I need to get out and randomly explore a bit more- I find interesting things that way!
A week ago, I had an appointment in a kind of new section of town- the office was between Marszałkowska and Jana Pawla II, but it was an area I'd never really been in before. I discovered that the fence along the street was covered with posters for upcoming concerts and learned that both Mudhoney and Alice in Chains will be playing soon- grunge revival? I discovered a couple neat new restaurants, as well as the Jewish quarter, which was *really* interesting, because the buildings that were left were all original- crumbling, run down, but the original buildings.
I walked through the quarter, then out to Świętokrzyska and turned right, heading toward the Palace of Culture and Science. As I came to the corner of Świętokrzyska and Emilii Plater, I was hit with a sense of deja-vu. On the corner was a sushi restaurant. But it hadn't always been there. Six months ago, after just landing and exploring through the city in search of a grocery store, Phil and I discovered this cute, warm cozy-looking restaurant called Carpe Diem. We were cold, tired and hungry, and figured this would be a good place for lunch. I don't remember what he had, but I ate the *best* duck I've ever had in Poland- perfectly baked with apples and peaches, and perfect, golden roast potatoes. And they had good dark beer. Altogether, that had been one of the best lunches I've ever had, and I've been looking for that restaurant ever since, so I could have another. No wonder I couldn't find it! In its place is now a new-ish sushi restaurant, an "omise club" offering "body sushi". I'm glad we discovered it when we did and seized the day!
Last night, I went out in search of dinner. I didn't know what I wanted, but I randomly got off downtown and headed up Nowy Świat, up Krakowskie Przedmieście. After about 10 minutes, I heard some fairly loud music. Ducking under the archway of Krakowskie Przedmieście 24, I followed the music and accidentally discovered... the local rockabilly hangout! There was a small stage, with a pretty good band playing, a good-sized area with tables, and a small beer stand. Everyone was totally decked out- slicked-back hair, pegged jeans, sneakers, leather jackets, leopard-print coats, bleached blonde hair, huge sideburns. It was great! A bunch of guys had leather jackets with "Warsaw Cool Cats" on the back- not sure what that is, but it looked good. I stayed for about 15 minutes and listened, then went back to my search for dinner. Will have to go back sometime!
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Had a really fun weekend! Went away for a couple days to Torun, a medieval city about 3 hours from Warsaw by train. The weather's been really nice, so I wanted to enjoy it while it lasts. Plus, October is going to be really busy for me with work, so I figured I should get away now.
Got up early on Saturday morning, picked up some coffee and breakfast, then found a spot on the train. The other guys in the compartment were pretty quiet, so it was a fairly uneventful ride there. Enjoyed music, the pretty scenery, and one guy offered me his newspaper to read when he had finished.
Got off at the main train station, found a bus to the old town, and had some lunch at a nice Italian place. The old town is just gorgeous! Fortunately, it was NOT destroyed in WWII, so all of the buildings are original. The town itself is one of the oldest- it received its city charter in 1233. The buildings are beautiful, a lot of pretty bricks. I walked past a nice park area with a great pond and fountains, up through the center of the town, past the Town Hall and post office, and found my hotel. I'd managed to reserve a room ahead of time, the night before, all in Polish, so I felt happy about that. The hotel was great, too- one of the oldest in the city, and in a great location. The interior had lovely dark wood furnishings and beautiful framed photos and postcards of Torun in older times. I dropped things off in my room, then came back down the stairs and noticed a fantastic panoramic photo of San Francisco hanging just above the stairs- the only photo of a non-Torun city in the hotel. What are the odds? ^_^
Spent the day walking around, enjoying the sunshine, fresh air, happy people. Torun smells good- like waffles, ice cream, coffee, pastries, maple trees. After lunch, I went to The Living Museum of Gingerbreads. Besides being the birthplace of Nicolas Copernicus, Torun is also famous for producing delicious gingerbread. It was a fun tour- two of the staff dressed up in 16th-century costumes and told us all about the history, ingredients, and process of making gingerbread. It was all in Polish, but I picked up a bit of it here and there, and learned the Polish names for cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. They had an interactive demonstration of preparing gingerbread dough, then each of us got a small ball of dough to roll out on the table and stamp with a mold. They baked these in the oven, and we each got to take ours home, as a souvenir! You can't eat them, they're just for decoration, but according to the docent, they'll last years and years in a dry place. Very cool! There were about 20 people on the tour, so it was a fun afternoon. And *man*, did that place smell heavenly!
After that, I headed back to the hotel for a little nap, then went out to find dinner. I had pear crepes at a cute restaurant on the old town square, admiring the beauty of the square. They had draped little white lights through the trees, giving it a peaceful, sparkly atmosphere. After dinner, I just sat on a bench for a bit and relaxed, feeling very happy and peaceful.
I dropped my book off in the hotel room, then headed back out to Pod Aniołem, a bar in the cellar of the town hall. I figured that sounded like a cool place to have a beer- the name means Under the Angels. There are a lot of "Pod" places in Poland. ^_^
It was a *great* place! All dark and brick, low arched ceilings, random furniture, comfy couches and big wooden tables, birdcages hanging from the ceiling, lots of little nooks to hide out in, old accordions on a bookshelf, really nifty. I got a beer and found a spot at an empty table and listened to the DJ- good mix of interesting club and electro stuff. I felt really happy and relaxed, glad to find a good place like this.
After a while, a really drunk guy came over and sat down and we had a little chat. He had very limited English, so we didn't say much, but he exchanged names, told me what music he liked, and I told him what I liked, and he said he liked to dance and drink vodka. This essentially repeated itself about five times, so after a while, I told him it had been nice to meet him, and went off for another beer. He went back to the dance floor, and I returned to my table, enjoying the current mix of R&B and club music.
After about 10 minutes, a couple of girls asked if the other seats were free, and I said, sure, go ahead. They sat down, and we instantly fell into a great conversation. They were from the area and taught middle school- this was their fun night out for the weekend. They were really nice and fun to talk to- one was tall, blonde, very outgoing; the other was more petite, brunette, kind of quiet and shy. After names, professions and where we were from, their first question was, "are you here alone?" I said yes, and they immediately said "Oh! Do you have a husband back home?" I said no, and they looked worried. "Boyfriend?" "Did have, but we split up when I moved here." They looked more relieved then, to think that I wasn't *always* unattached, and we talked more about school, dancing, music, etc. I guess this really is a culture of pairs, couples, attachments... interesting!
After a while, a larger group joined ours, and soon, our table had about 10 people at it. It was nice, just being included in with a bunch of locals, not feeling like the isolated tourist. We talked, drank, danced, had a great time. Then one of the teachers suggested going to a different club- sounded good to me! So we went to Club Monaco, a more trendy kind of place, with a cover charge. Not my usual thing, and I was kinda under-dressed (having worn more practical travel clothes), but we had a great time. Also a good mix of club music, a bit more smooth and modern. We stayed there until the *wee* hours of the morning, just dancing, relaxing, having a great time. By the time I got back to the hotel, my feet hurt and my ears were ringing from about 6 hours of solid techno, but I was really happy- I'd made some new friends, learned more about the town (the cellar used to be a prison!), and basically spent the night hanging out with beautiful, friendly people. Life is good!
