Friday, October 31, 2008

Complex colors.











The bushes in our flat complex are so pretty at this time of the year. Reds, browns, greens, yellows, colors of autumn. I took a walk around to take pictures of them all. Behind our complex is another old, gray building being renovated. You can see the white insulation that is already attached to the lower part of the building.

The food store was very crowded today with people preparing for tomorrow. After we did our shopping we went to cousin Marcelina's flower shop to buy the flowers and candles for tomorrow. We didn't stay long because she was very busy with customers and we didn't want to take up her time. We'll see them again in a few weeks on a Sunday evening when they have time off from work. They work a lot of hours and only have Sunday evenings off.

Krzaki w naszym p艂askim kompleksie s膮 tak 艂adne w tym razem roku. Czerwone, opalaj膮, zieleni膮, 偶贸艂kn膮, zabarwiaj膮 si臋 jesieni. Pospacerowa艂em dooko艂a by zrobi膰 zdj臋ciaich wszystkich. Za naszym kompleksem jest inny stary, szaro艣膰 buduj膮ca bycie odnowiony. Mo偶esz zobaczy膰 bia艂膮 izolacj臋, kt贸ra jest ju偶 przywi膮zana do cz臋艣ci dolnej budowy.

Sklep 偶ywno艣ci by艂 bardzo przepe艂niony dzisiaj z lud藕mi przygotowuj膮cymi si臋 do jutro. Gdy zrobili艣my nasze sprawunki poszli艣my do kuzyna Marceliny sklep kwiatu by kupi膰 kwiaty i 艣wiece dla jutro. Nie pozostali艣my d艂ugo poniewa偶 ona by艂a bardzo zaj臋ta z klientami i nie chcieli艣my podnie艣膰 jej czasu. Zobaczymy ich znowu w kilku tygodniach w wiecz贸r niedzieli kiedy oni b臋d膮 mie膰 czas wolny od pracy. Oni pracuj膮 du偶o godzin i tylko maj膮 wieczory niedzieli precz.

Thursday, October 30, 2008

Thursday

Cold, rainy day in Pozna艅. I went across the street to AGA, it's like a mini 7-11 store to buy some pastries but forgot the name of them. I'm in there so often that the ladies there know me and when I got the pastries they were happy to remind of the name of them. They also took a little time to help me get the pronunciation right. Now if I could only get them to spend about 8 hours a day helping us learn the language :-) Our problem is that many of the words have multiple meanings.

Take the word, obchodzi膰. It can mean walk around, as in...Would you like to walk around the park with me. It can mean celebrate, as in...when do you celebrate your birthday, It can also mean mishandle, as in....Don't mishandle my account. So in order to learn the word you have to learn all of it's meanings. I think you get the idea.

We're closely monitoring the U.S. election via CNN International. There is a lot of coverage of this election internationally. We see it on the Polish, German, French, Spanish and Russian channels everyday. Our votes are already cast, now we're just waiting for Nov. 4th.


Zimny, deszczowy dzie艅 w Pozna艅. Poszed艂em poprzez ulic臋 do AGY, to jest jak, 偶eby sklepu 7-11 mini kupi艂 kilka ciasta ale zapomnia艂 nazwisko ich. Jestem w tam tak cz臋sto, 偶e panie tam znaj膮 mnie i kiedy dostawa艂em ciasta oni byli szcz臋艣liwi by przypomnie膰 o imieniu o nich. Oni te偶 zaj臋li troch臋 czasu by pom贸c mi dosta膰 wymow臋 w prawo. Teraz je偶eli m贸g艂bym tylko dosta膰, 偶eby wydawali oko艂o 8 godzin na dzie艅 pomagaj膮cy nam ucz膮 si臋 j臋zyka :-) Nasz problem jest, 偶e wiele ze s艂贸w maj膮 wielorakie znaczenia.

We藕 s艂owo, obchodzi膰. To mo偶e oznaczy膰 spacer dooko艂a, jak in...Would ciebie jak by przej艣膰 si臋 park ze mn膮. To mo偶e oznaczy膰 celebruj膮, jak in...when robi膮 celebrujesz twoje urodziny, To mo偶e te偶 oznaczy膰 藕le traktuj膮, jak in....Don′t 藕le traktuj膮 m贸j rachunek. Tak by nauczy膰 si臋 s艂owa, kt贸re musisz nauczy膰 si臋 wszystko z tego jest znaczenia. My艣l臋, 偶e dostajesz ide臋.

Dok艂adnie kontrolujemy ameryka艅ski wyb贸r przez CNN Mi臋dzynarodowy. Tam jest du偶o om贸wienia tego wyboru na arenie mi臋dzynarodowej. Widzimy to na polskich, niemieckich, francuskich, hiszpa艅skich i rosyjskich kana艂ach codziennych. Nasze g艂osy s膮 ju偶 rzucane, teraz w艂a艣nie czekamy na listopad 4..

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

KazCousins

For relatives, our KazCousins website has been closed. You can still copy family photos from the Pictures section. I think it will remain for another 3 months for copying so if you want to save pictures now is the time to start copying. There is a message that says I have migrated the site to a new service called Multiply. I have NOT.


Dla krewnych, nasza KazCousins witryna sieci by艂a zamkni臋ta. Mo偶esz jeszcze fotografie rodziny kopii od obraz贸w sekcji. My艣l臋, 偶e to b臋dzie pozostawa膰 dla innego 3 miesi膮ce dla kopiowania tak je偶eli chcesz uratowa膰 zdj臋cia teraz s膮 czas by zacz膮膰 kopiowanie. Jest wiadomo艣膰, kt贸ra m贸wi, 偶e w臋drowa艂em miejsce do nowej us艂ugi nazwanej Mno偶臋 si臋. Nie mam.

Back!

Three miserable days have passed and Joan and I are feeling better although not completely over our colds. I was able to go out and buy potatoes for tonights dinner, more vitamin C but I was tired when I got back. By Friday I am sure we will be completely recovered. We'll go to cousin Marcelina's flower shop to buy candles and flowers to take with us to Golina on Saturday. Everyone tells us traffic will be the worst ever so we will leave 2 hours before our scheduled arrival at 11AM at cousin Anna's. We hope to be able to see cousins Anna, Ola and Grazyna before 5PM. At 5PM we will arrive at cousin Kazia's.


Trzy marne dni przesz艂y i Joan i ja czuj膮 si臋 lepiej chocia偶 nie zupe艂nie ponad naszymi zimnami. Mog艂em wyj艣膰 i kupi膰 ziemniaki dla obiadu dzisiejszych wieczor贸w , wi臋cej witaminy C ale by艂em zm臋czony kiedy otrzyma艂em z powrotem. Do pi膮tku jestem pewny, 偶e b臋dziemy zupe艂nie odzyskani. P贸jdziemy do kuzyna Marceliny sklep kwiatu by kupi膰 艣wiece i kwiaty by wzi膮膰 z nami do Golina w sobot臋. Ka偶dy powie nam ruch b臋dzie najgorzej kiedykolwiek tak zostawimy 2 godziny przed naszym planowym przyjazdem przy 11AM przy kuzynie Anny. Spodziewamy si臋 m贸c zobaczy膰 kuzyn贸w Ann臋, Ol臋 i Grazyn臋 przed 5PM. Przy 5PM przyb臋dziemy do kuzyna Kazia.

Preparations.

The preparations have begun for All Saint's Day.

All Saints' Day in Poland, November 1st, is a holiday for everybody except transportation and emergency services. In spite of its religious roots it was also observed during communistic times as a Day of Deceased. The traffic on the roads and streets is very high since almost everybody had to commute to reach the family's graves. Flowers (especially fall flowers like Chrysanthemums ), wreaths, candles and votive lights into the cemeteries where graves of family, friends or national heroes are. It is worth to mention that the cemeteries in Poland are different than in any country I've seen. Graves and tombs are big and very individualized. There is usually a guard standing at military graves on that day. You don't see two graves, which looks the same except maybe military graves. They are either individual (for one person) or family vaults. They are made of rocks (granite, marble, sandstone etc.) some are completely covered with stone some have a soil with some planted flowers. They differ in their richness. Some of them are taken care on the daily basis. Many older women, mainly widows, visit cemeteries almost every day. Since Poland is a catholic country almost every grave has a cross standing or carved in stone.
But even the most forgotten graves are full of lights and candles on that day. It is believed that praying and putting candles on these graves can help their souls.

The atmosphere of All Saints' Day is unique. In the evening cemeteries are decorated in glowing and flickering colorful lights of countless candles. Everybody is there to celebrate, to pray, to participate in church services.

We're looking forward to our trip to Golina.


Przygotowywania zaczynaj膮 od Ca艂ego Saint′s Dnia.


