Category: Poland 2019

First, back to last night. Off to bed I went and as I lay there trying to sleep it all started…in a big way. The biggest electrical storm I think I’ve ever experienced. You just can’t imagine…. this house perched on a cliff over the ocean and across the bay came lightning and thunder like the apocalypse. The thunder was scary as the whole house shook and the lightning lit up the sky and the water in a surreal and amazing sky-filling light, the normally beautiful, calm sea threw her waves onto the shore in a fury. It is one of those things you just can’t describe, at least you’d need better literacy skills than I have.

I was upstairs and Christine was downstairs. At one stage I called out to her and got no answer. I thought, nobody could possibly sleep through this so I called out ‘are you alive’. No answer. The choice was to check by climbing down the stairs in the pitch dark (electricity had gone out) or, as I did, think, if she’s dead there’s not much I can do!!.

So up this morning and off we headed, later than I would have liked. It was supposed to be about a 6 hour drive to a town in the Bosnian mountains called Jajce where we had a hotel booked for the night. Well, with one thing and the other…getting stuck in long queues at the borders, getting petrol, getting lost and the main one was getting stuck at the Bosnian border where they didn’t want to let us in because we didn’t have the ‘green card’ for the car, rather a photocopy of it. So after much negotiation they made us pay 22Eu…about $40 to get extra insurance. A scam if ever there was one.

Entering Bosnia was like entering another world. Suddenly my phone told me BiH wasn’t one of the countries covered under roaming…bing, off with our dear friend Mrs Google Maps. It was definitely poorer, signage less English friendly, and altogether a bit more puzzling. By this stage we had no money and hadn’t sorted out the exchange rate properly, adding to our sense of ‘of my god’. On and on we went, Christine at the end of her tether after driving for some 9 hrs without a break, without food and precious little water.

Anyway long story short, we reached this heavenly little town perched on the river and up a hill. Not that we have walked around. We have a room in a lovely hotel with a gorgeous restaurant. We dumped our bags, headed for the restaurant, ordered our beer (Chris) and our wine and had a most delicious meal of local trout. It really did make the rest of the day pale into insignificance. We still haven’t seen the town, that will have to wait until tomorrow.

Now it’s off to bed to get ready for the final part of this marathon journey down to Sarajevo tomorrow.

Please note no roaming in Bosnia. WiFi in the hotel but have to be in a WiFi zone to connect. May miss a blog or two along the way…we’ll see!!

This is a quick one. Good old Lufthansa got me here without a hitch. They really are good. It was a bit of a tense day at times. I had to sort out shit with Lufthansa the night before re my check in baggage but to their credit, when I couldn’t online check at 9pm (after a giant day at Auschwitz, there was someone on the other end of the phone and they were spectacularly good.

I set off early because I didn’t really know what I was doing and I had to work out the train to the airport. That was the hardest part of the day. Poland can be quite difficult to navigate and the people who should be able to help you point to the electronic board, which actually, in this case didn’t help that much.

Anyway on the train I got…without a ticket, but that didn’t seem to be a problem. The Inspector just took my money!!

Direct to the airport and Lufthansa were ready and willing to take the aforementioned and contentious bag…it had clearly been well sorted.

I hung about, spent my last Zloty on hugely expensive coffee and off I trotted to Munich. Then Trieste, then found my way to the train and into the central station. I’d tried multiple times to contact Chris to no avail but there she was at the station to meet me. She’d forgotten to bring her phone!!!

So back to my favourite spot in Europe, the house in Trieste. A meal, some wine on the verandah all to the sound of the waves crashing.

We’re here tonight but in the morning we set off for Bosnia -H.

It’s , of course, great to be back with Chris for a couple of weeks +. We have a hire car and I’m excited!!!

A more leisurely pace today as seemed to fit a Sunday. Definitely a festive feel around the town as the streets filled with Poles who seemed to come out of every nook and cranny joining the tourist throngs.

I stopped at my new found delightful coffee shop on my way into the old town and had a slow coffee and yoghurt to set me up for the day. Then I went in to see if I could manage a ticket to the Rynek Underground. The old ‘single ticket’ trick worked again although this time it was a 2 hr wait which was fine because it’s in the centre of town. So I wandered off trying to stick to the back streets which are: a)more interesting and b) less crowded.

I went to the Collegium Maius, ‘the oldest surviving University building in Poland’. It has a splendid Gothic courtyard which is a joy. There is a Museum inside the building but not open on Sunday so missed that one! However I was there at 11am, as luck would have it, when the C14 clock chimes and these little characters march around to loud Polish music…very satisfying.

