the adventures of team fenski ...: nazdrowie! (naz-droh-vee-yuh)

... is the polish toast. literally, "to your health." and, since we were on vacation and spending time w/ family, there were loads of reasons and occasions for toasting. (if all else fails, we can toast

to not being at work:)

to americans, poland is the land of vodka. indeed, the vodka is plentiful. chopin and belvedere are popular polish brands available in the U.S. another, zubrovka, is our favorite. its grown in the
forests where buffalo roam. a piece of grass is put in each bottle. there is a chemical in the grass the FDA doesn't like so sales are forbidden in the U.S. we had a party at our condo in DC featuring zubrovka and cath's pitch was "want a drink that's toxic?" she's quite the salesperson. zubrovka is usually paired w/ apple juice to make a drink called "czarlotka" or "tatanka" (buffalo). they're delicious and dangerous (they taste like apple pie) and my default drink in poland.

cath's cousins were nice enough to show us the traditional polish method of vodka intake at a warsaw institution, Przekąski Zakąski, which is run by Pan Roman, a distinguished older man who greeted the ladies by kissing their hands. The men are ignored. Pan Roman is no dummie.

Pan Roman, keeping the customers happy

The menu is straightforward (see pic). vodka, wine, beer: 4 zlota (~$1.33).

The shots of vodka are accompanied by a chaser (in our case, OJ). you can order traditional polish food - herring, steak tartare, pork in gelatin - to go with the drinks to to aid with digestion / reduce effects of hangover. the place was odd and wonderful, i loved it. on saturday night, the bar was elbow-to-elbow, people were ordering their drinks and milling about on the sidewalks, drinks in hand.

I was challenged to a vodka shot contest by a diminutive polish girl who shall remain nameless (Beata). I won't say how many we had only that we drank the exact same number. Nonetheless, the polska claimed victory and, true to form, cited some sort of polish tradition.

3 shots, 3 smiles ... and karolina :(

Piwos: poles enjoy their fair share of beers. two of the most popular - and my favorite - are lech (named for lech walensa) and zywiec. It's hard to argue w/ the price ($2 per pint).

fenwick menfolk enjoying some piwo

Warsaw is an increasingly cosmopolitan city. It was almost-completely destroyed in World War II (bombings and uprising) then rebuilt by Communist Russia with little regard for aesthetics. For neighbors, they had Hitler and Stalin (and you thought your neighbors were bad). Poland and Ukraine are hosting the Euro 2012 football tournament, which is great in that the infrastructure (highways, sidewalks, bike lanes and subway) are getting a much-needed overhaul.

Thanks to cath's family, we were given rich insight to Warsaw's history, neighborhoods, etc. and we came love the city. It was nice to turn my brain off and not have to worry about navigation, maps,
time and deciphering street names.

can i buy a vowel?

There were cool clubs, vibrant sidewalk cafes and outdoor bars. We went to one where people were rockin' out to soul music and swing. In our last few days, we had good sushi, margaritas at a restaurant called "the mexican". When Beata and cousin Piotrek ordered me a cheesecake, the band played furiously, the lights went down and some dude dressed like Zorro ran to our table carrying the cheesecake with a sparkler. though everyone in the restaurant was nonplussed, i was pretty shocked and nearly attacked poor zorro. on final night - karolina's boyfriend, piotrek - a guy who became a licensed bartender for fun because he enjoys making cocktails for his friends (in my book, possibly the best friend one could ever had) brought over thermoses with freshly-made cocktails and loads of ice (apparently, americans take much more ice in their cocktails than europeans). a fitting end, being spoiled in warsaw, drink in hand.