Central Europe (Poland, Czech & Slovak Republics): Spring 2009
April 13/14 2009 (Monday/Tuesday)
Beautiful day in Albuquerque. Everything in order by the time Katie arrives to take us to the airport – 11:15. The plane boards promptly at 12:35 for a 1:05 takeoff. The pleasant captain welcomes us, tells us the weather is terrible in Chicago and we won’t be lifting off for 2 hours. So we deplane. Now our once-comfortable connection is tight so Tony calls the number they give us and gets set up for a Dallas connection since, given the weather, who knows when we would really leave for Chicago and when the plane for London would leave from Chicago. The Dallas plane does not leave till 3:50 so we settle in to ABQ, eat pizza, lounge in the upstairs deck, and watch our Chicago flight leave earlier than expected. The Dallas plane leaves on time, but we realize that the airport is big, and we have very little time (15 minutes) to make our London connection. We beg the flight attendants to help and they move us up to first class for the last 10 minutes so we’re first off the plane and racing to Terminal D across the sky bridge, up, down – a 15 minute run, but we make it and then cram ourselves into our tiny seats for the 9 hour 25 minute flight. It is an ordeal since there are way too many people, but it finally ends. The London to Warsaw flight is on time and comfortable. We arrive at our destination at 19:30 (April 14) Warsaw time, 11:30 A.M. our time. We’re tired but exhilarated to be here. Quick passport check, then we search for the 175 bus. Tony retreats to the terminal to buy tickets 2.80 PLN, about 85 cents each. A pleasant ride through the city shows us a city no longer gray, but full of famous places to shop and eat, (e.g. Armani, Sephora, Subway) and huge signs advertising stuff to buy. In 1975 there were no colorful ugly signs because there was nothing to buy. The young women are dressed fashionably and many are quite beautiful.
Bus 175 takes us to to Ul. Pilsudskiego, and we walk through Plac Zamkovy in the evening sunshine on a beautiful spring day. Tony takes a few pictures, and we walk in the old town to our Hostel Kanonia which is exactly as expected on a beautiful quiet street complete with cobblestones. We get room #1 – 2 beds, an armoire, and bathroom down the hall. We are given sheets and towels, and we make the beds. Kate at the desk, speaks excellent English. We gather our thoughts and rest a tiny bit and go out at about 8:15 or so to walk the old town at night. The city is now lit. We find the overlook on the river Vistula just behind our hostel. What a location! We wander the Stare Miasto. Many tables are set outside though it is a bit cool now. We finally eat something called Kebab but it’s not on a skewer. We find the Lody (ice cream) place has closed since it’s after 22:00 by the time we’ve finished dinner. We wander back and settle in. I’m very tired and jet-lagged, but it takes a while to fall asleep on the rather hard small bed.
April 14, Wednesday
The day dawns, blue sky, sunny, perfect spring weather. We go out to the Vistula River overlook because we could not see the river when we looked last night. It’s lovely with the new spring green color on the trees. We set out to look for the perfect breakfast place. It only takes 90 minutes, but we have yummy waffles and very good cappuccino. We decide to walk over to Nowe Miasto since we have now walked Stare Miasto twice. Tony notes the major spots from our Warsaw guide book. We go into several churches; all were destroyed during WWII and then rebuilt. Several served as hospitals during the later part of the War and were bombed; hundreds of people were buried in the wreckage and many bodies were never removed so their remains lie under the reconstructed churches. Several churches have pictures of the wreckage which make the reconstruction that much more impressive.
We buy some cheese and rolls in a delikatesy to eat later for lunch and then walk over to
the Warsaw Uprising Monument. Hundreds of thousands of people lost their lives when the Polish Resistance Army decided to rise up against the Germans. They were joined by thousands of ordinary Poles. Eventually the superior weapons of the Germans won out and the Germans systematically destroyed what was left of Warsaw. The Russian army, stationed across the bridge in Praga, looked on and did nothing, a piece of history much resented by the Poles. The monument is brass sculpture and white glass and stands in front of the large modern glass courthouse which seems as if it is part of the monument.
Across from the monument is a park where we eat our cheese sandwiches. Then we walk back to our hostel and take a break. We both fall asleep. After 45 minutes or so I go out and attempt my first sketch, but the breeze from the river has picked up, and I did not bring my eraser, so no sketches today.
Tony joins me and we go and buy a ticket for me on the bus. We have found that he rides free since he can prove that he is over 70. We bus to Lazienki Park and then walk back through this magnificent park for several late afternoon/early evening hours. The park is filled with gorgeous spring flowers and greenery, birds, ducks, peacocks, princely build
ings and lots of couples strolling hand-in-hand. We start looking for a dinner place on the way back but end up in Old Town at Zapiecek where I have Nalesniki (crepes) and Tony has kielbasa and we share a big beer. Back at the hostel, we internet for a while and find that a new tax form has come in, so our PR taxes may have to be amended. We won’t think about that now. Grrr.
April 16, Thursday
Up a bit late since I’m having sleep problems – hard bed, time change? Out about 10, off to deli to buy breakfast and lunch food. We eat our yummy poppy seed rolls in the sun then wander the old city till 11:15 while waiting for the Warsaw City Museum to open. The English-language film about the destruction of Warsaw shows at noon. We break our perusal of the ancient part of the museum to view the film, which was put together in 1993. The black and white footage starts with Warsaw in the 20’s, happy and lively as the capital of the new Polish state, which had been reestablished in 1918. Lots of people, cafes, etc. – the Paris of Eastern Europe. Then 1939 happened and for 5 years the Poles endured destruction and occupation. In 1943 the Warsaw Ghetto rose up and in 1944 the People’s Army and the city of Warsaw rose up. The Germans quashed both uprisings and then burnt the city in 1944, with the Russian army watching from Praga across the Vistula river. The film shows the utter destruction and the return and the rebuilding, really amazing since Old Warsaw looks like an old city. They restored it beautifully. But the whole story is so sad.
We go back to Hostel Kanonia, eat our ham and cheese sandwiches outside, overlooking the river, and then we take a rest. I go out at 5 to sketch something in the Rynek. I choose just part of one façade, based on what I can see while sitting in the warm sun. Tony joins me later. We stroll and choose a place to have a good Polish beer. While sipping we work out a tentative schedule for the second half of our trip – at least the cities. We then adjourn to our evening’s restaurant, Pod Samson, where I have duck, Tony pork, and we share a salad. Upon returning to the Kanonia we spend a long time at the computer reserving Nathan’s Villa for our return to Warsaw on May 10 and Hostel Lemon for our 4 days in Krakow over the Polish Holidays.
