Toruń: A Gingerbread Lover's Dream

I found out about Toruń from a blog I follow about living in Poland with kids. This blog is exponentially better than mine and I check it every Thursday, religiously. That’s because they update things going on in Warsaw and things to do around Poland every Thursday. It’s called kidsinthecity.pl and it is honestly how I have decided every weekend since we got here!

Toruń was no different. They suggested it for a long weekend getaway and we took them up on the idea. And I think I can speak for us all and say it was THE BEST.

Toruń is a 3 hour train ride from Warsaw. I knew this would be a cinch for Scout as she has been confined to a tiny plane seat for much longer than 3 hours and we all survived. A train would be fun…we could see the countryside, look for deer and walk around when we got bored. I took the Ipad just in case, but we spent the entire 3 hours just looking out the window.

Toruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland. It was founded around the 8th c. but the Teutonic Knights really expanded in the 1200s. It is considered to be one of the most beautiful cities in Europe and it’s easy to see why. Charm is found on every single street corner. And what’s more charming than little shops filled with gingerbread? Note the photos below: In the second photo you can see The Leaning Tower of Toruń. It leans a whopping 4’11” from where it should. Legend has it that the Tower and the River used to be great friends. But pretty quickly, River started getting really clingy to Tower and couldn’t pick up on the social cues Tower was giving. Tower started leaning away in an effort to let River know it wasn’t ready for any type of real commitment. (true legend.) The third photo is of Copernicus who was born in Toruń. They are very proud of their hometown astronomer. I’ll save you the google search: Copernicus was the first to theorize that the Earth revolved around the Sun and not the other way around.

Gingerbread is the name of the game in Toruń. In fact, the only planned activity we had was to go to the Gingerbread Museum (https://muzeumpiernika.pl/) and partake in the tradition of gingerbread making. This was seriously a highlight of the entire gap year! Perfect for people of all ages. Scout was even called out to mix the honey into the cookies. Each person is allowed to make a mold of whatever they choose and take it home with them. The gingerbread you make is medieval and inedible, but a cool souvenir. I plan on using mine for Christmas decor.

We stayed at the Apartmenty Monka . Another great find! This was a charming on the outside, sleek on the inside kind of place. The location is ideal. It was a great size for our family and offered one of the best complimentary breakfasts I’ve had. The breakfast area also has a children’s corner with toys. This meant we could enjoy our coffee while it was hot and that is very much appreciated!

Besides the Gingerbread Museum, our trip was mainly about strolling, snacking, seeing, and sipping. We had delicious food at these restaurants: Pierogarnia Stary Młyn, Jan Olbracht Browar Staromiejski ( Which offers a GIANT KID’S PLAY ROOM ATTACHED TO THE PATIO #blessed), and Czarna Oberża (Which is a very affordable, very authentic Polish cafeteria)

Besides beautiful architecture, Toruñ is dotted with cute statues. Yes, cute. There was a golden donkey, a colorful dragon and an adorable puppy. Donkeys and dragons and doggos, oh my! I’m not sure what the puppy or donkey were for, but the dragon is a folk tale of Toruñ. In 1746 a flying AND swimming dragon was spotted cruising through town. Now the towns-people think the dragon lives in the sewers protecting the town. From what? Who knows…that part of the legend died off many moons ago and it is said that the only person who knows is the Dragon-Keep who is vowed to silence for life.

All in all, we loved Toruń! Would recommend.

Warsaw

What can I say about Warsaw that hasn’t already been said? Oh, wait. Like, a lot. I can say a lot because nobody is talking about Warsaw. Why is nobody talking about Warsaw?? This reminds me when I was shouting from the rooftops about Lisbon and now it’s a hotbed of American tourism.  I mean, did I help put Lisbon on the map? Am I single handedly responsible for the uptick in tourism from North Americans? Am I, Jessica Fay, founder and head-writer of Out and About with Scout, owed some kind of medal of tourism for writing a blog leading to the Portuguese economy boost? 

No.

Will I use this power for good and help Warsaw become the next Lisbon??

Also, probably no. Mostly because only my friends and fam read this and they will probably visit me here anyway. But that’s not going to stop me from singing Warsaw’s praises!