Slept in a bit on Sunday, then checked out and had some lunch. Listened to a family chat at the next table over and picked up quite a bit of the conversation. Admittedly, they *were* talking mostly to their two little kids, but still...
Went to the Regional Museum after lunch, in the Town Hall. Lots of great paintings, artifacts, church items, jewelry from the area. After looking at the galleries, I climbed a VERY tall and narrow set of stairs (reminding me a bit of the Tor House) to the top of the Town Hall's belfry. WOW! Totally worth all the exercise. The view was just marvelous- you could see the entire city, the Vistula River, absolutely everything. I stayed up there for a while, just *being*. After taking a picture for a nice couple, I headed back down, then walked out to the river banks.
The river has a nice path alongside where people can walk, and cement stairs for sitting and enjoying the area. I walked down to the end of the path, then came back and just sat for a while, basking in the sunshine and enjoying the breeze from the river. I watched a couple guys fish with their kids, baiting the hooks, casting the lines, then reeling them back in- repeat. I'd never thought much about fishing, figuring it'd be kind of boring, but this just seemed nice- pleasant, relaxing, something you could do with your family, low-maintenance. One of the kids caught a couple of medium-sized fish.
Eventually got up again, picked up a coffee from Green Way, then headed back to the train station to catch the 6:30 train home. Ended up in a compartment again with about 5 guys, and we all enjoyed a nice, peaceful train ride, reading magazines, sleeping, etc... until the hooligans started in. There was a group of guys in the hallway that started out just drinking beer and chatting, then got louder and louder, opening cupboards, taking pictures, yelling chants together. I didn't understand most of it, but the few words I did pick out were bad ones. At each stop, they'd get off and run around, being rowdy, until the conductor herded them back on. The eventually moved on from beer to juice, and then finally to vodka. By the time they got off at Warsaw, they were pretty loud. I could see the other guys in my compartment looking very relieved to be off the train at last!
Altogether, it was a really nice weekend- gorgeous town that I'll definitely need to visit again! Hope everyone else had a good weekend as well!
Got up early on Saturday morning, picked up some coffee and breakfast, then found a spot on the train. The other guys in the compartment were pretty quiet, so it was a fairly uneventful ride there. Enjoyed music, the pretty scenery, and one guy offered me his newspaper to read when he had finished.
Got off at the main train station, found a bus to the old town, and had some lunch at a nice Italian place. The old town is just gorgeous! Fortunately, it was NOT destroyed in WWII, so all of the buildings are original. The town itself is one of the oldest- it received its city charter in 1233. The buildings are beautiful, a lot of pretty bricks. I walked past a nice park area with a great pond and fountains, up through the center of the town, past the Town Hall and post office, and found my hotel. I'd managed to reserve a room ahead of time, the night before, all in Polish, so I felt happy about that. The hotel was great, too- one of the oldest in the city, and in a great location. The interior had lovely dark wood furnishings and beautiful framed photos and postcards of Torun in older times. I dropped things off in my room, then came back down the stairs and noticed a fantastic panoramic photo of San Francisco hanging just above the stairs- the only photo of a non-Torun city in the hotel. What are the odds? ^_^
Spent the day walking around, enjoying the sunshine, fresh air, happy people. Torun smells good- like waffles, ice cream, coffee, pastries, maple trees. After lunch, I went to The Living Museum of Gingerbreads. Besides being the birthplace of Nicolas Copernicus, Torun is also famous for producing delicious gingerbread. It was a fun tour- two of the staff dressed up in 16th-century costumes and told us all about the history, ingredients, and process of making gingerbread. It was all in Polish, but I picked up a bit of it here and there, and learned the Polish names for cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. They had an interactive demonstration of preparing gingerbread dough, then each of us got a small ball of dough to roll out on the table and stamp with a mold. They baked these in the oven, and we each got to take ours home, as a souvenir! You can't eat them, they're just for decoration, but according to the docent, they'll last years and years in a dry place. Very cool! There were about 20 people on the tour, so it was a fun afternoon. And *man*, did that place smell heavenly!
After that, I headed back to the hotel for a little nap, then went out to find dinner. I had pear crepes at a cute restaurant on the old town square, admiring the beauty of the square. They had draped little white lights through the trees, giving it a peaceful, sparkly atmosphere. After dinner, I just sat on a bench for a bit and relaxed, feeling very happy and peaceful.
I dropped my book off in the hotel room, then headed back out to Pod Aniołem, a bar in the cellar of the town hall. I figured that sounded like a cool place to have a beer- the name means Under the Angels. There are a lot of "Pod" places in Poland. ^_^
It was a *great* place! All dark and brick, low arched ceilings, random furniture, comfy couches and big wooden tables, birdcages hanging from the ceiling, lots of little nooks to hide out in, old accordions on a bookshelf, really nifty. I got a beer and found a spot at an empty table and listened to the DJ- good mix of interesting club and electro stuff. I felt really happy and relaxed, glad to find a good place like this.
After a while, a really drunk guy came over and sat down and we had a little chat. He had very limited English, so we didn't say much, but he exchanged names, told me what music he liked, and I told him what I liked, and he said he liked to dance and drink vodka. This essentially repeated itself about five times, so after a while, I told him it had been nice to meet him, and went off for another beer. He went back to the dance floor, and I returned to my table, enjoying the current mix of R&B and club music.
After about 10 minutes, a couple of girls asked if the other seats were free, and I said, sure, go ahead. They sat down, and we instantly fell into a great conversation. They were from the area and taught middle school- this was their fun night out for the weekend. They were really nice and fun to talk to- one was tall, blonde, very outgoing; the other was more petite, brunette, kind of quiet and shy. After names, professions and where we were from, their first question was, "are you here alone?" I said yes, and they immediately said "Oh! Do you have a husband back home?" I said no, and they looked worried. "Boyfriend?" "Did have, but we split up when I moved here." They looked more relieved then, to think that I wasn't *always* unattached, and we talked more about school, dancing, music, etc. I guess this really is a culture of pairs, couples, attachments... interesting!
After a while, a larger group joined ours, and soon, our table had about 10 people at it. It was nice, just being included in with a bunch of locals, not feeling like the isolated tourist. We talked, drank, danced, had a great time. Then one of the teachers suggested going to a different club- sounded good to me! So we went to Club Monaco, a more trendy kind of place, with a cover charge. Not my usual thing, and I was kinda under-dressed (having worn more practical travel clothes), but we had a great time. Also a good mix of club music, a bit more smooth and modern. We stayed there until the *wee* hours of the morning, just dancing, relaxing, having a great time. By the time I got back to the hotel, my feet hurt and my ears were ringing from about 6 hours of solid techno, but I was really happy- I'd made some new friends, learned more about the town (the cellar used to be a prison!), and basically spent the night hanging out with beautiful, friendly people. Life is good!
Slept in a bit on Sunday, then checked out and had some lunch. Listened to a family chat at the next table over and picked up quite a bit of the conversation. Admittedly, they *were* talking mostly to their two little kids, but still...