Wszystkich 艢wi臋tych w Polsce, listopad 1., jest urlopem dla ka偶dego z wyj膮tkiem przewozu i awaryjnych us艂ug. Pomimo jego religijnych korzeni to by艂o te偶 przestrze偶one podczas komunistycznych czas贸w jak Dzie艅 Zmar艂ego. Ruch na drogach i ulice s膮 bardzo wysoka odt膮d prawie ka偶dy musia艂 zamieni膰 osi膮gn膮膰 groby rodziny. Kwiaty (specjalnie spadnij kwiaty jak Chryzantemy ), wie艅ce, 艣wiece i wotywne 艣wiat艂a do cmentarzy gdzie groby rodziny, przyjaciele albo narodowi bohaterowie s膮. To jest warte wspomnie膰, 偶e cmentarze w Polsce s膮 r贸偶ne ni偶 w jakimkolwiek kraju, kt贸ry zobaczy艂em. Groby i grobowce s膮 du偶y i bardzo indywidualizowany. Jest zwykle warta stoj膮ca przy wojskowych grobach tamtego dnia. Nie widzisz dwu grob贸w, kt贸re wygl膮daj膮 na to samo z wyj膮tkiem by膰 mo偶e wojskowych grob贸w. Oni s膮 albo osobnikiem (dla jednej osoby) albo skokami rodziny. Oni s膮 zrobieni ze ska艂 (granit, marmur, piaskowiec i tak dalej) kilku s膮 zupe艂nie pokryci z kamieniem kilku maj膮 ziemi臋 z kilkoma sadzonymi kwiatami. Oni r贸偶ni膮 si臋 w ich bogactwie. Kilku z nich s膮 uwa偶ani na codziennej podstawie. Du偶o starszych kobiet, g艂贸wnie wdowy, odwiedzaj膮 cmentarze prawie codziennie. Poniewa偶 Polska jest katolicki kraj prawie ka偶dy gr贸b ma krzy偶 stoj膮cy albo wyrze藕biony w kamieniu.
Ale nawet najbardziej zapomniane groby s膮 pe艂ne 艣wiate艂 i 艣wiec tamtego dnia. To jest uwierzone, 偶e modl膮ce si臋 i k艂ad膮ce 艣wiece na tych grobach mog膮 pom贸c ich dusze.


Atmosfer臋 ziemsk膮 Wszystkich 艢wi臋tych s膮 unikalna. Wieczorem cmentarze s膮 dekorowane w jarzeniu si臋 i migotaj膮cych barwnych 艣wiat艂ach niezliczonych 艣wiec. Ka偶dy ma tam celebrowa膰, by pomodli膰 si臋, by wzi膮膰 udzia艂 w ko艣ciele us艂ugi.


Oczekujemy naszej podr贸偶y Golina.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Bed 2

I wasn't able to spend all day in bed, but I wanted to. Still have the cough but not as bad as Joan's. Both of us haven't gotten over it and it's very tiring. I think I should be back to normal tomorrow.
Nie mog艂em sp臋dzi膰 ca艂ego dnia w 艂贸偶ku, ale chcia艂em do. Jeszcze maj膮 kaszel ale nie tak z艂y jak Joan. Obaj z nas nie przedostali si臋 na drug膮 stron臋 tego i to bardzo m臋czy si臋. My艣l臋, 偶e powinienem by膰 z powrotem do normalnego jutro.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Bed day.

I spent all day in bed, drinking liquids, taking pills and sleeping. Joan's not in as bad shape. It's 6PM now and I do feel well enough to write but I'll go back to bed as soon as I'm done. There must be something in the air. It was rare for me to get a cold in the U.S. Last year I had two here and now already one. They are strong colds, too.


Sp臋dzi艂em ca艂y dzie艅 w 艂贸偶ku, pij膮c p艂yny, bior膮c pigu艂ki i spanie. Joan nie w jak z艂y kszta艂t. To jest 6PM teraz i czuj臋 si臋 dobrze do艣膰 by napisa膰 ale b臋d臋 wraca膰 do 艂贸偶ka skoro tylko b臋d臋 robiony. Tam musi by膰 co艣 w powietrzu. To by艂o rzadkie dla mnie by dosta膰 zimno w Stanach Zjednoczonych W ubieg艂ym roku mia艂em dwa tutaj i teraz ju偶 jeden. Oni s膮 silnymi zimnami, r贸wnie偶.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Got Cha!

Cold remedy.
I got cha! That's what this cold said to me today. Running nose, cough, sore throat, I've got it all. The lady at the corner store gave me her remedy for a cold........a beer of light color, warmed in a pot. To that you add an egg yolk and a tablespoon of honey. As soon as you drink it you get into bed and sweat out the cold. We tried it. The taste is not good at all and we still have a cold.
We did manage to take a short walk and a picture of another renovated building.


Dosta艂em cha! To jest co to zimne powiedziane do mnie dzisiaj. Nos zakatarzony, zakaszl, zapalenie gard艂a, ja mia艂em to wszystko. Pani na rogu sklep da艂 mi jej lekarstwo dla cold........a piwa jasnego koloru, rozgrzanego w naczyniu. Do tamtego ciebie dodaj 偶贸艂tko i 艂y偶k臋 sto艂ow膮 miodu. Skoro tylko wypijesz to idziesz do 艂贸偶ka i przez poty leczysz zimno. Spr贸bowali艣my to. Smak nie jest dobry w wszystkim i cisi mamy zimno.
Poradzili艣my sobie by wzi膮膰 kr贸tki spacer i zdj臋cie innego odnowionego budynku.

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Good news.

Joan is happy :-) She made contact with a English speaking Swedish hairstylist and will have her hair cut in our home on Monday. What a relief!

A pleasant day today, sunny, autumn weather and no rain. My throat feels a little raspy so I am loading up on Vitamin C to stop any cold from developing.

I went to see an acquaintance in Osiedle Piatowskie. It was the first time I went there so I check the Google map, typed in Piatowskie and found out it was on the west side of the Warta river. When I got there I couldn't find any building so I took out my Pozna艅 map and discovered that Osiedle Piatowskie was in a very different location. Evidently the Google map showed me Piatowskie street, not Osiedle Piatowskie. It took me 20 minutes to get to the right location so I was a little late for our meeting.

She lives in a very new and modern building, on the 10th floor. The new buildings are so unlike the old, gray, flat complexes. Inside everything is modern, large TV, nice wood floors, good size and a nice view. Poland is making great strides toward modernization in cities.


Joan jest szcz臋艣liwa :-) Ona zrobi艂a kontakt z angielskim m贸wi膮cym szwedzkim fryzjerem i b臋dzie kaza膰 jej w艂osom wtr膮ci膰 si臋 nasz dom w poniedzia艂ek. Jaka ulga!

Mi艂y dzie艅 dzisiaj, s艂oneczny, pogoda jesieni i 偶aden deszcz. Moje gard艂o czuje si臋 troch臋 szorstkiego tak bior臋 艂adunek na Witaminie C by zatrzyma膰 jakiekolwiek zimno od rozwijania si臋.

Poszed艂em zobaczy膰 znajomo艣膰 w Osiedle Piatowskie. To by艂 pierwszy czas poszed艂em tam tak sprawdzam map臋 Google , napisan膮 w Piatowskie i wynajdowa艂em, 偶e to by艂o na zachodniej stronie rzeki Warta. Kiedy dosta艂em si臋 tam nie m贸g艂bym znale藕膰 jakiegokolwiek budowy tak wyj膮艂em moj膮 Pozna艅 map臋 i odkry艂em, 偶e Osiedle Piatowskie by艂 w bardzo r贸偶nej lokalizacji. Najwyra藕niej mapa Google pokaza艂a mi Piatowskie ulic臋, nie Osiedle Piatowskie. To wzi臋艂o mnie 20 minut by dosta膰 si臋 w prawo lokalizacja tak by艂em troch臋 sp贸藕nionego na nasze spotkanie.
Ona mieszka w bardzo nowym i nowoczesnym budynku, na 10. pod艂odze.

Nowe budynki s膮 tak w przeciwie艅stwie do starych, szaro艣膰, p艂askie kompleksy. Wewn膮trz wszystkiego jest nowoczesna, wielka telewizja, mi艂e drewniane pod艂ogi, dobry rozmiar i mi艂y widok. Polska robi wielkie kroki ku modernizacji w miastach.

Friday, October 24, 2008

Gone!

