Blogs from Poland, Europe - page 188

Today is the one day when I have come to appreciate the kindness of others, no matter how bizarre the situation. Before heading out for a final stroll about the Kazimierz, I grabbed my towel for a quick shower, soon to be on my way for a quiet evening without too much hassle. The bathroom is a windowless, narrow chamber with a ceramic tub and toilet; there is very little room to maneuver. The only door in and out has no window. The door is of solid wood and very heavy. Everything took its normal course: turn faucet on, get wet, apply soap, rinse, shave, etc. Nothing major to report. However, events took a sharp turn for the worse after my shower when I turned the door handle, only to realize that the lock malfunctioned; the ... read more

I awoke this morning to what must have been the most brilliant day of the year, if not the decade. The sun shone bright; it was warm and breezy and floral perfume floated in the air. What a great day, the kind of day you remember come winter. However, with train ticket in hand for Oświęcim, is there ever a fine day to go to Auschwitz? Do you roll out of bed look outside and say, “Gee, this would be a splendid day to see the camps, so much better than yesterday?” But, what of people who live in Oświęcim? They must travel a bit and see the world, right? The remnants of the camps must be but a minor distraction for them, as they lead normal existences; they go to work, have families, and root ... read more

At last in the train on my way to Warsaw. I have had a full day in Berlin and find myself thoroughly exhausted. I have been going round Berlin all day, doing all the touristy things but achieved what I wanted to achieve: I walked from the Alexanderplatz away from my communist past down Unter den Linden to the Branderburger Tor - what a great reconstruction - waved hello to the French and British embassies on either side (the French is of course better) and then got thrown out of the hotel Adlon, as I did not quite look suitable. I take offense that my nice Cambodian straw hat does not look suitable. I then went to shed a tear at the Soviet monument, stood in awe at the new European quarters in Berlin and then ... read more

Sunday 15 May We decided to travel back to Kraków because of the damp weather and poor forecast for the mountain reigons. We went to the swimming pool, included in the £9 price per person for a room at Bystre. There was no one about as we entered the labyrinthine building, so we had the pool to ourselves. Afterwards we had a meal in the restaurant which had a cavernous feel to it as the conference groups had gone, and the bar and restaurant resounded to 80s hits (I reckon it went with the décor!). Then the transport fun started. It was three hours on the bus from Bystre to Rzeszów via Lesko, and despite having a quicker bus to Rzeszów, we missed the fast train back to Kraków. Fortunately we were in time for the ... read more

The Bieszczady Mountains are at the far south east corner of Poland bordering Slovakia and Ukraine. Home to rich wildlife suchas wolves and bears, the Bieszczady National Park has been declared a UNESCO bisophere reserve. It's also the kind of place where people drop out: Komańcza's parish (for want of a better description) has one the highest number of PhDs in the country! Travelling to the Bieszczady Mountains - off Season - that is a challenge because public transport is seen as out of fashion in provincial Poland. Nobody wants to fund it. Even German Railway’s online European timetable can’t keep up with the (usually negative) changes. So, if you are travelling off season to the Bieszczady here’s how to do it: High summer is ok: there is a direct train from Kraków to the Bieszczady ... read more