Poland & Berlin: Part 3 - Day 3: Walking tour, Gradowa Hill

Here is a summary of what is spent on Day 3.

23/7 Day 3: Guided walking tour, lunch at a milk bar, short hike up Gradowa Hill

Costs
(A) Food
(1) Breakfast at Balans Cafe - Smoked salmon bagel PLN34, cappucino PLN15. Total PLN49 / SEK127,94

(2) Lunch at milk bar Familijny - Shared plate of pierogi PLN28, 3 serving sets PLN39,90 each, 1 bottled alcohol-free drink PLN10. Total PLN59,23 / SEK154,65
(3) Fika at Dekko cafe - Cheese cake PLN18, Cappucino double espresso PLN13. Total PLN31 / SEK80,94

(4) Drinks at Josef K. bar - Irish coffee PLN29 / SEK75,72

(5) Dinner at Pikawa bistro - zurek soup PLN29, 1 apple juice PLN8. Total PLN37 / SEK96,61

(B) Transport and tips
(6) Tips for walking tour guide - Shared PLN50 / SEK139,50

(7) 1 tram ticket - PLN4,80 / SEK12,52 

The Story

23072023: Today, we walked into town to find a breakfast spot. We passed by the milk bar that we wanted to have lunch yesterday but could not due to a long queue and this morning, it is empty. We went inside and saw that they served hearty filling meal for example meat and potatoes. I was very surprised and neither of us had the appetite to have such a heavy breakfast. We decided that we will try that tomorrow morning instead. 

We went into a random cafe and I had salmon bagel.

After breakfast, we looked for a Kantor which is a Money Exchange Office because we did not have any cash to give as tips to our walking tour guide. I read that currency exchange rate is not favourable on weekends but we had no choice. Our travelling companion left the Polish notes at home. Haha! At the money exchange office, we received PLN1 = SEK2,7215. When we paid via credit card on the same day, the exchange rate was PLN1 = SEK2,6111. 

We started our walking tour at Main Town Gdansk at 10.30am. The walk was for 2.5 hours. We met next to the Golden Gate (Zlota Brama). Here, I started to learn on the history of Poland. Gdansk town was 90% destroyed and 20% population died during World War 2. So, everything that we saw in the main town was restored based on old documents. The restoration was so impressive! 

After the walking tour, we had lunch at a milk bar. We saw a milk bar that has many benches and tables nd they were almost filled up so we decided to join the crowd. I mean, it is always a good sign if there is a crowd which means the food is good. A sign to use especially when one is in a new place. I got excited by the food variety on display. 

I was very confused initially with how it worked. So, I thought I could try different dishes. But, I was wrong. I realised I was wrong when I wanted 1 pierogi (a Polish dumpling) and the staff said no and I will get 10. I said, no, I do not want 10. So, I ignored the pierogi but my boyfriend took a plate of pierogi and we shared. Then, I figured out how it worked - one serving set consists of portion of potatoes, vegetables and meat. So, I got a huge portion for each dish. It reminded me of the economy rice in Malaysia but in Malaysia, there is no limitation on the type of dishes that one can take. However, back during my college days, I remembered that the economy rice with 1 meat and 1 vegetables cost RM2.20 and with 2 meat costs RM2.50 but that was 20 years ago. I suppose it is easier to have a fix serving set of PLN39.90.

I took a pork fillet, mixed vegetables and potatoes. It was very dry for me. I was surprised to see that there is no sauce to any of the dishes. I had alcohol free bottle and my travel companions got a beer bottle and they cost the same. WHAT! I thought my alcohol-free drink will be cheaper. 

The pierogi was delicious when it is warm but not very appetising once it is cold. 

After lunch, we decided to have dessert. So, went to a random cafe. It was a good choice because it rained when we were in the cafe. Here, we ordered a cappucino double espresso as coffee has quite a weak taste here. So, we could taste some strong coffee with the double espresso. My travel companion informed that coffee was a rationed product during World War 2 and there was even coffee-taste drinks so the locals here are used to weak coffee.

Then, we made our way to Gradowa Hill which was located opposite Gdansk main train station. Our walking tour guide said that there is a good view of the city from the hill and it was her favourite spot in town. This place used to play a role in the town's defence but today, we see remains of the fortifications and there were exhibitions on the 19th century fort that was built here.

Time for beer for my travel companions. We went to Josef Bar as recommended by the tour guide where I had irish coffee. Gosh, it was strong... I was keen to have irish coffee as my travel companions had that on the ship. 

We walked randomly in the main town and found a random restaurant for dinner. Here, we tried the local soup - zurek soup that comes with bacon, sausages, potatoes and an egg. The soup has a unique ingredient - fermented rye flour which gives the sour taste. It was very yummy!

Then, we took the tram back to our Airbnb because we needed to get back in time to do our laundry!