Tramwaj!

(Photo Unimportant-man.co.uk)

Warsaw and New York City have a lot in common. New York is bisected by the East River, and Warsaw  by the Vistula. New York has its Empire State Building, Warsaw its Palac Kultury (Palace of Culture). And while Warsaw's two-line Metro can hardly compare to the IND, IRT, and BMT of NYC's sprawling subway system, New York has nothing to compare to Warsaw's trams (tramwaj)--all 22 separate lines.

That's the Number 36, my first line, in the picture above. It took me from the remote district in the south of the city (as Poles say, "Where the Devil Says Goodnight"), to the center (and beyond). The city has modernized its tram stock, but it's good to see at least some of the Konstal 13Ns are still on the job. These workhorses were built in Chorzow, Poland, between 1959-69.

Standing in the back of the car with the windows curved around you was a little like being in a greenhouse. But how many hours did I spend on a cold platform with traffic buzzing around me praying for the sight of a 36?