April 17, Friday
We buy some stuff at our deli and eat on the Barbakan (the round tower wall); then we stroll the old town. I order a coffee from a sidewalk stand and it turns out to be Nescafe – Yukk. We go back to the Kanonia and check out. I make sandwiches and we walk to our 175 bus which fills with 5 year-olds on an old town tour. There’s lots of traffic, but eventually we get to the airport and pick up our Renault Clio rental car from Budget. Tony cannot get it into reverse. He finally asks a stranger to show him how, and we’re off. Tony is nervous about driving in another unfamiliar big city and about finding our Wroclaw hostel, especially if it’s dark by the time we get there. We’re both very tired so eventually he pulls over at a place where we can both take a nap, which we do. We get some coffee out of a machine. It’s awful and I throw a cup of coffee away for the second time in a day.
The drive to Wroclaw is slow, erratic drivers, mostly two lanes. The roads are better than they were in 1976, but they’re not interstates. Along the way we notice that the countryside has not changed as much as the cities. It looks a bit more kempt, but the houses are still blocky and mostly gray. Agriculture employs 24% of the people but accounts for only 4% of GDP, so it’s pretty inefficient. I suspect the farmers have not shared as much in the new economy, but that’s changing too.
When we finally get to Wroclaw Tony takes a wrong turn, and we get lost for a while. I notice some older buildings and we turn toward them. Suddenly we see the KFC sign, the landmark for Nathan’s Villa. We have a nice private room with bath. We go out and stroll the amazing rynek and have a shawarma – way too much of it.
April 18, Saturday
The Ambien works, and I have my first really good sleep since last Saturday, and I feel full of energy. Tony gets up first because he must move the car before 9 A.M. He goes in search of a guarded parking lot while I shower and dress. We go up to the common room and have apples, bread and jam and good coffee. A young German guy joins us, and we have lively conversation. His family is from Breslau and were moved after the war, so he has returned to see his grandparents’ city. It seems that since the fall of communism there has been some rapprochement between the Germans and the Poles. There is a monument in Wroclaw, which translates as “We forgive and ask for forgiveness.” It is written in German and Polish and is a result of letters sent between German and Polish bishops. There is, indeed, a lot of forgiving to be done, but most of the people we see in the streets are too young to have experienced even the bad old communist days.
We internet a bit, leave our laundry to be done (for free), and take off on our walking tour about 10:30 or so. We head for the Rynek. It’s cloudy but not too cool, and there’s promise of blue sky from time to time. I start a sketch of the famous Ratusz while Tony scopes the area and takes photos. Later he shows me what he has discovered. Then we walk to the university. We don’t locate the old English department, but we find a building which looks very much like our former English department headquarters, and it has not yet been renovated so it has that old gloomy look we remember.
We go in lots of churches and check out the little gnomes and bigger statues and monuments around the centrum. We cross the Odra at Tumski Most, one of Wroclaw’s 38 bridges, and check out the highlights of Cathedral Island, including the cathedral. We go up in the tower and get a 360 degree view of the city. It is now very clear and we can even see mountains in the distance which never happened in 1975/76. We descend and walk over to the Botanical Garden where we spend a couple of hours with the beautiful spring foliage. It’s now after 6 so we walk back to the Rynek and choose a restaurant, The Sphinx, a Polish chain; it’s quite good though the frytki are greasy.
We revisit our hostel, which is just off the Rynek, to briefly refresh. We go out again and walk to the monument to the resistance to Martial law in the 1980’s. It’s called the Anonymous Pedestrians and people statues are disappearing into the underground. Quite impressive. We return and I email friends and family about the trip so far. We’re in our room before 10, the earliest yet.
April 19, Sunday
Tony gets up first to get the car – lots of parking spaces on Sunday morning. We eat our hostel breakfast – no conversation today. We get money and say goodbye to the Wroclaw Rynek. I do a quick sketch of one of the gnomes. In the car we head for our old housing block. As we approach we see that the apartment blocks have multiplied and are painted more brightly. We have trouble finding our housing unit since the construction rubble and mud have been replaced with grass and trees. The big orange building now has many bigger brothers, and it’s no longer bright orange. Tony seems to remember 175 Wieczysta as our address and eventually we find it. Besides the grass and trees, there are now lots of stores around, an ugly white school complex, a big gas station, and cars parked every which way, everywhere. There are at least 20 times as many cars, and they are international brands, not just Polski Fiats. Ugly billboards have proliferated, and there is lots of graffiti The price of capitalism? Tony spots what appears to be older buildings across the way, so we walk over. Sure enough they are the pre-war buildings in the background of my large “Poland Rising” painting. They are in various stages of renovation or non-renovation, the latter still showing numerous shrapnel holes. Destruction can come in a matter of minutes or months. Reconstruction can take generations.
We buy our gas and head for the hills, first toward Henrykov where we first stop at the wrong church where we have an interesting encounter as Tony is leaving our parking place. We hear a thump and realize that a car has driven right into our rental car. Tony and the other driver jump out to look. The other driver is very apologetic (in Polish) since he had rammed us. Fortunately there is little damage and we choose not to pursue it. The old man is very relieved. (Later we find that we were looking in the wrong place for damage. It was on the side, not the back, but it was minimal.)
We drive on and find the Old Cistercian Monastery. We had forgotten how big it is. The church is now a World Heritage Site and there are lots of people visiting it. We walk around, admiring the ancient wood carving once again.
Back on the road we soon stop at a small damned pond to eat our sandwiches. The we start driving toward Villa Greta on country roads, which are inconsistent in surface, from cobblestones to potholes to fairly smooth. The roads are lined with towns and villages so the going is slow. It’s a beautiful day, and the fields are either newly plowed or brilliant new growth green. Many trees are in bloom, and the terrain gets progressively hillier. All in all it’s quite lovely and peaceful. The villages do not look prosperous, probably many or most of the young people have left.
We arrive at Villa Greta about 7. Ewalina greets us and gives us a choice of rooms. It’s a renovated farm house, and they’ve done a beautiful job. The charm of the old with the comfort and efficiency of the new. She offers to make coffee for us while we’re settling into our room. After coffee we go out for a sunset walk in the village -- up the hill, then along the creek and back along the road. There’s a church and houses. A very lovely village.
When we return we have a long talk with Ewalina. She tells us that her husband’s parents offered them the opportunity to live in the house (housing is still a big problem in Poland). They had plans to emigrate to Canada or Australia, but they decided to try and make a go of the house as a B&B. They have been working on renovation and building their business for seven years. Ewalina remembers shortages from her childhood and, despite difficulties today, she knows things are better than they were, but many people complain, nevertheless. We talk for an hour, then go up and eat the remains of our lunch foods and settle in to our cozy room.