Went to the Regional Museum after lunch, in the Town Hall. Lots of great paintings, artifacts, church items, jewelry from the area. After looking at the galleries, I climbed a VERY tall and narrow set of stairs (reminding me a bit of the Tor House) to the top of the Town Hall's belfry. WOW! Totally worth all the exercise. The view was just marvelous- you could see the entire city, the Vistula River, absolutely everything. I stayed up there for a while, just *being*. After taking a picture for a nice couple, I headed back down, then walked out to the river banks.
The river has a nice path alongside where people can walk, and cement stairs for sitting and enjoying the area. I walked down to the end of the path, then came back and just sat for a while, basking in the sunshine and enjoying the breeze from the river. I watched a couple guys fish with their kids, baiting the hooks, casting the lines, then reeling them back in- repeat. I'd never thought much about fishing, figuring it'd be kind of boring, but this just seemed nice- pleasant, relaxing, something you could do with your family, low-maintenance. One of the kids caught a couple of medium-sized fish.
Eventually got up again, picked up a coffee from Green Way, then headed back to the train station to catch the 6:30 train home. Ended up in a compartment again with about 5 guys, and we all enjoyed a nice, peaceful train ride, reading magazines, sleeping, etc... until the hooligans started in. There was a group of guys in the hallway that started out just drinking beer and chatting, then got louder and louder, opening cupboards, taking pictures, yelling chants together. I didn't understand most of it, but the few words I did pick out were bad ones. At each stop, they'd get off and run around, being rowdy, until the conductor herded them back on. The eventually moved on from beer to juice, and then finally to vodka. By the time they got off at Warsaw, they were pretty loud. I could see the other guys in my compartment looking very relieved to be off the train at last!
Altogether, it was a really nice weekend- gorgeous town that I'll definitely need to visit again! Hope everyone else had a good weekend as well!
Monday, September 14, 2009
So, a friend of mine went down to Prague over the weekend to visit his family. He went to one of the local hockey games (season just started), and who should be in goal for the visiting team but DOMINIK HASEK! I guess he wanted to keep playing hockey even after retirement, so he's on the Pardubice team in the Czech league. I was *so* envious! Needless to say, I *will* be going down there for Sparta's one other home game against Pardubice this season, in hopes that I can see him play. It's days like this that I wish I lived in Prague...
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Today was just great. Woke up semi-early, got directions from my friend, picked up some pastries at the bakery, then headed over to his house to watch the Notre Dame-Michigan game. He'd taped it off ESPN America last night so we could both watch it. He has a great apartment, perfect for watching sports, and we had a great time watching the game. His very sweet wife made delicious blueberry pancakes and coffee for us, so it was a nice way to start the day.
The game was great. Notre Dame lost, but it was still a fantastic game- great plays from both teams. ND kept the ball moving for the first half and managed to get past Michigan's defense in the 2nd, but Michigan had a great spread offense and this *amazing* quarterback named Tate Forcier. Not only could he make amazingly accurate passes while running with the ball, but he had a calm sense of purpose and poise, and thought quickly on his feet. We were both seriously impressed with him. It was a really close game, 38-34, and I had a fun time watching it with a friend. I also got to meet their three adorable cats- such soft kitties with fun personalities!
After the game, I took the bus up to Stare Miasto and met another friend to see an exhibit of contemporary Chinese art in the old castle. Interesting pieces, though not necessarily my thing. Afterward, we walked through a new part of the old town I'd never seen and had crepes and soup at a really cute little pierogi place. She knows all the best places to eat and hang out here!
Now I'm home, about to do some tidying up, then go to bed early. Been a long weekend! Hope everyone is doing well.
The game was great. Notre Dame lost, but it was still a fantastic game- great plays from both teams. ND kept the ball moving for the first half and managed to get past Michigan's defense in the 2nd, but Michigan had a great spread offense and this *amazing* quarterback named Tate Forcier. Not only could he make amazingly accurate passes while running with the ball, but he had a calm sense of purpose and poise, and thought quickly on his feet. We were both seriously impressed with him. It was a really close game, 38-34, and I had a fun time watching it with a friend. I also got to meet their three adorable cats- such soft kitties with fun personalities!
After the game, I took the bus up to Stare Miasto and met another friend to see an exhibit of contemporary Chinese art in the old castle. Interesting pieces, though not necessarily my thing. Afterward, we walked through a new part of the old town I'd never seen and had crepes and soup at a really cute little pierogi place. She knows all the best places to eat and hang out here!
Now I'm home, about to do some tidying up, then go to bed early. Been a long weekend! Hope everyone is doing well.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Uggh... discovered tonight that apparently, I can't just go watch sports and drink beer here in peace.
I don't get any of the American games on TV at home, so I headed down to the huge sports bar downtown to watch the Michigan-Notre Dame game. I ate some dinner and had a pint of Murphy's while watching the end of Fresno State-Wisconsin (34-31, Wisc.!) About 5 minutes into the first quarter of the ND-Mich game, some guy came over from the table next to mine and gestured at a chair and said something. I assumed he wanted to borrow the chair, so I said "sure" and turned back to the game. Instead, he sat down and faced me, staring intently. I looked at him quizzically, and he drunkenly launched into all these questions- how was I, what was I doing here, how long was I in Poland, etc. I tried to evade them and gave vague answers, trying to watch the game, but he hung on. He asked what I though of Poland. I said, "I like it; it's a nice country. "Oh, no, no....". No? Okay... He asked what I thought of Polish people. I thought, "Well, you're kind of a jerk, but otherwise..." I said, "They're very nice and welcoming." "No, no, no..." By this point, I was peeved- Notre Dame had apparently lost control of the ball and Michigan had scored a 94-yard touchdown, and I'd missed all the action leading up to that. He then told me I looked sad. "No, I'm not. I'm fine, really." "No, you look very sad." "Umm, if I did, it's because my team is losing. I'm fine, honestly- I have beer and football; I'm NOT sad."
He kept repeating these questions several times and finally I said, "Look- I'm fine, I like Poland and its people, I'm not sad, I just want to watch my game in peace okay??" and pointedly ignored him and went back to the game. He finally gave up and went back to his table.
Sheesh! Life here is hard enough, and watching college football makes me happy, which is a small thing. I hope this doesn't continue. I hate being rude to people, but I *really* hate it when they interrupt sports. And I noticed that he didn't go pester two guys who were sitting alone at tables watching soccer. *sigh*
Fortunately, I'll get to watch the rest of the game tomorrow at a friend's house, in good company, something to look forward to. I really should investigate the possibility of switching TV companies so I can get ESPN America at home.
