Fashionistas

This morning I got on the tram to go downtown and I swear, every person sitting down was a chubby Babcia wearing variations on the typical old lady warm clothing-big furry hat, big furry coat, and a very stern expression.

Here are some of the best:


I think that these two are my favorite, I kind of stalked them around the centrum to get a good close picture, but unfortunately I haven't built up my courage enough to take a close up picture from the front.


I spotted this lovely babcia at the corner of Okopowa and Solidarnosci, which is right by my apartment.


Same intersection, at the tram stop.

My attempts to popularize the granny vest back in '05 failed pretty miserably, but I'm ready to bring some Babcia fashion back to the States.

I need to start taking pictures of the city etc. but I think this is a good beginning.

In Warszawa!

I arrived in Poland on Monday, and my trip over was very smooth. It was uneventful, except that the cute old lady sitting next to me drank like 4 Bloody Mary’s, which I thought was pretty awesome of her.

I’m in Poland! Poland is cold! And there is snow! And ice! The day I arriveded the weather was pretty mild, and I was worried that I missed the winter. But, I woke up late Thursday morning to see the city covered in snow, and it was thrilling. Today, I’m afraid that a little bit of the wonder wore off, and after 5 hours of walking around the city I couldn’t feel my feet, despite 3 pairs of wool socks and a pair of silk long johns. This is a lovely picture of the view of the city from my bedroom window. And of the snow!

My apartment is really crazy. It’s an old Soviet building, and it is grey like most buildings in this city. The surprising thing is that the landlord left ALL HIS OLD CRAP when he moved out…we’re talking old toothbrushes, painting supplies, dried and fake flowers, closets full of clothes, old postcards, letters, books, maps, and picture IDs. We even found a few solidarnosc souvenirs, and I nabbed a pair of killer glasses. But the best thing is without a doubt the old record player and extensive record collection-today I cooked dinner while listening to an Ella Fitzgerald album. I’m looking forward to exploring the international folk music albums. So yes, my housing situation is simultaneously creepy, and awesome, because if anyone loves old crap it's me.




Here you can see the lovely table set that sits in our windowless "living room." Yes, the benches are chess themed, and the wheel moves. Interactive furniture is endlessly entertaining. Please also note the closet that covers and entire wall of this room, and which is discreetly covered by a curtain. This area is filled with old letters, postcards, clothes, and other random junk that awaits discovery. Please ignore the mess that has exploded all over the table.

Today I went to a milk bar for dinner...for 5 zloty, which is equivalent to $1.60 I had a bowl of tomato soup with rice (zupa pomidorowa z ryzm) and cabbage and mushroom pierogi (pierogi grzybami i kapusta). Probably the best value I've ever seen for a hot, filling meal. If only all of Warsaw was this cheap!