April 20, Monday
The sun comes in brightly about 6 and wakes me for a while but I go back to sleep till 8, very comfortable bed. While Tony showers I go out and start a sketch. Then we both go in for a sumptuous breakfast served in the beautiful dining hall. Krzystov joins us for a while. At first self-conscious about his English, he warms up as he realizes we are non-threatening. His grandmother, Greta, was the only German in the village who did not leave after the war. She stayed in her house. He and Ewalina have been here for seven years, renovating in the off-season. The dining room -- all brick with stone pillars and beautiful arches – was wher e the horses and cows stayed. The people were upstairs. He showed us some rings in the ceiling, still there, which they used to stabilize the horses if they had to work on them. He and Ewalina lived in Chicago for a year. He said he learned more Russian and Czech there when he worked on construction. He lived in this house as a small child at the same time we were in Wroclaw. He reme mbers the bad old times. We pack up for our day trip and head toward Jawor and the huge timber, straw and clay church. According to the Peace of Westphalia, the protestants could not use stone or brick, and they had only a year to construct their church. Obviously it wasn’t supposed to last, but it did. We pay our 6PLN each and get a description of the church in English played for us over a loudspeaker. We are especially impressed with the carved panels in the ceiling and the sheer size of the church. It could hold 6000 people.
From Jawor we go to Jelenia Gora which has a very long arcaded Rynek totally unscathed in WWII – too far East for the Allied bombers and not a fortress town like Wroclaw. Then to Sclarska Poreba at the western end of the Karkonosa. It’s a cute alpine town. Just beyond it we park to walk to Kimienczyk Falls – 1.5 km through spruce forest. At the top is a good view of the falls and overview of the area. Then to Karpacz on the eastern end where we visit the Nordic Wang chapel, built of Norwegian pine on Lake Vang in Norway and reassembled in Karpacz using no nails. We’re too late to enter, but the outside is very impressive.
We eat at Central bar, which was mentioned in Lonely Planet. Greasy but tasty. We drive back in dusky light.
April 21, Tuesday
Another full breakfast. I do a quick sketch of the downstairs interior. We pack the car and are on the road again. It’s not far to the Czech border, but there is no border. We both remark on how different it is from 33 years ago when we drove through then Czechoslovakia on a transit visa and were escorted by the police in Brno through the city after Tony did his dumb act and showed them all his papers. Prague was gray in the winter mist. Now everything is open, with lots of signs on the road as we approach Prague. We find our hotel without too much trouble. It is not a beautiful neighborhood – train tracks across the way, old buildings not all in the best repair. Our hotel, however, is in good shape. They have an actual garage for our car for $13. per night. The room is spacious, English language TV, breakfast included, a welcome cappuccino. The tram is a block or two away. We settle in. Tony looks over our Prague info and organizes money, etc. I actually unpack some since we’ll be here for 4 nights. We go down and get our cappuccino and a map and tram orientation, and then go to the tram stop and figure out the system. Fortunately the instructions are in English as well as Czech. We buy four 18Kc tickets, and then I notice that Tony is indeed old enough to ride free. We take tram #24 to Wenceslaus Square, which is not a square but a rectangle. Sw. Vaclav sits at the head in front of the National Museum. The place is full of people speaking many languages and snapping pictures. The trash containers are overflowing, and there is trash left on the steps of Sw. Vaclav. (We later learn that there was some kind of expo here just finished.) We see a number of homeless people picking food out of trash containers. There are 4 or 5 casinos on the square and lots of hotels and shops.
We walk on to Stare Mesto. Some crane trucks seem to be removing kiosks from the just-finished expo. The old square will look better without the kiosks. It’s now getting dark and the city lights up. Prague Castle and other monuments on the hills across the river look magnificent. We get a good goulash meal for 2 with beer for just over $10.00 at Restaurace Parlementu. Then Tony takes some night pictures, and we walk along the river to the Charles Bridge, a pedestrian affair which is indeed full of people. Dinner boats are on the river. We walk to our tram stop and wait a while along with a large group of young gay men, then tram back to Hotel Nabucco.
April 22, Wednesday
Hard bed, bad sleep, but the day is sunny and blue. We go down to the mezzanine for breakfast and are surprised at how lavish it is – eggs, breads, yogurt, cereal, sausage, bacon, and a cappuccino machine. We take our time enjoying the sunshine and the two cups of coffee.
Today is Prague Castle day so we get ourselves together and tram over to Mala Strana. We climb the many stairs up to the castle. It appears to be school group day, and there are thousands of people milling around, many following their leaders. No matter, the castle is big enough for all of us, and its many overlooks provide lovely views of the city with its monuments and red roofs. After reconnoitering, we buy the long tour at old people’s prices and begin with a tour of the simple Romanesque St. George’s basilica and then a tour of some military stuff located in a small tower. We do the very huge, ornate St. Vitus Cathedral with its impressive stained glass and tombs of Czech kings. Sw. Vaclav chapel is encrusted with gem stones. The church has been under construction for 900 years, and it’s still being worked on. You cannot sit in the pews or go against the tour direction because there are so many visitors.
We keep looking for the entrance to the great gothic room and eventually find it is closed. We visit the picture gallery with some great old masters. Rudolf II had a fine collection, but most of it was taken during various conquests.
Next is the very long History of Prague Castle tour. This starts with prehistory and winds through dungeons and grand halls; there is way too much to take in. The lower levels are damp and dark, and the walls are meters thick. We learn of Charles IV and Rudolf II who retreated to Prague Castle and made it a Hapsburg center.
On Golden Lane we see Kafka’s little place, #22, and with only 12 minutes left we race through the gallery in the convent cloister. We search for the many steps down to Mala Strana and have to climb up to go down. Wandering the lovely old streets we find a good Czech pub, Vsebaracnieka Rychta where we have schnitzel and Moravian Sparrow with good cold beer. A short walk to the tram. It’s now cloudy and cool as we wait, and we are very tired.
April 23, Thursday
The extra big pillow I requested, as well as extreme fatigue and a warm bath, all contributed to a good night’s sleep. This morning is gray and cool with a possibility of rain – perfect weather for today’s itinerary.
I go down to the mezzanine and have coffee and write in the journal before Tony comes down. Before we actually leave, the sun appears, so I change from my hooded coat to green, put back the umbrella, etc. By the time we walk outdoors it’s gray again and much cooler than yesterday. Yesterday we decided not to go to Budapest. We don’t want this to be just a big city tour. After we tram to Stare Mesto we go to the Information place. Tony picks up maps and stuff, and I use the computer to get hostelbookers and choose a place in Cesky Krumlov – very easy. The computer is a blessing to travelers.
We then start our Jewish Quarter tour at the Pinkas Synagogue, which has a couple of ancient parts but is mainly a memorial to the 80,000 Bohemian and Moravian Jewish victims whose names appear engraved on the walls. The upper floor has an exhibit on Children’s art from the Terezin ghetto. 8000 of the 10000 children were shipped East. Only 242 of those survived. Next to the synagogue is the old Jewish cemetery, containing 12,000 tombstones, but far more bodies since they were buried in layers. The Klausen synagogue exhibits the history of the old Jewish town. Right next to that is the ceremonial hall which exhibits artifacts relating to sickness and death. All the exhibits are carefully instructive concerning Jewish traditions and history.We finish our tour at the Spanish synagogue – very ornate and reminiscent of Moorish architecture in Spain – built in 1868 on the site of the oldest Jewish house of prayer. The exhibit covers the history of Prague Jews from emancipation (Joseph II) to the post war decades.
