In the city of Chopin

Warsaw was devastated by bombing during World War II. But the once ruined buildings have been reconstructed so beautifully, and lovingly, that it is hard to believe the desolation that once befell this historic city
Ranjita Biswas

Architecture in Warsaw’s Old Town area, the core of the city, goes back to the 13th century and gives a city its own identity and beauty

Warsaw. The city of Chopin. A city devastated by bombing during World War II. A destruction so poignantly brought out by Roman Polanski in his award winning film The Pianist, based on the life of a Polish-Jewish musician who survived Nazi persecution. A city from which thousands of Jews were deported during the Holocaust.

Beyond the Market Square is the Barbican, the gate that sealed the old defensive wall of the Old Town

In the centre of the Market Square is a fountain with the statue of Syrenka, the Mermaid, the symbol of the city

All these thoughts usually race through a visitor's mind as the plane hovers above the Polish capital. But interestingly, the city's once ruined buildings have been reconstructed so beautifully, and lovingly, that it is hard to believe the devastation that once befell this historic city. One can see a frenzy of construction activity going on even now with tasteful high-rises and new hotels coming up on the banks of Vistula River. It is a constant reminder that Poland's is one of the better performing economies compared to many in the bedraggled European Union members now.

Architecture gives a city its own identity and beauty. Nowhere it is more evident than in Warsaw's Old Town area, the core of the city, that goes back to the 13th century. It is now in the Unesco Heritage list. The vast Zamkowy Square dominated by the Zygmunt Column named after the king, who shifted the capital to Warsaw from Cracow, greets you as you approach this part of the city. On one side are still surviving parts of the red-brick rampart that protected the city ; on the other, the majestic 17th century Royal Castle, which has risen from the ruins of war.

There are many restaurants in the Square that offer traditional Polish fare. A narrow street nearby — the Royal Route — leads to the Old Market Square. If you don't like walking, you can take a ride in a 'droshky', a horse-drawn cart, as many tourists do.

The cobbled Swietojanska Street is lined with historical buildings and is dominated by the 15th century Gothic St John's Cathedral. The Market Square seems like a painting out of an art page. Street-side painters were painting portraits, small shops with flower pots in front beckoned and each of the historic buildings that lined the square had facades in a different colour. In the centre of the square was a fountain with the statue of Syrenka, the Mermaid. It is the city's symbol. You can spend hours here enjoying the ambience: people eating and gossiping, children charging the pigeons, or looking at the artists working on their canvases.

Beyond the Square you come across the Barbican, the gate that sealed the old defensive wall of the Old Town. Beyond is the New Town which was built later. The city walls, which took 200 years, to build are very much in evidence even today.

Warsaw is not old town alone. An extension of the Royal Route leads to the vibrant Krakowskie Przedmiescie street with numerous cafes, churches, the royal palace, the Polish Academy of Sciences with a statue of Poland's illustrious son Copernicus, the astronomer. This is the university area and the crowd is youthful, stylish and a certain aura of carefreeness hangs over the air. Sitting at a cafe and munching on Pierogi, the famous Polish dumpling, one can imagine a time when fear and devastation ruled this beautiful city though the present ambience makes it difficult.

At the end of the Royal Route is the Belvedere Palace, till very recently seat of Poland's president. The exquisite white building shines like a white gem in the afternoon glow.

If Vienna has her Mozart, Warsaw has her musical genius Frederic Chopin. Near the Belvedere Palace is Lazienki, a huge park. In the centre is a beautiful sculpture of Chopin set amid water. In summer every Sunday, open-air concerts are held here. There are also 'musical' benches around and on the Royal Route streetside; if you press a certain spot a Chopin composition comes alive.

For a bird's eye view of the city, the best place is the Palace of Culture and Science that dominates the skyline in the central district. One can buy a ticket to go up to the 30th floor, from where one can have stunning view of the winding Vistula River, new buildings coming up and in the distance, bridges and the old town's contour.

Polish people are fond of music and dance. To get a taste, a visit to such a restaurant is a must where amid traditional d`E9cor, folk musicians play, and at times some guests even do an impromptu jig keeping to the lovely folk tune. For those more modern, there are night clubs where the ambience is absolutely different with an expert disc jockey, a hip young crowd on the dance floor on their Friday night out and the air full of laughter and excitement. It feels as if Warsaw today is a perfect blend of the old and new.

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