Today Joan called to the English speaking hairdresser to make an appointment for next week. The phone did not ring, instead she heard a series of beeps. She tried again but with the same results. We figured we must have written the number down wrong so we jumped on a bus, went to the rondo and then walked to Powjeska street where the salon was. We couldn't find it, thought maybe we went in the wrong direction on the street and so we walked up the street toward Stary Browar. Same result, we didn't find it. Again we walked back down the street and finally found the building with sign out front. However, the salon is no longer there. They went out of business. Joan was not happy. She knows of one other hairdresser who speaks English and will call her tomorrow. Hopefully she will still be in business:-)

We did our normal, weekly, food shopping today at Real. Cost for the next weeks food.........125zl($43) based on the current rate of exchange 3 to 1 :-)


Dzisiaj Joan zawo艂a艂a do angielskiego m贸wi膮cego fryzjera by zrobi膰 um贸wiony termin przez w przysz艂ym tygodniu. Telefon nie zadzwoni艂, zamiast tego ona us艂ysza艂a seri臋 o sygna艂ach d藕wi臋kowych. Ona spr贸bowa艂a znowu ale z tymi samymi wynikami. Wyobrazili艣my, 偶e musieli艣my zapisa膰 liczb臋 藕le tak skoczyli艣my na autobusie, poszli艣my do ronda i wtedy chodzili艣my do Powjeska ulicy gdzie salon by艂. Nie mogliby艣my znale藕膰 tego, my艣li by膰 mo偶e weszli艣my niew艂a艣ciwy kierunek na ulicy i tak weszli艣my na g贸r臋 ulic臋 ku Stary Browar. Ten sam wynik, my nie znale藕li艣my tego. Znowu wr贸cili艣my piechot膮 blisko na tej samej ulicy i w ko艅cu znale藕li艣my budow臋 ze znakiem poza przednim. Jednak salon nie jest ju偶 tam. Oni poszli nasz z biznesu. Joan nie by艂a szcz臋艣liwa. Ona zna jednego innego fryzjera, kt贸ry m贸wi po angielsku i nazwie jej jutro. Jak dobrze p贸jdzie ona jeszcze b臋dzie prowadzi膰 dzia艂alno艣膰 gospodarcz膮:-)

Zrobili艣my naszemu normalnej, tygodniowo, 偶ywno艣膰 robi膮c膮 zakupy dzisiaj przy Real. Kosztowany dla nast臋pnego tygodni food.........125zl($43) opartego na kursie walut 3 do 1 :-)

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Funny!

Cousin Andrzej Juszczak sent this humorous website on the right side. When it opens, just click on the screen "Election 2008". It may take a minute to load.


Kuzyna Andrzej Juszczak wys艂a艂 t臋 humorystyczn膮 witryn臋 sieci na prawa strona. Kiedy to otwiera si臋, w艂a艣nie klikaj膮 na ekranu "Wyboru 2008". To mo偶e zaj膮膰 minut臋 by 艂adowa膰.

Rate....YIKES!!!

The world financial crisis is having an affect on the currency exchange rate here in Poland. Strangely enough, with the U.S. have a housing and financial crisis unprecedented since the "Great Depression", the value of the dollar has risen dramatically in the last two weeks. It was 2.54 two weeks ago and today it is over 3.0. That is a huge jump in only two weeks and one Joan and I are smiling about. Of course, it has a big impact on our own SS check income so we like it. I read the financial crisis in Hungary is playing a part in the devaluation of the zloty and that Polish investors are now investing once again in American stocks. I can't say that I understand all of this but it definitely puts a smile on my face.


艢wiatowy kryzys finansowy ma uczucie na kursie wymiany waluty tutaj w Polsce. Rzecz dziwna, ze Stanami Zjednoczonymi maj膮 mieszkanie i kryzys finansowy bezprecedensowy od "Wielkiej Depresji", warto艣ci dolara podnios艂o si臋 dramatycznie w poprzednich dwu tygodniach. To by艂 2.54 dwa tygodnie temu i dzisiaj to jest ponad 3.0. To jest ogromny skok w tylko dwu tygodniach i jednej Joan i u艣miechaj膮 si臋 dooko艂a. Oczywi艣cie, to ma du偶y wp艂yw na naszym w艂asnym SS kontroli dochodzie tak lubimy to. Czytam kryzys finansowy na W臋grzech odgrywa rol臋 w dewaluacji z艂otego i 偶e polscy akcjonariusze teraz inwestuj膮 jeszcze raz w ameryka艅skich akcjach. Nie mog臋 powiedzie膰, 偶e rozumiem wszystko z tego ale to zdecydowanie k艂adzie u艣miech na mojej twarzy.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Pola Visits





Gray and cloudy outside but inside the sun was shining. Cousin Pola Kielar came to visit with us. We always look forward to seeing her. She brought us up to date with some family news, our cousin Ola Gruszczynska will be adding a new female baby to our family in 5 months. Pola is working with a family, 5 nights a week, who have children with special needs. Her sister Magda is working for Allegro and has just moved into a new apartment in Winogrady.

Earlier in the day Joan did laundry and then looked through an old cookbook for something new to make.

Szaro艣膰 i pochmurna na zewn膮trz ale wewn膮trz s艂o艅ca 艣wieci艂a. Kuzyna Pola Kielar przyszed艂 bywa膰 z nami. Zawsze oczekujemy widzenia jej. Ona aktualizowa艂a nas z kilkoma wiadomo艣cami rodziny , nasza kuzyna Ola Gruszczynska b臋dzie dodawa膰 nowe 偶e艅skie dziecko do naszej rodziny za 5 miesi臋cy. Pola pracuje z rodzin膮, 5 nocy tydzie艅, kt贸ry maj膮 dzieci ze specjalnymi potrzebami. Jej bli藕niacza Magda pracuje dla Allegro i w艂a艣nie ruszy艂a do nowego apartamentu w Winogrady.

Wcze艣niej w dniu Joan wypra艂a i wtedy przejrza艂a star膮 ksi膮偶k臋 kucharsk膮 dla co艣 nowego by zrobi膰.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

What?


I woke up last night about 2:30AM and in my right ear I heard a thumping sound with a steady rhythm. I figured it was a neighbor listening to music so I went back to sleep. At 7:30AM, when I woke up again, I heard the same sound in my ear and realized it was my heart beat. It seemed as if I had a blockage in my ear so I went to the bathroom, took a swab and tried to clean the ear. It made the sound go away but then I couldn't hear anything from that ear. Two hours later I still had the same problem. I called to our local health center for an appointment to see an ear doctor and was told it would be a 3 week wait. That wasn't good.

I called to our old private insurance company, Medicover, to see a doctor and got an appointment for this Saturday at 8AM. Since we are no longer covered under one of their plans I would have to pay 100zl. Also not good but at least I wouldn't have to wait 3 weeks.

I talked with our friend Zbyszek about the problem and he made a phone call to a friend of his, a laryngologist. 15 minutes later he called back and said I had an appointment tonight at 6:15 with his friend. He said he'd go with me so I picked him up, we went to his friend, she checked my ears and said I had a wax blockage in both ears. She used a syringe with hot water and 20 minutes later I was hearing again. Cost 70zl($26).

Zbyszek.........a friend in need is a friend, indeed.


Budzi艂em si臋 ubieg艂ej nocy oko艂o 2:30AM w w moim prawym uchu us艂ysza艂em ogromny d藕wi臋k z rytm jednostajny. Wyobrazi艂em, 偶e to by艂 s膮siad s艂uchaj膮cy muzyki tak wr贸ci艂em spa膰. O 7:30AM, kiedy budzi艂em si臋 znowu, us艂ysza艂em ten sam d藕wi臋k w moim uchu i zrealizowa艂em, 偶e to by艂o moje serce bi艂o. To wyda艂o si臋 jak gdybym mia艂 blokad臋 w moim uchu tak poszed艂em do 艂azienki, wzi膮艂em tampon i spr贸bowa艂em wyczy艣ci膰 ucho. To zrobi艂o d藕wi臋k odchodz膮 ale w贸wczas nie m贸g艂bym us艂ysze膰 czego艣 od tamtego ucha. Dwie godziny p贸藕niej jeszcze mia艂em ten sam problem. Zawo艂a艂em do naszego miejscowego o艣rodka zdrowia o um贸wiony termin by zobaczy膰 i otolog i by艂em powiedziany, 偶e to b臋dzie 3 tygodnia oczekiwanie. To nie by艂o dobre.

Zawo艂a艂em do naszego starego prywatnego towarzystwa ubezpieczeniowego, Medicover, by odwiedzi膰 doktora i dosta艂em um贸wiony termin przez t臋 sobot臋 przy 8AM. Poniewa偶 nie jeste艣my ju偶 pokryci pod jednym z ich plan贸w musia艂bym zap艂aci膰 100zl. Te偶 nie dobry ale przynajmniej nie musia艂bym czeka膰 3 tygodni.

Powiedzia艂em z naszym przyjacielem Zbyszekiem o problemie i on zrobi艂 rozmow臋 telefoniczn膮 do przyjaciela z jego, laryngologa. 15 minut p贸藕niej on oddzwoni艂 i powiedzia艂, 偶e mam um贸wiony termin dzisiaj wieczorem o 6:15 z jego przyjacielem. On powiedzia艂, 偶e on p贸jdzie ze mn膮 tak podnios艂em go, poszli艣my do jego przyjaciela, ona sprawdzi艂a moje uszy i powiedzia艂a, 偶e mam blokad臋 wosku w obu uszach. Ona u偶ywa艂a strzykawki z gor膮c膮 wod膮 i 20 minut p贸藕niej s艂ysza艂em znowu. Kosztowany 70zl($26).