We then do a bit more strolling, visiting the Church of Our Lady of Tyn. Once a Hussite church, it holds the tomb of Tyco Brahe. Earlier we had visited St. Nicholas where there was an interesting exhibit on the Hussites; St. Nicholas is a Hussite, not Catholic Church. We end the evening with coffee and sweet and tram back to Nabucco before dark, less exhausted than yesterday.
April 24, Friday
Again I go down a bit earlier for breakfast, i.e. coffee and sketch time. A beautiful day. We take our time in the sunny breakfast room. Out about 11 and then 2
or 3 tram stops to Vyserad and then a bit of a climb. This is the oldest castle complex in Prague. There are several gates through very thick walls. Inside are, among other things: lots of gardens, a lovely Gothic church with beautiful colorful doors (but closed), a VIP cemetery with Dvorak, Smetana, and Karol Capek, and beautiful views high above the river. Lots of boats from Swan boats to tour boats are enjoying the day. I sketch a castle ruin above the river, taking my time. Tony comes for me, saying there is lots more to see. We wind our way down to the river, buying a couple of sandwiches in a convenience store along the way. We eat next to the river with Swans begging for our food. We walk on to the Café Slavia where Havel took Bill Clinton for a beer, and where people met to discuss revolution. We have a beer there. Next tram #22 takes us up to Pitrin Tower, but unfortunately we get off to soon and wind up at the side gate of Prague Castle. We walk up and up, admiring the great overlooks along the way. Good that we did since there are no overlooks at the top unless you climb the miniature Eiffel Tower which we are not about to do. We hang out a bit and take the funicular down and then transfer to Tram 9 to Wenceslaus Square where we meet the son of good friends from Puerto Rico who was my student in high school. He leads us to JARMAK, a pub chain where you can sit with your own beer spigot and pay by the liter. But that part of the pub is occupied by a private party. Jasper is disappointed, but we nevertheless have a pleasant time catching up on each other’s news. Later the 24 tram takes us back to our hotel where we check email to end the day.
April 25, Saturday
Only surprise on the hotel bill – the 85 Krona ($4) to make one successful local call, especially since Tony was told there was no charge for local calls. We are checked out by 10:30 and soon on our way to Cesky Krumlov. Tony drives out of town with no wrong turns. We stop once at the Penny Market to buy toothpaste, etc. and are at Pension Sebastian before 2. Jan, our host, speaks excellent English and the room is great. We settle in quickly, eat our cake and yogurt from breakfast and set out on our tour of the town and castle. Today is like a beautiful early summer day. Jan tells us it was still sn
owing at this time last year. It’s a 7 minute walk to the beginning of the old town which winds along the river. The town is on a peninsula of the river, and the castle is across the bridge. It’s a large complex with gates, bridges, big church tower, gardens, and even 2 brown bears at the red gate. Everything is suitably old and in various stages of renovation. One curious aspect is the painted blocks on the walls. One wonders why they did this. Were real blocks too expensive?
The castle tower is very colorful, again paint used lavishly. The gardens are huge and in the midst of getting ready for summer, though the brilliant red tulips are striking right now. We walk all around and up and down. There are lots of views of the beautiful setting of this town, hills all around with the river Vltava curving below.
We buy ice cream and then trdelnik, a local crusty delicacy of dough stretched on a metal roller and rotisseried, then rolled in cinnamon sugar. Very crispy yumm. Back across the river we have another tasty pub meal with great Czech pivo. Then a walk back in the cooling night air. We turn on the tv in our room and watch House dubbed in Czech.
April 26, Sunday
The bed turned out to be very firm, but I eventually sleep, and we wake with the alarm. Breakfast is not so lavish, rolls, some deli slices of cheese, and lunchmeat, jelly and butter. The coffee in a thermos is okay, but not great.
The weather is good, a bit cooler and more clouds than yesterday but still fine. We turn in the laundry to be done for 250k (about $12.) – expensive but convenient. Jan gives us advice about where to go and lets us use his computer to look up places in Olomuoc. There seem to be plenty of pensions so we leave it open.
We decide to drive on some of the small roads near the river – very little traffic, lots of forest, (Sumava Ntl. Park) a couple of logging towns with big operations. Everything is green. At Svaty Tomas we check out the reconstructed 14th C Church and then climb up the hill to Hradek Vitkuv, a castle ruin, the highest in the Caech Republic. From the trail one can see the snowy high Alps in Austria, but through a haze. Tony climbs the castle tower and checks out all the views while I sketch the castle from below. Next we continue driving along the river. At Lipno there is a huge sports complex – biking, river and lake stuff, motels, all too new and resorty for my taste. On to Frymbrk where the ferry crosses the river – also sporty, but this town has kept its character. We find a nice cukiarna and have cake and cappuccino which looks better than it tastes but good nevertheless. Earlier we had dipped into Austria and noted the closed border station. Now there is simply a Wilkommen sign. What a change from 1976. There is a hotel complex at the town of Buglwald which is very gingerbready. We note a richer, more kempt aspect to Austria. Houses are painted and kept up; the road is better, the grass is mowed. We soon go back to the Czech Republic
Back in Cesky G I hit the bed for a short nap. Tony wakes me two hours later. He has been talking to Jan who is a rabid capitalist 30 year-old hard-working businessman. He gives us some advice about dinner. We walk to Satlavka, his restaurant pick, and have a great grilled dinner with pivo, of course.
April 27, Monday
Breakfast, pay, say goodbye to Jan. Tony decided last night that we’d go to see the home of the 27,000 year old clay Madonna found near the Morava river, he thinks near Dolni Vestonice. One of Gary Snyder’s poems refers to her.
We drive to the Czech border, get gas, make a wrong turn or two, and eventually we wind up on the correct road in Austria to take us most directly to Dolne Vestonice. It has become very very windy, and dust has been added to the general haze, but it is fairly warm and sunny. The Austrian road #45 is rural with lots of fields, but the towns or villages are very close together so it is pretty slow going. We do not intend to stop in Austria because we have no Euros. Eventually we cross back into the Czech Republic and drive through several towns, finally stopping at Mikulov which we remember from our trip to Austria in 1976. Mikulov is now bright and renovated and boasting of its recreational wonders. We remember how happy we were to be in Capitalist Austria in 1976 after driving through the gray Czechoslovakia.
We stop at the information place, at a bank and a caviarnia for Cappuccino. We then drive to Dolni Vestonice and locate a pension which was mentioned in the tourist place booklet about the area. DV is located on the Nove Mlny Reservoir formed by damming the Dyse river; it’s a summer fishing and water sports resort, and it’s pretty deserted right now. Our pension is open and is adequate if not lovely. The man speaks no English so Tony uses some German words plus lots of gestures and gets me an extra pillow since the bed is very firm.
