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Welcome to my travel log! You will find here a lot more than in the travel reports, stripped from political correctness. Enjoy! 
Aug 12, 2010 06:00 PM Warsaw (PL) - A hot day...
A real summer day for Warsaw today! The temperature climbed to over 36C and the city was positively sticky. It was an early day for me, and I had a chance to explore Poland's capital on foot during hours of daylight. I wanted to see the infamous wooden cross, which stands at the gates of the Presidential Palace to mark the people's response to the tragedy of 10 April 2010, when the presidential airplane crashed killing the First Couple and political elite of the country. There has been so much controversy about this cross that it is way beyond human understanding. So, I went there to have a look what the buzz was all about. It was nothing really.
Then, I went to see some more of the Old Town, the Royal Castle, the old city walls, the statue of the mermaid, the old Opera House (the Great Theatre), the old (but newly erected) Townhall and a few parks. It was really hot, but a good day.
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Aug 11, 2010 06:00 PM Warsaw (PL) - the Old Town
After the no-play day yesterday, I insisted that we see a few bits of the city. It was an easy tour. After work, I picked my colleagues from their hotel, then my business partners from their hotels, and we walked from Plac Trzech Krzyzy (Three Crosses Square) to the heart of the Old Town and the square of the New Town. All the way through Nowy Swiat and Krakowskie Przedmiescie streets, the most popular walking streets in the capital.
Nowy Swiat and Krakowskie Przedmiescie have been remodelled nicely. The pavements have been widened and the traffic was reduced to permits only, taxis and public buses. Pavement cafes, coffee shops and bars with their tables and chairs right there was a surprise for me. It was not like that before.
The Old Town, and its iconic little Market Square, has been enhanced with a monument of Warsaw's Mermaid, the city's emblem. And there was water flowing from under the plinth... The square looked really groovy and atmospheric at night.
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Aug 10, 2010 06:00 PM Warsaw (PL) - Ale Gloria
Today, I spent an entire day in meetings. I have not seen much of Warsaw, apart from a few glances from a couple of taxi rides. For the first time, I travelled through the Bridge of St Cross (Most Swietokrzyski), which was being built when I was last in the city. So, this was a very typical business trip. All work and no play. Well, not exactly. At the end of the day, my colleagues, business partners, clients and I went for a nice dinner at the Ale Gloria restaurant owned by Magda Gessler, Poland's famous chef and restaurateur. She even had her own TV programme - she toured Poland and 'saved' struggling restaurants.
Magda Gessler has a few great restaurants in Warsaw and a few good pastry shops/cafes as well. The Ala Gloria is like a giant wedding cake, and it feels like the guests are right inside it. The food was great and service was also nice. The cuisine was a fusion of traditional Polish, modern Polish and contemporary European. It was not cheap.
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Aug 09, 2010 06:00 PM Warsaw (PL) - LOT Polish Airlines
It has been a few years, since I had been on a LOT's aircraft. Their Boeings are so small, I forgot. It does not make any sense really to buy business class tickets for the short flights they make. They only have 12 business class seats and they are equally small as those in the regular economy class. But of course if full flexibility is required, then one has little choice, and the London-Warsaw route is so busy that the economy tickets go very quickly.
Warsaw has changed. A few new skyscrapers have been erected, a few squares have been cleaned up and one of Warsaw's main boulevards has got a good facelift. One of the new tall buildings was the Hilton Warsaw Hotel, where I was staying.
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Aug 04, 2010 06:00 PM Warsaw (PL) - Warszawa, an extension of stay
Just a few minutes ago, I learnt that I will be going to the capital of Poland for a business trip. Coincidentally, I was planning to fly to Warsaw the same week for a weekend. Now, it looks like it is going to be Tuesday night until Sunday night. This is good. Mixing business with pleasure is something that definitely appeals.
I do not have specific plans (apart from working) for the city, but it has been a good few years since I was in Poland's capital. There will be plenty to catch up with. Both at the human side and at the sightseeing side.
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Jul 24, 2010 06:00 PM Farnborough (GB) - International Airshow
I got up early, packed a couple of smoked cheese and ham sandwiches with home-baked bread, and drove to Farnborough, a tiny little place south west of London, where British AirForce base is. Every other year, the air industry, both military and civilian, have their international trade for an entire week, the largest in the world.
This year, it was my debut. It is so strange that I managed not to venture to Farnborough for the airshow in the past, so close to my home. The website of the airshow is flashy but certain crucial information is always missing there. For example the detailed and accurate schedule of the air display, when military and civilian aircraft takes to the air to show their manoeuvrability. And what exactly is on display on the stand and inside the exhibition halls.
I wanted to explore the A380 properly, see inside the cabins of the A350 XWB and B787, and to see the A380 show off in the air. Also, it would be nice to see inside the executive jets, how plush they make them, etc.