Przyjaciel Zbyszek.........a w potrzebie jest przyjaciel, naprawd臋.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Zakrzewo




We left Pozna艅 for Rozkowo, about 30km north. Just north of Skoki, on 196, I saw the sign for the turnoff. On the map, the road was to the right but this road was on the left. I took it, drove the 0,5km and found 4 houses and a road that continued into fields and eventually, forest. I knew we were in the wrong place so when we returned to 196, I turned left, drove past the same sign and eventually came to another sign that said Rozkowo to the right. On we went on this new road to the village of Rozkowo. In the distance we could see a large structure but no road led to it. I drove around until I found what looked like an untravelled road and took it. A short distance, amidst the trees and bushes, the house appeared. It is in bad shape but still inhabited. I didn't get to close but did take some pictures and you can still feel the character of the house. Next to house was also a stone building. It's purpose I have no idea.

From there we drove to Zakrzewo and what I hoped would be a better palace. We were not disappointed. It's easy to miss the turnoff to Zakrzewo. We did and if it hadn't been for the stone columns of the palace that I saw as we passed the place we would never have found it. I turned around and we returned to the road that led there. As you go up a hill, all of a sudden on the right is a magnificent palace. It is painted blue and white and sits on the top of a hill. Next to it is another smaller palace. We parked at the entrance and took pictures because the gates were closed. There is a road that goes around the back of it and there we found a very nice stone building. I don't know what it's purpose was but the stone work was really nice.

This palace was built by Albin W臋sierski in 1856. After his death in 1875 it was bought by Wojciech Che艂micki where he lived with his son, Stanis艂aw until 1940. During World War II, it fell into the hands of the Nazi's. After the war, ownership was by the HCP plants in Pozna艅. In 1990 it was taken over by the WBK SA bank of Pozna艅. The bank restored the palace and the surrounding park to it's former beauty. Now it is used as a training center.

The palace is situated on a hill on the edge of the 16 hectare park langscape. The park was created before the palace was. Today the park has preserved the original romantic park. There is in it about 50 species of trees and shrubs. In the park there are 120 and 130 year old hornbeam, and oak trees. Also in the park are spruce, birch, beech and chestnut trees.

Zostawili艣my Pozna艅 dla Rozkowo, o 30km na p贸艂noc. W艂a艣nie na p贸艂noc od Skoki, na 196, zobaczy艂em znak dla turnoff. Na mapie, droga by艂a w prawo ale ta droga by艂a po lewej. Wzi膮艂em, kierowa艂em 0,5km i znalaz艂em 4 domy i drog臋, kt贸ra trwa艂a do p贸l i ostatecznie, las. Wiedzia艂em, 偶e byli艣my w niew艂a艣ciwym miejscu tak kiedy wr贸cili艣my do 196, skr臋ci艂em opuszcza艂em, pop臋dzi艂em za tym samym znakiem i ostatecznie przyszed艂em do innego znaku, kt贸ry powiedzia艂 Rozkowo w prawo. Na my posz艂a na ta nowa droga do wsi Rozkowo. W odleg艂o艣ci mogliby艣my zobaczy膰 wielk膮 struktur臋 ale 偶adna droga nie prowadzi艂a do tego. Podwioz艂em a偶 znalaz艂em, 偶e co wygl膮da艂o jak nie obyta droga i wzi臋艂o to. Ma艂a odleg艂o艣膰, w艣r贸d drzew i krzaki, dom ukaza艂 si臋. To jest w z艂ym stanie ale jeszcze niezamieszka艂e. Nie dosta艂em si臋 zamkn膮膰 ale zrobi艂em kilka zdj臋膰 i mo偶esz jeszcze poczu膰 charakter domu. Obok domu by艂 te偶 kamie艅 budowa. To jest cel nie mam 偶adnej poj臋cia.

Stamt膮d pop臋dzili艣my do Zakrzewo i co mia艂em nadziej臋 by艂bym lepszym pa艂acem. Nie byli艣my rozczarowani. To jest 艂atwe chybi膰 turnoff do Zakrzewo. Robili艣my i je偶eli to nie by艂o dla kamiennych kolumn pa艂acu, kt贸ry widzia艂em jak przechodzili艣my miejsce nigdy nie znale藕liby艣my tego. Skr臋ci艂em dooko艂a i wr贸cili艣my do drogi, kt贸ra prowadzi艂a tam. Jak idziesz na g贸r臋 wzg贸rze, nagle na prawie jest wspania艂ym pa艂acem. To jest malowane niebieski i bia艂y i siedzi na szczycie wzg贸rza. Obok tego jest inny mniejszy pa艂ac. Zaparkowali艣my przy wej艣ciu i zrobili艣my zdj臋cia poniewa偶 bramy by艂y zamkni臋te. Jest droga, kt贸ra idzie dooko艂a plec贸w tego i tam znale藕li艣my bardzo mi艂y kamie艅 budow臋. Nie znam czego to jest cel by艂 ale kamienna praca by艂a naprawd臋 mi艂a.

Ten pa艂ac by艂 zbudowany przez Albina W臋sierski w 1856. Po jego 艣mierci w 1875 to by艂o kupione przez Wojciech Che艂micki gdzie on 偶y艂 z jego synem, Stanis艂aw a偶 do 1940. Podczas drugiej wojny 艣wiatowej, to spad艂o do r膮k hitlerowca. Po wojnie, posiadanie by艂o przez ro艣liny HCP w Pozna艅. W 1990 to by艂o przej臋te przez WBK SA bank Pozna艅. Bank przywr贸ci艂 pa艂ac i otaczaj膮cy park do tego jest poprzednie pi臋kno. Teraz to jest u偶ywane jak trenuj膮cy 艣rodek.

Pa艂ac jest umieszczony na wzg贸rzu na kraw臋dzi 16 parku hektara langscape. Park by艂 tworzony zanim pa艂ac by艂. Dzisiaj park zachowa艂 oryginalny romantyczny park. Tam jest w tym oko艂o 50 gatunku drzew i krzew贸w. W parku tam s膮 120 i 130 roku stary grab, i d臋by. Te偶 w parku s膮 艣wierk, brzoza, buk i kasztany.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Sunday walk.

New church front
Inside

Monuments


Sumacs
We had hopes to travel today to see some new places nad walk in the parks of palaces but it was raining, cloudy and gray so we decided not to go. We wanted to take an acquaintance, Sylwia, with us because her husband is in Ireland working and she never gets a chance to go anywhere to enjoy a day. Fortuantely, she had made a decision to move to Ireland in January and be reunited with her husband.

Instead of our day trip I took a walk to the church closest to us. It has recently added two new white columns to the front of the church. It is in the park very close to our flat. It is a modern church, and for me, does not give me the feeling of being in church. I suppose it is because I spent my young years with St. Casimirs church in North Hammond right next door. It was a typically large Polish Catholic church and my grandfather was a custodian. It was not unusual to have the priest or nuns over at my grandfathers house. I remember at harvest time, from the large garden my grandparents had, we often took baskets of vegetables to them. I have learned a lot about my mothers father and mother in my research since I started in 2000.

In my research of family from my fathers side I have yet to receive an answer from any letters. It's been about a month since I sent the letters.

In front of the church, in the park, are several monuments and you can see that, even in Poland, grafitti is everywhere.

The sumac bushes are particularly beautiful at this time of the year, even with the sunshine.

Mieli艣my nadzieje by podr贸偶owa膰 dzisiaj by zobaczy膰, jak troch臋 nowego miejsc nad wchodzi parki pa艂ac贸w ale to pada艂o, pochmurny i szaro艣膰 tak zdecydowali艣my si臋 nie by p贸j艣膰. Chcieli艣my wzi膮膰 znajomo艣膰, Sylwia, z nami poniewa偶 jej m膮偶 jest w Irlandii pracuj膮cej i ona nigdy nie dostaje, 偶eby szansa sz艂a gdziekolwiek by ucieszy膰 si臋 dniem. Fortuantely, ona podj臋艂a decyzj臋 ruszy膰 si臋 do Irlandii w styczniu i by膰 ponownie po艂膮czona z jej m臋偶em.

Zamiast naszej wycieczki jednodniowej pospacerowa艂em do ko艣cio艂a najbli偶ej do nas. To ostatnio doda艂o dwie nowe bia艂e kolumny do przodu ko艣cio艂a. To jest w parku bardzo blisko naszego mieszkania. To jest nowoczesny ko艣ci贸艂, i dla mnie, nie daje mnie uczucie bycia w ko艣ciele. Przypuszczam, 偶e to jest poniewa偶 sp臋dzi艂em moje m艂ode lata ze 艣w. Casimirem ko艣ci贸艂 w p贸艂nocnym Hammond w prawo w pobli偶u. To by艂 typowo wielki polski katolicki ko艣ci贸艂 i m贸j dziadek by艂 dozorc膮. To nie by艂o niezwyk艂e by mie膰 duchownego albo zakonnic wsz臋dzie przy moim dziadk贸w domu. Pami臋tam przy 偶niwach, od wielkiego ogrodu moi dziadkowie mieli, cz臋sto brali艣my kosze ro艣lin do nich. Nauczy艂em si臋 du偶o o moim matek ojcu i matce w moich badaniach odk膮d zacz膮艂em w 2000.

W moich badaniach rodziny od mojej ojc贸w strony musz臋 jeszcze otrzyma膰 odpowied藕 od jakichkolwiek list贸w. To by艂o o miesi膮cu odk膮d wys艂a艂em listy.

