10 latest experiences http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl en-us While researching places to stay in Warsaw, several hotel descriptions included the words “opposite the Palace of Culture and Science” (Pałac Kultury i Nauki), which made me wonder just how big this building is. The answer is large. Very large. Massive. Rather enormous. Huge. This gothic-style and briskly beautiful building is 40 storeys high (231 metres or 757 feet) and scrapes the sky. In the early mornings it can be shrouded in mist. The building was “given” to the Polish people in 1955 by Stalin as proof of the two countries' “strong” friendship. Some gift; strange friendship. Like it or loath it (and Poles do both), it is a great landmark. Lost? Look for Stalin’s palace and you’ll know where the centre of Warsaw is. Don’t know what time it is? Look up; it has a very big clock. Inside, there is a conference centre; office space; and a congress hall holding nearly 3000 people. Receptions and balls are held there too. There are theatres, the Museum of Evolu... Warsaw, Poland galstergirl Mon, 04 Jun 2007 23:56:05 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl/experience/135 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/135 Parts of the Old Town (Stare Miasto) may date from the 13th century, but it is really quite new. In a sense. It was razed, along with the rest of Warsaw, during the Second World War, but rebuilt – painstakingly by volunteers from around the country who answered the call to help – in the 1940s and 1950s and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The volunteers used old plans and paintings (some by Canaletto, the Italian artist who was painter to the Polish court) to reconstruct the buildings and they sifted through the rubble for usable bricks, statues and pieces of facades. These are some of the highlights: The Square has lots of restaurants that serve traditional Polish food such as pierogi (dumplings with a variety of fillings; savory - meat, cheese, mushroom or potato, and sweet – blueberries, strawberries). The waitresses wear traditional dress. It’s touristy, but nice, and in the centre of the square is the statue of the mermaid, Warsaw’s ancient emblem, holding a s... Warsaw, Poland galstergirl Mon, 04 Jun 2007 22:15:57 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl/experience/134 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/134 There is a super shopping centre slap bang in the middle of Warsaw, beside the main train station (Warszawa Centralna) and close to the Palace of Culture and Science. It's called Golden Terraces (Zlote Tarasy) and is huge (more than 200,000 square metres) with a bubbly domed roof. There you'll find Levi, Reebok and Nike, the usual suspects, and some very familiar faces to visitors from the UK: Marks and Spencer, Next, Wallis... You could be anywhere quite frankly - Kent, Kildare or Faro. In fact, the only traditional shop was E. Wedel's cafe and chocolate shop. I say "traditional". Wedel was a state-owned chocolate maker, which is now half-owned by Cadbury, but it has a local resonance. The souvenir to pick up there is a large, round, chocolate-covered praline wafer (Torcik Wedlowski) that you cut like a cake. It comes in a round white box with a navy-blue ribbon. But if you really want to get the pulse of the city, go underground, through the tunnels that connect the m... Warsaw, Poland galstergirl Mon, 04 Jun 2007 11:55:20 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl/experience/129 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/129 Here are some of my favourite things along the 8.8km long Sea Wall walk in Stanley Park, Vancouver: 1. The Girl in a Wetsuit statue: reminds me of the little mermaid statue in Copenhagen. Elek Imredy was the sculptor and it dates from 1972. 2. The figurehead of SS Empress of Japan: the Empress of Japan used to ply the waters between Vancouver and Hong Kong, a journey that used to take ten days. The figurehead, depicting a fire-breathing dragon, was donated to the park in 1927 and replaced by this fibreglass copy in 1960. 3. Siwash Rock: the 50-feet outcrop has its own legend. A plaque nearby tells the story of Skalsh, The Unselfish, an Indian brave who was transformed into the rock by Q'UAS The Transformer to stand forever as an monument to the young man's generosity of spirit. 