European trip 2011

So after dinner I wanted to chill a bit and have a beer or two. I found a really good polish bar on-line called Degustatornia Beer House Gdańsk. After wandering around and completely getting lost trying to find it I got lucky and stumbled across it. It's a great little locals bar and they have about 20 types of polish beer (tap and bottles), as well as Czech, German, Belgium, and Lithuanian beers. Nothing was in English on the menu but luckily the bartender spoke good English, so I ordered a couple pints and soaked in the local atmosphere.

So I was feeling up for some DnB and luckily there just happened to be some good Djs playing across town in a club called Buffet. The name of the place is a bit strange but I had read good reviews on it so I started my long trek to find the place. Again I got lost wandering the streets of Gdansk but I asked some young locals if they knew where it was and not only did they know but they also decided to show me! The two polish girls and young guy were extremely friendly, they told me that they were on their way to see Borgore, a very popular international dubstep Dj. But when they found out I was American the two girls dropped the guy and wanted to hangout with me. After walking through some pretty industrial areas with no street lights and along some dirt paths we finally made it to Buffet in an old shipyard, and thank god they showed me where it was because I would have never found it. The girls told me that this club is located in a very special place for Polish people because the shipyard is where the Polish solidarity movement finally won their freedom from communist Russia. I was feeling good about how the night was transpiring, soaking up all the history and being in a weird/strange/cool place is just exciting! Walking up to the club I couldn't believe my eyes, I had never seen a club like this, it's not some posh VIP lounge you see in downtown Miami or LA, this place was in some type of abandoned warehouse used for the shipyard next door. The building had actually been converted into a urban/modern art venue with a bar/lounge in the other half. This place was dope and what underground DnB is all about! So I bought the girls some beers and we started to soak in the music. The guy that was playing was really good, he was playing the minimal upfront style that I'm loving right now.

Buffet at night

Buffet entrance

Buffet entrance

Buffet at night

Dj unkown

168

New Polish friends

memorial statue for solidarity

Unfortunately, I don't think the girls were that into the music and after about 20-30 minutes they wanted to go to a private underground party. Normally I would have just stayed at the club because the music was so good but because they sacrificed their time to show me the place I didn't want to be rude so I told them I would go. So we took a taxi to some abandoned storefront/warehouse downtown and I had no idea what to expect at this point. After arriving there were some guys playing an interesting mix of hard techno and drill n bass, not really my cup of tea but everyone there was friendly and curious about the American, haha. After chilling a couple of hours it was about 3am and I needed to get back so we took a taxi and they dropped me off at the hotel. Before leaving they told me to meet them tomorrow at 8 outside the hotel but I never saw them again, sucks because they were good people.

da real undergound party

crazy polish people

goodbye friends

wierd hole in the door art

About three months ago my boss agreed to send me to Poland for a scientific research conference, which made me ecstatic for an opportunity to visit Europe. After a 13+ hour trip from Orlando, FL to Gdansk, Poland via Philadelphia and Munich I finally arrived! Unlike my last trans-Atlantic trip to Portugal a few years ago, this time I don't feel like a zombie from the jet lag. I slept about 6 hours on the plane and it really seemed to do the trick.

At the Munich airport I ran into a friend and fellow PhD student Levi who was traveling with his wife, which was a pleasant surprise. Upon arrival in Gdansk we all shared a taxi ride to the city center. The Polish taxi driver spoke minimal English but was in good spirits and drived like a maniac in some very heavy traffic. Because it was Friday I guess everyone was coming into the city, but the ride was pretty quick (20min). My first impression of Poland is a good one. The outside of Gdansk is very rural with lots of forests, while inside the city everything appears to be relatively clean. My hotel (Dom Sonata) is located in a music academy that functions as a school outside the summer months. I purchased a single room but lucked out and got a double on the top floor, although I'm a little paranoid that I'll have a unknown roommate at some point of my stay. The hotel is quiet and nice and located right outside (5min walk) the old town, which is the touristy ancient area of Gdansk.

My first meal of the evening was at Targ Rybny (Fish Market), an extremely well reviewed seafood restaurant in the old town. The menu was written in both Polish and English, quite a relief because currently I speak no Polish. I ordered the whole baked trout with potato gratin which was very simple, a whole fish backed with lemon and well seasoned. The fish tasted super fresh and it was supper cheap ($8 dollars with a huge beer). The great thing about Poland for a US traveler is that everything is so inexpensive, one beer is around $1 US dollar and dinner will set you back about $10.

Old city during the day

Old city at night

Street art