Przed ko艣cio艂em, w parku, s膮 kilka pomnik贸w i ty mo偶esz zobaczy膰, 偶e, nawet w Polsce, grafitti jest wsz臋dzie.

Krzaki sumaka s膮 szczeg贸lnie pi臋kne w tym razem roku, nawet ze 艣wiat艂em s艂onecznym.

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Unique experience!

On the corner of Garbary and Wo偶na street is perhaps the most unique restaurant in Poland. It is the "Dark Restaurant". I've heard there is another like this in Germany, created by people without sight, to give the experience of what it is like to eat without vision. When you enter the restaurant you are taken into a dimly lit room and the waiter asks you what you DON"T like to eat. You have the choice of 1-4 course dinners but not a choice of what you eat. The only thing you know is that it will NOT BE something you don't like. From there you are taken into the dining room and seated in a room that is so dark you cannot even see your hand before your face. The chef prepares a meal for you and it is delivered but you can not see your plate. You start eating and you must rely on your sense of smell and taste to try to figure out what you are eating. You can hear other customers in the room but you don't know exactly where they are without listening hard. Everything you need to use to eat must be felt for. You have no sense of time because you can't look at a watch.

When you are done, you are led back into the dimly lit room and you have the option of the waiter telling you what you ate.

It's quite an experience.


Na rogu Garbary i Wo偶na ulica jest by膰 mo偶e najbardziej unikalna restauracja w Polsce. To jest "Ciemna Restauracja". Us艂ysza艂em tam jest inny w ten spos贸b w Niemczech, tworzonych przez ludzi bez widoku, by da膰 do艣wiadczenie czego to jest jak by zje艣膰 z wizj膮. Kiedy wchodzisz do restauracji jeste艣 wzi臋ty do ciemno zapalonego pokoju i kelner pyta ciebie co nie lubisz zje艣膰. Masz wyb贸r obiad贸w kursu 1-4 ale nie wyb贸r czego jesz. Jedyna rzecz wiesz jest, 偶e to NIE B臉DZIE co艣, czego nie lubisz. Stamt膮d jeste艣 wzi臋ty do jadalni i posadzony w pokoju, kt贸ry jest tak ciemny nie mo偶esz nawet zobaczy膰 twojej r臋ki przed twoj膮 twarz膮. Mistrz kucharski przygotowuje posi艂ek dla ciebie i to jest dostarczone ale nie mo偶esz zobaczy膰 twojej p艂yty. Zaczynasz jedzenie i musisz zale偶e膰 na twoim powonieniu i smakowa膰 spr贸bowa膰 obliczy膰 co jesz. Mo偶esz us艂ysze膰 innych klient贸w w pokoju ale nie wiesz dok艂adnie gdzie s膮 bez s艂uchania twardo. Wszystko potrzebujesz u偶y膰 zje艣膰 musisz by膰 wsp贸艂czuty by znale藕膰. Nie masz 偶adnego sensu czasu poniewa偶 nie mo偶esz popatrze膰 na zegarka.

Kiedy jeste艣 zrobiony, jeste艣 prowadzony z powrotem do ciemno zapalonego pokoju i masz opcj臋 kelnera m贸wi膮cego ciebie co zjad艂e艣.

To jest ca艂kiem do艣wiadczenie.

Friday, October 17, 2008

Book

I forgot to mention yesterday that there are also Polish versions of his books for sale in Poland. Nie Ponaglaj Rzeki, the Polish translation of Push Not the River, is available again in Poland and at Polish-American bookstores after having sold out, at 20,000 copies. Pod Purpurowym Niebem, the translation of Against a Crimson Sky, was released in December, 2007, and also became a bestseller. I have below an interview done by Mr. Martin and a short video of his first book.


Zapomnia艂em wspomnie膰 wczoraj, 偶e s膮 te偶 polskie wersje jego ksi膮偶ek na sprzeda偶 w Polsce. Nie ponaglaj rzeki, polskie t艂umaczenie Nie Ponagli Rzeka, jest dost臋pna znowu w Polsce i przy polskich ameryka艅skich ksi臋garniach gdy wyprzedawawszy, o 20,000 kopii. Pod Purpurowym Niebem, t艂umaczenie z Przeciw Szkar艂atnemu Niebu, by艂o wypuszczone w grudniu, 2007, i te偶 sta艂o si臋 bestsellerem. Mam poni偶ej wywiadu zrobionego przez pana Martina i kr贸tkie video jego pierwszej ksi膮偶ki.


Thursday, October 16, 2008

Ego time!!

Several years ago I read a book about Poland that I enjoyed so much I bought copies and gave them to some friends. Today I received a message from the author and just had to pass it on to you.

"Wow, David your blog is just great! I encourage everyone to look at it and enjoy the wonderful pictures and commentary".

Jim

James Conroyd Martin
Award-Winning Author of
Push Not the River &
Against a Crimson Sky
http://www.jamescmartin.com/

Push Not the River.
John Stelnicki, a good friend of author James Conroyd Martin, had good reason to be interested in the genealogy of his Polish family. He possessed a diary that had been handed down within his family for 200 years. John’s translation of that historical diary from the Polish revealed the amazing story of his ancestor, Countess Anna Maria Berezowska, and led to the creation of Martin’s historical novel Push Not the River, which won a prestigious recommendation by BookSense, a network of 1200 independent booksellers. Subsequently, the sequel, Against a Crimson Sky, also won the recommendation of BookSense. And in 2007 Martin won a Gold Medal for literature from The American Institute of Polish Culture, an award few non-Poles have received. He is in the esteemed company of James Michener, one of the first recipients.

I would encourage everyone to buy and read his books.

I've got to say that the message from James Martin made my day. This blog has become a central part of my life and it's all do to you, my readers. I would continue writing it without responses but they always give me validation for this passion I have. We love, my wife and I, going to see new places, traveling to palaces, manor houses, villages and seeing Poland. I take lot's of pictures because I want you to see Poland as we see it. The difference in Poland between our first trip here in 2003 and now, in 2008, is remarkable. New houses, new roads, new sidewalks, opportunities for business, all these are indicators that Poland is on the upswing. Of course, there are still problems like in any country, but I think the future looks bright for Poland and we are glad to be a part of it. We have only lived here for one year now but we are positive we made the right decision to move here.


Kilka lat temu czytam ksi膮偶k臋 o Polsce, 偶e ucieszy艂em si臋 tyloma kupi艂em kopie i da艂em ich kilku przyjacio艂om. Dzisiaj otrzyma艂em wiadomo艣膰 od autora i w艂a艣nie musia艂em poda膰 dalej to do ciebie.

"艢wietna rzecz, David tw贸j blog jest w艂a艣nie wielki! Zach臋cam ka偶dy by popatrze膰 na to i ucieszy膰 si臋 cudownymi zdj臋ciami i komentarzem".
Jim

James Conroyd Martin
Przyznaj膮 Zwyci臋stwo Autora
Nacisku {Pchni臋cia} Nie Rzeka &
Przeciw Szkar艂atnemu Nieba
http://www.JamesCMartin.com http://www.jamescmartin.com/

Pchaj膮 Nie Rzek臋.
John Stelnicki, dobry przyjaciel autora Jamesa Conroyda Martin, mia艂 dobry rozs膮dek by by膰 zainteresowany w genealogii jego polskiej rodziny. On posiad艂 pami臋tnik, kt贸ry by艂 podany w granicach jego rodziny przez 200 lat. T艂umaczenie Johna tamtego historycznego pami臋tnika z j臋zyka polskiego ujawni艂o zdumiewaj膮c膮 histori臋 jego przodka, Hrabiny Anny Marii Berezowska, i prowadzonego do tworzenia powie艣ci historycznej Martina Pchaj膮 Nie Rzek臋, kt贸ra wygra艂a presti偶owe polecenie przez BookSense, sie膰 1200 niezale偶nych ksi臋garzy. P贸藕niej, dalszy ci膮g, Przeciw Szkar艂atnemu Niebu, te偶 wygra艂 polecenie BookSense. I w 2007 Martin wygra艂 Z艂oty Medal dla literatury od ameryka艅skiego Instytutu polskiej Kultury, nagrody, kt贸r膮 ma艂o nie-Polak贸w otrzymali. On jest w uszanowanej sp贸艂ce Jamesa Michenera, jednego z pierwszych odbiorc贸w.

Zach臋ci艂bym ka偶dy by kupi膰 i przeczyta膰 jego ksi膮偶ki.

