The heart of Poland

“And no invader has ever conquered the heart of Poland, that spirit which is the inheritance of sons and daughters, the private passion of families and the ancient, unbreakable tie to all those who came before.” (James Michener)

I arrived in Poland with impressions from those friends and co-workers who had visited here before, and I had set myself up to see very grey and run-down towns, with an overall aura of sadness and heaviness. And stepping off the plane at the Warsaw airport only served to confirm my initial expectations as the terminal building had a bit of an industrial feel and the staff was all quite serious. So I was in for quite a shock when I met up with Kasia (my translator and colleague for the first part of the week) and we headed out of the airport towards Lublin, about 2 hours away. The road to Lublin took us past parks and green areas, through small towns with towering churches and stone monuments. The area very much reminded me of the road from Raleigh to Greenville in North Carolina (the greenery, not so much the buildings). Not at all what I had set my mind to expect!

My surprises continued when we went to a Greek/Italian restaurant called Oregano Café on Sunday night for dinner. Kasia said the place came highly recommended by some friends, so I ignored the English name, and the empty restaurant and choose my dinner with an open mind. Now, I don’t think that British cuisine is as bad as its reputation; however this was by far the best food I have had in Europe. The highlight of the meal was the homemade baklava with orange blossom honey and served with fresh orange slices. I guess the closer to Greece you get, the better the baklava!

Kasia took me on a walk thru Old Town Lublin on Monday, and I took the opportunity to learn about the changes that Poland has undergone in the last 20 years, first with the fall of the Communist state, and then with the entrance into the EU. Living in a free market all my life, it was captivating to listen to such a different life and way of looking at the world. Enjoying the architecture of the once-walled city, I was especially struck by the mix of the building which had fallen into disrepair ever since WWII standing next to a beautiful façade that had been artfully restored to its former glory. It very much solidified the drastic transformation that Poland is currently undergoing. Lucky for me, Kasia jumped at the chance to practice English and so she was eager to share her views on everything from the history of the area, the political atmosphere, and the general outlook of the Polish people, all while enjoying some local Polish dishes and beer at a small pub.

As the second half of my week began, Kasia left and Magda took over as my translator and unofficical guide.  In her, I found a passion and pride for her country that was unmatched in almost anyone I have ever met.  And once again, she was very happy to share with me her experiences, impressions, and opinions on life in "old" and "new" Poland.  On Wed evening, she took me to a small villiage named Kazimierz Dolney, about 90 km from Lublin.   Here, it was if we stepped back in time, surrounded by buildings from the 13th and 14th century, children playing the central square, and as I have began to expect from Poland, some amazing foods.   This time we enjoyed a small Jewish resturant, and more Polish dishes. 

My trip ended with a whirlwind car tour of Warsaw by Magda as she took me to the airport, and an invitation for a better and more complete tour whenever I had a free weekend.  And that is an offer that I am going to have to accept!

Quite unexpectedly, I have become very interested in seeing the other regions of Poland, to witness how so many changes to the political and economic structures of the country manifest themselves in the everyday lives of its people.

An unexpected treat

A few weeks ago, my friend Sharon shot me a note saying that she was going to be in England for a wedding of a childhood friend, and would I be free for a visit at all during her trip? Hmm...let's see...a visit from an incredibly fun friend who I rarely see (as she is a West Coaster) and with whom I also end up with some excellent (if not accident filled) stories, and all this occurs over a bank holiday weekend? Sign me up!!! As the original planned trip of 9 days got drastically reduced due to some home repairs for Sharon (gotta love ownership), I was not able to show her around Reading and London, so Saturday morning, I hopped a train heading back to the north country, to Newcastle, where the wedding was taking place. I arrived around 7:30 pm, and caught up with Sharon briefly at the hotel to grab the room key and get in a quick nap before joining her, her friend Hana, and the rest of the wedding guests for the post-reception party at the hotel bar at about 11. The nap was an essential part of the evening, as Sharon was still working on California time, and we drank, laughed, and caught up until 2:30am!

I have to say, I am impressed with our resolve, as the 3 of us (Hana, Sharon and I) were up and ready to go by 10 on Sunday morning. Now the question remained....where to spend the day? Newcastle was notable only for its nightlife, and its scantily clad population, so we thought it best to grab a train to a nearby town (although, I have to give props to the ladies who can wear that little clothes and that high of heels without a) dying of hypothermia and/or b) having a least one or more wipe-outs while navigating the cobblestone streets). Having been told that York was one of the "must-see" places in North England, we decided that was our destination for the day.

We got to York by noon and set out to explore the city. Our only knowledge of York was that it had a magnificent Minster (cathedral) and was a place of both Viking and Roman domination, so we decided to take one of those city bus tours that give the history of the place and serve as an all day taxi service with the hop-on, hop-off benefit. Our first stop was the ruins of St. Mary's Abbey, which once entertained Henry VIII and his fourth wife, Katherine Howard. We spent some time taking in the gardens that surrounded the ruins, the hopped back on the bus for the next site. Like many of the cities in England, York was once a walled city, and much of the original Roman walls are still intact and open to the public. We got off at one of the 4 remains bars (gates) of the walls, Bootham Bar, and climbed up to walk the wall while catching glimpses of the Minster towers as it rose above the city. As we made our way along, we realized that the yogurt pots we had grabbed that morning were no longer sustaining us, and we came upon a tea room, which seems to be an obvious choice for a quick bite in a very English manner.

Relaxing on comfortable sofas and chairs, we noshed on scones, tarts, soups, and cheeses, (and of course teas). We even got to witness Sharon's mad tea skills as she attempted to dilute an over-sweetened cup by pouring it back in the pot. The anticipated mess was avoided, and we continued our tea-time in peace!

As nice as the tea room was, the afternoon was marching on, and we continued our trek along the wall to the next gate, Monk's Bar. Here we strolled through the narrow city streets, towards the centre-point of the skyline, the York Minster. The Minster is the largest Gothic-style church in Northern Europe, and took 250 years to complete.  Even after seeing quite a few Cathedrals, Chapels and Abbeys in my short time in Europe, I still am overwhelmed and amazed at the beauty of these buildings. The incredible detail in the stone workings, ceiling design and stained glass windows are constantly breath-taking, and I don't think I will ever tire of visiting these amazing buildings (everyone else might get tired of seeing all the pictures :) ). With an £8/person admission fee, we pool our resources and I was sent in after being voted "Most Likely to Take the Best Pictures". I spent some time taking in the beauty of the enormous cathedral, while Sharon and Hana did some browsing in the surrounding shops.  By far, it was the stained glass which had me most captivated.  The Minster houses half of the surviving medieval stained glass in England.

We reassembled, and hopped back on the bus in search of the York Castle remains.  Along the way, we passed the Jorvik Viking Centre....definitely something to see, but we were running low on time, and decided that it would be added to the "next time" list.  The York Castle is no longer around, however one of the defensive towers, Clifford's Tower, is still intact and can be climbed for some of the best views of the city.  We ascended into the tower, and up the narrow, stone, spiral staircase to the top of the tower (the British sure do love this method of going vertical.  Visitors be warned...any sort of heeled foot-ware is no recommended while touring the British Isles).   As promised, the view from the top proved to be a good one, and we walked along the circumference of the tower before descending the steps.  Our day in York was coming to a close, and we headed to a pub, as all good days in England should end!

Sharon and Hana are somewhere over the Atlantic now, and I am enjoying the free Wifi on the train back to London.  I am so happy I got to spend my weekend with the both of them, and here's to the next adventure with whoever may pop up in England next!