The university also has a beautiful garden with seats and shade. Throughout the garden the story is told of all the University professors that the Nazis captured and imprisoned, many of whom died in Sacsenhausen. The indelible footprint of the Nazi’s in Poland at every corner. I found a bench to sit on and did a bit of reading but was distracted by the people- watching. My prize for most ugly tourist this time is the yobbo Pom ‘doing’ Poland to drink and watch football.

By now it was time to wander back up to the Rynek Underground. And this was a brilliantly done, interactive underground ‘Museum’. Its under the market square and is the ancient route through Medieval market stalls and abodes. It was fascinating, far more so than I was anticipating. I almost didn’t bother, getting a bit blase!

By now it was getting on for 2pm so I decided a leisurely Sunday lunch was the order of the day. I went to find one recommended by LPG, on the slightly posh side but I was in the mood. I got a great table, by the window on the busy thoroughfare heading down to Wawel. Great for people watching. I had just sat down when every man and his dog descended on the place and they were turning people away. It was a really fabulous restaurant called “Miod Malina”. I had a sheep’s cheese and cranberry sauce entree and a veal shank. It was unreal food and I took my time to enjoy it with a glass (2 actually) of wine.

After I finished I did some shop browsing drooling over some lovely ceramics and Amber that I couldn’t have, then I slowly made my way home via another church ( I do like the way the Poles do their churches) and a bottle shop where the cheapest wine I could buy was Jacob’s Creek…and this is Europe. Not sure what’s going on re trade agreements with Poland.

Now it’s get some washing done and read my book. Auschwitz-Birkenau tomorrow. That’s not a good feeling already.

This morning I was booked on a tour of the Wieliczka Salt Mine and was picked up at 8.30 in the morning. We joined a larger English speaking group at the Mine and spent the next, nearly 3 hours, descending, walking and descending.  1000 steps down in all, to a depth of 135 M. The initial 380 steps left my knees feeling like jelly but then the descent continued relentlessly. 3 kms. Thank god a lift took us up or I’d still be down there. It was interesting, indeed fascinating, but maybe my expectations were a bit different, it wasn’t the greatest thing I’ve done but nonetheless incredible to imagine them working down there and hauling up the salt.

I was dropped back at the apartment and collapsed on the bed for 2 hrs before I could gather the strength to move on again. I hadn’t eaten so off I went to find one of the restaurants recommended and had a delicious pork roulade thing with Gorgonzola sauce. The restaurant was Gospoda CK Dezerter. (*** Just as a footnote the Restaurant for yesterdays yummy meal was Marchewka z Groszklem**). I then went off to see the Basilica of St Frances. There was a mass in progress so too much wandering wasn’t a good thing. However I have to say the Polish Catholics do their churches very nicely. Like St Mary’s, this one also had a gorgeous starry ceiling and beautiful friezes.

I have been telling myself I had to have one serve of the delicious-looking Polish cakes while I was here and today, it seems, was the day. I took myself off to have a coffee and cake. Well now I’ve done it I’m more than satisfied and feel no need to do it again. It was totally delicious but I ended up feeling a bit sick, it was SO rich.

I was glad to get back to the apartment after a long and exhausting day. Tomorrow is a potter/ sightsee day so I’m not going to move too quickly. Monday is a big one going to Auschwitz, so I’ll need to gather my strength.

Another busy day. It’s serious business trying to get yourself around to everything you want to get yourself to, and still capture the ambiance and take time to smell the roses.

As an aside, being and old woman sucks, in almost every single way except that Poland gives you a little reason (in the schema of things very little when you think of the monetary value) to feel joyful. You don’t have to pay on public transport. This isn’t just about the money, it’s about not having to think about tickets and being able to hop on and off a tram at will. One tick as I set off for far flung places today and had to work out the tram system.

Then there is the bit about being an old lady traveling alone, again, not always what you’d want but again with an up- side. It was the same yesterday. They have this limited number of places thing and timed tickets. So there are usually single tickets available because hardly anyone travels alone. So I’ve been able to walk straight in whereas if I’d been with someone I would have had to fill in hours before I could get entry. This happened yesterday ar Wawal Castle and again today at Schindler’s Factory….that was a great feeling.

As I said, these places were a bit further away so after having a coffee (another joyous thing today was finding a fantastic coffee shop near my apartment) I jumped (well pulled myself actually)onto a tram to go over the river and down to the Podgorze District. As above, I went straight into Schindler’s Factory and was immersed for the next 2.5 hours in the horror of the German occupation and the indescribable tragedy of the Polish Jew. It is almost impossible to imagine although these museums are stunning and bring it to life in a very confronting way. The Nazi’s came so close to ‘achieving’ total genocide.