I don't get any of the American games on TV at home, so I headed down to the huge sports bar downtown to watch the Michigan-Notre Dame game. I ate some dinner and had a pint of Murphy's while watching the end of Fresno State-Wisconsin (34-31, Wisc.!) About 5 minutes into the first quarter of the ND-Mich game, some guy came over from the table next to mine and gestured at a chair and said something. I assumed he wanted to borrow the chair, so I said "sure" and turned back to the game. Instead, he sat down and faced me, staring intently. I looked at him quizzically, and he drunkenly launched into all these questions- how was I, what was I doing here, how long was I in Poland, etc. I tried to evade them and gave vague answers, trying to watch the game, but he hung on. He asked what I though of Poland. I said, "I like it; it's a nice country. "Oh, no, no....". No? Okay... He asked what I thought of Polish people. I thought, "Well, you're kind of a jerk, but otherwise..." I said, "They're very nice and welcoming." "No, no, no..." By this point, I was peeved- Notre Dame had apparently lost control of the ball and Michigan had scored a 94-yard touchdown, and I'd missed all the action leading up to that. He then told me I looked sad. "No, I'm not. I'm fine, really." "No, you look very sad." "Umm, if I did, it's because my team is losing. I'm fine, honestly- I have beer and football; I'm NOT sad."
He kept repeating these questions several times and finally I said, "Look- I'm fine, I like Poland and its people, I'm not sad, I just want to watch my game in peace okay??" and pointedly ignored him and went back to the game. He finally gave up and went back to his table.
Sheesh! Life here is hard enough, and watching college football makes me happy, which is a small thing. I hope this doesn't continue. I hate being rude to people, but I *really* hate it when they interrupt sports. And I noticed that he didn't go pester two guys who were sitting alone at tables watching soccer. *sigh*
Fortunately, I'll get to watch the rest of the game tomorrow at a friend's house, in good company, something to look forward to. I really should investigate the possibility of switching TV companies so I can get ESPN America at home.
Friday, September 11, 2009
It's been a good week so far. Spent all afternoon last Sunday reading a book in a comfy armchair in a local coffeeshop. Been a while since I did that, so it felt nice and relaxing. Have had a productive time at work. The NFL started yesterday, so I'll have that and college games to watch on TV. Hockey season has also started here, so I'm making plans to head to Prague for a couple games in mid-December.
Wednesday afternoon, a friend and I went down to one of the local hangouts and watched a few of the World Cup qualifiers. Sadly, Poland lost to Slovenia, 3-0. But Germany beat Azerbaijan 4-0, which put them in first. We ended up running into a friend of mine and his group, so we had a fun time watching soccer, drinking beer, eating nachos and chatting. Afterward, there was a pretty good live band that ended their set with a couple of songs by U2- singer had a great voice!
Last night, I heard the most amazing concert. The Chinese Radio-Film Symphonic Orchestra performed at the opera house, a mixture of Chinese traditional songs, pieces from films, and some Polish compositions. The sounds were just beautiful- there's something so evocative about this style of music, how it slides lazily from one note to another, but still manages to end up squarely on the pitch it was going for. As I listened to the flute, I could hear dawn breaking somewhere, birds waking up in the trees, a new day starting. The violins had a strong fragility to them, like a sturdy wooden porch that's existed on the mountaintop for hundreds of years but always looks like it'll crack any second. The slower sections of the pieces just felt so relaxing, like a nice summer day wandering through fields of grasses, playing, having fun, enjoying the world. The faster sections had a very rhythmic intensity- you could hear the warnings in the air, see the troops of horsemen in the distance, proudly carrying banners into battle. I've always admired scores like this that complement their films, but listening to them on their own is almost like *hearing* the film. The musicians were very talented, especially a young violin soloist, Li Chuanyun. His performance ranged from sweet and tender, to quirky and light, to frenzied, manic, insane. He returned for several encore pieces and concluded with Frederick Pope's solo from "The Red Violin". Preceded by a most delicious sushi dinner at Kiku, last night was simply fantastic.
Tonight has been mellow. Polish class, two loads of laundry, ate dinner, finished watching a video, chatted with friends. Not much on the agenda for the weekend. Going to try to watch the Notre Dame/Michigan game tomorrow night, then off to see art on Sunday with a friend.
Wednesday afternoon, a friend and I went down to one of the local hangouts and watched a few of the World Cup qualifiers. Sadly, Poland lost to Slovenia, 3-0. But Germany beat Azerbaijan 4-0, which put them in first. We ended up running into a friend of mine and his group, so we had a fun time watching soccer, drinking beer, eating nachos and chatting. Afterward, there was a pretty good live band that ended their set with a couple of songs by U2- singer had a great voice!
Last night, I heard the most amazing concert. The Chinese Radio-Film Symphonic Orchestra performed at the opera house, a mixture of Chinese traditional songs, pieces from films, and some Polish compositions. The sounds were just beautiful- there's something so evocative about this style of music, how it slides lazily from one note to another, but still manages to end up squarely on the pitch it was going for. As I listened to the flute, I could hear dawn breaking somewhere, birds waking up in the trees, a new day starting. The violins had a strong fragility to them, like a sturdy wooden porch that's existed on the mountaintop for hundreds of years but always looks like it'll crack any second. The slower sections of the pieces just felt so relaxing, like a nice summer day wandering through fields of grasses, playing, having fun, enjoying the world. The faster sections had a very rhythmic intensity- you could hear the warnings in the air, see the troops of horsemen in the distance, proudly carrying banners into battle. I've always admired scores like this that complement their films, but listening to them on their own is almost like *hearing* the film. The musicians were very talented, especially a young violin soloist, Li Chuanyun. His performance ranged from sweet and tender, to quirky and light, to frenzied, manic, insane. He returned for several encore pieces and concluded with Frederick Pope's solo from "The Red Violin". Preceded by a most delicious sushi dinner at Kiku, last night was simply fantastic.
Tonight has been mellow. Polish class, two loads of laundry, ate dinner, finished watching a video, chatted with friends. Not much on the agenda for the weekend. Going to try to watch the Notre Dame/Michigan game tomorrow night, then off to see art on Sunday with a friend.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
This has been quite a week! Last weekend, I went to the Tatra mountains with some friends for a relaxing mini-vacation. M & took the night train to Zakopane- it's surreal to be in the train station at 1am and sleeping all night the way there! Pretty good rest, though- very relaxing and rhythmic. Though, we almost missed the train- when we arrived, a sign on the departures thing said it was delayed 20 minutes, so we waited in the waiting area. Around 1, we heard something about a train and Zakopane, so we decided to go check it out... and got on the train about 2 minutes before it left! Apparently the train got on schedule sometime along the way and we didn't know that they'd taken off the "delay" notice.
A group of us shared a nice apartment in the heart of town for the weekend. Zakopane is a fun resort town in the mountains, pretty crowded year-round. In the spring and summer, people come to go hiking; in the winter, they ski and snowboard. I chose not to go on an epic hike up to the top of the mountain and instead, spent a very nice day wandering around the town, enjoying the people-watching, ice cream, good local cuisine and beautiful architecture. In preparation for heavy snows, all the buildings have high, peaked roofs, like chalets. Many have gorgeous designs carved into the wood. It's a very beautiful and restful area, and the hills and mountains are so green and pretty!
