For those not in the know, I am a teacher of English as a foreign language. I gained my CELTA qualification back in April of this year and I have been freelancing ever since.

In August, I worked for the company Angloville – a cultural and language exchange programme provider – chaperoning Polish teenagers around London and providing them with conversation practice. A few months later, I decided to take the opportunity to travel to Poland’s capital Warsaw where I would work for Angloville again – this time with adults.

On the 29th of November, I travelled to Warsaw, and Poland, for the very first time. I flew from London Heathrow into Chopin International loading at 2pm local time. The flight was only two hours, which meant the journey was shorter than I was expecting.

Once at Chopin, I took the local train to Warsaw Central Station. Heads-up. You can either buy a twenty-minute or seventy-five minute ticket. The train ride to the centre is is twenty – twenty-five minutes, so it is better to get a seventy-five minute ticket, lest the twenty-minute ticket expires and you get fined by an inspector. Also, make sure you validate your tickets in the yellow machine you will find on the train or on some platforms. If you don’t then again you could be fined. I had a ticket inspector on my train and I think he was disappointed not to have an opportunity to fine a tourist like me.

Anyway, I arrived at Warsaw Central Station at three PM where the first thing I saw was the magnificent Palace of Culture and Science, which houses theatres, cinemas, libraries and academic facilities. It is the second-tallest building in Poland and a notable landmark.

From the palace, I took a fifteen-minute walk to the Oliwka Hostel where I would be spending two nights. Another heads-up about Poland – jaywalking is not allowed. If you’re caught then you will be fined. This meant that pedestrians and cyclists alike were waiting patiently until a green man appeared. And these were no normal cyclists, but food couriers. In London, food courier cyclists regularly run red lights, so I was amazed to see their Polish equivalents being so patient.

After checking into my hostel, I went out for a walk. I started working for Angloville on Sunday the First of December. But the night before, they had arranged a free walking tour of the city. We were meeting at the Sigismund Monument (an old Polish king) so I went to hunt it down. Alas I failed, but instead I found the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, plus a memorial celebrating the eightieth anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising. I am currently reading Schindler’s Ark and it’s horrific what the Nazis did to the Poles, so this tomb hit home.

Alas it was too dark, cold and wet to hang around, so I continued my ultimately fruitless hunt for the statue, although I did see some pretty Christmas lights.

I briefly returned to the hostel to check my phone for directions before setting off again. And I succeeded. I found the statue right in the middle of Warsaw’s Old Town and chief tourist sector. Around men there were Americans, Italians, French, Arabs and Spanish. Plus there was a whole row of brightly lit restaurants with many advertising Poland’s most famous food: Pierogi. One of them even had a man dressed up as a massive dumpling. Why? Beats me.

I was getting hungry but I suspected these restaurants would be tourist-trap ripoffs like you get in London’s Leicester Square or by Paris’ Eiffel Tower, so instead, I delved into the nearby Christmas Markets but these also seemed expensive. Just when it seemed all hope was lost, I found this cafe/bistro where I bought a cheese burger and coke for 29 zloty, which is £5.61.

For that price I was not expecting much but that burger really hit the spot. It had salad, tasty sauce and fried onions. Not the most authentically Polish food, but still very tasty. And I ordered it using the four words of Polish I know, which made the lady serving me very happy. Next time, I would go to a Milk Bar where I know I can get cheap authentic Polish food. And that brings my first day in Poland to a close. A day of unsmiling ticket inspectors, touching memorials and damn tasty burgers.

Polish for beginners:

Cezesc – Hello (Informal – Chesck)

Dzien dobry – Good Day (Jen do-bray)

Proshe – Please (Pro shay)

Chialbym – I would like (Chalbiram)

Dzielkuje – Thank you (Jenkuyay