I walked from there back to The Pharmacy Under The Eagle. Like Schindler, Tadeusz Pankiewicz, a non- jew, was heroic in the assistance he gave to the people of the Ghetto. I’ve always known about the horrors of Nazi occupation but I don’t know, somehow the plight of the Polish Jews has never been front and centre so I’m learning a lot.

Then I went back over the river to the Jewish area. LPG recommended a good restaurant here so I decided (for the first time) to have a proper main meal for lunch. I ditched my soup staple and had boiled beef with horseradish sauce…delicious. All this was also a way of walking around the Jewish Quarter and absorbing it. I then went to the Galicia Jewish Museum which followed the same theme of course but with the use of brilliant photography told a very moving story, not only of destruction but also regeneration. Very moving.

Next to Szeroka St/Square which is the heart of the Jewish Quarter and full of cafes and bars. So, although it was getting late, I stopped for a glass of wine and desert. A band started up playing Jewish music so I stayed on enjoying the atmosphere for a while. Then back on a tram and home. Tired but satisfied that I’d seen what I set out to see.

Tomorrow it’s off to the Salt Mine. I’m a bit nervous about that. Just hope I haven’t bitten off more than I can chew!!!

Today I set off for Wawel Hill. I had little idea of what to expect. In the blurb it is described as what the Acropolis was to ancient Athens so I prepared for some serious hiking with trepidation. I strapped up my feet, put on my hiking boots (sneekers actually) and took my hiking stick to protect my niggling hip. I couldn’t believe it when I walked off down the street and there it was. No fuss at all. But having the hiking stick turned out to be a winner, everywhere I went they immediately sat me down and offered me the lift!!

I was there fairly early (read 10am) which was good because there was already a queue for tickets. You had to get a timed ticket and a separate ticket for each area. I wasn’t too clued up on where to go but did some quick LPG research in the queue. They had the number of places left at each site up on a board and you could see it going down rapidly. A clue to the hot spots!!

I went to The Lost Wawel (I don’t think I’ll even try to describe that one), the Crown Treasury and Armoury, the State Rooms and the definite favourite according to the board, The Royal Private Apartments. Between these visits I had to fit in the Cathedral. All in all it took about 6 hrs. It was interesting and there was some lovely stuff. Particularly some amazing tapestries…god knows how they did that stuff. I learnt today that one person did about a sq M a year…and these tapestries were HUGE.

I set out to plod back to my room but it took a while because I was pretty tired. Regular stops were the order of the day…a drink here, a bite to eat there and a sit by the fountain and watch the world go by in between. I had my evening meal at a vaguely respectable 6pm in a restaurant on the way home that all the writers used to go to over the past century, called Jama Michalika, before taking myself back here with my last bit of energy.

A bit about the weather. Every afternoon since I’ve been in Poland it has rained at about 4pm. It is hot and humid so a bit of rain doesn’t cause any angst and beside in the main part I’ve dodged it. Today though, it didn’t happen as scheduled but it looks as if it will happen albeit a little later than usual. The days are in the 30s but the problem is that it’s awfully humid.

Not sure what I’ll get up to tomorrow but there is loads to do. Saturday it’s off to the Salt Mines. I just hope I haven’t bitten off more than I can chew with that one!!!

I always seem to be exhausted after a day of travel and today is no exception. Really not that arduous but draining nonetheless. Of course I was at the station ages before the train was due to leave…its my way. Its all a bit puzzling when everything is in Polish including your ticket so you have to puzzle your way through what carriage, what seat etc. I mean, you do it, but everything takes that bit of effort.

And then there is the struggle with your suitcase. You manage the get on and off the train bit, not easily any more, but you manage. Then you get to your crowded little ‘box’ with 6 people and there is absolutely no way you could get your case up into the case rack, even if there was space for it, which there isn’t, of course. The next observation follows on from the guy on the plane. There are, fortunately for me, a lot of very tall, lanky Poles. So, this young man helps re-organise all the cases to fit mine in. That is until the American family opposite start bleating about a case might fall on them (oh that it would) and his job at his firm is in OH&S. I told him that was obvious and then buttoned my lip securely!! Anyway it was all sorted.

