Three Christmases

This is the first time I have experienced three Christmases. One is usually enough but this season consisted of even more eating and drinking for me than in previous years.

On the 24th of December I celebrated a traditional Polish Christmas with dumplings ("pierogi"), vegetarian "bigos" (sour cabbage and mushrooms) and some wine. Perhaps the latter is not traditional but the cheesecake we had for dessert was.

On the 25th of December I had my Irish traditional Christmas meal minus the turkey and ham. This meant lots of potatoes (baked, mashed and also disguised in the form of croquettes), broccoli, carrots, roasted parsnips and best of all, stuffing. This was followed by pudding and other sweet treats.

After that, on January 6th it was time for the Ukrainian Christmas. This time I was more involved in the preparation of the food. I made dumplings stuffed with sour cabbage and potatoes ("varenyki"), cabbage leafs with buckwheat and mushroom filling ("holubtsi"), doughnuts with rose and poppy seed filling ("pampuszky") and a dessert called "kutia" which consists of poppy seeds, nuts and raisins. There was also beetroot soup ("borsch") and sour cabbage salad with beans all washed down with cognac and vodka. Fish is eaten on the 6th while meat is eaten on the 7th of January.

There are many differences between these different traditional meals. In Ireland we have a candle at the window to welcome in strangers while in Poland there is an empty space at the table reserved for a possible guest. In Ukraine bread is placed on the table as well as a candle which is a reminder of the star of Bethlehem. There were also four cloves of garlic placed at the corners of the table. In Ireland we pull crackers which doesn't happen in Poland or Ukraine. However, in these countries carol singing at dinner is common while in Ireland, it is not.

There are many more differences depending on the region of each country but this year has certainly been full of interesting opportunities to compare and contrast different traditions as well as eating and drinking more than my fair share.

The Lost Weekend - From Krakow to ... Wrocław

The plan was simple - go from Kraków to Berlin to see two friends, one studying there and the other who was doing an album launch.

In the past there was a direct train from Kraków to Berlin but this has been replaced by a bus, which is better as it takes two hours less than the train used to take. An eight-hour journey still seemed to long, so my friend and I decided to get to Wrocław early in the morning and then hitch a ride into Germany. We thought that by getting there so early, we would have plenty of time to make it, and even if hitch-hiking proved to be ineffective, there would still be enough time to catch a train or a bus and make it to Berlin in the evening.

Everything started out fine. We took the bus at 7:40 in the morning and arrived in Wrocław at 9:20. Since my friend had never seen the city, we took a walk into the centre with the aim of taking a quick stroll around, take in the impressive Market Square and then get out of town and onto a road leading towards Germany.

We had a coffee, walked around a bit and then set about finding a way to get to the edge of town. Two girls at tourist information helped us out. It seemed unfortunate that a friend of one of the girls was actually driving to Berlin that day and could have given us a lift but it just wasn't to be. A little bit of bad luck but we didn't think too much of it.

Getting to the edge of town can be difficult but we managed to do it after a few setbacks. Then we had to find a suitable place to stand in the typical hitch-hiking pose with our sign and hope that a good soul would help us out. Despite waiting for three hours in pretty cold temperatures, breathing in car fumes, hoping that one of the hundreds if not thousands of cars that went past us, only one person stopped but she was going in the opposite direction.

With cold feet and hands and deflated hopes, we retreated into a shopping centre to think about another course of action. With the help of my friend's fiancee, we got the number of a guy from a car sharing website (www.blablacar.pl) who was going to Berlin. We called him and he said he was leaving at 5pm and was going to arrive in Berlin at 10pm. It was a bit late for us but seemed like the only option, so we agreed to go with him. A Thirty-minute delay became one hour. Add another half an hour onto that and our patience was running low. This guy was driving a bus but was not registered and was using a car pooling website to basically run an illegal service so we decided to scrap that plan and go back into the centre and check the train connections. We knew there was an early morning train thanks once again to my friend's fiancee but we had no idea how complicated it would be to buy a ticket for it. We could buy a ticket to the town across the border to Gorlitz but not from Kottbus to Berlin. We couldn't understand why. Surely in the European Union there is communication between train companies to allow for the smooth movement of people from country to country. Evidently not, judging by the problems we had at the train station. The cashier was very helpful and even phoned a colleague to try to get us a ticket. The major problem was that there was so little time between connections that there was no way we would have had time to buy the ticket and make the train. She did manage to work something out for us despite the overly-complicated system but it all seemed too complicate and expensive so we decided to get a hostel for the night and review our options.

