Blogs from Lower Silesian, Poland, Europe - page 2

It was a quiet day today and my biggest task for the day was to sort out a few Airbnb problems. In no particular order they were toilet paper, soft soap and more power on the web. The internet was the most pressing issue, as we needed to communicate with people arriving from Australia today. Anne and Michael, John and Andrea, Lynne and Ross, Craig and Jan, Suzanne, with Ingrid turning up later in the evening. An email to the host of the Airbnb drew a quick response and everything was stocked up and improved within the hour. People slowly arrived from different parts of Europe; some by bus, others by trains, and a couple by air. Whatsapp ended up very confusing ; contact could only be made if both parties had wifi at the same ... read more

The alarm was set for early today. By 5am we had showered, coffeed, zipped up and weighed cases, and we slipped out of Luxembourg by the cover of darkness aboard the airport bus to Aeroport de Charleroi Bruxelles Sud. In other words, the airport on the outskirts of Brussels that the budget airlines use. We are on Ryan Air. We took off 20 minutes late, but the big plus for me was that I had a row of seats to myself; in Ryan Air speak, this is an upgrade to business class. My ears are experiencing that pressure pain that , for me at least, is usually reserved for landing at Tullamarine in Melbourne, and no where else. And never during a flight. That crackling of my eardrums will settle down soon or it will be ... read more

It’s Saturday, AKA parkrun day, and today’s parkrun is Pieschener Allee. It’s only a 10 minute walk from the hotel so we don’t even have to get up too early. In the UK, going to a different parkrun involves knowing roughly where to go then following the crowds. Parkrun hasn’t really taken off in Germany; last week there were only 23 runners at Pieschener Allee, so I have carefully studied the map to ensure we know where to go. We manage to find the start without problem. There are a total of 26 runners, mostly ex pats. Everyone is really friendly. The course is a pleasant out and back run on a footpath along the River Elbe. It’s also very flat, so I run my 3rd fastest ever 5k time. And coming 24th sounds quite good ... read more

Today began with a morning sightseeing tour of Wrocław with a local guide. The group boarded our motorcoach over on Nowy Świat, along the Odra River. (Coaches are not allowed along Kiełbaśnicza where the hotel was located. I liked that name--Kielbasa Street!) The coach drove us over to the Exhibition Grounds. The Wrocław Exhibition Grounds opened in 1911 in a then far eastern part of the city. The centerpiece is still the Centennial Hall (Hala Stulecia, originally Jahrhunderthalle). (The centennial was that of the proclamation by Frederick William III of Prussia for the Prussian people to resist Napoleon.) The modernist exhibition hall designed by architect Max Berg and opened in 1913 was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2006. It still looks like a modern round sports arena, or something one might encounter at Epcot. ... read more

Soon after our arrival in Wrocław we began to notice the tiny statues around the city. One was right outside our hotel! These are the Gnomes or Dwarfs of Wrocław (Wrocławskie Krasnale). They are everywhere about the city. The tiny sculptures were installed beginning in 2001. They commemorate the Orange Alternative movement that peacefully protested suppression of free speech and assembly during the time of martial law in Poland from 1981-1983. The movement's tactics included street art that featured images of dwarfs. They new dwarfs assume whimsical poses, with themes often associated with the area of the city in which they are located. Some are easy to spot on the ground or on window ledges, while others are hidden on lampposts and such. More continue to be added and it is thought that there are more ... read more