So, the show, to be completely honest did not meet all my expectations. The iconic Red Arrows, military aircraft, did not disappoint. The air show they put on was incredible. And fast! As always, actually. The A380 also showed some awesome capabilities. It was hard to believe that a massive aircraft like that could glide in the air so effortlessly, could take off so quickly and make sharp turns like a recreational light plane!
The B787 was not available for visiting (at least not today, maybe it was on Saturday), the A380 was available for Airbus employees only and not for the public (it was available for public on Saturday!). Not good! The exhibits did not have too many interesting things on show, not for the end customers (travellers). Well, I did not find the companies, which would show off their seats, the A350 XWB only had a rather poor film patronising the public about the development of the aircraft without giving out anything at all for a traveller, and even the Russian aircraft manufacturers, who could show off a little more (they had nice models of their new airplanes, though), did not show too much either. I found that very strange.
There was plenty of decent food on the grounds, teas, coffees, soft drinks, beer, and ice-cream. It was very well organised with the police taking care of the traffic and parking. The ticket was £30 on the spot (or £25 from the website a few days in advance), which was quite a lot, relative to what was actually available. Next time, if I go again, I would go on Saturday, as there are still deals being signed on that day, and more seems to be on show for the public, particularly in terms of the aircraft standing on the grounds.
The passages above the M3 motorway, just around the canal viaduct, were also a perfect observation points, if one wanted to see the aircraft in the air only, and not the exhibits. Also, the carpark of the Holiday Inn, on the Queen's Roundabout in Farnborough, offers quite a good view as well. And the hotel bar, is capable of making relatively good mojitos, but you have to ask them to put a double or even tripple dose of rhum...
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Jul 17, 2010 06:00 PM Ustka (PL) - See you another time
Time flew. Today, I am leaving. My brother takes me back to Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport for my evening departure back to London.
I think I should always come to Ustka in the summer for a week. The issue is however, that weather is not always as nice as this time round. July is Poland's wettest month. It is also the hottest, true but this is not always the rule at the seaside. Sometimes, August is better than July in Ustka and long term weather forecasts are usually rubbish.
It would be good to see Ustka still developing itself, improving its facilities and offering more attractions in the summer. The harbour is due to significant refurbishing in the next two years, and a real full blown yachts marina is planned as well.
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Jul 16, 2010 06:00 PM Ustka (PL) - the penultimate day
My friends would want me to stay extra few days, but I my work in London keeps calling me to come back as soon as possible. So, on my penultimate day, my friends and I met at the seafront promenade with their children. The youngest, who is a great little boy, is obviously the boss. He is about 20 months old and does not cry that much, even when it falls or bumps his head. But it does not mean that he has no tantrums. He does. But they take a form of him squatting down with his head close to his knees for a few moments. My friend says that this is how the boy manages his stress. It will be probably another month before he begins to speak properly, when thing will most definitely change...
Weather is still lovely. It is slightly cooler, as the morning brought a thunderstorm for about 20 minutes, but still rather sticky and humid. The seafront promenade has been occupied by the highlanders from the Poland's southern Beskid region. They brought various cheeses and regional dishes including cooked pig's thighs, and roasted pig's heads, which I would not bear to eat...
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Jul 15, 2010 06:00 PM Ustka, Kobylnica (PL) - the Paulaner
Today, we celebrated my cousin's forthcoming 40th birthday. My friend, managed to get two small kegs of Paulaner hefe-weizen beer from a friend, who owns a small beer wholesale store.
About 18 people came, some from the southern end of Poland, whom I had not seen for 20 years. It was good to see them. The gathering involved taking care of a bunch of kids as well, but there was a lot of food on the grill (beef, pork, sausages, chicken, fish) and many, very many delicious salads, including Greek tzatziki and feta salads, Italian tortelini and tomato & mozarella, Mexican-style bean with everything, red radish salad, and others. All washed down with Paulaner from the kegs.
There was a little singing and dancing. The sun was high, it was hot right into the night and through to the next morning. It was good.
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Jul 14, 2010 06:00 PM Rowy (PL) - After many years...
Rowy, a summer resort and a small village at the sea, is only 20 kilometres east from Ustka, and although very popular amongst the holiday makers, it must have been over 25 years since I have been there properly. I once visited the place for the New Year's Eve, some 15 years ago - arrived in the dark at the cottage in the woods surrounding the village, and left in the dark without seeing anything really.
Well, there is not that much to see in Rowy anyway. It is a pleasant and quiet little place for those, who want peace. The beach is nice, white, sandy and long. There are not any large clubs, discos, or seafront promenades with vendors, comics, cafes, sweet machines, ice-cream booths, beer gardens, beach bars, and vessels offering sea rides, like in Ustka. There are only about three streets. One running into the village lined with a couple of decent eateries and rather primitive amusement parks. One running parallel to the coastline but with no sea view at all, with some shops and large Ustka style ice-cream cafeteria. And the third one is parallel to the first one, running along the small port. That is it. Sadly, there is nothing particularly interesting to photograph there either, unless the wild boars take to the streets, but they do not do that in the summer, when there are so many tourists around.
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