The first hostel we went to had no free beds.  The people working there almost seemed surprised by this fact and it seemed that normally it was not a problem to book a bed for the night. For us, it was just another slap in the face. They did help us to find another hostel, which had two free beds, was wonderful and located above a nice bar in an interesting area in Wrocław.

Having checked in, I went online and found another guy from the car pooling agency who was leaving the next day and could take us. With this in mind, we went out and enjoyed a few drinks in Wrocław before going to bed knowing that the next day we would finally make it to Berlin.

At 5am, my alarm went off for some strange reason. I had set it for that time the previous day but not that night. I turned it off and got a text that our driver cancelled his trip and was not going to Berlin. I responded by writing 'szkoda' and he responded back. According to him, the reasons were beyond his control and he was really sorry but I was wondering what he was doing awake at 5am and found it hard to believe the reason was out of his control.

The next day, I got up early and did some more research but there was nothing affordable going to Berlin so we decided just to give up and accept that fate was against us. It was nice to spend time in Wrocław but we both felt defeated. We were having coffee when the driver called again and said he had changed his mind. Perhaps he was sober then and this had influenced his decision. I don't know but by then we had already booked a ticket back to Krakow and had given up on Berlin.

What came out of this whole trip are three main things:

1. that hitch-hiking is not so easy in Poland
2. car sharing has many flaws especially when people are so unreliable
3. sometimes it is better just to buy a ticket with the assurance that you will get to your destination

Brown Bread

Above you can see my first solo attempt to bake bread. It was a very proud moment for me to slowly take the bread tray out of the oven and inhale the wonderful aroma signifying the completion of my efforts. Baking bread has been something that I have felt I should do for such a long time and I don't know what has stopped me from doing so.

What surprised me was how long it took to prepare but the satisfaction of slicing it and eating it for breakfast (it wasn't savoured unfortunately as I slept in and was nearly late for work) the following day was worth it. In the recipe, it said 20 minutes preparation time, and this was true but I missed the information giving the whole time needed. It was so long that my private lessons had to be interrupted slightly while I moved onto the next stage of the process much to the interest of my private students.

Why was it such a proud moment? Well, for me bread is a staple part of my diet. It is literally the foundation for so many of the things I eat - mainly toast and sandwiches and the different combinations that I put on top of them

So as for the preparation; getting the ingredients was pretty easy, kneading the bread for about 10 minutes was not so smooth on the wrists or on my patience especially given the limited space in my kitchen. As a whole the major requirement was patience, patience to do it correctly and to regularly check the recipe I found online. It is not a great virtue of mine but given the fact that I didn't literally have to wait and watch it slowly rise, it was not a problem.

So now that I have broken my baking bread virginity, I have promised myself not to go back to buying cheap, poor quality bread in the shop. That would be far too easy. This will involve a lot of planning in advance but if forced to have the option of bread or no bread, I know which one I will choose.