Mia艂em powiedzie膰, 偶e wiadomo艣膰 od Jamesa Martina robi m贸j dzie艅. Ten blog sta艂 si臋 centraln膮 cz臋艣ci膮 mojego 偶ycia i to jest wszystko robi膮 do ciebie, moich czytelnik贸w. Kontynuowa艂bym pisanie tego bez odpowiedzi ale oni zawsze daj膮 mi walidacj臋 dla tej nami臋tno艣ci, kt贸r膮 mam. Kochamy, moja 偶ona i ja, id膮c zobaczy膰 nowe miejsca, podr贸偶uj膮c do pa艂ac贸w, dwork贸w, wsi i widz膮cej Polski. Bior臋 los贸w zdj臋膰 poniewa偶 chc臋, 偶eby艣 zobaczy艂 Polsk臋 jak widzimy to. R贸偶nica w Polsce mi臋dzy nasz膮 pierwsz膮 podr贸偶膮 tutaj w 2003 i teraz, w 2008, jest znakomita. Nowe domy, nowe drogi, nowe chodniki, okazje dla biznesu, wszyscy ci s膮 wska藕niki, kt贸re Polska jest na wzro艣cie. Oczywi艣cie, s膮 ciche problemy jak w jakimkolwiek kraju, ale my艣l臋 przysz艂e spojrzenia jasno dla Polski i jeste艣my zadowoleni z bycia cz臋艣ci膮 tego. Tylko 偶yjemy tutaj od jednego roku teraz ale jeste艣my pozytywny robili艣my w艂a艣ciw膮 decyzj臋 by ruszy膰 si臋 tutaj.

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Pr膮d!

Yes, Pr膮d or electricity. I remember and old commercial from the U.S. with a little bird that said........"Electricity cost more today you know, then it did 25 years ago". Now it cost more today you know than it did last year. We received our bill for two months and it was 135zl($52). Last year the price was 85zl($32). Poland is not immune to the energy crisis.

We had a great, long walk to Piotr i Pawel, a grocery chain so Joan could buy baking soda. They don't carry it. From there we walked to a new apartment complex in the process of being built. We have an acquaintance there and we wanted to see where she lived. Along the way we saw a sign advertising a new complex that was being built with air-conditioning. WOW! Air-conditioning. It's a new thing in Poland but starting to catch on. We didn't need it this last summer and electricity is still too expensive for most people to use it if they have it.

We walked to the park on Gru艅waldska street, sat in it for about an hour and then returned home.


Tak, Pr膮d albo elektryczno艣膰. Pami臋tam i stary handlowy ze Stan贸w Zjednoczonych z troch臋 ptakiem, 偶e said........"Electricity kosztuj臋 bardziej dzisiaj wiesz, wtedy to zrobi艂o 25 lat temu". Teraz to kosztowany bardziej dzisiaj wiesz ni偶 to robi艂o w ubieg艂ym roku. Otrzymali艣my nasz rachunek przez dwa miesi膮ce i to by艂 135zl($52). W ubieg艂ym roku cena by艂a 85zl($32). Polska nie jest wolna do kryzysu energetycznego.

Mieli艣my wielki, d艂ugi spacer do Piotr ja Pawel, 艂a艅cuch bran偶y spo偶ywczej tak Joan mog艂aby kupi膰 sod臋 oczyszczon膮. Oni nie nosz膮 tego. Stamt膮d chodzili艣my do nowego apartamentu z艂o偶onego w procesie bycia zbudowani. Mamy znajomo艣膰 tam i chcieli艣my zobaczy膰 gdzie ona 偶y艂a.

Naprz贸d droga zobaczyli艣my, jak znak zareklamowa艂 nowy kompleks, kt贸ry by艂 zbudowany z klimatyzacj膮. 艢WIETNA RZECZ! Klimatyzacja. To jest nowa rzecz w Polsce ale zaczynaj膮ca 艂apa膰 na. Nie potrzebowali艣my tego tego ostatnie lato i elektryczno艣膰 jest jeszcze zbyt droga dla wi臋kszo艣ci ludno艣ci by u偶y膰 tego je偶eli oni maj膮 to.

Chodzili艣my do parku na Gru艅waldska ulicy, usiad艂ej w tym przez oko艂o godzin臋 i wtedy zwr贸ceni do domu.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Nothing!

Nothing exciting today, studying, watching the news, no walking because of rain. My thoughts drifted to my years playing classical guitar and how much I enjoyed that time. My hero was Andres Segovia, the greatest of all guitarists and the one man who brought prominence to the instrument. Joan and I saw him 5 times in concert in Chicago's Symphony Hall. All guitarists owe him for how he brought the guitar into the modern world. Fortunately, on YouTube, there are many videos of his performances. My favorite is the Song of the Guitar.


Nic podniecaj膮ce dzisiaj, studiuj膮ce, obserwuj膮c wiadomo艣ci, 偶adne chodzenie z powodu deszczu. Moje my艣li dryfowa艂y do moich lat graj膮cych klasyczn膮 gitar臋 i ile ucieszy艂em si臋 tamtym czasem. M贸j bohater by艂 Andres Segowia, najwi臋ksze wszystkich gitarzyst贸w i jednego cz艂owieka, kt贸ry przyni贸s艂 wzniesienie do instrumentu. Joan i ja zobaczy艂em mu 5 raz贸w zgodnie w Chicago Symfonicznej Sali. Wszyscy gitarzy艣ci s膮 winnym go dla jak on przyni贸s艂 gitar臋 do nowoczesnego 艣wiata. Na szcz臋艣cie, na YouTube, tam s膮 du偶o video jego wyst臋p贸w. M贸j faworyt jest Piosenka Gitary.

Monday, October 13, 2008

So艂acki Autumn

Monday, October 13, 2008





Such a beautiful day we just had to go to So艂acki park to see what it looks like in the autumn. We weren't disappointed. It's beautiful. There was a wedding in park, lots of people walking and little children everywhere. We parked on Pomorska street and walked into the park. I've written about this park before, one of the best in Pozna艅. It makes the houses in that area one of the most expensive areas in Pozna艅 for real estate.

Taki pi臋kny dzie艅 w艂a艣nie musieli艣my p贸j艣膰 do parku So艂acki by zobaczy膰, 偶e co jest spojrzenia jak w jesieni. Nie byli艣my rozczarowani. To jest pi臋kne. By艂 艣lub w parku, du偶o ludzi chodz膮cych i ma艂e dzieci wsz臋dzie. Zaparkowali艣my na Pomorska ulicy i chodzili艣my do parku. Napisa艂em o tym parku przedtem, jeden z najlepiej w Pozna艅. To robi domy w tamtym obszarze jeden z najbardziej drogich obszar贸w w Pozna艅

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Surprised in B臋d艂owo.

B臋d艂owo

Racot
Choryn
Koscian
Our friend left early in the morning so we thought what to do with the rest of our day. Naturally our thought went to seeing some new places. We decided to travel to B臋dlowo, Koscian and Racot. We left at 1PM, heading south on route 5, then 431 to B臋d艂owo. We knew there was a palace there so we wanted to see it and at least take pictures of the outside.

We took pictures outside and I walked up to the door to see if it was open. It was! We walked inside and discovered we could walk anywhere we wanted to without anyone stopping us.

Now this place is owned by the Mathematics Institue of Mickiewicz University. We had free acess to most all floors, walked up the spiral stair case in the tower, looked in many rooms with beautiful parquet floors, walked the in the park behind the palace and were able to take pictures of everything. High above the entrance you can see the emblem of the Potocki family.

This village became a property of the Polish aristocratic family Potocki in 1694. In 1866 Boles艂aw Potocki built a neo-gothic palace, service buildings and founded almost 9 hectar land park which remained with Potocki family until 1907. Then the complex passed to other aristocratic families. After a partial restoration the complex served since 1945 for an agricultural school; in 1975 was donated to the polish Academy of Sciences.
In 1996 profesor Bojarski, the Director of the Institute o Mathematics actively looking for the palace to organize the Banach Center and generally mathematical conferences obtained the President of the Academy decision designating B臋dlewo complex for these purposes. In the following three years due to the great effort of the Institute and its Director the B臋dlewo palace complex was restored, a new building for the hotel was consrtucted.

Most of the palace interiors are in English Gothic style. In front of the palace a wide earth terrace was built. Stairs placed on the axis of the palace led to the garden. Famous for her beauty, Countess Felicia Miel偶y艅ska, daughter of Count Potocki, and his grandson Alfred Mie艂czy艅ski, had been lovers in spite of their close relationship. In the beginning of the 20th century they turned to be victims of a famous scandal. They were both shot by Felicija's husband, Count Macieh Mielcy艅ski, a famous officer of the Prussian Army. The coffin with Count Mielczy艅ski's corpse was move to B臋d艂owo castle and was displayed the day after the murder. The next day he was buried in the family tomb. Since 1977, the Research and Conference Center was established by the Mathematics Institute.

From there we went drove south to Racot. Racot, classicist palace with baroque elements was erected in 1780-1790 next to a former manor foundation. The initiator of the project was Duke Antoni Barnaba Jab艂onowski who, upon the death of his mother, Duchess Dorota, settled down in Racot. First he completed the construction of the late baroque little church in the form of a Greek cross with an external belfry.In 1793, Jab艂onowski guests included Tadeusz Kosciuszko and Prince J贸zef Poniatowski.Due to debts upon the Racot property, Duke Jab艂onowski was forced to sell off the palace and the land adjacent to it. William of Orange, later King of the Netherlands. Racot remained in the possession of the Sachsen-Weimar Princes until 1919.When Poland regained its independence, by virtue of the Treaty of Versailles in 28 June 1919, the Racot property, together with the palace, were nationalized by the Polish State. After refurbishment works the residence was destined to become the seat of President of the Republic of Poland. Presidents Wojciechowski and Mo艣cicki once lived here.On 1 November 1928, by virtue of a Presidential Decree of the Republic of Poland, a State Horse Stud was established in Racot, which still exists today.