4. The mountains of yellow sulphur on the North Shore docks. Despite all the rain Vancouver gets, they don't wash away... Why is this? 5. The Lions Gate Bridge: you pass right under this busy... Vancouver, Canada galstergirl Tue, 29 May 2007 14:02:02 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl/experience/119 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/119 We fetched up on a summer Sunday afternoon. Four students, still partly hungover from the night before, really rather ill-prepared to hike the Grouse Grind Trail. We didn't look very much like the other climbers; not outdoorsy and fit or in appropriate gear. With wonkier teeth and clad in jeans and trainers, we didn't even bring enough water. The Grind is well named. The hiking trail up the side of Grouse Mountain, 2.9km (1.8 miles) up, up, up. Think of it as walking up several hundred flights of stairs. We started off well enough, marching up the wooden steps, but quickly ran out of puff. Around us, families and old people passed us by. In front of us, successful grinders were racing down the mountain. We thought we would never get to the top. Our water bottles were emptied quickly. A backpack fell, dispensing its collection of fruit. Oranges went boing, boing, boing down the steps. We shouted "sorry!" to the hikers coming after us and hoped nobody would be knocked over by an ... North Vancouver, Canada galstergirl Sun, 27 May 2007 11:43:36 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl/experience/109 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/109 Vancouver is an all-round beautiful city combining mountains, beaches and the laid-back lifestyle that gives the West Coast its unmistakeable vibe. My favourite experience there was unusual in that it involves public transport. But this is not just any old bus or train. We're talking about the SeaBus and, as the name suggests, it plies a water route across the Burrard Inlet betweeen Vancouver's Downtown and North Vancouver. The SeaBus is a quaint catamaran that looks like a boxy barge. One craft leaves Waterfront Station in downtown Vancouver while another leaves Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver and they pass each other midway across Burrard Inlet. The "departure points" are well-ordered with clocks counting down the minutes to the next sailing. There's always a scramble to get the front seats. From here, you can see the North Shore mountains and Lonsdale Quay come into view, and, on the return leg, the highrise buildings that make up the city's picturesque downtown. The fro... Vancouver, Canada galstergirl Sun, 27 May 2007 10:51:25 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl/experience/107 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/107 When you get as far as the Dingle Peninsula in southwest Ireland, you are on the edge of Europe. The next stop is America. The religious-minded local people used to put it a touch differently: "next parish America". Dingle (also known in Irish as An Daingean) is a charming town with a New Age vibe. Well, it does have a resident dolphin, Fungie, and lots of craft shops, restaurants, pubs and brightly coloured houses, but for "real", remote, Ireland, drive on to Dunquin (Dún Chaoin) and take a ferry to the Blasket Islands. It was a blowy day as we climbed down the steep concrete steps on Dunquin Pier. Past the traditional fishing boats, we stepped into a dinghy which took us out to a larger boat anchored some distance away. The boat tumbled and tossed across the waves to Great Blasket island. It took about about 30 minutes and cost about 30 euros but was well worth the effort. The ferry leaves every hour, weather permitting. Once upon a time, in the 1920s and 1930s the sma... Ireland, Ireland galstergirl Sat, 26 May 2007 14:14:28 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl/experience/105 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/105 We spotted the huge golden orb between the grey buildings on our cruise of the River Thames. It stood out like a flaming sun amid the modern concrete. Next day we went back to have a proper look at what turned out to be the Monument. It stands (appropriately enough) in Monument Street (opposite Monument Underground station) 202 feet high. Built by Sir Christopher Wren (of St Paul's Cathedral fame) in 1671 to commemorate the Great Fire of London, if you were to fell the column in an easterly direction, it would reach Pudding Lane, where the fire broke out. This was the best value tourist attraction I've seen in London. It cost £2 (£1 for children) to climb the 311 narrow steps to the top and from the viewing platform there I could see the river, Tower Bridge, St Paul's dome, the Gherkin and Level 42. Upon getting back down to street level, you are presented with a certificate of achievement. Very proud moment. Tip: if you're scared of heights, do not look down the staircase... London, United Kingdom galstergirl Sat, 26 May 2007 10:42:02 +0100 http://www.hereorthere.com/members/galstergirl/experience/102 http://www.hereorthere.com/experiences/102