Poznan: The Polish Pearl!

Stary Browar

Jacek (my bud from Chicago) had told me about the fascinating malls in Poznan and I was just eager to feed my eyes as much as I could. To enjoy the most of this city, you'd have to walk around. Don't worry about crowded roads and mad traffic jams as they virtually are non-existent. Poznan has one of the best planned transportation systems and the roads are just a delight to the eyes. The air is unpolluted and the laws are well respected. The Old Brewery popularly known as "Stary Browar" epitomizes what a shopping mall should look like. Awarded the best shopping center in the world by the International Council of Shopping Centers in the ICSC 2008 global awards,, this shopping center is a shopper's delight. It's quite safe to say "Stary Browar"  isn't a far cry from the Siam Paragons, Ala Moanas, GPOs and the West Edmonton Malls of this world. Whoever you are – Food lover, brand lover, it's a one-stop shopping for anything imaginable. You only have to visit to see what I mean.Truth be told, I was marveled at what I saw- many famous brands, continental food restaurants and another architectural master-piece. I strolled around window-shopping, taking glimpses of the brands and smiling back at the radiant Polish broads who exuded all forms of graciousness. It was quite atypical  for what seemed to be the rules of shop attendants who always thought they were doing you a favor by selling their wares. I was just a few weeks old in Poznan but was already feeling at home. The people were benevolent, the city was serene, the neighborhoods were spic-and-span, and there was a lot more to see and do.

Outside of the Stary Browar

The social life here is sublime. Apart from what Jacek and Malgorzata told me, I already knew there was more to it. My place of abode was right downtown (I have something with down-towns..haha) in some street I'd nick-named "the happy drive". That meant I was a stone throw away to most of the night clubs. After being aroused from sleep in the early mornings on one or two occasions by club-goers who were making their way home, I decided it was time to taste the night life. It so happened that the party-goers heading home the next morning  had a knack for waking me up from sleep, but then, they also had some singing talents in them. Taking advantage of the tranquility of the early morning, they mostly gave a rendition of their songs on top of their voices as they walked down the street. On one occasion, shrill voices rendering Maroon's Payphone brought me out of my sub-consciousness. I got up from bed to look down through the glass doors of my fifth-floor apartment to see two guys strolling leisurely down the quiet street giving their "best" rendition of the song. From the way they looked, they were slightly tipsy club-goers who had stayed till early in the morning. As they walked down the street, missing one step or two and not giving a care about anything else in the world, I knew time had come to taste the night life. Happy-hour surely lasts till the early morning in the Poznan night clubs.

Early morning in Poznan Center

It was time to put a call through to Jacek later in the day. I'd promised to let him know of my experience after my first two weeks of arrival. I must have brought him out of bed as he sounded groggy at the other end. "Hey you! What have you been up to?" I asked him. He came alive when he realized it was me. "Heyyyyy! Tell me everything! Have you been to the night clubs? Have you seen Stary Rynek, the castle, the theater and the cathedral?" He responded. I gave him the heads up on what I'd done since my arrival and how I was planning to sample the night life. In response to that, he had several names of night clubs for me. By the time we finished talking, I'd a long list of clubs and I was willing to try them all out. On a fine Saturday evening, dressed in one of my favorite shirts, I stepped into the cool fall air and got lost in the stream of other party-goers. I was going to try out two of the clubs I had on my list. First thing I noticed was that even at 11 p.m, the city was very much alive with people of all ages, shapes and sizes chatting, laughing and ambling down the side-walks. A few meters brought me to a pub. I opened the door and walked into a space full of active, tipsy and happy people, at least I'd just discovered one of the spots where the singing sensations who walked  down "the happy drive" came from. Everyone babbled freely with rounds of laughter intermittently ringing out from the corners of the room. I ordered a whiskey double and chose a quiet seat at the corner. The night was going to be promising!

 Półwiejska street

Whatever floats your boat as far as night-life is concerned, you'll find it here. Latino music dance clubs, hip-hop, R&B, jazz, techno, house, name it all. One thing noticeable though was the idiosyncratic way matters were handled here. Anything done in Poznan was done with utmost seriousness. The city was apparently run by adequate people, studying was weighty and now I realized partying or clubbing was executed in the same imperative style. Did I tell you about Półwiejska street? That's the street lined with exquisite shops and a generous number of clubs, including a go-go night club for lovers of strip-tease dancing. And no, I haven't been there! Apprehensive of what could happen if I encountered drunks amid my quest of trying out the night-life, I'd almost given up stepping out of my apartment, but it was obvious that wasn't going to happen as the only things the boozers were concerned about were their maidens and drinks. Being a lover of football, I'd followed the news about the fear of racial attacks during the Euro 2012 games but as it turned out, it was mere media propaganda. Even though I'd heard unconfirmed stories of racial attacks in some parts of eastern Europe, I wasn't deterred, but for the first time since my arrival, I began to feel the jitters. "It's probably a different scenario at night" I thought to myself. I learned that was totally unnecessary. Police vans were parked in proximity to the night-clubs and even at that, there was no violence. My first conversation of the night happened when two very drunk lads walked up to me. I was half way in the bag myself after the whiskey and our discourse was to say the least, befuddled. We laughed hysterically even when nothing was funny and a couple of minutes later, we ventured into one of the clubs. The night-life here is huge once again. The clubs are always giving it out and the DJs are no disappointments either. I focused on three dancers directly under the disco lights. They were circling around each other and it looked like they were going into a slow motion of an African dance.

By the time I was ready to go home, I knew I'd chosen the right city. For a moment, I toyed with the idea of doing my own "happy drive" performance but dropped the idea because I didn't have enough hooch in my system and me singing would probably result to a nightmare for the sleeping residents of "the happy drive". Poznan offered it all - good education, cheap and affordable commodities, peaceful atmosphere and a wide range of night clubs. Tomorrow, I was going to see the land marks and what else makes this city tick.

Inside the Stary Browar