Corpus Christi Public Holiday

Not many tourist attractions were open, so we decided to take it easy.

After a long lie, we decided to head up towards the old town and find a place for food. We took the metro and got off somewhere....Iain was directing us so as you can imagine, we ended up nowhere near the old town. It was another 15 minute walk until we eventually reached the square with the mermaid and where we had lunch the previous day. 

We decided to visit a different restaurant on the square, it was actually next door the one we went to previously and it was full of locals. We had a lovely lunch, I'm pretty convinced I have never eaten as much pork as I have done here. 


Given we didn't have plans until later, we decided to take a walk along the river. It was quite busy with families and tourists alike, but it didn't feel crowded. We walked along for a while, passing one barge with a bar and restaurant and swiftly deciding that we would go on the next one!

We were given a lovely table in the shade, and promptly ordered a couple of cocktails. We decided to have another couple, but jeez, the cocktails were strong. Iain ordered a long island ice tea and it was literally transparent; he had to order another coke just to "water" it down!



SO....After an hour of Iain struggling with his drink, we eventually left. 

We walked back towards the centre in order to find the Fryderyk Concert Hall; since Warsaw was the birthplace of Poland's most famous composer, Fryderyk Chopin, we thought it best to go to a piano recital here. It didn't take us long to find so we ended up stopping by another bar for a quick drink. I was also feeling a bit hungry, so ordered an apple pie to go along with the beer; it was a great combination!


After an hour or so, we headed to the concert hall; we had VIP tickets which meant we could sit in the front row. There are two recitals per day, and the pianist is always an accomplished performer. Anna Kubicz was playing for us; there was a mini-interval of 5 minutes where we got a glass of sparkling wine (Iain stole a spare) and a breath of fresh air. 




After the concert, we decided to wander back towards our hotel and find a restaurant to have some food. As it was Corpus Christi and a public holiday, the main street (also known as the Royal Route), was closed to traffic. There were performers, food vendors and lots of other people selling things on the side of the street. The restaurants were also rammed with people, so we decided to keep going. We weren't far from the hotel when we found a restaurant which still had a bit of sun; I think I'm addicted to Caesar salad, or maybe it was the heat, but I had my fourth salad of the holiday.


As it wasn't particularly late, we decided to do a mini pub crawl; we started with Jabeerwocky craft beer pub which was a short walk away. It was a bit of a strange place but had various beers including a couple of sour beers for me. The main entertainment was a family who were having an argument, although I have no idea what they were arguing about. 


After the beers, it was cocktail time so we went to an equally strange cocktail bar. It was called Steam Bar, and was actually a hookah lounge with very good cocktails. The music was good and the staff were friendly, what's not to like! As we were leaving, Iain fell out of the door; in his defence, he didn't realise there was another step after the yellow tape and landed on the ground, but I still laughed (along with the people sitting outside the bar.) Clearly it was now time for bed!

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