Pictures, Part Three

Continuing the Poland Photo Tour, here’s part three. As mentioned before, it covers Lublin, Majandek, and Kazmierz Dolny—and the coldest part of the trip...

...Like in this picture. I felt like a snow prince or something, it was so cold that the snow didn’t even melt in your hair, just froze. The girls looked like they had white streaks in their hair where the snow froze together in clumps.

Lublin:

This is the main street in Lublin’s old town. We arrived at night and spent a bit of time poking about and looking for a hostel, or someone who spoke English well enough to tell us where to find one. We finally gave up and settled on a hotel, and it was quite nice, and not terribly expensive.

Another view of Lublin at night, this is the road that divided the old and new towns.

The next day we walked around the town, and explored the cool side streets and alleys there.

This is in Lublin’s old town again. There were no stairs to the right of the railing, so you could slide down the icey ramps, kinda like skiing. Actually not really, but it was fun anyway.

A gate at the edge of the old town. It was snowing sooo hard here.

A corner of the main square. It was really like stepping back in time there; this picture could have been taken anytime in the last 50 years.

The main street in the old town in daylight.

Majdanek:
It took us forever to find this camp. We only got there through the help of a Polish guy that escorted us right to the gates. Once we got there, it was getting darker, colder, and more windy…and we were the only people there.

Like all things, we were very serious about going to the concentration camp.

This thing was not screwing around though. It was so surreal to see this come out of the fog as we were driving up to it, like being in weird sci-fi thriller. It was used to store the ashes of the victims, which were thrown into a pit inside.

This is the crematorium and gas chambers. Again I can’t tell you how weird it was to see all this in real life.

These are the barracks. We couldn't go in them as the place was technically closed for the night, but we learned later that most were originally meant to store about 50 horses, and were retrofitted to house over 400 prisoners.

Ok, off down the road to happier things. After spending a night in the strangest hostel ever (it was very cheap, but huge, completely deserted, and waayyy off the beaten track.), we woke up the next morning to -13F weather and bright sunshine. We were told to go to Kazmierz by some of the people at the Krakow hostel, so we decided to check it out on the way home the next day. I have to say it was one of the highlights of the trip—it was quite small and very quaint, classic fairytale European. We walked around a bit, then found a tearoom and ducked in to get out of the cold. It was sooo cool, just like being in someone’s living room. We found a couch by the fire and relaxed for a bit. It was so nice that we didn’t want to leave. Anyway, back to photos:

Ana and Carmela heading into town…

Stairs heading up towards the town center.

The view from the church, this looked out over the north side of the village.

Another church just outside the town center.


Ok, that concludes the penultimate installment. For the last entry, we go back to Krakow…stay tuned.

P.S. You can click on any picture to see the original, large size. Just FYI...

Road Trippin'

Welcome to part two of the Poland tour. I think I got the picture thing figured out, so we should be good to go now.

So without further ado…

This is the car we rented—we thought it would be some small crappy euro car, but they gave us this, a Ford Fusion. We didn’t complain. It was a bit underpowered, but really good in the snow. And yes, those are the keys in my hand.

As I said before, driving in Poland was nothing short of sketchy, and as demonstrated in the picture below, we took it very seriously.

The drive up to Lublin was beautiful—it snowed the night before, and the countryside was pristine. It was this section of highway that inspired the next picture…

…When Ana and Carmela (Spanish flatmates) decided that they wanted to kick a tree full of snow and see what happens!

There were crazy signs everywhere, and were quite graphic for road signs. We were admiring the attention to detail on this first one—the hood is even crumpled:

This next one we haven’t been quite able to figure out. Is that a giant lollypop in her hand? A balloon? And who decided it was necessary component of this sign? We will never know…

Getting a little ahead of myself with this one, we are now on the return journey on some deserted back road. It looks a bit like Vermont to me…

A pueblo pardido de dios. The village starts and ends on that corner.

More views from the way home. These were the pristine fields I was talking about earlier.

The sun about to set over the farmland, again on the way home.

Ok, that’s all for part two. Next time will be Lublin, Majdanek, and Kazmierz Dolny—stay tuned.

Pictures, Part One...

Well we are back in Edinburgh now, and are enjoying the sweet spring-time weather.

I downloaded the pictures onto my computer last night, and there are over 400! I selceted the best 40 for your viewing pleasure, and I'll post them in 4 segments over the next week or so. So, without further ado...