For those who are interested - Brown Bread Recipe

Biking in Poland from Kraków to Toruń (Summary of experiences from last year's adventure)

On 25th of September last year I finally set out to do something I had been scheming to do all summer while I was cooped up working at a summer school, go biking from Kraków to … Well, the initial aim was to follow the Amber Trail (Bursztynowe Szlak) all the way to Gdańsk but this proved difficult from the outset due to the lack of physical maps available and the shortage of information online. There was a website which promised much at first glance but failed to deliver. When I wrote an email to the contact address asking if there was a map available or more information, I didn’t receive a reply. With the aid of a road map of Poland, I traced out my own version of the route by circling each place of significance on it with the hope that everything would be clearer once I was actually there. I was hoping that there would be signs on the route as there was information on the website that this was the case. Another worry was that I also wasn’t sure if my borrowed bicycle was suitable for such a long trip. It had previously been ridden from Berlin to Kraków by its real owner so this reassured me a little.

Off The Beaten Track

In the past I have visited some Polish cities as well as countryside areas but this trip gave me the chance to really feel the country and in particular explore remote villages that are inaccessible for someone like me who can’t drive a car. What I found interesting is that it was hard to not be around any signs of civilization. Polish villages are usually quite spread out with houses not so close together. It is often hard to see the division between villages as there is often no clear border between them. This is unlike in Ireland where you can travel for a long time without seeing any sign of human activity. Many villages were not very prosperous in appearance with rather grey buildings lining narrow roads. This was not true all the time and some villages were quite well maintained but in general there was not much to make me want to stay in these places. Dogs regularly barked as I passed by with a heavy load, some threatened to add a bite to their bark. There were lots of chickens spread out on both sides of the road or frequently wandering around in drainage ditches. In some villages, there were no roads only dirt tracks but this wasn’t the case very often with some roads perfect for riding on. Seeing cabbage, onions and other food growing in the fields was interesting and gave me one reason to feel tempted to stay and work on the land. The most amazing memory I have of the trip was the route to Kazimerz Dolny through apple paradise with trees heavily laden with apples wherever I went. Further on I took a bike path up a steep hill and saw raspberries and other fruit being harvested in one of the most picturesque places I have seen. There was a strong temptation in me to stay there and ask for a job in return for a place to sleep for the night but I stuck to my cycling plan.

 Locals seemed surprised to see me passing through despite the fact that many lampposts had bike route signs on them but I never felt a sense of danger. One man joined me on a part of my trip. He was full of questions about me and told me he had lived in the U.S. for some time. He was keen to talk but cycled dangerously close to passing cars at times. Despite his age, he was faster than me and eventually continued on his own to the next town. The only places I saw signs for the Amber Trail was when I was leaving Nowa Huta in Kraków and in Bałtów, a resort by the Vistula River which was well set up for tourists with a dinosaur theme park one of its main attractions. The help of local people was invaluable. Without their directions, I would have wasted a lot of time going the wrong way. Another thing I must mention is the fact that as I was on my own, I often had to leave my bike unattended while I was shopping for food. Removing the panniers and carrying them and the tent with me was too much so this risk was necessary but not once did I have any problems or have anything stolen.

On The Beaten Track

Arriving into big cities such as Warsaw, Płock and Toruń were highlights especially the former as this really created a sense of achievement. The atmosphere was very different and much more commercial and business-like than in the countryside. Cafes and restaurants were crowded and there was a great sense of wealth and affluence in the capital. There were also a lot of tourists in the city taking photographs and leisurely strolling around especially in Nowy Świat, a busy location not far from the Old Town. It was strange seeing so many people in one place having been in the countryside for long periods. Płock and Toruń were similar with the latter being a place which seemed to be only for tourists. This was easy to understand given the wonderful architecture in the city.

Safety and Accommodation

Safety was an issue on larger roads as it is no place for cyclists. The lanes can be very narrow with the sides of the roads leading into a ditch or loose stones which can’t be cycled upon. I did take some of the main roads at times because they are obviously more direct with less chances of getting lost. This did mean taking more risks with one of the most dangerous parts of the trip, the section of the 757 road to Opatów that I rode on. The wind generated from passing trucks in the other lane nearly knocked me off my bike on multiple occasions. On the other hand, the busy 10 road from Lipno to Toruń was surprisingly comfortable. There was space enough for a cyclist and the road was in very good condition making it one of the easiest parts of the route. On the first night I asked two locals in a small village if I could pitch my tent somewhere and was refused and forced to camp wild.  Finding accommodation was difficult but locals were very helpful when I asked and directed me to places that weren’t well advertised.