We left Racot and discovered in Choryn another fine manor house. We were driving down route 308, I saw a fence and knew there must be something behind it so we drove through the gate and discovered the manor house, now owned by the Danko company.

That was enough for one day so we drove back through Koscian where I took the pictures of the old water tower.

Slide show on the right side.

Nasz przyjaciel opuszcza艂 wcze艣nie rano tak pomy艣leli艣my, 偶e co robi艂o z reszt膮 naszego dnia. Naturalnie nasza my艣l posz艂a do widzenia kilku nowych miejsc. Zdecydowali艣my si臋 podr贸偶owa膰 do B臋dlowo, Koscian i Racot. Wyruszyli艣my przy 1PM, prowadz膮c po艂udnie na szlaku 5, wtedy 431 do B臋d艂owo. Wiedzieli艣my by艂 pa艂ac tam tak chcieli艣my zobaczy膰 to i przynajmniej zrobi膰 zdj臋cia na zewn膮trz.

Zrobili艣my zdj臋cia na zewn膮trz i chodzi艂em do drzwi by zobaczy膰 je偶eli to by艂o otwarte. To by艂o! Chodzili艣my wewn膮trz i odkryli艣my, 偶e mogliby艣my chodzi膰 gdziekolwiek chcieli艣my do bez kogo艣 zatrzymuj膮cego nas.
Teraz to miejsce jest posiadane przez Matematyki Institue Mickiewicz Uniwersytetu. Mieli艣my wolny acess do najwi臋cej wszystkie pod艂ogi, weszli艣my na g贸r臋 spiralny przypadek schodka w wie偶y, zajrzeli艣my du偶o pokoi z pi臋knymi parkietami, chodzili艣my w parku za pa艂acem i mogli艣my zrobi膰 zdj臋cia wszystkiego. Wysoko powy偶ej wej艣cia mo偶esz zobaczy膰 emblemat rodziny Potocki. Najwi臋cej z wn臋trz pa艂acu s膮 w angielskim gotyku. Przed pa艂acem szeroki taras ziemi by艂 zbudowany. Schody umieszczone na osi pa艂acu prowadzonego do ogrodu. S艂awny z jej pi臋kna, Hrabiny Felicia Miel偶y艅ska, c贸rka Rachunku Potocki, i jego wnuka Alfred Mie艂czy艅ski, by艂 ukochane pomimo ich 艣cis艂ej zale偶no艣ci. Na pocz膮tku 20. stulecia oni skr臋cili by by膰 ofiarami g艂o艣nej afery. Oni byli oboje strzeleni przez m臋偶a Felicija , Licz膮 Macieh Mielcy艅ski, s艂awnego oficera pruskiej Armii. Trumna z Rachunkiem Mielczy艅ski trup by艂 ruch do zamku B臋d艂owo i by艂 pokazany dzie艅 po morderstwie. Nast臋pny dzie艅 on by艂 grzebany w grobowcu rodziny. Od 1977, Badania i Konferencji 艢rodek by艂 za艂o偶ony przez Matematyki Instytut.

Stamt膮d poszli艣my stado na po艂udnie do Racot. Racot, pa艂ac klasycysty z barokowymi elementami by艂 wzniesiony w 1780-1790 obok poprzedniego fundamentu dworu. Inicjator projektu by艂 Ksi臋cia Antoni Barnaba Jab艂onowski, kt贸ry, na 艣mierci jego matki, Ksi臋偶nej Dorota, osiedla艂 si臋 w Racot. Pierwszy on uzupe艂ni艂 budow臋 p贸藕nego baroku ma艂o ko艣cio艂a w formie krzy偶a greckiego z zewn臋trznym belfry.In 1793, go艣cie Jab艂onowski w艂膮czyli Tadeusz Kosciuszko i Ksi臋cia J贸zef Poniatowski.Due do d艂ug贸w na w艂asno艣ci Racot , Ksi臋cia Jab艂onowski by艂 zmuszony by wyprzeda膰 pa艂ac i ziemi臋 granicz膮c膮 do tego. Wilhelm Ora艅ski, p贸藕niejszy Kr贸l Niderland贸w. Racot pozosta艂 w posiadaniu Saksonii Weimar Ksi膮偶膮t a偶 1919.When Polska odzyska艂a jego niezale偶no艣膰, na mocy Traktatu Wersalu w 28 czerwcu 1919, w艂asno艣ci Racot , razem z pa艂ac, by艂a upa艅stwowiona przez polsk膮 pa艅stwowo艣膰. Gdy odnowienie pracuje miejsce zamieszkania by艂o przeznaczone by sta膰 si臋 siedzib膮 Prezydenta Republiki Polski. Prezydent贸w Wojciechowski i Mo艣cicki raz 偶y艂 here.On 1 listopad 1928, na mocy Prezydenckiego Dekretu Republiki Polski, pa艅stwowo艣ci Konia 膯wiek by艂 za艂o偶ony w Racot, kt贸re jeszcze istnieje dzisiaj.

Zostawili艣my Racot i odkryli艣my w Choryn inny 艣wietny dworek. Kierowali艣my na d贸艂 szlakiem 308, ja widzia艂em ogrodzenie i wiedzia艂em tam musz臋 by膰 co艣 za tym tak p臋dzili艣my przez bram臋 i odkrywali艣my dworek, teraz posiadli przez sp贸艂k臋 Danko.

To by艂o do艣膰 dla pewnego dnia tak pojechali艣my z powrotem przez Koscian gdzie wzi膮艂em obrazy starej wie偶y ci艣nie艅.

Posu艅 pokaz na prawa strona.

Krystyna's visit.





Our friend from America arrived this morning about 11AM. She rented a car and drove to us from Warsaw where she has a brother and sister. She came to Poland with her husband, Tadeusz, but he stayed in the village where she is from to start some repair work on the house they left in Poland 14 years ago. Of course, with no one looking after the house it is now in need of some major repairs.

She wanted to see Pozna艅 so we took her to Stary Rynek, some churches, Stary Browar and did a lot of walking. By 5PM she was tired so we went back home, Joan served 呕urek for dinner, then we talked until bedtime. I thought she would stay for 2 days but she needed to leave in the morning so at 6AM we woke up and said goodbye. She has hope to return to Poland for good next October.

Nasz przyjaciel z Ameryki przyby艂 dzisiaj rano o 11AM. Ona wynaj臋艂a samoch贸d i pop臋dzi艂a do nas z Warszawy gdzie ona ma brata i siostr臋. Ona przyjecha艂a do Polski z jej m臋偶em, Tadeusz, ale on pozosta艂 w wsi gdzie ona jest od by zacz膮膰 kilka prac naprawczych na koszt kupca oni opu艣cili w Polsce 14 lat temu. Oczywi艣cie, z nikim troszcz膮cym si臋 o dom to jest teraz w potrzebie kilku remont贸w kapitalnych.

Ona chcia艂a zobaczy膰 Pozna艅 tak wzi臋li艣my j膮 do Stary Rynek, kilku ko艣cio艂贸w, Stary Browar i zrobili艣my du偶o chodzenia. Przez 5PM ona by艂a zm臋czona tak wr贸cili艣my do domu, Joan pos艂u偶y艂a 呕urek dla obiadu, wtedy powiedzieli艣my a偶 do pory snu. Pomy艣la艂em, 偶e ona pozosta艂aby przez 2 dni ale ona potrzebny by wyruszy膰 rano tak przy 6AM budzili艣my si臋 i powiedzieli艣my po偶egnanie. Ona ma nadziej臋 by wr贸ci膰 do Polski na dobre nast臋pny pa藕dziernik.

Friday, October 10, 2008

Beautiful Sunset.






Yes, we had a beautiful sunset tonight. It followed another nice day for walking. We had a busy day.

In the morning it was off to the market for food shopping, I bought a new, black and white, printer from Media Market, we cleaned the house in anticipation of our visitor from the U.S. and then we took a walk to the cemetery to see the trees.

The tree outside our kitchen window has turned completely yellow now. In a few more days the leaves will be gone.

We got home just in time to see a beautiful sunset over the complex.

Of course, we've been watching the financial meltdown of the world. As yet, it seems Poland is not affected by it too much.

Tak, mieli艣my pi臋kny zach贸d s艂o艅ca dzisiaj wieczorem. To posz艂o za innym mi艂ym dniem dla chodzenia. Mieli艣my zaj臋ty dzie艅.

Rano to by艂o precz do rynku dla 偶ywno艣ci robi膮cej zakupy, kupi艂em nowy, czarny i bia艂y, drukarka od Medii Rynku, wyczy艣cili艣my dom w oczekiwaniu naszego go艣cia ze Stan贸w Zjednoczonych i wtedy pospacerowali艣my do cmentarza by zobaczy膰 drzewa.