Part One: Krakow

This is the hostel we stayed at. It was VERY nice; small, clean, well located, and cheap. Couldn't ask for anything better. The staff was amazing as well, helping us with everything from planing our trip up north, to telling us what to visit around town, to fixing up my finger...

The view out the window of our room.

This path circled the old town, it was beautiful and great for a stroll--but the best part was...

...This hill! The local kids had gone down it so much that it was just pure ice. It was (kinda sorta) on our way back to the hostel, and we'd always make a detour back there for a run. If nothing else, it gave us an excuse to go running into a cool cafe or pub, after we (invariably) got freezing cold.

This is the gates of a church in the old town, It is called St. Peter and St. Paul's Church, and was built in the 17th century.

Another view of the church, showing its famous dome and baroque style.

This is a classic street in Kakow's Kazimierz district, also known (though only among tourists, I think) as the Jewish Quarter. It's like stepping back in time, everything is sooo old.

Another street in Kazimierz...Supposedly Schindler's List was filmed somewhere in this part of Krakow.


Well, that's all for now. Looks like the pictures are turned again, you'll have to tilt your head. I'll have to figure that out for next time. Next segment will be the Road Trip!!!

Mi Nuevo Nombre es Jackie Chan

...that means my new name is Jackie Chan in spainish. Why, you ask? Let's just say that it involves an incident with a foosball table, a win, and a victory salute that involved punching my hand through a low-hanging glass light fixture, a la Jackie Chan (that is pronounced in a spainish accent by the way). It could have been a lot worse, but I survived with only slicing into part of a finger tip. Apparently this is not the first time this has happened here, because the staff at reception calmly fixed me up with some gauze, cleaned up the glass and installed a new glass globe. Less than a half hour went by and the room was ready for another unsuspecting victim.

Last Day

Yes today is our last day here. We are a little bit sad to go home, but we will not miss the cold at all, ha. Despite the cold, being here has really convinced me to travel in eastern europe, possibly this spring. The scenery is very cool, super old and very gothic at times. We went to a pub last night (for coffee, of course :) that was ancient, lit entirely by candles, and full of Poles. This just one example, there are so many super cool shops and pubs here, and every one has such a unique character. The people here are amazing as well--for the most part they are amazingly friendly, helpful and inviting. For instance, when we were driving up north, we asked directions to a hostel that was very hidden, and ended up getting a personal escort (the friend of a gas station manager) right to the very door of the hostel--and both guys didn't speak a word of english.

Ok, time to go now... more when I'm back in Edinburgh.

Greetings from Poland again. It is still cold here, but we are in Krakow now and it is quite a bit warmer here than in the north. Today was a balmy 0F, and it should be warming all the way up to 20F by the time we leave! I have my sunscreen and swim suit at the ready.

Los Pubelos Pardido de Dios

I have picked up a few more words of spanish from traveling with my two Spanish flatmates the whole time; most of this involves the obligitory swapping of swear words and insults, but this phrase actually had some relevence to our travels. The phrase directly translates to "the villages lost of god" and is used to describe places so small that not even god can remember them. A bit sad, I know, but we found a lot of these villages on our way home from Lublin. With the weather being so unpredictable, we decided to head back home a bit early, and taking full advantage of our car, we took back roads for most of the way so we could get off the beaten track for a bit and see more of the authentic Poland. I don't know if we succeeded, but we found some really cool places. I'm not just going to leave you hangin, there are pictures to follow of course, but it is pointless to decribe them now.

Majdanek

Backing up a bit, we did manage to make it to the concentration camp, but had an amazingly hard time trying to locate it. The horrible irony of desperately trying to find a place that others tried so hard to avoid did not escape me. However we did find it eventually, though only after following a Polish man that we met in a gas station. We arrived after it had closed, but we were able to persuade the guard to let us in. It was super intense; the desolation of this place was amplified by the dark and frigid weather, and being the only people there only added to this feeling. Not a place I want to go back to, but I'm happy we saw it.

Krakow again...

We are back in krakow now, and are trying our best to get out and see things while still ensuring that all our limbs and appengages stay attached to our bodies. Today we walked around the town and checked out some of the shops, went to a cathedral, played in the snow (my spanish friends have not seen real snow ever, so it is a favorite past time of theirs now).

Well that's all for now...it's late here now, and I'm hogging the computer again. I'll try to write more later. Goodnight!