To Sum Up

Toruń was the final stop due to the fact that I was planning to meet my parents on a certain date. I mainly travelled on a flat part of the country but passing by villages, towns and cities was a wonderful experience. Seeing food growing on the land was also something that I didn’t take for granted as fresh food is something I value greatly in Poland. I just wish that the route had been better mapped out as it was not so easy to find my way around especially when I was in some rural areas. It’s a shame there are not more campsites around as this would have made things a lot easier. Perhaps there are more campsites than I think but again they are not well signposted. Next on the Amber Trail for me is the route from Kraków to Budapest. At least I have a map for this part of the Amber Trail but I’m thinking about buying a new bike first.

This was written last year and since then I have indeed bought a new bike. More to come on this year's adventure soon.

Spamming / Notifying

The reason for writing this is to try to get some ideas about what other people think about this and also to get something out there that has been on my mind.

As I play music quite often in the same city and organise an open mic, I regularly use Facebook as the means to promote these events. I regularly invite many people I know and some I don't really know at all or have never even spoken to but are somehow in my friend's list. In the past, the way to promote an event was to print fliers and posters and go around town sticking them up in various bars and cafes and other public areas, some of which came with the risk of getting fined by the police if caught in the act.

Nowadays, it seems that having many ‘likes’ on Facebook is the most effective way to get events across to people, but is this really the case? With so many acts out there using the same means to advertise their concerts and events, is this the best way to try to encourage people to get interested in your music? Word-of-mouth is obviously one of the more human and personal means to build up your popularity and share your music and indeed, this is the main source for me to find out what people are listening to and who I should go to see next.

So back to spamming. Does it work? A big part of me feels a small sense of guilt that I am annoying people by regularly inviting them to events when I don't know them so well or suspect that they don't want another invite on top of the countless others they have already received and have to filter through to plan their time effectively.  On the other hand, without a manager or promotion agency, if I don't do it, who will?

It would be great to hand all this over to someone else and just focus on playing and working on new material. It would be amazing to know that when I get to the venue everything is prepared and there is no need to worry about anything, but until that happens, it's back to spamming or perhaps I should think of it as simply ‘notifying’ people about upcoming gigs.

Day Seven - 31/8/12 From Kraków to Toruń

The great amount of cycling I did the day before made for stiff muscles on day 7. I ate two bars of chocolate before two o'clock which says something about the condition I was in and the desire to gain energy from somewhere. The road leading out of Leszno was a mess but instead of taking the diversion, I decided to be stubborn and go through the roadworks as I was afraid of getting lost. They went on for longer than I thought and made for slow progress with strange looks coming at me from the construction workers.
            Once I got past that, I managed to gather some momentum and speed. The route was pleasant enough and all was going well but then I felt that funny sensation in the back wheel and realised I had another puncture. The wheel was not completely flat but was definitely soft. I stopped at a shop and asked the lady working there for a bucket of water to help me find the problem. She was very friendly and duly obliged. Fixing the tube again was surprisingly not so difficult but put the fear into me that this was going to happen again in the future. So many problems with the bike and all this after having it serviced before setting off. I had been worried a little about getting punctures and had thought about replacing the tyres but it was too late now. I was just hoping I could get to Toruń without any more mishaps. 
           My aim for the day was not so clear. It was a case of just trying to see how far I could go. 
More roadworks in a town called Chodaków and more dust and noise. I had to backtrack a little here after taking a wrong turn and then it took me some time to find the bridge to Żuków. I think the mayhem of the roadworks was the cause of missing the correct turn left. 
Once I got across the River Bzura, I took the 577 all the way to the bigger main road called 60. One of the funniest place names I saw on the way was a town called Gąbin. According to the Oxford online dictionary a gombeen man is a person who is:

'involved in the lending of money at unreasonably high rates'

but in Ireland this word is used to describe someone who is basically an idiot.