We settle in a bit and then go for a walk along the water. The jubilant insects are out. We pass dozens of permanent tents (now unoccupied), many equipped with refrigerators. A few people are fishing. We return to our pension and dine on chicken breast and pork schnitzel. I have wine since Moravia is wine country. Tony has discovered that this is not the Madonna place of Gary Snyder’s poem, and we find that spot is only open on Sunday. Well, at least we are in the vicinity.
April 28, Tuesday
Well our Dolni Vestonice pension wins the prize for the hardest bed and the least atmosphere. To top it off, they tried to serve me instant coffee with breakfast, but I refused it and got espresso. We drive around a bit searching for Lednice’s castle. On the way we explore the Pavlov hills with castle ruins above, and we find a sign about the very prehistoric finds in the area – 27,000 to 29,000 BCE.
We stop in Lednice, park and walk to the castle complex, which is huge and being reconstructed. The very beautiful and extensive gardens are open so we spend some time there.
Back in the car, we decide to drive across the Slovak Republic and stay overnight. We use most of our Czech crowns on gas and a map and change the rest to Euros at the Slovak border. We are surprised that the Slovak republic uses Euros while Poland and the Czech Republic do not. We drive to Trencin and take the motorway to Zilina. It’s new and fast until it stops for 11km. The SR is very hilly, and snowy mountains can be seen from the road. Very pretty scenery, but highway 50 is full of ugly, garish signs, and they have done a lot of visible mining in the mountains. A lot of industrial development is also apparent. They seem to be modernizing with a vengeance to good and bad effect.
We drive to Rozemborek, park and walk to the information place. We get there just before it closes and the young man give us a good tip on Pension Andrej, just down the street. Tony argues for a low season price of 30 Euros and gets it. We rest for a while in our very comfortable room and then go to the pedestrian part of the city and check out eating places. We settle on a steak bar where we have goulash and potatoes with, of course, a glass of pivo.
April 29, Wednesday
We leave Pension Andrej about 9:30, park near the food market, then walk to the pedestrian street for a coffee and small chocolate rolls. We then buy some lunch stuff at the market and head out, first to Vlkolinec, a preserved mountain village about 12km from Rozemborek. The signs on the main road are ugly, once we turn toward Vlkolinec on a small climbing road, everything changes to pastoral mountain. There is a small parking place at the edge of the village which is inhabited by real people who live there full time. We pay the parking fee, and I choose a bench to sketch from while Tony wanders and takes photos. From there we head back to highway 50/18 which is a motorway again to Propad. We stay on it almost to Propad because 534 did not appear. It takes a while to find it, but finally we are heading into the high Tatras. Tony stops to take a picture of the snowclad peaks with all the garish signs in the foreground. Fortunately, one we are inside the signs are controlled. What is not controlled is all the clear-cutting of the forests right around the resort area. It seems counterproductive to us, but the lumber business is big here. So is pollution. Any distant view is shrouded in haze. Industry, cars, and the use of coal as fuel have all contributed. It is a shame in such a naturally beautiful area, and we are sure it’s much worse in the winter. Anyway, we are close enough to the high snowy peaks framed by blue sky, that their beauty shines through.
We decide to drive to Zakopane. Tony had hoped for another view of the Morskie Oko, an emerald green mountain lake which we saw in 1975. However, it has obviously become too popular. You now have to park in a huge lot and hike 9 km which we choose not to do. We drive on to Zakopane failing to find the Goodbye Lenin Hostel, so we take a second look at Lonely Planet and choose Pension Carlton, a big old house with many rooms and a lovely sunny balcony with mountains all around. I sketch the view from the balcony while Tony organizes and rests his knee.
At 5:50 we walk to the pedestrian area and have coffee and then, after a while, dinner at the self-service fish restaurant. Tony has mixed grill and I have trout. Good.
April 30, Thursday
Excellent breakfast in the dining room – very dark coffee, cereal, cheeses, meat, great bread, yogurt, tomatoes, etc. We pack up, then walk the town to the information place to get a map of Krakow on another beautiful day.
We decide to drive to the Dunajec, the town of Schawinka, where they take the boats out. We park in the big lot and then walk over to the river. Lots of boats are coming out of the gorge, 1 or 2 at a time. I find a good spot to sketch the scene. Tony sits above and reads the guide books. When I finish we get coffee and eat our sandwiches.
The drive to Novy Targ is somewhat scenic, but it has gotten even hazier, and the high peaks are no longer visible. The traffic gets bad because there is construction on the big road to Krakow and far too many cars. Fortunately, our map accurately gets us to Dom Lemon in the quiet suburbs of Krakow. It is friendly but inelegant. I request and get my extra pillow, and Tony finds me a sheet that fits my bed. Strangely, there is an afternoon thunderstorm. We both take the opportunity to check email, and I send out a group email from Krakow. We decide not to take the bus to City Center. Although the reception people tell us there is no restaurant in the area, we go out and explore. First we find a monument to people killed during the German occupation, then we find our bus stop for tomorrow, and just when we are about to give up, we find a very understated eatery which is just closing, but they nevertheless stay open for us. We have quite a good meal: placki in mushroom sauce for me, pierogi for Tony. Placki, potato pancakes smothered in some kind of sauce, has been an eating goal for me, and Tony has wanted to eat pierogi (little filled dumplings), so we consider our search a real conquest. The hostel is very quiet. We sit in the common room for a while before going to bed.
May 1, Friday (Pierswa Maya)
I slept unaware of the hard bed and awoke refreshed thanks to my second Ambien of the trip. We get the 10:34 bus into Centrum Krakow, get off at Teatr Bagatela just outside the Rynek. It’s another gorgeous day, nary a cloud. Temperature in the mid 60’s, lovely in the sun. the rynek looks great. They’re fixing up the cloth hall – something is always being renovated – but in general things are looking good, much brighter and more colorful than we remember, but Krakow was a jewel even in 1975. We said then that when it got discovered bythe masses, it would really take off as a tourist destination. It has been discovered. It’s Pierwsa Maya, a national holiday, and Krakow is swarming with people, mostly Polish, enjoying the holiday. There are performing artists all over the place and 2 different amusement park arrangements near the river.
