We are setting off to go back to Nuremberg. We are saying good bye to our great hosts the Karnath family in Pruszcz Gdanski. Not only were they gracious enough to offer us a roof over our heads and feed us 10 meals a day but Kasia’s mom also helped me get the paper work […]
We headed out to do some shopping for the apartment today and then went to the beach. Once again the sea was angry today, but the water was so nice and warm. Great way to waste an afternoon.
Storks are quite ubiquitous in Poland, they are revered and loved in Poland – unlike the post Soviet area bureaucracy which still lingers around like a nasty smell. Today I had to take another stab at it and try and file some papers, to get the papers I actually need. To do this however, I […]
As if Malbork wasn’t impressive enough on its own – there was one more surprise in store for us. Malbork Castle and its grounds are serving as a stage for a sculpture exhibit by a number of famous Polish artists. Feast your eyes.
There are a lot of impressive sights in the world and a great number of wonderful buildings. To me there are very few as impressive and as memorable as the Malbork Castle. The sheer size of it, the scale of buildings and the magnificent decor and layout are simply stunning. Malbork is 3 castles in […]
A short drive from Gdansk, is the seaside city of Sopot with its grand pier that stretches into the Baltic Sea. At 511.5m, the pier is the longest wooden pier in Europe. A lot has changed here, there are a lot more stores and restaurants, but don’t come here looking for traditional polish food. We […]
Tourist trap heaven, but if you know where to look – you can find a nice slingshot which is naturally what Evelina bought!
When one has the will and energy to climb the 410 stairs of Kościół Mariacki tower, one gets rewarded with spectacular views of the city.
On the other side of the great old town buildings is a narrow little street called ul. Mariacka. The street is lined on both sides with artisan shoppes where you can find all sorts of amber and silver jewellery and pretty much everything else made out of amber which in Gdansk is king. In one […]
A stroll down ul. Dluga. It still is as beautiful as I remember it – less the 50,000 Zywiec umbrellas littering the street on both sides. We could not ask for better weather, with sun and a bit of breeze this was a beautiful day to explore the old town of Gdansk.
So after almost 30 years I am back in the city I grew up in. While a lot has changed it here, not much really did. In the end it is really all a matter of perspective. What seemed bright, huge and wonderful as I remembered it, is now aged, dull and all plastered in […]
TIR stands for Transports Internationaux Routiers” or “International Road Transports. TIR-owka then is a lady that works in a service industry, that stands in a forrest, on the side of the highway, usually dressed in a very revealing and easy to spot from the distance neon clothing ready to help the big truck drivers relax for […]
We went to explore the house where Copernicus was born, where he lived, studied and in the end turned the world of astronomy on its head. His house was comprised of two buildings. Even by modern standards this was a huge house. It is also worth noting that Copernicus was a distinguished guest at the […]
Since we are not in a great rush today to get to our destination, we are taking a few stops on the way to explore some things worth seeing. First on the list today is Torun, a city where Copernicus was born. A leisurely stroll through the old town, and around the old Teutonic ruins, […]
Meanwhile somewhere in Poland, on the side of the road is this guy with a wide array of forest goods for sale – all nicely displayed on the hood of his car. I think it is time to give our Alfa some personallity. We are going for that off road rugged country style look. It […]
After a long drive we stopped for the night at this little place. What can be said about it – it was clean, cheap and very pleasant. I think the rooms were €30.00 per night and the breakfast was about €2.50 each. We promptly ordered 5 breakfasts for the 4 of us in the […]
This then is the official European Vacation Wala Family Chariot. It is a bit shorter and less powerful than the Volvo we have been driving but I think we are going to like it very much. It is an Alfa Romeo 159 Stoprtwagon Ti Turismo. It’s black and it ‘s pretty, and it converts diesel […]
Obviously we are not very with it when it comes to train travel. First we almost missed our first stop where we were supposed to get off and switch trains. We pulled up to the platform and suddenly we realized that we are not packed. Anna and Boris run off while I was waiting for […]
We are traveling in style First Class on the bullet train with coffee service to boot. Life is good and this journey should be nice, pleasant and short with service like this.
We spent three and a half hours at IKEA today – buying everything for the apartment. From beds and mattresses, to chairs, tables and desks, a dining room, wardrobes and dressers and shelves, and coffee and end tables. It is interesting how much you can really buy at IKEA for a price of one Restoration […]
Today we got our plates for the car. Running like a proper well oiled german machine should the process of registration, vanity plate making and road tax paying took about 30 min to accomplish. With driving and parking 45 min for the round trip. Now we can finally go and pick up our car. Bonus […]
We have finally got our lease papers. Looks like we are going to be moving.
