A Polish Holiday....Monday in Wilanow

This past Monday was the public/religious holiday "Day of Assumption"...as a result, Mark had the day off so we went exploring in the area of Wilanow (an area of Warsaw south/east of our home) ...this is also the same area where I found the Polish pottery shop last week.

On public holidays, all stores, shops, malls and businesses are closed... so no pottery shopping on this day, but great fun in learning, eating and exploring in a new area of Warsaw.

We took a bus ride here and our first stop was to eat lunch (restaurants and transportation are opened)...we ate at a small outdoor restaurant called Milanovo... a pizzeria and cafe. We split our delicious entree of meatballs, and vegetables in a light cream/cheese sauce.

We are learning to pronounce the names of the streets where we visit! We are learning that the names of many streets are named after former rulers and kings from Poland's history. I am happy to say I can pronounce the above name...:)!!!

With most meals we order "water" (with no gas/carbonated)... I just learned this day that each time we order "voda/water" we pay for it...not free as in the U.S.

We passed this large church after lunch. We noticed while eating many people passed by with flowers...here they are in line to enter the church. We think it is part of the holiday celebration.

Throughout the city people sell many things...at this time of year selling fresh berries (blueberries/raspberries) is very common. Also, at the far end of the picture you will see

heads of large sunflowers...you see these everywhere.

A customer selects a sunflower head then will just pick out the seeds and eat them.

We headed to the Wilanow Palace for the afternoon. This was the summer palace for the king. This was the residence of the same king whose palace we toured on my birthday located in "Old Town". He wanted something a bit understated and away from the hustle and bustle of the city life.

This palace looks like a palace...but the decor is simpler compared to the residence palace in Warsaw. In side are numerous portraits, arts and decor. We were grateful for the English headsets we had... we stand out as tourists in the above pictures!

Here are a few pictures from inside...the first king to reside here..

A beautiful tiled blue/white room...reminds me of all the beautiful Polish pottery we find here.

A statue of the first king that lived in the Wilanow Palace...

We saw beautiful pictures...this palace was the home of a number of families and 200 years ago it also became a museum...the family wanted the arts from past collections to be made available to the public...

Here we peek outside and see part of the magnificent gardens...

If you know Mark...he loves raspberries...this is the "Raspberry Room"...named for the color on the walls.

For a number of years, with the help of family and friends, I have collected small thimbles. Here we find a collection of old Roman urns...a "collection" of the Polish monarchs!

This saying inscribed on the tiled floor means "free for everyone"...when part of the palace became a museum, the purpose was to "enlighten", cultivate and share the arts from collections in and around Poland.

The rooms were beautiful though much simpler than the earlier palace we saw. We enjoyed hearing the names of monarchs, kings and families...as we are challenged to pronounce so many Polish words around us.

We come outside to the gardens which surround the entire palace...they are so beautiful!

We would love to have gardens like these...sans the mosquitoes! A few statues scatter the gardens in addition to having statues and busts on top and around the palace roof.

There are thousands of plants, hedges, and roses...we wonder who maintains these gardens.

After leaving the palace, we stop and purchase raspberries for ourselves...yummy!

Mark...picture says it all!

With all that walking and learning we were ready for dessert...if you notice the blue sign behind me "Kim's"...this is the small pottery shop where I purchased my few bowls last Friday. It's a small shop but what a great selection they have inside!

Another picture of my pottery purchased last Friday... I was thrilled it came from the city of Boleslawiec...this is where most factories are located.

To celebrate 6 weeks together in Poland...we treated ourselves to desserts at E. Wedel (a dessert shop)....

Look at this great dessert Mark ordered...it is raspberry sorbet, vanilla ice cream and sweet treats...I ordered apple pie and ice cream ... yummy though different than in the states.

We thought it quite humorous that we split our entree (healthy food) and we each individually ordered our own dessert! We had a great day! Loved being together, learning and enjoying being outdoors.

We think we will return and just might venture here on our bikes the next time!

P.S....As we walked to our bus stop we saw across the street a "Golf Pro Shop". We thought of Jamie...there must be a driving range or golf course near by...we will have to check them out sometime.