I left on Saturday afternoon, took an express train back to Warsaw. Got a good night's rest, then left for Vienna Sunday afternoon. I was going there for a business meeting for three days. We accomplished a lot, I think. It was nice to have more time in Vienna, though, especially in better weather. I mainly wandered around a lot, just exploring and admiring the buildings. On Monday, I went to a lovely concert of Mozart's music at the Staatsoper. Gorgeous opera house, nice acoustics. The musicians all wore kind of fun period costumes, adding a unique element to it. Afterward, I went to the Anna Sacher cafe in the hotel Sacher and ate a piece of the world-famous Sacher-Torte, a legendary dessert that's 175 years old. Everyone told me it was so sweet it'd make your teeth hurt, and they were a bit right- there is definitely a tangy sweetness to it. Though, I can't quite put my finger on what it is... a mystery!
On Tuesday night, I found an English cinema and watched Harry Potter 6. I did this because I really want to see it on the big screen and it's only dubbed over here, with no subtitles. So I counted that as a worthwhile thing to do. Had a *very* yummy steak dinner and salad afterward.
On Wednesday, I almost missed my flight back! I somehow mis-read the departure time on the itinerary as 17:45 instead of 17:25. Looking back, I think I had first seen the 16:45 boarding time and mixed that up in my brain. Needless to say, I somehow raced off of the CAT train, ran up the stairs, checked myself and my luggage in, made it through security and onto the bus that goes to the airplane in under 15 minutes. The luck of the Tiger must have been with me then!
Had a pretty uneventful flight back, caught a taxi home, dropped off my bags, then caught a bus out to the Old Town for a good-bye dinner with some friends. It was M's last night in Poland, and A is leaving at the end of the weekend. So we all ate tons of delicious Indian food and chatted. One of the girls had bought a bottle of wonderful raspberry liqueur made by monks, so we enjoyed that after dinner, then headed next door for a couple more drinks. More good conversation, plus a lot of Doors on the stereo- good times. It was a wonderful night, and I'll miss them, but I also wish them a good future as they head off to new endeavors.
On Thursday night, I joined a couple of friends at Ujazdowskie Castle for a really rad concert by a Polish singer named Katarzyna Nosowska. When we arrived, there was a huge crowd and we were told that tickets were all sold out. So we went to the nice restaurant behind the castle and chatted over some beer instead. The music was still going when we finished beer, so we asked if we could just hear the last couple of songs. We had a welcome surprise, though- the lady said the concert was only about 20 min. into the set and that we could get in for half price! So we ended up seeing most of it.
VERY cool music- reminded me of Dead Can Dance, punk, blues, country, hard rock, a lot of things all mixed together. The band was really great, and she has a strong but ethereal voice. And it was awesome to see this out in the open-air courtyard of a castle under a dark blue sky dotted with stars. Had a fabulous night and made a nifty musical discovery!
I guess that's about all for now. Hope everyone's having a good weekend!
A group of us shared a nice apartment in the heart of town for the weekend. Zakopane is a fun resort town in the mountains, pretty crowded year-round. In the spring and summer, people come to go hiking; in the winter, they ski and snowboard. I chose not to go on an epic hike up to the top of the mountain and instead, spent a very nice day wandering around the town, enjoying the people-watching, ice cream, good local cuisine and beautiful architecture. In preparation for heavy snows, all the buildings have high, peaked roofs, like chalets. Many have gorgeous designs carved into the wood. It's a very beautiful and restful area, and the hills and mountains are so green and pretty!
I left on Saturday afternoon, took an express train back to Warsaw. Got a good night's rest, then left for Vienna Sunday afternoon. I was going there for a business meeting for three days. We accomplished a lot, I think. It was nice to have more time in Vienna, though, especially in better weather. I mainly wandered around a lot, just exploring and admiring the buildings. On Monday, I went to a lovely concert of Mozart's music at the Staatsoper. Gorgeous opera house, nice acoustics. The musicians all wore kind of fun period costumes, adding a unique element to it. Afterward, I went to the Anna Sacher cafe in the hotel Sacher and ate a piece of the world-famous Sacher-Torte, a legendary dessert that's 175 years old. Everyone told me it was so sweet it'd make your teeth hurt, and they were a bit right- there is definitely a tangy sweetness to it. Though, I can't quite put my finger on what it is... a mystery!
On Tuesday night, I found an English cinema and watched Harry Potter 6. I did this because I really want to see it on the big screen and it's only dubbed over here, with no subtitles. So I counted that as a worthwhile thing to do. Had a *very* yummy steak dinner and salad afterward.
On Wednesday, I almost missed my flight back! I somehow mis-read the departure time on the itinerary as 17:45 instead of 17:25. Looking back, I think I had first seen the 16:45 boarding time and mixed that up in my brain. Needless to say, I somehow raced off of the CAT train, ran up the stairs, checked myself and my luggage in, made it through security and onto the bus that goes to the airplane in under 15 minutes. The luck of the Tiger must have been with me then!
Had a pretty uneventful flight back, caught a taxi home, dropped off my bags, then caught a bus out to the Old Town for a good-bye dinner with some friends. It was M's last night in Poland, and A is leaving at the end of the weekend. So we all ate tons of delicious Indian food and chatted. One of the girls had bought a bottle of wonderful raspberry liqueur made by monks, so we enjoyed that after dinner, then headed next door for a couple more drinks. More good conversation, plus a lot of Doors on the stereo- good times. It was a wonderful night, and I'll miss them, but I also wish them a good future as they head off to new endeavors.
On Thursday night, I joined a couple of friends at Ujazdowskie Castle for a really rad concert by a Polish singer named Katarzyna Nosowska. When we arrived, there was a huge crowd and we were told that tickets were all sold out. So we went to the nice restaurant behind the castle and chatted over some beer instead. The music was still going when we finished beer, so we asked if we could just hear the last couple of songs. We had a welcome surprise, though- the lady said the concert was only about 20 min. into the set and that we could get in for half price! So we ended up seeing most of it.
VERY cool music- reminded me of Dead Can Dance, punk, blues, country, hard rock, a lot of things all mixed together. The band was really great, and she has a strong but ethereal voice. And it was awesome to see this out in the open-air courtyard of a castle under a dark blue sky dotted with stars. Had a fabulous night and made a nifty musical discovery!
I guess that's about all for now. Hope everyone's having a good weekend!
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Gah, Facebook is really driving me nuts now! I thought it was a problem with Firefox, but maybe not. It only happens on the little computer, not the big one, so I wonder if I have a bug of some sort? I ran AVG but it didn't find a virus or anything.
When I click on Profile or Friends, it takes *forever* to load, then just says Home on the tab and shows a blank, empty page. Any ideas on what's happening? *sigh* I really wish I understood computers more.
On a lighter note, today was pretty darned awesome. Got a lot done at work, read Pet Shop of Horrors at lunch (I *so* miss my manga collection now!), then went to a yummy Chinese restaurant for dinner (finally found a good one here!), had soft ice cream afterward, picked up some groceries and snacks for the trip this weekend, mailed a card to a friend, came home and took a little walk. Nice, balmy night, no rain or wind, and someone was playing Pink Floyd. Also found a pretty great used CD shop and picked up Asia and Lou Reed cds. Must go back there!
