QUEERWARSAW
Warsaw: City Guide and Tourist Attractions
public life. Warsaw may aspire to big city lifestyle, but public displays of same-sex affection, holding hands, or kissing may prompt violence or at least disapproval. Streets of Polish cities are patrolled by police officers as well as “city guards” [straż miejska] with a more limited mandate. Shops and clubs hire private security. City transport, public spaces and institutions have CCTV. You can contact the police and the fire department or call for an ambulance by dialling 112 on a cell phone (but you cannot be sure that they will speak to you in anything but Polish). Warsaw has its share of pretty dangerous locations (such as some areas in Praga district). Streets are roamed by beggars, the homeless, and pick-pockets. Downtown is fairly safe, but be careful after night falls, especially in cruising areas (see the main text). Clubs are safe thanks to door selection and security staff. LGBT gatherings and street parades no longer attract active violence thanks to police protection. All city hospitals offer emergency medical service 24/7. Selected pharmacies in every neighbourhood are open round the clock: if you stay downtown, it is best to go to the central railway station, the pharmacy on the mezzanine floor in the main concourse is open 24/7.
City Transport, Tickets Like any major city, Warsaw is plagued with traffic jams, especially on weekdays. Many bus lines which cut across the city centre are altered on weekends. The best way to move around is to rely on the rails: the underground, suburban trains, tramways. Warsaw has only one metro line which runs parallel to the Vistula, but it offers optimal routes combined with the tram network. Suburban trains operated by several different companies are useful for a trip outside of town. Warsaw’s main junction is the Metro Centrum station, close to the central railway station: this is where the underground and the tram (and bus) networks meet. All city transport uses the same tickets recognisable by the yellow-and-orange logo with the letters ZTM. You can choose between single-ride tickets (fare PLN 2.80 per ride) and transfer tickets (fare depends on time, starting with 20 minutes at PLN 2.00 to 24 hours at PLN 9.00 to three-day tickets at PLN 16.00). You can buy tickets at most kiosks and newspaper stands as well as machines in city centre (these feature English and German instructions and accept credit cards). Remember to validate your ticket before the first ride. The validity of the ticket will be automatically printed on the back next to the black magnetic stripe. Day city transport operates between 5am and 11pm, followed by night bus lines which all depart from the central railway station. The underground also runs by night on weekends but less frequently. Taxis are the safest at night.
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