Warsaw, Poland

Our trip to Warsaw was more or less uneventful, which was a refreshing change... We stayed at Nathan's Villa Hostel which was 3 or 4 floors of Ikea showrooms! Quite nice actually as everything was new. Ikea is super popular here not just with people but businesses too. They don't care that Ikea brands everything they sell, so in lots of places you can confirm suspicions about furniture's humble beginnings or other knick knacks. Not too sure why I do that, or anyone else for that matter, but it always seems that no matter where you go, someone is stating - "That's Ikea, isn't it?". Just find it interesting.
Warsaw had between 70 and 80 percent of the city razed to the ground when the Nazis came through. The amount of recovery the Poles have accomplished in such a short period of time is amazing. Looking at pictures of the destruction from after the war, makes the aftermath of 9/11 look quite meager, (not to belittle the events of 9/11 in any way, just adding some perspective).
In Warsaw we met some interesting people like Can Opener, a crazy Brit ex-pat who likes to tear beer cans with his teeth, Aris, a Canadian soldier, who though he thought he was on medical leave, got called out to go to Sudan the last day we were in town, as well as Rich and Sharmella who were about to head off on a 12 day train trip across Siberia and Russia in to China. Ugh. Way too long on a train for me but cool nonetheless.
Warsaw was not an overly picturesque city for reasons stated above. They did however painstakingly re-create "the old town" where, though all the buildings are relatively new, the resemble very close the original square. It was in this square where I got my first taste of what the Nazis were all about after visiting the national museum. Some of those pictures will stay with me forever.
These were also the last days for Sally and I to be together so it threw a somber mood over everything, making it difficult for me to take advantage of where I was. As her flight day approached, sightseeing became simply wandering aimlessy through streets. Unfortunately I will probably always remember Warsaw as the city where Sally left to pursue her own ambitions.
She left in the afternoon on June 2nd. The last time I saw her she was walking through the gates at the airport, leaving behind Warsaw, a successful three year relationship and a broken, wretched shell of who I used to be.
The last couple days in Warsaw I kept myself nicely sedated with barley juice, and decided that a small town would be in order to change the scene a bit.