Warsaw: Old and New, Luxury and Austerity

Shopping centers amidst communist-era flats

Warsaw is a puzzling juxtaposition of swanky shopping centers amidst communist-era flats. The country has seen rapid development following “shock therapy” economic policies after the fall of Communism, and Warsaw has transformed from a beaten-down, gloomy town to a cosmopolitan city. An average Warsaw citizen now lives a life not too drastically different from the counterparts in New York or London.

At the same time, the huge public monuments and buildings built for the Communist regime stand out from the surrounding drab buildings. Stalin’s tower was a donation from the USSR to Poland, and is a huge building of intricate architecture. I wonder what the Polish citizen, living in his apartment must have felt watching the tower being built- was it of pride or resentment? The building now has been turned into a cinema/office complex, with (perhaps as a sign of the times) a loud, garish logo planted across the front of its facade.