      My strangest encounter in a rural area full of fields of cabbage and onions was with an old man on a bike who was wearing a hat. When I asked him for directions he looked at me with his mouth slightly open displaying his full selection of teeth which amounted to about five in total but he remained mute. I asked again but nothing changed in his blank expression so not knowing what to do, I thanked him and moved on. I rode fast and eventually made it to Płock but crossing Solidarity Bridge (Most Solidarności) was terrifying. I had to get off the busy road and lift my bike over the metal barrier and onto the footpath. It was far too dangerous for a cyclist to ride among the vehicles big and small that were roaring past.
       Fortunately in Płock I found a hostel without much difficulty. It was a bit expensive but very clean and well-equipped especially the kitchen. I took advantage of this by making a massive meal of pasta with fried onions, tomatoes and beans. It was a meal for two or three people but I devoured it on my own.
      Płock has some nice architecture and its lofted position over the River Vistula is attractive but there was not so much to see and do there. In the square in the Old Town there was a concert stage set up with some bands playing but the drizzly weather was unpleasant. I wandered around a little contemplating what to do but the gangs of males prowling the streets encouraged me to return to the hostel. Despite being a four-bed dorm, I had it all to myself. I fell asleep watching Polish TV, woke up not knowing where I was and then struggled to the bathroom in a haze to clean my teeth before hitting the hay for real.

     

              
         

Day Six 30/8/12 From Kraków to Toruń

Eggs for breakfast and too many were not enough. I don’t know how many I had but it was a lot. I felt well-fed, well-rested and ready to cycle the short distance to Warka and then to Warsaw. Before I left, I was also given a packed lunch for the journey by my friend’s mother. There was nothing else I could have asked for. Great hospitality and care.

          From Czerwonka, I took the 730 to Warka and then the 731 which later joined the 79. Góra Kalwaria is obviously a busy interection for lorry drivers as I have never seen so many lorries in one area. I felt tiny on my little bike in contrast to these metal, dirt spewing giants. The roundabout before the town was so crowded with them that I couldn’t wait to get away from there. I kept moving and took the less busy 724 which lead to Warsaw and this was where I felt something was wrong with the bike. I looked down to check what it was and saw that my back tyre was flat. This is always a risk but not something I had expected to have to deal with. There was a repair kit in my bag but my previous attempts to repair punctures have nearly always ended up with lots of frustration involving struggles to get the tryres off and on. I remember one occasion when I managed this but then somehow made another hole in the tube when putting the tyre back on.

There was no time to waste. I had to do something. There were some houses nearby so I approached one and opened the gate. As usual there was a dog there who made sure he was heard. The owner appeared and I explained the problem. He gave me the bucket I requested and let me get on with things. Surprisingly, fixing the puncture was relatively easy and it was not long before I was back on the road again feeling very proud and grateful for the help which came at the end when he helped me to wash the oil from my hands.

My pace picked up again and remained quite fast until I reached the outskirts of Warsaw. This was a proud moment and a photo moment. From Kraków to Warsaw felt good. It really felt like I had achieved something even though getting to the centre of the capital still took some time. The traffic was pretty heavy but I kept going at a fast pace until I reached sights that were familiar to me.

Time for lunch in Łazienkowski Park, a relaxing place to stop and a welcome break from the noisy traffic from earlier. The only thing was that now that I was in Warsaw, I wasn’t sure whether to stay or not. It was tempting. After eating all of my food supplies, disasater struck again, the chain came off my bike, not once but twice. I was really getting fed up with bike problems and felt like abandoning it in a ditch but couldn’t bring myself to do it even though my patience was really being tested.