Of Sandy Beaches and Sunshine...

...we are dreaming. Greetings from Lubin, Poland and holy shit it is cold today! Right now it is 6F, and it should only be getting colder as the week goes on. Oi! That said we are having a great time. The drive up here was uneventful, but we learned that there are apparentaly no driving laws in this country. The biggest highway that we were on was two lanes, so when faster cars wanted to pass us (which happened alot, the speed limit is always ignored), they would just go by, reguardless of oncoming traffic. You and the oncoming traffic are expected to move right, creating a third lane in the middle. Sketchy? Yes it is. Last night it snowed a few inches and has been increasing the whole day. Luckily the car we are renting is VERY good in the snow, and came with winter tires. We are ok driving, but still makes things go bit slower.

Lublin is super cool--there is a very old city center, with classic small streets and alleys, a castle, etc. There are a lot of cool little shops and cafes, and the surrounding country is awsome as well. I have lots of pictures, but I'll have to wait until I get home to upload them.

Ok, I gotta go... Next up today is the concentration camp. Should be pretty intense. I'll let ya'll know...

Poland...sans money

Well I'm in poland now and I have to say it is pretty friggen cool; small cobblestoned streets, cozy cafes and bars, lots to see and do, and at a small fraction of the price of what I'm used to paying in scotland. Things really are rediculously cheap--a 4 course meal for three people at a very nice restaurant cost $50! I bought a designer shirt yesterday for $6, etc.

Scotland Screwed Me

Yessery they did...I brought a bunch of money with me to exchange when I got here as my bank account back home has dwindled and is slowly dying. However, when I went to exchange my money, I was told that they would not except the scottish pounds! Arrggh. The scottish pound is not different in any way to the english pound, it just has a different design and says "Royal Bank of Scotland" on it. Yeah so now I have to rely on my friends bank accounts, then pay them back in my worthless scottish pounds... Oh well, we'll make it work.

Driving in Europe...

Oh yeah one last little thing... today will be my first euro driving experience!!! I had heard from friends at work that the best thing to do is rent a car and drive around, so I looked into prices and it was pretty cheap. We had originally wanted to drive around the whole country, but Poland is a a lot bigger than I thought, so we have limited ourselves to one small corner. Today we are heading to Lundin (one of the few Polish cities that survived WWII intact, and it has a fully presevered concentration camp...should be pretty intense), hanging there for a day, then heading south through the countryside to the mountains. Should be beautiful, as long as the weather doesn't go crazy on us--it's supposed to be -20C (that's -4F) here this week! Not excatly a beach holiday...

Okay, that's all for now...I'm hogging the one community computer at the hostel, so I gotta go.

Happy New Year!

Ok, so I’m a little late but that always seems to happen so I won’t apologize…

All Good Things Come to an End:

A devastating thing happened this week—our free internet got disconnected! I can’t believe it, it’s been a somber time around the house. No more will we sit for hours on toilet in the downstairs bathroom typing our emails and chatting with friends. Just to give you a visual, here’s our friend matt demonstrating the proper technique:

Looks like we’ll actually have to pay for internet now, which probably won’t be so bad, especially because I have a job now!

Speaking of my job, I’ll tell you more about it: I am working as a waiter in the restaurant of a very posh department store called Harvey Nichols. You can check out the website here: http://www.harveynichols.com/output/Page126.asp to see more. There is a link to a 360 degree pan about half way down the page, it’s pretty cool. Harvey Nic’s (as they call it here) has been around since the 1800’s and sells all the latest and greatest designer brands, and has a restaurant as well. It’s been going well so far—I am actually learning a lot and there seems to be quite a bit of room to move up the ranks. We’ll see how it goes; right now I’m just happy to have money coming in. The other cool thing is it seems to be the popular choice of celebrities when they come to town—Christina Aguilera has been in a few times, and J.K. Rowling was in a couple days ago! I’ve never really been too celebrity crazy, but still it’s pretty cool.

New Year’s was pretty fun—we ended up having 11 people stay with us so it was quite crazy for a couple days, there were people everywhere. A bunch of people went to the street party, but I was able to convince a few to hike up to the top of the cliffs that overlook the town to watch the fireworks. It was really amazing—they set off fireworks from seven hills that surround the city, so we had a 360degree view of fireworks all around us. I took a couple pictures, but it doesn’t really do it justice:



Well that’s about all the news for now…Next report will be when I come back from Poland!!