Strange Art at Marymont

 Came across this strange art at Marymont Metro Station in Warsaw the other day.

Not sure if I like it or not, being honest.

It just looks colourfully weird, like something out of an acid trip.

Have seen better and worse art, I guess.

Scorpions/Europe - Warsaw National Football Stadium (26-07-24)

After a gap of thirty-odd, long years, I finally got to see Scorpions again, this time at the National Football Stadium in Warsaw.

Before the Warsaw gig, I'd last seen Scorpions in the late 1980s at Birmingham NEC, and had first seen them three times in 1980 on the Animal Magnetism tour in Manchester, twice with (Rickey Medlocke's) Blackfoot opening for them.

The Warsaw gig showed that there's still very much life left in the band:

 

 

Enjoyed the show from start to finish, taking in old classics like Make It Real; The Zoo; Bad Boys Running Wild; Big City Nights; Still Loving You etc.

But my favourite tune of the set had to be Coast to Coast, it was pure dynamite, that good.

Also really enjoyed Europe:

 Have only really known Europe in passing, over the years, for their hit singles (The Final Countdown; Carrie; Cherokee), but seeing them live, it was the other tracks (Sign of the Times; Walk the Earth etc.) that shone out for me.

It'd also been about 10-11 years since I'd last seen a gig (Roger Waters) at the National Football Stadium in Warsaw, and I'm happy to say that the acoustics seem to have improved considerably.

Victim of the Storm

 An apple tree at the top of the orchard split asunder from the storm in Eastern Poland last week.

In the calm, looking out towards the sunflower fields:

Advertisements Dominating the Landscape

 

Above, an advertisement well and truly dominating the Warsaw landscape.

Below, an interesting juxtaposition of old and new advertisements:

Digging up a Bush

 In Eastern Poland, I found myself removing a bush:

As you can imagine, this was backbreaking work with axe, shears, and saw:

At first, I had to trim the bush to get anywhere near the roots:

 

And a pile of wood gradually built up:

As things started looking better:

Kotek and Lola

 

Nice shot of Kotek with his new female friend, Lola, above.

And below, Kotek is having his afternoon snooze:

The Arch to the Fountain

 Heading towards the Arch:

Past a bird-box:

 And some berries:

Through the Arch:

Being greeted by Ratusz Arsenał in full sunshine:

The Fountain was aglow:

A nice way to spend a Sunday.

Shade on a Mid-Summer Afternoon

 Another nice Sunday afternoon stroll after the Old Latin Mass, first taking in a small opera house.

This place really was private albeit a stone's throw from the main road.

Nearby, there were tall, monumental-looking buildings:

My kind of place:

Offering shade on a scorching, mid-summer afternoon:

Stork on a Chimney

 Nice shot from Eastern Poland of a stork on a house chimney. Unfortunately, he soon flew off.

Concert by the Riverside

 

For some time, it was touch and go whether the Descartes A Kant gig at Plac Zabaw (by the riverside in Warsaw) would take place.

But thankfully, it did:

We got down early, and when the rain finally stopped, we saw Ewa Sad:

The whole setting at the Plac Zabaw is magical:

Saw a few concerts down here during Covid times, including EABS, a great Polish Jazz band.

A few weeks beforehand, I'd never heard of (Mexican band) Descartes A Kant, but I checked them out, and could see they were well worth watching.

After the gig, I now find myself looking up the names of the songs they did live (Atascatto; My Sweetest Headache Waltz; A Catastrophe etc.).

Was so pleased that I risked the heavy rain and was rewarded with a great concert.

Up the Escalator

 

Going up the escalator at Metro Kopernik in Warsaw.

Got to the top and it was throwing it down, wasn't sure if the gig would take place at the riverside.

Moving into Mid-Summer

 Moving from June into July always feels like entering mid-summer for me:

The mid-summer flowers go well with the Marian statues in Warsaw:

At close quarters, Our Lady can be seen to be wearing a scapula below:

Always enjoy my Sunday afternoon strolls round Warsaw, after the Old Latin Mass.