Mobile phones can be hired from Era (al. Jerozolimskie 181, Tel: 573 6000) or Idea (pl. Konstytucji 6).

Car hire Avis car rentals (Tel: 650 4872, Email: customer.service@avis.co.uk). Office rental Instant Offices (www.instant-offices.com).

Secretarial services These can be organised through the larger hotels.

LOCAL PRESS

Once in the city there are several publications for visitors to choose from, including the Warsaw-Life.com guide, Warsaw Insider and Warsaw In Your Pocket. These give you information about what’s on in the city, restaurant and bar reviews as well as articles about local culture and history.

The weekly Warsaw Business Journal is essential reading for the English-speaking business community, while The Warsaw Voice and The New Warsaw Express are the main English-language newspapers, both also published weekly.

INTERNET

Virtually all the top-ranking hotels have internet connections in their rooms and usually provide free access downstairs. If you’re out and about and feel like a quick surf, the city centre has masses of internet cafés to choose from. Here are some of the better options: Simple Internet Cafe (ul. Marszalkowska 99-100, Tel: 628 3190) is the biggest and best in the city, with over 150 stations, 24-hour access and a range of tasty beverages to choose from.

Intertop (ul. Nowy Swiat 18-20, Tel: 826 6062)—good, reliable joint with great service in a nice location. e-xtreme (al. Niepodleglosci 177, Tel: 825 4937) is located in the same building as the popular Zielona Ges (Green Goose) pub. There are only 10 stations, however. Pub Internetowy (ul. Piekna 68a, Tel: 622 3377)—more than just a café, this place is actually a pub, as the name suggests. Open until midnight.

MONEY

Although Poland joined the EU in May 2004, it is not yet a member of the Eurozone and hence retains its currency, the zloty (pronounced zwoty). There are 100 groszy (pronounced groshy) to one zloty. Abbreviations for the currency can be PLN or zl. Notes come in denominations of 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 zl. When trying to spend a high-denomination note you might find the cashier is reluctant to accept it and will ask for something smaller. If you can, give it to them, or you may find yourself waiting while they wander around the shop searching for change.

All major credit cards are widely accepted in Warsaw hotels, restaurants and shops. Some banks will give you cash on Visa, MasterCard, Eurocard and American Express. They will also accept traveller’s cheques. Currency can be exchanged in banks or an exchange bureau (kantor), of which there are many dotted around the city.

Banks in Warsaw are sometimes open until quite late in the evening—6 or 7pm. This is particularly true of the more newly established chains, such as Millennium or MultiBank. However, different banks have different opening hours, so to avoid disappointment it’s best to go earlier in the day.

TIPPING ETIQUETTE

Until recently tipping wasn’t really done in Poland. However, in the more upmarket restaurants waitresses have become accustomed to tips, and the usual 10% will be very much appreciated. Be careful of saying “Thank you very much” as you lay down your cash as this can be interpreted to mean “Keep the change”, placing you in the embarrassing situation of having to reclaim a portion of your money. Sometimes the enterprising young ladies disappear even if you haven’t said the crucial “thank you”. However, they generally know that they’ve taken something of a gamble and will return the money once tracked down, leaving you to decide yourself on how much you want to leave as a tip.

VISA/VACCINATION

As Poland is now in the EU, nationals of other member states don’t need a visa to visit or work in the country. However, any long-term stay will require you to have a residence permit (karta pobytu), whether you are from an EU country or not.

There are few restrictions on the granting of visas to citizens of non-EU countries. An application can be made at the Polish consulate in your country provided you possess a valid passport. Full information in English can be found at http://intl. mazowieckie.pl/en. Vaccinations are not generally required.

PUBLIC HOLIDAYS

Poland doesn’t have a lot of public holidays compared to other European countries, and a disadvantage is that, if any of the fixed date holidays fall on a Saturday or Sunday, you don’t get a day off in the week as compensation.
1st January—New Year’s Day
Late March/early April—Easter Monday.
Watch out for anyone with a bucket ofwater on Easter Monday—there’s an old tradition of drenching each other…
1st May—Labour Day
3rd May—Constitution Day. As these two holidays fall so close together, people often take the 2nd May off too. May/June—Corpus Christi 15th August—Feast of the Assumption
1st November—All Saints’ Day
11th November—National Independence Day
25th and 26th December—Christmas, but the 24th is usually a half day as well.

WEATHER AND CLIMATE

Poland has a typical continental climate with hot summers and cold winters. Temperatures over 30C are not uncommon in the summer and in winter can fall to –20C. But although it can reach these extremes, the climate is actually very easy to live with. In Warsaw, which is far from the sea to the north and the mountains to the south, the weather is highly predictable. The likelihood is that, whatever it’s like today, it’ll be the same tomorrow.

Winters usually start in late November and last until April. After such a long period of cold greyness, spring comes as something of a relief. But it can often be very short, quickly giving way to a hot summer. Thunderstorms are common in May and summer is usually hot and dry. Poles often speak of the Golden Autumn, when the leaves turn but the sun continues to shine and there is a melancholy haziness in the air before the onset of winter.

SUGGESTED READING

Without some knowledge of Warsaw’s past it can be a difficult city in which to find your bearings, both geographically and culturally. Many visitors write the city off after hardly more than a casual glance around it. But making the effort to learn a little about the place can be incredibly rewarding. Here is a selection of books to look out for.

Heart of Europe, by Norman Davies, is an excellent introductory history to Poland. It’s subtitle “the past in Poland’s present” says a lot in itself.

Rising '44, by Norman Davies, is an in-depth history of the Warsaw Rising in 1944, which led to the city’s complete destruction.

The Polish Way, by Adam Zamoyski, offers a very accessible guide to Polish history and culture.

Warsaw, by David Crowley, looks at how the city was rebuilt by the Communists and re-emerged as the national capital following the devastation of the Second World War.

GETTING INTO TOWN

Airport Warsaw is served by the Frederic Chopin Airport, located in the suburb of Okecie, 10kms south-west of the city centre.

Taxi The fare to the city centre will cost between 20-30zl and take about half an hour. Look out for the so-called 'taxi mafia’ at the airport. These people bear no relationship to the Italian variety, but rather make their living by taking unwary visitors for a ride (in both the literal and idiomatic sense). Avoid anyone who approaches you in the Arrivals hall and offers you a cab. Instead, go outside and wait at the taxi rank. Every bona fide cab should have a sticker in the window saying how much they charge per kilometre— usually 1.50 to 2.50zl.

Car Driving in Warsaw can be an exciting experience at the best of times, downright nail-biting at the worst. The roads more closely resemble motorways than streets and traffic moves accordingly fast, unless of course it’s the rush hour when it all comes to a grinding halt. The drive in to the centre is quite straightforward—follow al. Zwirki i Wigury all the way. But make sure you know exactly where you’re going before you start as a missed junction or wrong turn can send you off miles in the wrong direction. If you get it right, you should reach the centre within 30 minutes. Bus Bus 175 goes from the airport to the city centre on weekdays (4.58am-10.40pm), leaving every 20 minutes during the main part of the day. At weekends the service runs 5.01am-10.35pm. Allow 45 minutes journey time. Tickets cost 2.40zl and can be bought from news kiosks in the airport.