After a bit more exploring in Warsaw that involved briefly going into the Old Town and then Old Praga, I decided to leave. Łomianki was next on my map but it turned out to be a mistake. By the Wisła there was a path but this turned into a dirt path that was too sandy at parts to manage so I had to dismount and walk. When I finally got back onto concrete again, a local woman helped me to get to Łomianki but then I was faced by a forest which scared me as it looked easy to get lost there. Nervously I ventured in feeling that there was no choice. I rode for a bit before deciding what to do. I didn’t want to take  the busy E77 or the forest so I backtracked and took the road to a place called Stary Babice and then rode past village after village in a daze. It was slowly starting to get dark and there was no sign of any accommodation anywhere so I kept pedaling as if trying to escaping the darkness creeping up behind me. This continued until I got to Leszno and that was when I asked a local if there was any accommodation in this town and was so happy when she gave me some good news.

Cycling past the forest to my right, I was so happy not to have to resort to camping wild once again. The sound of insects was a sure sign of being bitten multiple times during the night had I slept in a tent. The hotel that was recommended was not bad at all. The price for a room was really low at only 36PLN, without a TV I must add (it was 48PLN for a room with a  TV). The room was clean and very modern as was the hotel. What a surprise in such a quiet area called Julinek. Dinner back in Leszno and then a really scary cycle back in the dark before bed after a testing day.

From Kraków to Toruń - Day Five 29/8/12

I woke up with the plan to get to a village near Warka to meet friends who had also been on a biking trip in the east of Poland and were nearing the end of their adventure. I will keep the anonymous here for legal reasons. The intial aim had been to get there on day four but I had been over optimistic and unrealistic about this as it is about 85km from Kazimierz Dolny to Warka.

          In my charming wooden room I felt better but still tired but resisted the temptation to have a lazy morning and leave later in the day. Knowing that my bike was back to good working order also gave me the encouragement needed to force myself to pack up and leave. Since being a child I have always hated riding my bike when something is wrong with it. I used to spend so much time trying to fix things and often made them worse by not having either the tools or the skills with which to do it. Nowadays I am willing to humbly pay someone to do it especially if they are genuine and trustworthy which I don't always find bike mechanics to be.

          Once packed, I bid the owner of the house a fond farewell as she had been very helpful by not only getting my bike fixed but also by making me feel very much at home. If I come back to Kazimierz, I will definitely stay there again.   From Kazimierz to Puławy I cycled at a good pace, not too fast but steady, and got there pretty quickly. Once again I crossed the Wisła, this time by bridge and stuck to the main road, the 738 and later the 48 all the way to Kozienice. I really felt pleased to be making a lot of ground with my knee behaving itself better than before and my bike reveling in the speed I was pushing it to do. Taking the main roads also made the journey easier despite things getting a bit hairy at times. Keeping concentration was the most challenging part as lapses caused me to veer off the road on more than one occasion into the gravel or stones that lined the road. I didn't injure myself or fall but it meant breaking the rhythm I had built up.

          A phone call from my friend gave me the energy to really push myself to get there before they left. Her mother was willing to feed me and put me up for the night in her place in a small village called Czerwonka, not far from Warka. There was still the slight chance I could make it to this village before my friends had to leave. It was unrealistic but I made myself believe it was possible in order to maintain the pace I was keeping. Knowing there was a place for me to stay was another motivating factor.

          I pushed hard and got to Głowaczów and then took the 730 which was a pretty good road. The cars on both sides which raced past made me pedal faster. I found myself in a good rhythm with my legs feeling stronger than before.

          When I arrived at the village my friends had just left but I was warmly greeted by my friend's mother and aunt. I had a wonderful shower and was fed with a delicious meal. It was a chance to enjoy the comforts of a nice home – the luxuries of civilisation which I must confess I really missed. It sounds great taking a tent and going into the wild, and I love this idea, but when it actually happens I find myself craving a good bathroom, a proper bed and all the modern comforts that I have at home. 

