Travel /
My opinion on Gdansk and Poland after 11 days [45]
I've been in Gdansk for 11 days, and it's been very nice.
Positives of Poland and Gdansk: Please bear in mind that this is also the first time I've ever spent any signifigant time in a decent sized city. Some of the things I liked or disliked may be common to most big cities. I'm kind of a rube.
Positives:
Polish women are beautiful
The no litter on the streets; it's very clean in that aspect.
There are dozens of places to shop within walking distance of everything. I visited a new condominium development yesterday, and there were a plenty of shops within walking distance.
After learning to avoid certain shop clerks, I found the people very friendly and helpful.
The beach areas in both Gdansk and Sopot are nice. They are well laid out, and people friendly first, business friendly next.
Dluga street is pretty and charming.
I loved all of the outdoor cafes, which are everywhere.
The Polish food is very good. I had no idea french fries were this popular in Poland.
Two good restaraunts I'd recommend are:
Bar Przystan in Sopot, which was by far the best place I ate at
Gospoda Vita in Gdansk
Polish cemetaries have a stunning beauty to them, as opposed to their American counterparts.
Mushroom picking is a lot of fun.
Polish women are beautiful.
Negatives:
I'm glad I didn't rent a car. The streets are rarely marked. How does the mailman do his job?
Why aren't Poles dominating F1? They get plenty of practice on a daily basis.
Graffitti is everywhere. Some of it looked rather old, but then I'm reminded of the wisdom of Jed Clampett, from the Beverly Hillbillies:
Too poor to paint, too proud to whitewash.
The graffitti really degrades the area.
The Communist Era buildings stick out like sore thumbs. There's a lot of renovating going on, and there's no shortage of work, for several years. There's no " Old World Charm " in a lot of the run down buildings.
In some respects, Gdansk has a Wild West feel. I'm not sure why, and I'm not suggesting that it's lawless. It might be the cars. I have never seen such a strange amalgamation of cars. Everybody seems to be flying around, at breakneck speed. There seems to be a buzz here. It's probably everywhere in Poland.
One last thing. I heard it from at least two dozen people. Krakow is the most beautiful city in the world. I hope to see it next year.
