services. The halls are surrounded by very nice marketplace. You can find here flower, vegetables, fruits, meet, fish etc. It’s one of the favorite destinations for the elderly people in Warsaw, most of them live nearby.

As I was saying / writing… this is not the perfect place for typical tourists. As I was walking slowly between the vegetables stands, taking pictures for this site, some old and unpleasant thug came to me and tried to stop me from taking pictures. It turned out that you can not take pictures here, sorry you won’t make these merchandisers a free commercial. Their loss, but that’s Poland unfortunately, big waste of opportunities in lots of places.

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Central Rail Station – the most important rail station in Warsaw, and in the whole Poland. One of the horrors, that almost 50 years of communism left in Warsaw… Apart from it – there are also Western and Eastern (in Polish: Zachodnia, Wschodnia) rail stations. Almost all of the trains pass through the Central Railway Station. If you are planning a trip to Warsaw, ask for exact ticket – to Warszawa Centralna (this is it’s name in Polish).

 It is located in the center of Warsaw, near Jerozolimskie Avenue, Avenue Jana Pawła 2 and Emilia Plater Street. Rail Station is located underground. Its address is 54th Jerozolimskie Avenue

The station only supports long-distance trains, but the vast underground passages connect it with the local trains (WKD). In 2007 Złote Tarasy Shopping gallery was opened next to The Warsaw Central station.

Remember that Polish railways are still state-owned and managed, they are one of few things in this country that aren’t working well (if they work at all), and haven’t adapted to modern times. It’s like they are still in communist times. Unfortunately due to tragic road conditions (most of them are under construction) they are a good alternative in traveling around Poland.

Warsaw Central station has four platforms, where you will find eight rail tracks.

The stations underground passage system has basically 3 levels:
Ground level – where you can find the main hall, and bus station
Underground level – there are lots of passages on this level that can take you to any place in their system, you can also find some shops, pubs, cafes etc. along the walks
Platform level – below of the above there are the platforms from which the trains leave, you access them from the underground passages

Getting there
Bus – The rail station has a very good bus connection, many bus lines go through Warsaw Central. There is a big bus station on the north end of the rail station. (between Warsaw Central and Zlote Tarasy shopping mall). At night basically all of the night lines start their route on Warsaw Central station. There is also a big bus stop at the south end of the rail station.
Tram – The tram line is located south from the station, you enter the stations underground labyrinth strait from the tram stop.
Metro – Warsaw Central is very close to the Metro line, it’s about a 5 minute walk from the “Centrum” stop. You can also travel by bus or tram from the Metro to the station (it’s 1 stop).
Car – the entrance to the stations parking is from Jerozolimskie Avenue, you can stop for a second before the entrance, or park the car on the paid parking.

Other info & tips

• Don’t use private Taxis, they usually try to cheat you on money, use only corporation taxis.
• Watch out for your wallet, backpack etc.
• This is going to make you laugh: you can’t take pictures & videos on Central Rail Station – it’s dangerous, after all you can be a terrorist :)
• Don’t expect rail/station/train workers to speak English, you have separate cashiers for foreigners, if you have problems with communicating ask someone young, he probably speaks English
• You can’t drink alcohol in the train, but many young Poles don’t care about that. Joining them with your own supply is a good way for getting new friends, but be advised – you can’t drink alcohol in the train.
• The nearest store with alcohol, or even beer is in Złote Tarasy shopping center.
• Don’t sleep alone with your bags left unattended.
• Want to spend your time on this rail station? Don’t bother, you have a passage to Złote Tarasy shopping center, go there it’s a modern place, where things are normal.
• If you’re running out of time, you can buy your ticket in the train, from the train conductor but it’s more expensive.
• Purchasing a ticket is a at least 30 minute process.

Update: The construction of the metro station at Wilenski Sq. will last for 2 years. It is scheduled to finish no sooner then late 2013. The square won’t be covered again for Euro 2012 Football Tournament. So the Praga paralysis will continue during the tournament.

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Why are there so many puddles in Poland after rain?

Well, that’s the problem no one has thought of it, it’s not like we can’t build it. Hell we can build a lot of sophisticated things, but not in this country. In this country a sidewalk with a specific angle for rainwater to come down…it’s just too much for our government and civil servants to handle. And they do accept the plans and schematics for every construction and investment. YES THEY ARE… IDIOTS etc.