Thinking about travel plans for next summer- may try to combine trips to the US and UK so I can visit family, attend a friend's wedding and go to an anime con. Must investigate flight possibilities closer to the dates.
When I click on Profile or Friends, it takes *forever* to load, then just says Home on the tab and shows a blank, empty page. Any ideas on what's happening? *sigh* I really wish I understood computers more.
On a lighter note, today was pretty darned awesome. Got a lot done at work, read Pet Shop of Horrors at lunch (I *so* miss my manga collection now!), then went to a yummy Chinese restaurant for dinner (finally found a good one here!), had soft ice cream afterward, picked up some groceries and snacks for the trip this weekend, mailed a card to a friend, came home and took a little walk. Nice, balmy night, no rain or wind, and someone was playing Pink Floyd. Also found a pretty great used CD shop and picked up Asia and Lou Reed cds. Must go back there!
Thinking about travel plans for next summer- may try to combine trips to the US and UK so I can visit family, attend a friend's wedding and go to an anime con. Must investigate flight possibilities closer to the dates.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
8/13/09
Well, still haven't been able to update online- neither Warsaw or Munich airports had wireless, and I didn't feel like paying 7 GBP just to post something last night. But I had a fun three hours wandering about the Munich airport. Wonderful place! Lufthansa has what they call "Service Centers", little points throughout the airport where you can get free coffee, tea and newspapers. It's a long, spacious airport, full of gorgeous luxury shops. I spent quite a bit of time in the Fabriano stationery store, then found a good magazine on Prague- in German, but great pictures, and I can pick up a few of the words here and there. After going through the passport control, I had a yummy grilled cheese sandwich and fresh orange juice, then found a
couple books in the airport store- one of them was written by the author of The Kite Runner, so that should be good.
Had an uneventful flight from Munich to Birmingham, read a polish anime magazine. I'm constantly amazed by how much Polish seems natural these days. Listening to the announcers as the plane took off from Warsaw, I realized I understood more of the safety instructions from the Polish announcer than the German one. And reading an article about a series by Kazuya Minekura, I was able to pick up quite a bit. Maybe I *will* be able to read the newspaper by the end of all this!
Picked up some milk and fruit at BHX for a late night snack, then took a taxi to the hotel. Had a VERY restful night in a real bed with a down comforter. Ah, how living abroad makes you appreciate the little luxuries in life!
It's quite surreal to realize that today, in the space of 6 hours, I've spent time in three different countries; heard 7 different languages announced over loudspeakers, and have four types of currency with me. And that this is as do-able for me now as going to New York or Miami would have been six months ago. Life is pretty darned awesome right now!
Slept in on Thursday morning, then took a taxi to another hotel in Coventry. Drove past fields of cute little sheep, hay bales and signs that said I was entering Shakespeare's Country. Such a nice, sunny day! Spent the early afternoon in Costa Coffee, ate lunch and had coffee, read a crime novel for a while. Later that afternoon, my roommate S showed up- she was really nice and it was a pleasure to finally meet her. We checked in, then chatted for a bit before meeting up with some other people going to the con. We ended up being a group of about 10 altogether.
Eventually, we all decided that food sounded good, so we drove over to one of the nearby centers and ate at a place called Frankie & Benny's. Had a great dinner, lively conversation, good food. One of the waiters looked the spitting image of the main star of "The Namesake", *exactly* like him! After dinner, we picked up snacks and supplies from the grocery store, then came back to the hotel and had beer, chatted some more, watched a silly vampire movie on TV. Went to bed in the wee hours, but had a great day.
8/14/09
Woke up early-ish for breakfast, then half of the group decided to have a little nap before going to register for the con, and the other half went swimming. I opted for the nap. It's so pretty and restful here... almost don't want to go back!
Went out to the university in Coventry for the convention around 3, registered, had a snack in the Arts Center. Pretty campus! Lots of brick buildings and wisteria. Went to panels on Japanese Tea Ceremony and cosplay, tried to watch episodes of FMA but the computer file kept looping after about 30 seconds. Just sort of wandered around and enjoyed all the cosplay outfits- lots of good ones! Saw a very good Hughes, Lust, Jin, Gojyo, and fun Goth-Loli.
Wandered through the artists' alley and manga reading room, then joined people for dinner. Half of us went to the campus pub; the other half ended up in the Asian fusion restaurant. Had a nice red Thai curry and just enjoyed soaking up all the energy and watching the cosplayers. After dinner, we all headed back to the hotel for some beer and more chatting. It's fun to have a huge group to hang out with!
8/15/0
Steampunk Day! Today was a day full of fun cosplay. Most of our group had outfits for the steampunk genre, so they all dressed up and looked fabulous! We had a mad scientist, an anthropologist-gone-native, the captain of the ship and his pirate lady, among others. The hotel's bar was called Hemingway and had cool stairs and glass cabinets with little artifacts in them (letters, binoculars, old typewriters, a pith helmet, old writing sets, books, boots, etc.), so we took pictures on the stairs- good atmosphere for it! Everyone looked utterly fabulous- I was very impressed! Will see what I can do about being the ship's steampunk
librarian for next year ;)
There were a lot more cosplayers today, mainly because the Masquerade was happening later, a sort of cosplay showcase. Later in the day, two members of our group changed outfits and entered the Masquerade as Squall and Edea from Final Fantasy VIII. They looked *great*. I was highly impressed with the quality of costumes at this con- so much effort and attention to detail!
Spent some time in the dealer's room, though not a lot of money. Picked up a couple volumes of manga to take home and read- I miss my collection! Had some lunch, talked to a random guy from Oxford, then joined up with the group again to watch the cosplay event. After that, everyone was pretty hungry, so we drove out to a chips shop and picked up dinner. Wonderful fish and chips, full of salt and vinegar, all wrapped up in paper... tasty! We took them back to the hotel and ate them at the picnic tables outside. Lots of talk about Red Dwarf, and lots of singing- must familiarize myself more with British TV. Went inside, drank beer, played a fun game that involved writing a conversation by passing around papers and adding one's own lines to it. We ended up with some pretty random conversations! Happily went to sleep around 2. Good day!
8/16/09
Skipped breakfast this morning and opted to sleep a bit longer. We had a nice picnic later out on the grass, enjoyed the sunshine and fun costumes, then went to a panel on the history and construction of kanzashi (traditional Japanese hair ornaments worn by maiko) and watched some fun AMVs. The closing ceremonies and comedy skits started around 6. Lots of fun! There were some pretty good ones, especially the last one which was a spoof on Final Fantasy VII and Resident Evil.
The hosts of the event were great- really funny banter, much more entertaining than panel hosts I've seen at cons in the US. One of the con's guest stars was an American voice actor called Matt Mercer- he was great! Looked a lot like Luke Wilson, had a fantastic sense of humor.
They also had a charity auction and raised a LOT of money for the British Heart Foundation, which was super cool.
Altogether, I had a fantastic weekend, really enjoyed myself. Yes, this con had fewer people than American ones, but that didn't detract from the fun at all- rather, it gave it cozier, friendlier feel. Everyone was so nice and polite, the entire weekend felt just wonderful and warm and welcoming. I'll definitely come back next year for it, and maybe a couple others!