So, without further ado, here are my praises for Warsaw!

Warsaw is CLEAN. Every single street, tram, bus and bench I’ve seen is clean. The city is full of workers that walk around with a broom and a pan sweeping up. I’ve actually even seen them sweeping leaves AS THEY FELL. It’s nice to sit on a bus seat that looks like it has never been sat on. That being said, there are still the grody people that ride the buses and trams that cough into their hands or make hacking sounds. But it’s very comforting to know that it’s mostly clean.

Warsaw is very FAMILY FRIENDLY. The first thing I noticed as I was commuting to my first day of work was that there are strollers everywhere. Strollers, kiddos, toddlers, babies and families on every corner. This is great for us because it means that restaurants, pharmacies, grocery stores and most other businesses have play areas for kids. I especially love that when I check out at our grocery store, they have a line specifically for people with children. The line is shorter and is attached to a play area equipped with LEGOs and crayons. They even have elevated platforms at either end of the cashier so your kids can help put the groceries on the belt and in the bags.

Speaking of families, what really made me fall for Warsaw were the parks. They are top-notch European. Weeping willows hanging low on crystal ponds full of ducks. Water dancing down multi-level fountains. Gravel paths softly lending sound to children’s bikes as they race for the playground. I try to go to a park at least once a week if not more. We are lucky we have such and outdoor loving kid and beautiful weather lately. The park we frequent the most is Krasinskich. It’s near our house and has everything we need: 2 playgrounds, pond, fountains, chateau, and plenty of running space. Throughout the park you can see where the boundary of the Jewish Ghetto was becuase they’ve laid a bronze boundary line that says as much. A beautiful park in what was once a harrowing and historically tragic space. Other parks worth noting: Saski and Lazienki.

Krasinski Park

Krasinski Park

Lazienki Park

Saski Park

Saski Park

Saski Park

The Old Town is CHARMING. We love visiting the Old Town. Luckily we are within a stone’s throw. Although not the original (original destroyed completely in WWII), the Old Town has been recreated brick by brick. It is a remarkable and beautiful area full of life and tourism. I know we are all supposed to hate the tourist areas, but I love this area. It’s everything you want out of a European main square.  

So far we all love Warsaw. Scout is picking up a little Polish (it’s such a hard language!) and we are starting to settle in. However, I think the “settled” feeling we are having is also giving us the urge to move on. After all, this trip is about new experiences, not falling back into the routines we left behind.

Galapagos Islands - The most memorable of trips

With our time in Quito coming to an end, our trip to the Galapagos was the perfect end-cap to a great experience.  Our friend, Michelle, and her daughter, Sadie, joined up with us for this adventure of a lifetime.    

            Getting to the Galapagos from Quito is very easy. The flight is only about 2 hours. Once we arrived, we realized we should have bought a $20 card at the UIO airport.  However, since we didn’t, we were able to go to a much shorter customs line and pay the $20 and the $100 entrance fee all at once. The airport looks like you’ve landed on Mars.  It’s small, simple and covered in vents that let the cool breezes blow through. Looking outside, you see an expanse of rock and red-dirt, cacti and wind turbines. 

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            Once we were through customs, we hopped on a bus that took us to a ferry that took us to a taxi that took us to town.  The entire trip was probably about 2 hours, including wait times.  But you hardly notice the time because you are too busy looking at all of the new and strange sights

            We stayed at the Hotel Ninfa.  We were fortunate enough to have our stay gifted to us by our great friend, Michelle.  This major act of kindness really made a difference in our gap year budget and was pivotal in us going to the Galapagos.  We feel so grateful to have friends like her and cherish our adventure with her and her daughter! The hotel had everything you needed and was located in a fantastic spot.  We walked everywhere and enjoyed the hotel breakfast and bar. We also booked our excursion through the hotel when we arrived and it could not have been easier.

            The snorkeling excursion was one of the best parts of the trip.  There are several islands to visit, but with only 4 days for exploring, we decided to visit the nearest one, Pinzon.  Actually “near” may be an over statement! The boat ride to Pinzon Island was about 2 hours. I fought sea sickness from the beginning because of the choppy waters and speed of the boat. On the way out to the island, we stopped because a pod of dolphins (that looked EXACTLY like Killer Whales) was swimming by.  This really helped my stomach calm down just enough to endure the final leg of the journey.