I start my sketching day at McDonald’s where we have 3zl cappuccino in an old courtyard, rather anachronistic and worth a small sketch. Shortly after that, from a sunny spot in the rynek, I start a sketch of St Barbara Church, squeezed between the Mariacki church and a more modern building. Then we start our touring day. We luck out at the Church and see the opening of the Wit Stosz altar, complete with music. This church is totally decorated, every inch, and it’s quite a lot to take in. We see some of the back altars along with a tour group. We walk the rest of the rynek, entering several churches, then check out the cloth hall and then have a sit down lunch at a Georgian chain restaurant, Gruzinskie Chaczapuri. Wawel castle is next where we do the outside walk-around. We descend to see the fire-breathing dragon, who is delighting children. Tony takes a picture to send to Chris as a memento of his 4 year-old fright at suddenly coming upon the dragon at night as he breathed fire. It looks much less fearful during the day. We walk through one of the amusement areas and are at the edge of Kasimierz, the old Jewish area of the city. All the indoor things are closed, so we do the outside tour of Kasimierz, which is really just a neighborhood, partially reclaimed from slumhood and benefiting from Schindler tourists. (The movie Schindler’s list was based on this area.) We’re pretty tired on our walk back to the rynek. We eat Hunter’s Meat Pot and Bigos at a restaurant on the rynek before taking the 152 bus back to Dom Lemon.
May 2, Saturday
This is Czestochowa day. We have read about the Eagle’s Nest Road and the road through Ojcow National Park, the smallest in Poland but encompassing some great castles and limestone caves. So we drive out of Krakow towards route 94 and turn when we see the Bialy Kosciol sign. From there we turn toward Ojcow (we hope) and we immediately find the lovely chapel on the water with beautiful carved stations of the cross going up into the limestone hills. We stop and walk around a bit, then drive in the area for a while on narrow unpaved roads and finally retrace our steps back to a main road and take the Eagle’s Nest route. We check out Ogrodzieniec castle, a very large ruin set on a large limestone cliff. There is a huge parking lot and hundreds of people milling around. The castle is very striking, but we cannot explore it and Czestochowa both, so we get a few views and move on, passing up a few more castles on route 791. Because of the double holiday weekend, and the beautiful weather, there are thousands of people out hiking and biking in the area or eating at the many restaurants on the main road. Following the signs to Jasna Gora, we find the very huge parking lot for the basilica and sanctuary. We eat our PBJ’s and drink woda gasanova before going to the sanctuary. May 3 is the feast day of Mary, the queen of Poland, and they are setting up a for a huge feast day Mass tomorrow. Meanwhile today there is a mass going on, and the main and second sanctuaries are filled to overflowing, with more people listening to the broadcast outside. People are very reverent. We will have to wait for some of the people to leave before getting a glimpse of the treasured icon. I sketch one of her pictures while Tony wanders and takes photos and thinks about his novel. Eventually we both get close enough to see the icon.
Modern paintings of Christ’s agony, done by a famous Polish cartoonist, are a major exhibit, which makes an interesting contrast with the ancient icon. We leave the sanctuary and visit the huge baroque basilica and wander the grounds for a while. This shrine is less commercialized than Lourdes or Fatima, and the pilgrims seem very sincere in their devotion.
We leave after indulging ourselves with Lody and drive towards Ojcow. On the road Tony is flagged down by 2 policemen who say he was driving 77km in a 50km zone. He uses his friendly, humble, dumb tourist persona, and they do not fine him. Finally at Ojcow, we see the castle ruins on the limestone hill and then have a lovely dinner at Pod Kazimierow, inside the park. I finally have my Platki with goulash, and we share a cheesecake dessert. Then Tony finds his way back to Dom Lemon in the dark.
May 3, Sunday (Constitution Day)
Our last day in Krakow. We drive to the parking area in the big Krakow park. It serves the zoo, and everyone is taking kids to the zoo. We do get a place because we are early enough. We get directions for the Pilsudskiego mound. The black and white trail winds through the woods and mostly up till we come to the zoo entrance. We buy coffee and sit at a nice outdoor table on yet another beautiful day.
We now continue our hike on the red trail and come to the mound. We sit and contemplate it for a bit before starting our circumnavigation. At the top there is a good view of Krakow and surroundings as well as the regrettable smog. On our way back we stop at the zoo entrance and buy yummy kebab for me and kielbasa for Tony, both served on a big bun with mustard.
We find our car and head for the exit. There is now a ½km line of cars waiting to get into the zoo parking lot. We also note that we could have taken the 134 bus and avoided a lot of congestion. We drive back to our place and rest a bit, but we have more to see. So the trusty 152 bus takes us to Nova Huta, the end of the line. We had learned about Nova Huta in 1975. It was a communist showpiece, a huge steel mill with a modern planned socialist town built around it. There are wide sidewalks and streets and lots of open space, surrounded by gray blocky buildings. The coal dust colors everything that is not scrubbed and painted regularly. There is very little activity here compared to the throbbing old medieval center city. Old people sit on benches in the sun. Some young people are biking or skating, but it is lifeless compared to the Stare Miasto (Old Town). All the previously communist named streets have been renamed. Both Pope Jana Pawel (John Paul) and Ronald Reagan have streets named after them. We walk around, have a lody and take 152 to the rynek for a goodbye look. Things are quieting down after the double holiday long weekend. We go back to our restaurant of Friday evening, and we are the only guests. I have stuffed cabbage leaves, Tony pork cutlet. At about 8:30 the 152 takes us back.
May 4, Monday
We leave Dom Lemon a bit after 10 and wend our way out of Krakow, retracing the route to Nova Huta that the bus took yesterday. We’re on route 79 to Sandomierc. Tony suggests I read about it because the Michelin Guide highlights it, and Lonely Planet likes it too. It sounds enticing so we decide to stop there for lunch. When we first enter the town, we seek the visitor center and find the toalety located several flights of stairs below ground level. While down there we discover the underground passageway which is the most famous feature of Sandomierc. The passageway has been renovated because it started caving in a while ago, and they had to inject lots of cement and steel to stabilize it. We ascend and walk to the old town and are totally charmed by this Stare Miasto which is well prese
rved and beautifully maintained. It’s a miniature Krakow without the crowds. It’s famous for its sloping town square which is large and colorful. We’re there at full sun so everything is bright. From one of the narrow streets there is a lovely view of the valley below. Tony takes pictures, and I decide on a place for lunch. We order Kebab and Bulce and get huge Schawarma-like sandwiches, which neither of us can finish. We explore a little more and move on. The drive to Zamosc is quite nice. The flat country turns to rolling hills. There are lots of apple orchards and green and newly plowed brown fields. Things seem to grow well here, and spring is a beautiful time. We arrive in Zamosc about 5:00 and take some time to find Hotel Junior which is a basic hard bed cheap motel but better than Dom Lemon and much cheaper. We rest only briefly because we want to see the Italian Renaissance style Stare Miasto, which gives Zamosc the title -- the Padua of Poland. Michelin says it’s breathtaking, and it really is gorgeous. The large town hall has an aqua-colored circular staircase, behind which is the pink town hall. All the merchant houses are bright and beautifully painted, especially the ones which had belonged to Armenian merchants. The whole square is arcaded. It is surprising to see these lovely old cities in eastern Poland. We end the day with yummy goulash soup at the Padua restaurant.
