WONDERS OF WARSAW

Since the 19th century, stylish Varsovians have gone to Nowy Swiat – New World Street – to stroll, shop and sample cafe life. It is home to the city's most fashionable boutiques, jewellery shops, restaurants and cafes, including the venerable cafe, Blikle at 33 Nowy Swiat. (General Charles de Gaulle loved Blikle's doughnuts.) In the 18th century, however, it would have been better known as a section of Warsaw's Royal Way that linked the summer palace and the winter castle of the last monarch of Poland. As King Stanislaw Augustus Poniatowski changed residences with the season, so was his collection of 2,246 paintings carted down this route from his winter castle to his summer palace – and back again. The king made this trip for the last time in 1794.

The following year, Poland was split between its neighbours, Prussia, Austria and Russia, and Poland's last monarch was to live out the last three years of his life as a virtual prisoner in Russia. Surprisingly, given the city's devastation in World War II and its subsequent long period as a Communist state, it's still possible to get a feeling for the refined court life of this enlightened, well-meaning ruler. Begin at the baroque Royal Castle in the Old Town, where one richly furnished gilded room follows the other. Even more remarkable than the opulence hidden behind these austere walls is the fact that this is a reconstruction of the castle that was demolished by the Nazis. A catastrophic fire had preceded the ultimate destruction of the castle in 1944. Townspeople joined castle workers in salvaging all they could carry of the furnishings, works of art and elements of the interiors. In the decades that followed, private individuals risked their lives to hide these treasures from the Communist authorities. The rescued elements were invaluable when work on the reconstruction began in 1971. The Polish community at home and abroad provided the funds, and in 1984, the reconstructed rooms were open to the public for the first time. Five kilometres down the Royal Route from the castle is the exquisite Lazienki Palace, the Palace on the Water.

Originally the bathing place of an aristocrat, it was bought by King Stanislaw in 1764 and after considerable alteration, became the royal summer residence. Set on an island in a lake, a pair of classic colonnades links the palace with the shore on either side. Although the 18th century painted ceiling of the Bacchus Room was deliberately destroyed by the Nazis, they were routed before carrying out their plans to blow up the building; the walls were even drilled for dynamite charges, but Lazienki Palace was spared and is today the favourite summertime destination of Varsovians. The Royal Route continues to Wilanov, a 17th century palace, some 10 kilometres from the Royal Castle and a one-time summer residence of King Jan III. By the time Stanislaw came to the throne, Wilanov was the private property of a noble family. Exceptionally, Wilanov, known as the “Polish Versailles,†suffered only minor war damage and was turned into a museum by the Communists. For details, visit: http:// www.wilanow-palac.pl/palace.html.

Because February temperatures in Warsaw range from 1 degree centigrade above to 6 degrees below zero, a hat or earmuffs, gloves and a muffler are essential. Waterproof, slip-proof shoes are a good idea. A winter tip: warm up with a hot, spiced beer in any pub or savour the legendary hot chocolate in an E Wedel “chocolate loungeâ€.

Interacting with Chopin

As you walk along the Royal Way, you'll come upon granite benches programmed to play Chopin at the press of a button. Fourteen of them were installed in 2010 as part of the celebrations of the composer's bicentenary. Chopin often strolled these avenues when he and his family lived in rooms that are now a museum in the Academy of Fine Arts at 5 Krakowskie Przedmieście Street. (As he had requested, the composer's heart is buried in a pillar of the neighbouring Church of the Holy Cross.) The Fryderyk Chopin Museum is a five-minute walk from Nowy Swiat. The 21st century museum, installed in the 17th century Ostrogski Palace, employs cuttingedge audiovisual technology to bring the Chopin story to life. There are five floors of exhibitions. A swipe card activates monitors, projectors and speakers; there are 14 individual music-sampling stations. You can see Chopin's last piano, a lock of his hair, letters to his sister, portraits and first editions of his manuscripts. The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 11.00 to 20.00. Free entry on Tuesday. On other days, tickets are issued for admission on the hour. Book online at www.chopin.nifc.pl or through your concierge.