8/17/09
Time to go home.... we all had an early breakfast, then speedily packed our bags and took off for respective destinations. I took the train to the airport, then just hung out for a while until my plane boarded. I had *such* a fun time, am really glad I went. Made a bunch of new friends and now have great places to visit in the UK if I want a little vacation! Friends and weekends of squeee really are the best! Now time to go home, make sure everything's cool, finish some homework, and go to sleep!
Ugggh.... the flight from Frankfurt to Warsaw was *less* than fun. There was a screaming infant sitting right in front of me, crying the whole time. Thank goodness I've got an iPod full of loud death metal!
Got home ok, aired the place out a bit, talked to my mom, crashed... and woke up again at 4am to THE loudest thunderstorm ever! Guess at least I know I'm back in Poland >_< The sky was flashing with lightning, and there were even lightning bolts this time. Huge rounds of thunder
erupted every few seconds, and it started raining really hard, too. I imagine that this is a bit what being in a combat zone sounds and looks like, minus the weapons. Quite eerie and percussive.
8/18/09
Today was pretty cool- busy at work, got a very sudden trip to Vienna- I leave on Sunday. So this means my weekend in Zakopane with friends will be a bit shorter, but Vienna's a good place to go. Looking forward to more "exquisite dreams"! And it'll be nice to see it in the summertime.
Had a Polish class after work, then sushi and a concert of organ music with M after that. Wonderful evening all around!
Life rocks. ^__^
Well, still haven't been able to update online- neither Warsaw or Munich airports had wireless, and I didn't feel like paying 7 GBP just to post something last night. But I had a fun three hours wandering about the Munich airport. Wonderful place! Lufthansa has what they call "Service Centers", little points throughout the airport where you can get free coffee, tea and newspapers. It's a long, spacious airport, full of gorgeous luxury shops. I spent quite a bit of time in the Fabriano stationery store, then found a good magazine on Prague- in German, but great pictures, and I can pick up a few of the words here and there. After going through the passport control, I had a yummy grilled cheese sandwich and fresh orange juice, then found a
couple books in the airport store- one of them was written by the author of The Kite Runner, so that should be good.
Had an uneventful flight from Munich to Birmingham, read a polish anime magazine. I'm constantly amazed by how much Polish seems natural these days. Listening to the announcers as the plane took off from Warsaw, I realized I understood more of the safety instructions from the Polish announcer than the German one. And reading an article about a series by Kazuya Minekura, I was able to pick up quite a bit. Maybe I *will* be able to read the newspaper by the end of all this!
Picked up some milk and fruit at BHX for a late night snack, then took a taxi to the hotel. Had a VERY restful night in a real bed with a down comforter. Ah, how living abroad makes you appreciate the little luxuries in life!
It's quite surreal to realize that today, in the space of 6 hours, I've spent time in three different countries; heard 7 different languages announced over loudspeakers, and have four types of currency with me. And that this is as do-able for me now as going to New York or Miami would have been six months ago. Life is pretty darned awesome right now!
Slept in on Thursday morning, then took a taxi to another hotel in Coventry. Drove past fields of cute little sheep, hay bales and signs that said I was entering Shakespeare's Country. Such a nice, sunny day! Spent the early afternoon in Costa Coffee, ate lunch and had coffee, read a crime novel for a while. Later that afternoon, my roommate S showed up- she was really nice and it was a pleasure to finally meet her. We checked in, then chatted for a bit before meeting up with some other people going to the con. We ended up being a group of about 10 altogether.
Eventually, we all decided that food sounded good, so we drove over to one of the nearby centers and ate at a place called Frankie & Benny's. Had a great dinner, lively conversation, good food. One of the waiters looked the spitting image of the main star of "The Namesake", *exactly* like him! After dinner, we picked up snacks and supplies from the grocery store, then came back to the hotel and had beer, chatted some more, watched a silly vampire movie on TV. Went to bed in the wee hours, but had a great day.
8/14/09
Woke up early-ish for breakfast, then half of the group decided to have a little nap before going to register for the con, and the other half went swimming. I opted for the nap. It's so pretty and restful here... almost don't want to go back!
Went out to the university in Coventry for the convention around 3, registered, had a snack in the Arts Center. Pretty campus! Lots of brick buildings and wisteria. Went to panels on Japanese Tea Ceremony and cosplay, tried to watch episodes of FMA but the computer file kept looping after about 30 seconds. Just sort of wandered around and enjoyed all the cosplay outfits- lots of good ones! Saw a very good Hughes, Lust, Jin, Gojyo, and fun Goth-Loli.
Wandered through the artists' alley and manga reading room, then joined people for dinner. Half of us went to the campus pub; the other half ended up in the Asian fusion restaurant. Had a nice red Thai curry and just enjoyed soaking up all the energy and watching the cosplayers. After dinner, we all headed back to the hotel for some beer and more chatting. It's fun to have a huge group to hang out with!
8/15/0
Steampunk Day! Today was a day full of fun cosplay. Most of our group had outfits for the steampunk genre, so they all dressed up and looked fabulous! We had a mad scientist, an anthropologist-gone-native, the captain of the ship and his pirate lady, among others. The hotel's bar was called Hemingway and had cool stairs and glass cabinets with little artifacts in them (letters, binoculars, old typewriters, a pith helmet, old writing sets, books, boots, etc.), so we took pictures on the stairs- good atmosphere for it! Everyone looked utterly fabulous- I was very impressed! Will see what I can do about being the ship's steampunk
librarian for next year ;)
There were a lot more cosplayers today, mainly because the Masquerade was happening later, a sort of cosplay showcase. Later in the day, two members of our group changed outfits and entered the Masquerade as Squall and Edea from Final Fantasy VIII. They looked *great*. I was highly impressed with the quality of costumes at this con- so much effort and attention to detail!
Spent some time in the dealer's room, though not a lot of money. Picked up a couple volumes of manga to take home and read- I miss my collection! Had some lunch, talked to a random guy from Oxford, then joined up with the group again to watch the cosplay event. After that, everyone was pretty hungry, so we drove out to a chips shop and picked up dinner. Wonderful fish and chips, full of salt and vinegar, all wrapped up in paper... tasty! We took them back to the hotel and ate them at the picnic tables outside. Lots of talk about Red Dwarf, and lots of singing- must familiarize myself more with British TV. Went inside, drank beer, played a fun game that involved writing a conversation by passing around papers and adding one's own lines to it. We ended up with some pretty random conversations! Happily went to sleep around 2. Good day!
8/16/09
Skipped breakfast this morning and opted to sleep a bit longer. We had a nice picnic later out on the grass, enjoyed the sunshine and fun costumes, then went to a panel on the history and construction of kanzashi (traditional Japanese hair ornaments worn by maiko) and watched some fun AMVs. The closing ceremonies and comedy skits started around 6. Lots of fun! There were some pretty good ones, especially the last one which was a spoof on Final Fantasy VII and Resident Evil.