May 5, Tuesday
We decline the 12 PLN breakfast because I envision a lovely coffee in the sunshine on the Zamosc rynek. We buy a few sweet rolls which we eat on the street while reconnoitering. It is cold and gray, and nothing opens till 10 so we eventually give up on the coffee, visit a few more sites including the empty synagogue which a sign says is under renovation, and say goodbye to Zamosc.
On the road to Lublin we stop at a big Tesco Supermarket and buy supplies. The 80 mile trip takes forever because of heavy traffic on a two lane road and lots of road construction, which is badly needed. Just 8 km before Lublin we turn off for Majdanek, the site of one of the most massive Nazi death camps. The camp was only 20% complete, but it was meant to hold 250,000 people, most of whom were destined for extermination. The Red Army “liberated” the camp in 1944, before the Nazis had a chance to destroy the worst aspects of it, so the gas chambers and crematorium remain as they were. The barracks stretch on and on. The camp is situated between an old cemetery and modern Lublin housing projects. The Soviets turned it into a museum immediately, while other Nazi camps were still operating. Despite the many visits we have made to holocaust places, the scope of the horror remains beyond understanding. How could this happen?
Tony makes his way to Lublin’s stare miasto and even finds a good parking place. We walk to the rynek which is bustling and lively but very jumbled and unfinished looking. Some buildings are completely restored, and others seem untouched. We have espresso at Coffee Heaven – good but too tiny. Then we drive on. Once out of the built-up area, we stop at a roadside rest and eat our sandwiches. We drive about 100 km more to Drohiczyn, a town on the Bug river where we find Pension Irena which has a room for 80 PLN plus 20PLN for 2 breakfasts. (about $33. Total. Once settled, we search the town for a restaurant but find nothing so we drive to a bigger town, Siemiatycze, but still no restaurant so we drive back to the road junction and eat at a small local bar/restaurant and have a fine meal for 21.50 PLN (about $6.50 total). We return to our pension where we are the only guests.
May 6, Wednesday
We wake to cold drippy weather, but a very good scrambled eggs, tomatoes, bread,yogurt, and Turkish coffee breakfast. We’re on the road about 9:00 headed for Biebrza National Park. The river winds through marsh and bog – one of the last living marshes in Europe and the largest national park in Poland, 100 km long. We stop at various places along the way, walking down to the water each time. Indeed there are countless birds in the area. We see swans, storks, and 2 cranes and many others we cannot name. 270 species come here. The marsh is very peaceful and beautiful; we wish the weather were more clement and that Allen was with us to tell us what birds we’re seeing. By the time we leave the area it’s 2:30 or so. We stop for another Turkish coffee at a Karchma and then have good bread, cheese, and PBJ in the car. Our next destination is the Masurian Lakes region – a very popular summer watering area. Today with the cold gray rain, there’s no one frolicking. As we drive it starts raining harder. One road we take is a narrow (gray) road which goes right along a lake.
We arrive in Gizycko about 6:30 and take 15 minutes or so to find the hotel I’ve chosen from Lonely Planet, Gosciniec Jantar. We get a double room on the top floor, very spacious and pretty, good bed, nice restaurant. We get our exercise lugging the bags up three floors. Once settled, we go out and walk the town in the off and on drizzle. We go down to the lake and then over to the canal to check out the rotary bridge which opens 5 times a day for 40 minutes. Then we go back to our hotel restaurant and have a very nice meal.
May 7, Thursday
Great breakfast at the Jantar. We pack up and leave about 10. Tony wants to get a map at the Information place. We drive around the town three times before parking successfully. He gets all the info about the Nazi stuff in the area. By this time the rotary bridge is open so we go down and see it. Tony photographs boats going through it from both directions, and he figures out how it works.
First stop on the Nazi bunker tour is the spot where Himmler’s bunker was situated. It’s about a .5 km walk through lovely woods and suddenly you come upon it. These monsters knew they were evil. They had to live in caves with walls several meters thick set deep in the forest with camouflage on top to protect themselves. We walk inside and see it for a second as the flash on the camera lights up. We stop momentarily at another set of bunkers at Mamerki and then go on to the Wolf’s Lair, Wolfsschanze, Hitler’s large bunker complex. The Nazis blew the bunkers up before they left, but quite a lot remains, though moss and algae and trees and shrubs are invading the old concrete.
We pay 40PLN for parking, admission, and booklet and walk the trails, noting who lived where. Neither of us knew that Hitler had spent almost 4 years, mostly at this location in northeast Poland, far from allied bombers and near to the eastern front. I sketch an entrance to Hitler’s bunker while Tony explores and takes lots of photos. Then we finish the trail, noting especially Goering’s bunker -- #16 – also huge.
It’s now late. We eat some lunch in the car and start the drive to Gdansk, mostly on narrow country roads, some very bumpy and lumpy, but we make good time because traffic is light. The sun is out. It’s crisp and cool and clear. The fields are sparkling. A very lovely rustic scene adds contrast to what we have just seen in the forest.
I navigate and Tony manages to drive right to the Abak, recommended by the “In Your Pocket” people. We do get a room and later buy food (chicken, rolls, soup, beer, cookies) in the nearby supermarket, which we eat in our room.
May 8, Friday
An unexpectedly fine breakfast at the Abak. A little emailing, and we’re off for the bus stop. #115 comes very quickly. We step on and discover there’s no ticket-buying machine on the bus, so we ride free. Tony is mentally prepared if an inspector should board, but as usual, no inspector comes.
We debus across from the train station, not far from the Solidarnosc Museum, which is located underground. The first room is a replica of 1970’s Poland, and we are transported back in time to the Poland we knew 33 years ago – gray, grim, and lacking most Western goodies. There is a typical WC and a meatless butcher shop. Then there is room after room of communist-era history, starting in 1944 with the Yalta conference and
ending in 1989 with the legalization of Solidarnosc and the fall of the Berlin Wall. The exhibits are very well done, and for us it is an emotional experience. We speak briefly to the young woman at the front desk. She says she does not remember those times, but her parents have told her about it. We’re not sure she understands our amazement at what seems like a miraculous transformation. To Poles who have lived through it, the change has been long, hard, and difficult. Some people even say they preferred communist times. We ascend out of the Solidarity Museum and spend a short time at the shipyard gates and the monument to fallen strikers. Then we start our tour of the Main Town – Glowny Miasto – rebuilt from the ground up after the war. Most of it is located between 2 gates. We walk the long street from gate to gate, along with lots of other people. It’s a warm day, and the sidewalk cafes are thriving. We then walk Mariacki Street where all the amber shops are set up with sidewalk displays. Next we go through the gate to the docks, and I sketch the old crane and surroundings. Back on Mariacki, we have a beer and grilled cheese sandwich at the famous Café Kamienicka, and then we go sit on Long Street for a while where I do a quick sketch of Neptune, appropriate because of the seafaring nature of this historic city. We eat at a local pub cellar, Green Dragon (Jodalne Pod Zielonym Smokien) and take the 384 bus back.
