Poland part III
March 31st, 2009
I’ve visited Aleksandra this weekend again, and we had a good time together even though we broke up two weeks ago. We started off with a dinner at a Krakowian Sushi bar, which is a great way to start any weekend. Aleksandra arranged a ‘private’ room for us in the restaurant, closed off by thin walls of paper and sliding doors. The sushi was fresh and good, and the plum-wine was very sweet. This wine is served with a bucket of ice cubes to dilute the substance, because it is almost impossible to drink otherwise. As is my habit, I managed to knock a glass of this expensive wine off the table and onto Aleksandra’s clothes. There’s just something about light reflected in a glass that occasionally messes up my hand-eye coordination.
Hey, you can use these sticks to put rice and fish in your mouth!
On that same Saturday evening, we visited a pub before going sushi and we wanted to take some pictures inside. Sadly, the arrangement Aleksandra had made did not work out; we were supposed to have a room to ourselves but the entire cafe was occupied. So we had a few beers instead, and I took some shots of the bar and the atmosphere. Later, we went onto the streets and took some pictures there before venturing into the Sushi bar.
The bar from a hobbit perspective
The table from a drunk’s perspective
A square in the Kazimierz district
On Sunday we visited two museums, and had a walk through the Kasimierz district on a rainy day. We had an old-fashioned Polish meal during the early afternoon for no less than 40,50 Polish Zloty at a restaurant in the city center, and later at home we had another Polish dinner (made by Aleksandra) with salmon and potatoes. This Sunday has been one of those rare days when I get to eat two hot meals and drink beer at both of those meals.
The Kasimierz district looked forlorn in the rain on this day. Most of the buildings inside this district are in a bad state and have a really bad history. The pain and suffering you can see in these buildings makes them beautiful and the Kasimierz district worth a visit.
Kraków in the rain
On Monday, while Aleksandra was at work, I visited the zamek Kmitów Lubomirskich, which is a castle in the town of Nowy Wisnicz. It dates from the 15th century, and it was rebuilt in the second part of the 20th century after abandonment and fires. Today it is an empty castle with guided tours, and I took a 90 minute drive in a small bus to get there. Some of the people on the bus helped me get out at the right bus-stop, and one kind lady even got out with me and showed me the way to the castle. The castle itself is cold and empty, but that certainly has its charms and adds to the experience.
See yourself and everyone else dance in the ballroom. There is a mirror in the mirror.
Today, we got up at 5.15 to have some breakfast and wait for our taxi at 6.05 to take us to the central station in Krakow. Aleksandra went to her office from there, I went on a bus to take me to Katowice Airport. At 16.05, I was home.
My name is Marco Hokke. My blog is about the things that interest me and things I might forget if I would not blog them.
One Response to “Poland part III”
1Ola
April 1st, 2009 @ 10:55 pm
oh
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