Arrived in Krakow OK. Now, the ‘Art of Serenity’ Apartment I’m staying in is so fucking clandestine. There is no reception or anything, they text you with the details of how to get in, but not until your room is ready. So off I went to get myself a bowl of soup while I waited. I’d rung them to say I’d be arriving at 1, so they did have it ready a bit early…at 2pm. And it is a really nice apartment. A bit of a strange set up, half way between an Airbnb and a hotel. But I have everything I need.

I set off to get my bearings. The apartment is just outside the Old Town wall, so very convenient, and off I trotted to the Old Town Square. Another gorgeous square which most of you know but for those that don’t, this time really old. No bombing raids here thank God. I went to the Tourist Office and booked a trip to Auschwitz, and I went to St Mary’s Basilica which sits in the middle of the Square. Now that was a lovely surprise. So utterly beautiful with those heaven blue starry vaulted ceilings, superb stained glass, painted walls and an alter piece to die for from what I could see through the restoration work going on.

I’ve been in Poland for 4 days now and not a single Lody have I indulged in (thinking of Kirst here). That is until today, I was sitting in the Square watching the summery, youthful, fun-filled world go by and most people had an ice-cream in hand. It is so lovely and synonymous with summer that off I went and got myself the most delicious yoghurt icecream to join the club.I wandered a bit more but I was tired so I got a little bit to eat, did some shopping and called it a day.

Bought wine (and this time a corkscrew with it), some pringles and back to the ranch to nestle in. It feels like a big day even if it really wasnt so big walking- wise. I got excited when I saw I had Netflix but its all in Polish so no luck there. Guess I’ll do some washing and read my book.

Another really interesting day in Warsaw, exploring the Old (but really new) Town. And I have to take back what I said about the Russians taking over the flat earth that was Warsaw.

In fact the Old Town is truly amazing and a tribute to the Poles who meticulously rebuilt it after the razing of 1944. It blows my mind as I sit in the Old Town Square in what, for all intents and purposes, is a beautiful and ancient old Square, then to think again…totally rebuilt stone by stone in its own image using old photos and records to ensure it was accurate.

I honestly thought I’d seen it all in Dresden in terms of what humans can achieve but I think Warsaw has upped the ante. And I almost didn’t come here, but I’m so glad I did. Not because its the worlds most beautiful city (it isn’t) but because it is a testament to the capacity for regrowth and regeneration after devastation. New respect for the Poles in my mind anyway.

But let me go back to the start of today. First thing is I bought sunglasses duty free in Melbourne. An expensive pair and a cheaper pair for the car etc. Well I discovered this morning that the cheaper pair lasted all of 24 hours and now I’ve lost them!! So I retraced my steps back to where I had my morning coffee yesterday to see if they were there…no luck so I have to give up and consider them gone…so infuriating but I guess I can only hope that thats the worst to happen to me.

Then I walked down to the Old Town. I enjoyed today, it was more relaxed, just walking, people watching and exploring. This town is not full of tourists so its nice not to be battling crowds. I know that will change in Krakow but I’m enjoying it while I can. There are, of course, people whizzing past me on those electric scooter things, zipping in and out of pedestrians and I consider it very lucky to be avoiding them thus far. And there is also the heat. Its only 32C but when you’re plunged into it, it’s draining and sweaty.

I considered, and then considered again, the prospect of doing a tour of the Royal Palace but I decided not to in the end, feeling totally museumed – out yesterday. I had soup for lunch and sat around a bit. I had visions of sitting by the river but Warsaw doesn’t seem to use their river as well as they might, it’s hard to get close to and sadly no cafes line the river. Nothing like those other cities that utilise their rivers as lively, people places (Rome, Paris, London, Melbourne).

About 5pm every day I’ve been here, the thunder and rain roll in. I was a bit unsure what to do with myself this afternoon because there is a fabulous restaurant scene around the old town and I hadn’t had a ‘real’ Polish meal to date. I’d only had soup and fluids so I decided I’d eat early then come back to the hotel. So at 5pm I went to a rather more fancy restaurant recommended by LPG which was on my way back. For the record, Dawne Smaki on Nowy Swiat.

I decided in my (not so) wisdom to get a few entrees to try a variety of Polish food. So I ordered Herring, followed by 4 different types of Pierogi (one each that is) and then Bigos. So I finished the first two courses and could barely get a mouthful of the Bigos down. I just had to give up!!! Polish food I must say overwhelms me somewhat although I do love the soups!! Anyway, I enjoyed the meal and feel as if I’ve at least had one real Polish meal, including a complementary cherry vodka!!. I was back here by 7pm!! Talk about an early meal. I’ll have to do some quick readjustment when I hit Italy.

Train at 9am in the morning to Krakow, So I’ll get myself organised now and hop into bed.