Advertisement
Published: August 27th 2009
We left Prague on Tuesday morning and rode a train for 9 hours to Poznan, connecting through Berlin. The main train station in Berlin where we transferred is ENORMOUS, like a small city - super crowded with all sorts of restaurants and shops. Nine hours is a LONG time to be on a train, especially when worn out. We weren’t able to both doze off for a nap, as we’ve heard a few horror stories from fellow travelers that it’s best for at least one person in a group to stay awake on the train to make sure nobody steals anything while you are sleeping. There are stories of people waking up to find that somebody used a sharp knife to slice open their backpack and luggage and steal things while asleep.
I have to wonder how often anything like that really happens. We were fortunate it seemed to share a cabin with what appeared to be upstanding people (but you never know). The train ride was very smooth, and we both were eventually able to get short naps. The area of the Czech Republic, Germany, and Poland that the train traveled through is very green, with dense forests, rivers,
and hilly areas - very pretty.
We were happy to arrive in Poznan after the whole day on the train. Poznan is more off the beaten path than Prague and not as international, so there are not as many English speakers (and those that do speak English aren’t as fluent as those in Prague). We managed to communicate well enough though, and people in Poznan are friendly.
Women in Poland, as in the Czech Republic, are amazingly beautiful. If a stunning beauty walked by, before really being able to make an effort to steal a glance, there would be several more in view within an instant and then many more after that. Basically it’s like supermodels are walking around all over the place. Unreal.
Our first night in Poznan we were both feeling run down and ragged from the Prague debacle, and Rob was coming down with a nasty bug, so we planned to lay low for the night. I decided to head out to the Old Town square nearby to get a bite to eat and a beer and call it a night early. Famous last words (as Rob noted when I headed out and said,
Berlin train station
Huge station and very busy“I’ll be back pretty quickly”).
While out I made a new friend, Monica (“Moni’”), who was in Poznan for one day and night from Warsaw - she spoke some English, but not much, and I don’t speak any Polish. With some effort and patience we were able to communicate, realizing we have much in common in interests, musical tastes, outlook and thoughts on life, etc. We shared a lot of laughter and had many beers.
By the way, learning how to say “cheers” and comparing notes on the many slang terms for being drunk or hung-over in different languages is a very entertaining pastime and great icebreaker. Moni and I had an adventure exploring the city and slamming beers, and I ended up getting home from the night way too late… very late… AGAIN!!! DOH!!! I KEEP DOING THAT!!!
Our second day in Poznan we slept in until mid-afternoon - ridiculous when this far from home to sleep the day away, but I felt like I might be coming down with a bug as well and Rob was still dragging. We rallied late afternoon to see some sites and drink a couple of huge beers in the
Old Town square. In the evening we saw another Radiohead show in an amphitheater, which is situated in a beautiful park and surrounded by a dense forest. We stood in “sector 1” very close to the stage. What a great show! I highly recommend seeing Radiohead live.
My experience (both in Prague and Poznan) has been that concert goers in Europe do not seem to get nearly as obliterated at live music shows as Americans do. Of course, there are pro’s and cons to both approaches to seeing live music.
Compared to shows in the US, the crowd and experience in central Europe is much more civilized. Not one person tried to sell us drugs, and there was not the widespread smell of weed smoking that one experiences at many shows in the US. Beer, cocktails, and food are served throughout the show and after, and people are not stumbling around loaded out of their gourds. Many people stayed for over an hour after the show drinking beer and hanging out. No shoving, no fighting, no puking… everyone enjoys themselves but does not get too rowdy. Some might say, “well that sucks and isn’t as much fun!” but
it was actually nice.
On the other hand, public urination at concerts (and in general) seems much more common in central Europe than in the US. People aren’t blatant about it, but they all seem to have the “when you have to go you have to go” philosophy. People would step out of a walking crowd and take a leak behind a bush (when it was obvious what they were doing) and nobody seemed concerned about it. Police and security personnel would walk right past people leaking in bushes right off the walkways. I have to say again, even with mass public urination, the crowd was very civilized and drinking steadily but far on the sober side.
…on the flip side of the coin, here is a SHOUT OUT to Americans for knowing how to get their buzz on for live music!!!!
Speaking of bathrooms… it costs money to use a public restroom almost everywhere in central Europe. Perhaps that’s why they seem more tolerant of public urination? Hey, here’s an idea… don’t charge people to use the toilet and then maybe everyone will go INSIDE instead of OUTSIDE!!! Imagine that concept… wow!!!
Our last day
Waitress at "Roosters"
The Polish version of Hooters we grabbed a bite to eat at the Polish version of Hooters (called “Roosters”) and walked around a bit and saw some historic sites.
In Poland as in the Czech Republic, it is permitted to drink openly in public just about anywhere. Lots of people walk the streets and parks around drinking beer. Of course, we want to be good world citizens, so we made sure to walk around the streets and parks drinking beer too.
As I finish writing this travelblog entry we are on the train to Berlin where we’ll spend 5 nights. Rob has dozed off after a beer. Our cabin is near the club car (food and spirits), and there are three loud and rowdy (in a good way) European girls getting loaded there near us. They stopped me as I passed by to get beers earlier and we chatted and laughed for a while. They are PLOWED!!!! (or, loaded, pissed, torn, destroyed, canned, tanked, etc…) They are from Warsaw and are headed to Berlin for 5 days to celebrate one of their birthdays. As I chatted with them a few minutes ago they were finishing their 4th bottle of wine and starting on
their 5th. I can hear them now laughing and yelling “Cheers!” and “Na dravzeh!” (“cheers” in Polish). I think one of them just banged their head on the wall, as I heard a loud “PLUNK” followed by hysterical laughter.
I am going to behave and put on my headphones and take a snooze now… I have to save up some energy for Berlin. There is site seeing to do, and the clubs and bars don’t have a closing time…
Wait… uh oh… here come those girls again… laughing and smiling…
What will I do???
Until Berlin then, zachować Imprezy
(and thanks for reading, this travel blog entry turned out to be too long, I know)
Advertisement
Tot: 0.093s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 10; qc: 53; dbt: 0.0527s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
Jewce
non-member comment
good Stuff
Nice read. I'll be interested in what you think about the people in Berlin. Not nearly as friendly as those in the former Eastern bloc or even down south in Munich. Regardless, sounds like it is off to a good start!