May 9, Saturday
We dance to Turkish music as we leave the Abak. We then drive for a while, north we think, and guess that we’re in Gdynia, but we find that we’re in Westerplatte where the huge WWII monument and the lighthouse modeled after one in Cleveland are located. I sketch the lighthouse, and Tony photographs and checks maps. We then find our way to Sopot and park and walk to the Baltic Sea, which looks blue and beautiful on another gorgeous day. Eventually we walk over to the Grand Hotel (where we stayed one night in 1976). It’s now a Sofitel, modernized, but the same luxurious lovely place. The cheapest rooms are 590 PLN, about $175.00 --- good value by U.S. standards. We walk back to the car after using the Grand’s nice WC’s.
Next stop is Malbork Castle. We take a toll road, the first of our trip. It’s a relief, though there are several back-ups. We park in front of the Zamek hotel for 5 PLN and eat our lunch next to the castle. We don’t have time to do the tour, and there is none in English anyway, but we cross the footbridge for a good look at the spread of the castle which was the base for the Teutonic Knights for over 100 years. I sketch the castle gates on the Vistula and remeet Tony at 3:45. Now it’s on to Torun on route 55, a red road on the map, but it goes through many towns, so it’s slow and, at times “kaleiny” (rutted). There are fields and fields of a yellow flower crop which we have seen all over Poland. Upon reaching Torun we drive around the old town for a while, trying to find the approach on Mostova st. where the hotel we’ve chosen from Lonely Planet is located. Lots of one-ways and pedestrian streets, but finally we make it. They have a room; we carry our bags up 3 floors, but the room is good.
We go out right away, so I can sketch something of Torun in the daylight. Then we walk down to the river and admire the city walls. Tony shows me a few highlights of the City of Copernicus, which was largely undamaged in WWII. We walk over to Nove Miasto and eat Indian dishes at one of the city’s oldest restaurants.
May 10, Sunday
The Pod Orlen breakfast includes eggs and good coffee. We’re on the road by 9:00, over the bridge, highway 1 and E75, then to S10 and 10. Whoops 10 is under construction. Every couple of miles there is a stoplight, and we wait for a long time for cars in the other direction to travel the one good lane. This goes on for an hour or more, so our original plans to stop and drop the bags at the hostel before going to the airport, have to change. We find the airport road; we’ll be only a few minutes late, and we have an hour grace period. Whoops we hit a detour, which gobbles up a half hour, and then we drive around the airport several times, looking for the rental car return, which has only one small sign. We do make it in time. I consolidate luggage and stuff while Tony goes to pay. The guy comes out to check the care, notices a few pings, which could have come from parking lots, though one didn’t. He says they charge 380 Euros if they decide there’s damage, but he says he won’t “see” anything. Tony asks about the radar cameras, and we’re told they send the pictures and fine on to us if anything shows up.
We eat some of our food in the airport, buy a bus ticket, and wait for the 175. We’re not sure where to get off so I read the signs on the bus and Tony follows the map. Just as he’s figuring we’ve gone too far, an inspector gets on the bus, the first we’ve seen in our 28 days of travel. As soon as people realize what’s happening, there is a rush for the door, but there’s a policija and another guy out there, so they do catch some people.
We get off the bus and walk about a mile with our wheelies. Nathan’s Villa is in a nice courtyard, and our room is over the courtyard, but we share the bath facilities. We gather our laundry in 2 piles, happy for the free laundry service. Unfortunately, there are no coffee filters, so I can’t make fresh coffee. I do some emailing while Tony reads and rests. Then we go out, walk along the nice avenues to the pedestrian, Novy Swiat. While checking out a pizzeria, Tony trips over a doorstep and falls, coming up with a bleeding nose. The restaurant people wipe the blood off the floor and offer ice for his nose, and a menu. Tony seems okay after the bleeding stops, so we have pizza and beer. Later we buy a Lody as we walk back a different way.
May 11, Monday
Last day, bread and jam for breakfast. Turkish coffee, sort of. (Still no coffee filters for the coffee maker) We check email and airline info, collect our laundry, and decide to go to the Polish Uprising Museum. First we walk to the Internet Café to check on getting boarding passes there later. Then we walk toward the Old Jewish Ghetto to see a few pieces of the ghetto wall, which are all very hard to find since they have been incorporated into the existing housing areas. Several bricks are missing because they are in holocaust museums in Houston, New York, and Melbourne. We visit the small, almost hidden Jewish museum.
We then have excellent Nalesniki – apple and bita smetana. We resume our walk toward the Warsaw Uprising Museum, which is huge and grim and brimming with information. Countless pictures of heroes with their stories are everywhere. There is an exhibit about the sewers used to escape and about the printing shop and the airplane. There are filmed interviews with surviving insurgents and newsreels filmed at the time of the uprising. The Poles were not allowed to tell this story during communist times because the Russians were complicit in the Polish defeat, and according to the Poles, distorted history. There were dozens of school groups at this museum; the Polish government wants to be sure that this generation gets the story right.
When we come out, the blue sky has turned gray, and it’s cooler. We walk half way and stop for cappuccino and sweet. Then we walk to Plac Konstytuja and get our boarding passes at the Internet Café. Right near the internet café we find Chlopskie Jadlo where we have our last Polish meal in a very pleasant atmosphere. I have pork roasted with prunes and garlic, and Tony has a peasant casserole. We have our final Polish draft beer.
Back at Nathan’s, lots of young people are organizing an outdoor barbecue. They invite us, but we go up to our rooms to pack and organize for our departure tomorrow. We are more than satisfied with our experiences in this return to Poland after 33 years, and we are grateful to have seen Prague and some parts of the Czech and Slovak Republics.
GENERAL IMPRESSIONS
We were continually impressed with the stunning changes in atmosphere, color, materialism (cars, advertising, a plethora of consumer goods). Compared to the gray, grim, bad old Communist days of 1975/76, life looked a lot better to us.
We were overwhelmed with the catastrophic nature of Polish history – the concentration camp museums giving witness to the holocaust crimes, the hidden bunkers housing Hitler's war planning community, the empty mosques giving witness to an obliterated community, the Warsaw Uprising Museum, the Warsaw City Museum, the Solidarity Museum. So much tragedy in the 20th century.
Our favorite things – All the beautiful city centers with their restored or well-preserved ryneks. We were especially surprised by Sandomierc and Zamosc. We loved Villa Greta which gave us a village insight and proximity to the lovely Sudeten Mountain area. We were happy to finally see Prague in its monumental splendor, and we found the nearby medieval town of Cesky Krumlov charming. The Solidarity Museum in Gdansk brought us right back to the bad old Communist days.
We were lucky to have a car and see the countryside in the spring with everything bursting into life. Especially memorable were the fields of rape or canola, which literally glowed golden in the sunshine. The Biebrza Marsh and the Masurian lakes were also very beautiful.