          After eating, I slept, woke up, ate again and chatted with my friend's mother and aunt for a while. Having a long conversation was an activity which had not happened since leaving Krakow. It was nice to share my thoughts out loud with someone else. I had started talking to myself a little while cycling, a sure sign of the need for a conversation and perhaps the beginning of a mental breakdown. After drinking some wonderful homemade cherry vodka (wiśniowka) it was easy to fall asleep early satisfied with the position I was in.
         Time was starting to run out so I knew I would have to do more of the same over the next few days if I was to make it to Toruń. By more of the same I don't mean eating and sleeping but giving my body the rest and energy it required to stay strong and energetic in order to reach my final target.

From Kraków to Toruń - Day 3 27/8/12

Despite the itching from mosquito bites, I slept quite well and felt ready to make up for the lack of kilometres the day before. There had been a lot of rain during the night so the tent was quite wet but only on the outside. Thankfully, it was dry when I was packing everything up. As usual I started off at a slow pace to loosen up my leg muscles. My right knee was a bit sore which was a worry especially so early on into the trip. From Staszów I took the 757 to Borogia and then went through some smaller villages to get to Ujazd. Here I stopped to have a look at the impressive ruins of a castle dating from the 17^th century. From Ujazd I starting having problems due to the fact that I didn’t want to travel on main roads but this brought other difficulties. It was easy to get lost.

          I went to Toporów which lead me onto a tricky dirt track to Mydłów. With such heavy luggage on the back of my bike, it was difficult to manage my wheels on the stony path but eventually I made it. Getting to Opatów involved getting lost many times with one local particularly unhelpful. He told me I was going the right way but the dirt track I was following onto lead to a dead end at a large field which there was no path through.

          Frustration forced me onto a main road again as I was tired of getting lost. The wind was also making it difficult to feel like I was making much progress. The E371 which was not pleasant for a cyclist. The large articulated lorries which passed me by on the other lane nearly knocked my off my bike as the wind they generated hit me hard. I rode as fast as I could to get off this road as fear propelled me forwards urging my legs to push harder to get to Opatów. It was a relief to get there and I found the city to be quite pleasant with a nice square in the Old Town. Being back in a city gave me the opportunity to stuff myself with food which is what I did. It was just a shame that the spinach soup had sausage bits in it which I had to avoid being a vegetarian.

          Just like the day before, I reached a point where my legs struggled to keep going. Reaching Kazimierz Dolny was looking a bit ambitious. The wind hadn't abated and seemed to be against me all the way as I took minor roads to Ćmielów. There were some steep hills to climb but also respite as I was able to freewheel from some big heights as well. One interesting place I passed through was Małoszyce, the birthplace of the famous Polish writer Witold Gombrowicz.
         Finding the way was not as hard as earlier and soon I was on a lovely road which cut through a forest and took me to Kościelna Ruda. This was where things got really hard again and I had to force all my weight and strength against the wind. At times it was really was a test of endurance and the thought of giving up crossed my mind more than once. The fear of being stuck in the middle of nowhere spurred me on and once I got on the 754 to Bałtów, it suddenly became easier to ride once again.

          My speed really picked up as all the earlier frustration was unleashed through my legs. Even my sore knee didn’t bother me as much. Kazimierz was too far to get to but Solec nad Wisłą soon became more possible as I ate up the kilometers. I had thought about stopping at Bałtów as it looked nice and there was actually some information about the Amber Trail there but my body felt full of adrenalin so I pushed myself to go the extra 20 something kilometers and finally made it to Solec. I was changing gears to climb a really steep hill when the chain came off. Another challenge to my wits. Getting it back on was not easy but I managed and then noticed that the back wheel was not going round as smoothly as before. Something was wrong with it but I was not sure what. As it was starting to get dark, I figured I would find a place to stay first and worry about the bike later. With the help of locals I found a room in a holiday resort centre that was cheap and quiet.

          I had done about 9 hours of cycling and was absolutely exhausted to the point of feeling I was hallucinating as I sat down on the bed and had a couple of beers to relax myself. It had been a tough day with the wind being the biggest opponent against me. It was so good to not have to sleep in a tent and to have a proper shower after a long day.