The hosts of the event were great- really funny banter, much more entertaining than panel hosts I've seen at cons in the US. One of the con's guest stars was an American voice actor called Matt Mercer- he was great! Looked a lot like Luke Wilson, had a fantastic sense of humor.
They also had a charity auction and raised a LOT of money for the British Heart Foundation, which was super cool.
Altogether, I had a fantastic weekend, really enjoyed myself. Yes, this con had fewer people than American ones, but that didn't detract from the fun at all- rather, it gave it cozier, friendlier feel. Everyone was so nice and polite, the entire weekend felt just wonderful and warm and welcoming. I'll definitely come back next year for it, and maybe a couple others!
8/17/09
Time to go home.... we all had an early breakfast, then speedily packed our bags and took off for respective destinations. I took the train to the airport, then just hung out for a while until my plane boarded. I had *such* a fun time, am really glad I went. Made a bunch of new friends and now have great places to visit in the UK if I want a little vacation! Friends and weekends of squeee really are the best! Now time to go home, make sure everything's cool, finish some homework, and go to sleep!
Ugggh.... the flight from Frankfurt to Warsaw was *less* than fun. There was a screaming infant sitting right in front of me, crying the whole time. Thank goodness I've got an iPod full of loud death metal!
Got home ok, aired the place out a bit, talked to my mom, crashed... and woke up again at 4am to THE loudest thunderstorm ever! Guess at least I know I'm back in Poland >_< The sky was flashing with lightning, and there were even lightning bolts this time. Huge rounds of thunder
erupted every few seconds, and it started raining really hard, too. I imagine that this is a bit what being in a combat zone sounds and looks like, minus the weapons. Quite eerie and percussive.
8/18/09
Today was pretty cool- busy at work, got a very sudden trip to Vienna- I leave on Sunday. So this means my weekend in Zakopane with friends will be a bit shorter, but Vienna's a good place to go. Looking forward to more "exquisite dreams"! And it'll be nice to see it in the summertime.
Had a Polish class after work, then sushi and a concert of organ music with M after that. Wonderful evening all around!
Life rocks. ^__^
Wow, been quite a while since I updated. I think it's been mostly a combination of being busy and wanting to stay away from typing for a bit- wrists have been crampy lately. But it's been a fun couple of weeks.
Friday a couple weeks ago (7/31), I went to a farewell party off Nowy Świat for a friend who's leaving at the end of this month. Nice place- lots of different beers to try, good conversation, had a great time. Met some new people, talked a lot about Japan and California, then went home and crashed.
That Saturday night(8/1), met the Australian boy for beer and conversation. We ended up at a really cool bar in the Palace of Science and Culture. It was kind of dark, but in a cool `30s sort of way, a bit Deco inside. We sat outside, enjoyed the moon, drank good wine and beer, just relaxed. He had hours of wild tales about Australia, so it was a very entertaining night for me. What a fantastic country!
Had a day off on Monday the 3rd- explored a few new Metro stations, checked out the bookstore by Ratusz Arsenał that I'd spotted a while back. They didn't have quite what I was looking for in a Japanese textbook, but the owner showed me a great site where I could order one. Came home, talked to a friend and my mom for a bit, went to bed.
There was a lot to do at work that week, a good thing. Keeps me out of trouble ;) The next weekend was pretty cool, though. Re-colored my hair and got it trimmed on Friday, then met the Australian and some friends for one last beer- he was taking off to go home the next day. Great night- 09-08-07, full moon, new hair, nice friends, lots of beer. We stayed out drinking until the wee hours of the morning, just talking and talking. He really wants me to come visit him in Australia. I very well may, after Japan. Gotta save time and money for that first. It was nice to see him one last time- I'll miss him!
Spent Saturday sleeping in and recovering, not doing much of anything. Watched "High Fidelity", did a little cleaning.
Sunday the 9th of August was just perfect. Great weather, slept in, wandered around out in the sun, had ice cream and coffee at two new places, got groceries (including Norwegian salmon), chatted with M & S a bit, read a good book by one of my favorite Irish authors, watched "Sliding Doors". It's nice when your life feels a little more settled.
Tried a new Thai food restaurant on Monday night near my house- absolutely delicious! Finished the good book, packed my suitcase, did laundry and more cleaning. Had a wonderful dinner on Tuesday night with some friends. They invited me and M over to their lovely house and we ate homemade curry, drank wine, played with their adorable dog and just talked forever. It was a really fun night- I hope we can do it again soon!
Today (8/12), I worked half a day, then went home, ate some lunch, watched the Kasanoda episode of Ouran and caught a taxi to the airport. Found some coffee and wrote more of an update in the airport. And now I have to go- they're boarding my flight. I'm off to England for a few days for AyaRevolution!
Friday a couple weeks ago (7/31), I went to a farewell party off Nowy Świat for a friend who's leaving at the end of this month. Nice place- lots of different beers to try, good conversation, had a great time. Met some new people, talked a lot about Japan and California, then went home and crashed.
That Saturday night(8/1), met the Australian boy for beer and conversation. We ended up at a really cool bar in the Palace of Science and Culture. It was kind of dark, but in a cool `30s sort of way, a bit Deco inside. We sat outside, enjoyed the moon, drank good wine and beer, just relaxed. He had hours of wild tales about Australia, so it was a very entertaining night for me. What a fantastic country!
Had a day off on Monday the 3rd- explored a few new Metro stations, checked out the bookstore by Ratusz Arsenał that I'd spotted a while back. They didn't have quite what I was looking for in a Japanese textbook, but the owner showed me a great site where I could order one. Came home, talked to a friend and my mom for a bit, went to bed.
There was a lot to do at work that week, a good thing. Keeps me out of trouble ;) The next weekend was pretty cool, though. Re-colored my hair and got it trimmed on Friday, then met the Australian and some friends for one last beer- he was taking off to go home the next day. Great night- 09-08-07, full moon, new hair, nice friends, lots of beer. We stayed out drinking until the wee hours of the morning, just talking and talking. He really wants me to come visit him in Australia. I very well may, after Japan. Gotta save time and money for that first. It was nice to see him one last time- I'll miss him!
Spent Saturday sleeping in and recovering, not doing much of anything. Watched "High Fidelity", did a little cleaning.
Sunday the 9th of August was just perfect. Great weather, slept in, wandered around out in the sun, had ice cream and coffee at two new places, got groceries (including Norwegian salmon), chatted with M & S a bit, read a good book by one of my favorite Irish authors, watched "Sliding Doors". It's nice when your life feels a little more settled.
Tried a new Thai food restaurant on Monday night near my house- absolutely delicious! Finished the good book, packed my suitcase, did laundry and more cleaning. Had a wonderful dinner on Tuesday night with some friends. They invited me and M over to their lovely house and we ate homemade curry, drank wine, played with their adorable dog and just talked forever. It was a really fun night- I hope we can do it again soon!
Today (8/12), I worked half a day, then went home, ate some lunch, watched the Kasanoda episode of Ouran and caught a taxi to the airport. Found some coffee and wrote more of an update in the airport. And now I have to go- they're boarding my flight. I'm off to England for a few days for AyaRevolution!
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