            Once to Pinzon, we all jumped in the VERY cold water and took off.  We saw sharks, turtles and sea lions.  My husband, who took a separate Pinzon tour because of babysitting duties, was able to touch sharks while they slept! He also managed to film a Marine Iguana diving underwater to eat!

            On the way back, to help with my sea sickness, I hunkered down on a bench in the back of the boat to nap.  I had just dozed off when, suddenly, I felt myself being hurled to the side. My initial thought was that the boat had flipped.  After I rolled through the air, I hit a pole and came to a landing on the bottom of the boat. I was sure we had capsized and I would have to save everyone on board. As I looked up to survey the damage, I realized only I had been damaged.  The captain had taken a sharp turn and the bench I was on was not attached to the boat. I had flipped off and flew into a fishing chair.  Luckily, the boat was fine, the passengers were fine and it was only I that had lost the battle with the sea. The upside was when the dive master was smearing ointment onto my battered knees without cleaning his hands or my knees, this really took my mind off of the fact that I had been sea sick! Win Win!

When we got back from the snorkeling, we were famished, so we went on the hunt for some seafood.  What we found was a street called Charles Binford where restaurants set up tables in the street and cook fresh seafood on grills right outside. We ordered a lobster for 3 and were not disappointed! After, we went and had desert at The Galapagos Deli around the corner.  We went to this deli a few times because the cake and ice cream were amazing and they had gluten-free options for Michelle.  If you go, which you should, get the warm chocolate cake and then send me $20 as a tiny thank you for the best cake you’ve ever eaten. (*email me for mailing address)

            The next day we decided to wake up early and walk the long walk to Tortuga Bay. This was about a 45 minute walk from the hotel. My husband had taken Scout the day before and had a fabulous time, so I thought we would do it again and have similar results: WRONG WRONG WRONG. Google maps took us 25 minutes in the wrong direction and Scout cried the. entire. time. By the time we actually made it to the beach, everyone was too physically and emotionally tired to do much else than sit and rest.  The beach, however, was gorgeous and Scout perked up when she saw all of the sand she play in. But then we left and her day of crying resumed.  

            Later that day, we went for a quick look at the Ninfa Lagoon.  It’s really beautiful and a very quick thing to do. The tide comes in and out of this lagoon, mixing fresh and sea water each time.  Mysterious bubbles are attributed to the Nymphs that live in the lagoon…however, based on the rotten egg smell wafting around, I’d guess its caused by either trapped sulfur under the ground or gassy Nymphs. To tour the lagoon, you walk around a wooden walkway that surrounds the lagoon. We had a great time until Scout fell partially through a broken piece of wood. It was towards the end and she wasn’t hurt so NBD!

            For lunch, Scout and I stumbled upon what might be the best located restaurant on the island. We needed some provisions from the grocery store (there’s only one store) and while there, I noticed a staircase with arrows pointing up.  Ever the adventurers, we ascended the stairs hand in hand.  As we emerged onto the third floor, we were greeted with water views and sea breezes. Oh, and an indoor play area for kids! (the food was just ok…but the view makes up for it)

            On our last day, we decided to pack it in before our flight. On the way to the airport, we had the driver stop off at Los Gemelos and El Chato.  Los Gemelos are sink holes that were created by empty lava tunnels collapsing.  They are beautiful and impressively large and a great, fast sight on the way out of town. 

After, the craters, we went to El Chato. El Chato is a tortoise reserve and includes tours of lava tunnels.  Seeing the giant tortoises in person were better than I could imagine. Their size is hard to capture in photos and watching them walk and “talk” were extremely cool. It was the perfect way to end the trip. It was also here that I found out I am NOT allergic to bee stings!! #memories

I am so grateful to have visited the Galapagos.  And even more grateful I was able to do it with friends. It is true, the animals do not care that you are there or that you are human, they are just enjoying their predator-free lives. We made so many great memories here and Scout is still talking about all of the animals she saw at the “zoo”.