From Kraków to Toruń by Bicycle - Nearly Along The Amber Trail

For the next 8 Mondays I am going to post entries for each of the eight days of my biking trip that was supposed to be from Kraków to Gdańsk along the Amber Trail (Szlak Bursztynowy) but ended up being from Kraków to Toruń. It was a journey with many moments of happiness and also other times when I found myself questioning why I was doing it. One thing came from it is that I got to see many parts of Poland I had never seen before and experienced a hell of a lot in a very short space of time. I got to spend a lot of time passing through the beautiful Polish countryside but also had to try to survive on busy roads where I was greatly in fear for my safety.
The above picture was actually taken in the Dublin / Wicklow mountains in Ireland when I was doing a small bit of training before the trip. One hour long cycle was not really enough to prepare me for what lay ahead.

Summer Lessons

If, like me, you have to leave to teach abroad in another country during the summer, how do you feel about it? By 'abroad' I mean, in another country than the one where you have worked during the school year or the one that you have made your home in some ways or in the true sense of the word.

For me teaching gives you the freedom to work and live in another country and the time to keep your interests alive. Do I complain about my job? I won't answer that but the fact is that I do appreciate having time off when others are working and being able to do things like going to the post office when it is necessary or going running or on bike rides when others are only halfway through a working day.

One thing I must moan about when it comes to my job is the fact that when the summer comes I have three options:

• If I have been disciplined enough I can live off the savings I've accumulated and bask in the summer without worrying about how to pay the bills. Perhaps I can even take off for a bit and backpack to other places.
• I can get some work and cut down on costs to somehow survive until October.
• I can leave and do a summer course abroad.

The latter is the option I chose for this year and last year. Maybe 'chose' is not the right word. Circumstances dictated it. Being on a summer camp is not easy at times. It involves making a lot of personal sacrifices when it comes to personal freedom. On the other hand, there are benefits to it. I get to see new places, meet new people, get fed, get a bed etc. I also get to earn abroad so when I return to Poland my pounds can get me a lot more złoty. Still, it means putting things on hold such as music, hobbies in some ways and I guess life in general. Is this a good or a bad thing? I suppose it is neither entirely one or the other. It simply is as it is.

One thing I will earn from this is experience, appreciation for what I have when I return and or course a well-earned break when I plan to do very little.

Water, kayaking and Kielbasa

Kayaking was something I have never tried before and something I wasn't sure I would be able to handle without capsizing but throughout the whole trip to Mazury, it didn't happen once. I spent a total of seven days cruising through beautiful canals and lakes with a group consisting of 3 Latvians, an American, an Irishman, 7 Poles and 'Homer' the Labrador, who loved teasing us with sticks which he held with a vice-like grip in his teeth.
The dangers we faced in the wild came from hissing swans who threatened us by arching their wings and swimming close by with their young ones. The other threat was the torrential rain which unfortunately made life difficult over the last three days. Glimmers of sunshine soon morphed into apocalyptic clouds which burst upon us at regular intervals. Sometimes we were able to find shelter under nearby trees but on a couple of occasions I remember feeling so wet that I lost the will to care about sheltering.
Mosquito's were plenty in this part of Poland and despite using 'OFF', I think we all struggled a little with bites and itches.
Despite being far from towns and cities, we weren't totally away from civilisation as there were many bars on the camping sites and many locals who sold cakes and other locally produced goods along the banks of the canals.
There was also a sense of normality by having a daily routine. The first most important thing upon arrival was to set up our tents and then to find firewood for the cooking of sausages or potatoes, toast and cheese for the vegetarians, of which there were surprisingly a high number.
When I came home from this trip, Asia insisted I have two showers to wash away the stench of the accumulation of sausage and smoke which covered my clothes. It was something I had become so used to that I couldn't smell it at all. So now it is back to civilisation and daily showers.