Saturday, September 7 – Woke up before the sun to another lovely morning in Poland. Got on my exercise clothes and headed down to the river where I was able to jog as the sun came up over the horizon–just beautiful. For my cool down, I walked around the city and enjoyed the empty streets.

Back at the hotel, it was time to see if I could manage to get showered without completely flooding the bathroom. I was pleased that I have become much more proficient with that type of setup, no lives or floor tiles were lost during the process. However, I am hoping I don’t have to prove my prowess again any time soon.

The breakfast buffet was fine, not as substantial as that in Gdansk, but then again we had been spoiled. My only complaint (Me? Complain?) is that they wedged the coffee machine in a corner which, of course, created a big bottleneck. Thankfully, I encountered no jort wearing old guys during the meal. I think these hotels need to hire me as a consultant on breakfast layout. It would be a perfect job for me . Oh. One other complaint. Once the coffee was acquired, it tasted like hot mud. Nonetheless, these are certainly First World problems.

Had time for another stroll around town plus a stop at a Gingerbread shop before our taxi whisked us off to the train station. I try not to schedule one night stops when we travel, but I will say, one night was just right for Torun. We enjoyed our stay, but it was the right time to move on.

This train layout was much more comfortable with Dan and I having our own little face to face seating arrangement. For the first hour of our ride, our car had only 3 other people!

It filled up a bit more at one of the larger cities about halfway to Warsaw. The most interesting was the woman with a gigantic shopping bag that contained a huge potted flower and an umbrella stretch-wrapped to a bright pink yoga mat. The woman was fine, I have no complaints, just wondering what the story is with that “luggage.” I fear I will never know…

Got to Warsaw with no issues, got ripped off on taxi ride to hotel but decided not to quibble over $10. This is the poshest hotel of the trip, also the most expensive, but it is nice…even has real hangers–I ask so little…

Hadn’t had lunch, so we went to the hotel bar for drinks and a couple of small plates before venturing out to explore.

Warsaw is the capital of Poland, much larger and more urban than our first two stops. Caught a Vigil Mass before dinner–of course, I don’t know the Polish, but it’s pretty easy to follow, regardless of the language. These guys don’t mess around, it only took 25 minutes!

While I was at church, Dan was on a reconnaissance mission to locate a place for dinner. He found a great place a little bit off the beaten path. Lovely ambiance, traditional food with some upscale touches, and a delightful server who had a wonderful personality and delightful smile.

We wandered back to the hotel through city streets filled with folks out for Saturday night–almost felt as though I was in Manhattan!

Tomorrow, we explore Warsaw in depth.

26,771 steps; 14.2 miles