Oh My Viking God! We had a great road trip yesterday. We came home, parked the trusty old Volvo and that was that. This morning we got all dressed up to go shopping and the Volvo would not start. It would turn and turn and turn and nothing… Long story short – for the first […]
This is the first time we saw an accident on autobahn. It looked alike a 3 car accident with a big van overturned and laying on its side. After that, miles and miles of traffic. \
On the way to Harztor we passed through the largest village in the region. Nordhausen has a population of about 44,000 and was 75% destroyed during the bombing raids during WW II. This little town is very charming and well preserved. It has been rebuilt and renovated and it certainly worth coming back to for […]
The Delta Machine – Köln Thu, 11/21/13, 8:00 PM LANXESS arena Willy-Brandt-Platz, 50679 Köln We are going to be there!!
A short walk from the restaurant, in the old castle stables is the newly renovated family hostel. Its sleek and super modern and very beautiful inside. A great place for a family to stay at, I am sure of it.
We are going to file this under culinary adventures. We could not decide where to go out and celebrate Kasia’s and Volker’s new purchase. Today they acquired a beautiful Audi S5 Cabrio. We went to celebrate at one of their favourite local restaurants. Furthering my quest to find a suitable alternative to eating two main […]
The Polish state, while slow in its bureaucratic ways, has finally agreed and verified that we are officially married. As far as Poland goes we are now a married couple. Now we tell them about the kids and then ask for more papers, for the papers we just go.
Our quest for champagne wishes and caviar dreams continues. We are still looking for that elusive old town penthouse with a large terrace overlooking the river or the castle or both. So far no dice. Things are further complicated by certain conditions we were not aware of: 1. Preferred rental term is – forever or until death, whichever comes […]
This is a public service announcement! Things to remember. Never, ever got to Marktkauf or any other grocery store, I would imagine, in Germany at 5:30pm. Imagine Costco a week before Christmas, with incoming snow storm of a millennium, and everything in the store is 99% off. Now, multiply this by a 100 and there […]
Following my intensive eating training in Italy, we have once again visited our favourite pizza place in Nuremberg – L’Osteria. I am happy to report that my earlier challenge about eating an entire pizza has been laid to rest. Not only did I mange to eat the entire pizza, but also try some of Boris’ […]
Today we were treated to a fine 3 course meal prepared by Boris and Evelina. They planned the menu, they prepared the entire meal and served it. We were absolutely astonished not only at their zeal and dedication but also the actual planning and execution. They chopped and sliced, mixed, fried, boiled, strained and served […]
It seems that every time we turn around there is a demonstration somewhere protesting this that or the other. Today, on the demonstration agenda are the dolphins at the Nuremburg Zoo. I have to say that we much preferred the noise of the kilted musicians to the bells and chanting of the dolphin parade. After […]
Today is Kasia’s and Volker 16th wedding anniversary so staying at Hotel Dogana was not an option. The winery at Tenuta Le Presa was a more appropriate choice and one more befitting the occasion. To celebrate this we went out for a dinner at a local spot called Hostaria la Cross where German really is […]
Agriturismo at its best. Kasia and Volker know this little place called Tenuta La Presa. It is a winery that is also a hotel with a proper pool and marble floors and clean everything. There is a wine rack in the lobby and a set of glasses and you are free to drink and […]
Lake Garda is simply stunning. Imagine Lake Louise but 52 km long. Imagine it surrounded by towering maples and skinny Tuscan cedars. Imagine it peppered with small towns and old castles and miles and miles or wineries and olive trees. That’s Lake Garda – we can’t wait to check in after a short 5 hour […]
My watch is trying to kill me. I have a love hate relationship with my Pebble. For the most part I love this gizmo because there is always something new you can do with it. Today, after talking about for a while, I finally tried the 7 Minute Workout on my Pebble. Two things are […]
Baustelle – at first that sounded like some exotic French pastry we thought. After a nice rest we drove by a sign that read “Baustelle in 7 km”. With a bit of traffic on the road going rather slow around Leipzig, we looked around at all the nice cars including this great looking CLS wagon. […]
Lord thundering Jesus. I never thought I would say this but I do now see the benefits of bylaws. I say the more the better. Edmonton is said to be the king of bylaws and everyone always complains about it. This is what happens to a city that has little to no bylaws. This is […]
Our relentless pursuit of the required documents continues. Sometimes I think it would have been easier to find a Yeti in the Himalayas than to get the right stamp on the correct piece of paper in the Bureaucratic Republic of Poland. Undaunted we forge ahead. Today we set out to Plock, the last place where […]
There is much that can be said about navigating the Polish bureaucratic maze and perhaps even more that shouldn’t be said about the same. I have to say that while no one is particularly helpful about what we need to do, everyone is exceptionally nice and polite about it. I feel like we are […]
A practical approach to distracted driving. We have been here for almost a week now and it seems that every time we get in the car we have to get on Autobahn. Autobahn is a precarious thing. It seems to have a life of its own. There are speed limits and there are a lot […]
After a short and uneventful flight we arrived in Frankfurt. Option Plus upgrade is the best money we spent on this adventure so far. After a short and a quick drive through the rolling hills of Bavaria we arrived at home in Nuremberg. The end of the journey was celebrated with some Luxembourg goose pâté […]
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