Only ended up here because of a work conference, but it turned out to be a great paid vacation to a city I don’t know when or if I ever would have gotten around to visiting. But, everything below was jam packed into my time off and I made sure to walk from pin to pin on the map on my phone to see it all. Only one thing I didn’t get to. Glad I went and got to see all these small trinkets of history and memorials, but won’t visit again, Krakow is next for Poland adventures.
Żabiński Villa .. The Zookeepers Wife
Best things first right.. the whole trip was worth it for this one part. This part of history people walk by every single day and probably have no idea, or worse don’t care about.
I wont go into a whole lot about the Villa itself for the chance you’ve seen the movie – and if you haven’t-add it to the top of your list RIGHT NOW. In short, the Zabinski family owned the Warsaw Zoo during World War II and through this unique place and position, was able to save 300 Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto. All but two survived the war, and two are still alive today. A boy who was 6 and his sister who was 2 when they lived here. The family kept the Jews in their house basement, the only building not destroyed by bombs during the war, what a miracle and blessing.
It was truly incredible to walk through history. However what you see in the movie and life today, is not how it was then. There were no windows, no AC, no lights or electricity. The Jews down there were always quiet and did not see the sunlight, some for the several years they stayed. Watch the movie, do some googling. I have no words for how amazing this whole place is because of what it was during such a crucial time. Bless.
Jewish history // Holocaust remembrance
1: A Footbridge of Memory: installation to memorialize the footbridge that once stood here connecting the two parts of the Ghetto. 2+3: A monument at the bridge with explanation. 4-6: Photos through a scrolling view window at the bridge to see what it looked like before. 7: Marking on the sidewalk where the walls of the Ghetto once were. 8: Nozyk Synagogue: The only surviving prewar Jewish house of prayer. Built in 1898. Still operational. Sacred ground. How special. 9+10: Ghetto Wall remains. Walked by this every day, chilling and crazy how iconic this is and people walk by like its nothing.
Old Town & Old Town Market Square // Views from the top of the Observation Tower
Top place to visit in Warsaw..apparently (I already stated my top place). Glad someone told me to spend the money to see it from the top. Cool view across the plaza. Bustling with restaurants, tourists, vendors, etc. Overall, meh.. but that’s just my bored opinion.
Popular Sites
1: All Saints’ Church. 2: Plac Grzybowski park 3+4: Prozna, “Last Street Standing,” once part of the Warsaw Ghetto, can still see bullet holes. 5+6: Saxon Garden.
7+8: Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. 9: Pilsudski Square.
10+11: Palace of Culture and Science 12-15: Warsaw Uprising Monument.
16: Giraffes at the zoo. 17: Friends themed cafe.
Food // Around the city
1. Cute street outside Old Town 2. Warsaw Spire building with the ‘I love Warsaw” sign
3. A cool art installation in the spire area with art made of plastic 4. Street art
5. A photo at the Barbakan landmark of an American flag on a building after bombing
6-8: Sushi, shrimp from a French place, Pierogis from Zapiecek
9: A polish military videographer in a street museum installation. Small world
10: Foreign money is always cool. See how tiny their one cent is.
So, Live; Through Travel 
I love traveling with you. I can hear you saying what your typing. Great Job!
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