So what is life like at the top of the ladder? Well, unless I open my own business, I will never know. I don't think I am a CEO type anyway. As much as I would love expense accounts, a fancy car, a personal assistant and plenty of travel, I don't think I am perfect at conformism.
Therefore, the only way I will see the view from the top is to pay for the chance.
Next question: who do I pay and how can I do this in Warsaw? I don't earn that much, I have no high powered friends and I am afraid of underworld gangs. So there must be a solution.....
And there is....
The Palace of Culture (
Pałac Kultury i Nauki)!
It isn't the highest building in the world (is in Poland and the second tallest clock tower in the world!), nor do many people think of it as pretty at all (I beg to differ) but, it does offer great views from the 30th floor which is 114m high! So off we go!
The Entrance doors are quite pretty, and it is a hectic place. I waited for ten minutes to get the doors to close so I could get some reflections.
They went all out on lights and trees and decorations.
If you get up close enough you can see they have photos of famous people on the baubles.
Sometimes they are older people so they are in black and white, I think it is the little guy on the right making this happen.
So to give you the facts, read on.
We took lift No. 11 to the viewing location.
The ceiling in the foyer of the viewing area.
The lights and their friends reflections in the viewing tower foyer.
The doors for the way outside to -10C with wind and maybe if we are lucky some snow.
Now I have never been up the tower in summer, this was my first trip, and I think, without a shadow of a doubt, that it looks better in winter.
You get these really cool random patterns everywhere.
Plus the neons look more fun.
Those people down there look like ants, going into Marks and Sparks.
I just think there is something "romantic" about office towers when it is day time and the lights are on and people are in there. Maybe the romance is that those people aren't me.....
Some newly renovated buildings on Aleje Jerozolimskie look nice in soft sunset and with delicate highlighting lights, shame about the mobile phone and tron adverts.
Speaks for itself really.
The corridors (or are they belfries in a tower?) that run around the towers viewing platform
Some people in Poland think it is a third world country. If you look at this photo you would almost think it to be Japan or something equally high-tech.
It just looks great. On the left of centre there is the central railway station.
Not fire, just steam.
Below the round section is the Sala Kongresowa, an entrance to go to the theatre.
Warszawa Centralna
The old communist blocks that replaced the destroyed beautiful townhouses after WWII and behind the
Church of all Saints.
The busy intersection of Marszałkowska i Świętokrzyska.
The coolest place to skate in town. The Palace ice skating rink.
I was so hoping to get a photo of people falling over, and......
We all live to dream further.
So after the enthralling, nose-freezing finger-removing cold and excitement of the tower, I ducked down to take some pics of the decorations in front of the Palace near the Central Station.
They are pretty cool.
So you must surely agree with me, Wawa is beautiful in winter, no?
Some love it, some loathe it. For me it is really a big landmark for Warsaw and a great way to tell where you are when drifting around town. The EU presidency will be interesting as most people in the other EU countries wouldn't really know much about Warsaw, so it is a great chance to put the city on display.
It isn't the highest building in the world (is in Poland and the second tallest clock tower in the world!), nor do many people think of it as pretty at all (I beg to differ) but, it does offer great views from the 30th floor which is 114m high! So off we go!
The Entrance doors are quite pretty, and it is a hectic place. I waited for ten minutes to get the doors to close so I could get some reflections.
They went all out on lights and trees and decorations.
If you get up close enough you can see they have photos of famous people on the baubles.
Sometimes they are older people so they are in black and white, I think it is the little guy on the right making this happen.
So to give you the facts, read on.
We took lift No. 11 to the viewing location.
The ceiling in the foyer of the viewing area.
The lights and their friends reflections in the viewing tower foyer.
The doors for the way outside to -10C with wind and maybe if we are lucky some snow.
Now I have never been up the tower in summer, this was my first trip, and I think, without a shadow of a doubt, that it looks better in winter.
You get these really cool random patterns everywhere.
Plus the neons look more fun.
Those people down there look like ants, going into Marks and Sparks.
I just think there is something "romantic" about office towers when it is day time and the lights are on and people are in there. Maybe the romance is that those people aren't me.....
Some newly renovated buildings on Aleje Jerozolimskie look nice in soft sunset and with delicate highlighting lights, shame about the mobile phone and tron adverts.
Speaks for itself really.
The corridors (or are they belfries in a tower?) that run around the towers viewing platform
Some people in Poland think it is a third world country. If you look at this photo you would almost think it to be Japan or something equally high-tech.
It just looks great. On the left of centre there is the central railway station.
Not fire, just steam.
Below the round section is the Sala Kongresowa, an entrance to go to the theatre.
Warszawa Centralna
The old communist blocks that replaced the destroyed beautiful townhouses after WWII and behind the Church of all Saints.
The busy intersection of Marszałkowska i Świętokrzyska.
The coolest place to skate in town. The Palace ice skating rink.
I was so hoping to get a photo of people falling over, and......
We all live to dream further.
They are pretty cool.
So you must surely agree with me, Wawa is beautiful in winter, no?
It goes even better by being the second tallest clock tower in the world!
I love the Palace, it always lets me know where I am when I get lost. It can be seen from most anywhere in Warsaw and I really don't think it is as ugly as many suggest. Also, it hosts many events, has a cinema, a night club and an observation deck. A deck I am still yet to visit! Some joke (like they do with the Eiffel Tower) that is has the best view of Warsaw, because you can't see the Palace of Culture from there.
I really just wish they would make the surrounding square nicer, remove all the car parks, shut down the roads around it and install some cafes, restaurants, link the central station and the metro line by a tunnel and just pretty it up a little. They have removed a horrid market that was standing when I arrived and it will be replaced by a new Museum (of modern art) which looks great, so it shows some promise and progress for an other wise dead heart.
Even with this moaning, I still love the Palace and it looks great at night too!