Drzewo na zewn膮trz naszego okna kuchni obr贸ci艂o zupe艂nie 偶贸艂ty teraz. W kilku wi臋cej dni li艣cie b臋d膮 minionym.

Dostali艣my si臋 do domu w sam膮 por臋 by zobaczy膰 pi臋kny zach贸d s艂o艅ca ponad kompleksem.

Oczywi艣cie, obserwowali艣my finansowe topienie na d贸艂 艣wiata. Jak dot膮d, to wydaje si臋, 偶e Polska nie jest dotkni臋ta przez to za bardzo.

Thursday, October 09, 2008

Pilgrims or Poles?

This article was written by Rob Strybel, a writer for several Polish/American newspapers. Our Biedru艣ko trip is below it.

Despite the Statue of Liberty’s appeal to “give me your tired and your poor,” those who trace their American roots to New York’s Ellis Island might tell you these noble words of welcome were not always the fact. The new arrivals of a century ago were often given special names. The names were invented by those who claimed “we were here first” or, at least, that “we got here before you did.” Or, so they thought. The vocabulary of that era was often peppered with derogatory epithets like “kike,” “dago,” “honky” or “Polack,” among others.

Today, our assumed civility and political correctness compel us to refrain from such expletives and refer to them as the “K,” “ D,” “ H” or “P” words. It’s no wonder organizations like the Jewish community’s Anti-Defamation League and, more recently, the Anti-Bigotry Committee of the Polish American Congress became a necessity. Now comes the surprise. The name-callers who thought “we got here before you did” most likely did not. In reality, those who were called these nasty names probably got here ahead of the name-callers. At least as far as the Polish Americans were concerned.

When we sit down for our family dinner on Thanksgiving Day, how can we not reflect on the days of early America and the time England’s Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock in 1620. History clearly records them as one of America’s “firsts.” But another Englishman named John Smith came to America’s shores even before the Pilgrims did when he landed at Jamestown in 1607 to start the Virginia Settlement.

Now here’s what the name-callers who gave the Ellis Island immigrants such a hard time never learned in school.

In 1608, when Captain Smith needed skilled craftsmen to help develop the new Virginia Colony, he invited a group of Polish artisans to come to Jamestown and bring their technical skills with them. The first factory in America was the glassworks the Polish settlers established at Jamestown.

Their contribution to the growth of Virginia became an essential element of its success. Despite the recognition they earned for their vital input to the colony’s prosperity, they were refused the right to vote when elections were to take place.

What was the reason for the denial? It was because they were Polish. The Englishmen felt only the English should have a say in Virginia’s
government.

So how did the Poles react? They simply stopped working. The economic pressure of their stoppage was effective and they were finally permitted to vote. The Poles not only made their point but they also established a precedent. They had succeeded in organizing the first labor and civil rights strikes on the shores of the New World.

To pay tribute to the historic achievements of Jamestown’s Polish workers, the Anti-Bigotry Committee, along with the rest of the Polish American Congress and other major Polish American organizations, held special commemorative ceremonies at Jamestown on October 1st, exactly 400 years to the day the Poles arrived in 1608.

When you sit down for your Thanksgiving turkey next month, just remember the Poles got to America even before the Pilgrims did.

It’s entirely possible, therefore, the first Thanksgiving Day may have actually been celebrated in Virginia rather than in Massachusetts. Some people in Virginia say it was. However, nobody could say if turkey was the main dish that day.

The Polish settlers came to Jamestown nearly two centuries before the American Revolution and the formation of the United States out of the original thirteen colonies. The story of Jamestown is a basic and integral part of American history. And now, as the noted radio commentator Paul Harvey would say, “now you know the rest of the story.”


Ten artyku艂 by艂 napisany przez Roba Strybela, pisarza dla kilku polskich/ameryka艅skich gazet. Nasza Biedru艣ko podr贸偶 jest poni偶ej tego.

Wbrew apelowi Statui Wolno艣ci “by da膰 mnie tw贸j zm臋czony i tw贸j biedny,” ci, kt贸rzy wy艣ledz膮 ich ameryka艅skie korzenie Nowego Jorku Ellisowi Island mog艂yby powiedzie膰 tobie te szlachetne s艂owa powitania nie by艂y zawsze fakt. Nowemu temu czemu przyby艂o stulecia temu byli cz臋sto dany specjalne imiona. Nazwiska by艂y wymy艣lone przez tych, kt贸rzy za偶膮dali “, 偶e byli艣my tutaj po pierwsze” albo, przynajmniej, 偶e “dostali艣my si臋 tutaj zanim zrobi艂e艣.” Albo, wi臋c oni pomy艣leli. S艂ownictwo tamtej ery by艂o cz臋sto popieprzone z uw艂aczaj膮cymi epitetami jak “偶ydek,” “ameryka艅ski Hiszpan lub W艂och lub Portugalczyk,” “honky” albo “Polaczek,” po艣r贸d innych.

Dzisiaj, nasza przyj臋ta grzeczno艣膰 i poprawno艣膰 polityczna zmuszaj膮 nas by powstrzyma膰 si臋 od takich uzupe艂niaj膮cych wyraz贸w w zdaniu i odnie艣膰 si臋 do nich jak “K,” “ D,” “ H” albo “s艂owa” P. To jest organizacje niczego dziwnego jak 偶ydowskiej spo艂eczno艣ci Anty Znies艂awienia Liga i, bardziej ostatnio, Anty Zajad艂o艣ci Komitet polskiego ameryka艅skiego Kongresu sta艂 si臋 potrzeb膮. Teraz przychodzi niespodzianka. Imi臋 odwiedzaj膮cy, kt贸rych my艣l, kt贸r膮 “dostali艣my tutaj zanim zrobi艂e艣” najbardziej prawdopodobnie nie zrobi艂. W rzeczywisto艣ci, ci, kt贸rzy byli zawo艂ani te okropne imiona prawdopodobnie dostane tutaj na przodzie imienia odwiedzaj膮cych. Przynajmniej o ile polscy Amerykanie byli zainteresowani.

Kiedy siadamy dla naszego obiadu rodziny na 艢wi臋cie Dzi臋kczynienia, jak mo偶emy nie zastanawiamy si臋 nad dniami wczesnej Ameryki i czasu Pielgrzymi Anglii ziemscy nad Plymouth Ska艂膮 w 1620. Historia wyra藕nie rejestruje ich jak jedno z pierwszych miejsc “Ameryki.” Ale inny Anglik nazwany John Smith przyszed艂 do brzeg贸w Ameryki nawet zanim Pielgrzymi zrobili kiedy on wysadzi艂 w Jamestown w 1607 by zacz膮膰 Wirgini臋 Umow臋.

Teraz tutaj jest co imi臋 odwiedzaj膮cy, kt贸rzy dawali Ellisa Island imigrant taki twardy czas nigdy nie uczony w szkole.

W 1608, kiedy Kapitana Kowal potrzebni wykwalifikowani rzemie艣lnicy by pom贸c rozwin膮膰 now膮 Wirgini臋 Koloni臋, on zaprosi艂 grup臋 polskich rzemie艣lnik贸w by przyj艣膰 do Jamestown i przynie艣膰 ich techniczne umiej臋tno艣ci z nimi. Pierwsza fabryka w Ameryce by艂a huta szk艂a polscy osadnicy za艂o偶eni w Jamestown.

Ich wk艂ad do wzrostu Wirginii sta艂 si臋 zasadniczym elementem jego sukcesu. Wbrew rozpoznawaniu oni zarobili dla ich wa偶nego wej艣cia do pomy艣lno艣ci kolonii , oni byli odm贸wieni prawa do g艂osowania kiedy wybory mia艂y mie膰 miejsce.

Co by艂 pow贸d zaprzeczenia? To by艂o poniewa偶 oni byli polscy. Anglicy poczuli tylko Anglicy powinny mie膰 sporo do powiedzenia w rz膮dzie
Wirginii.

Tak jak Polacy zareagowali? Oni po prostu przestali pracowa膰. Nacisk gospodarczy ich zatrzymania by艂 efektywny i oni byli pozwolony w ko艅cu by zag艂osowa膰. Polacy nie tylko zrobili ich punkt ale oni te偶 za艂o偶yli precedens. Oni mieli powodzenie w organizowaniu pierwszej pracy i prawa obywatelskie uderzaj膮 w brzegi Nowego 艢wiatu.

By zap艂aci膰 danin臋 do historycznych dokona艅 polskich pracownik贸w Jamestown , Anty Zajad艂o艣ci Komitetu, wraz z reszt膮 polskiego ameryka艅skiego Kongresu i innych wa偶nych polskich ameryka艅skich organizacji, trzyma艂 specjalne pami膮tkowe ceremonie w Jamestown w pa藕dzierniku 1., dok艂adnie 400 lat do dnia Polacy przybyli do 1608.
Kiedy siadasz dla twojego Dzi臋kczynienia indyka w przysz艂ym miesi膮cu, w艂a艣nie pami臋tasz Polak贸w dostanych do Ameryki nawet zanim Pielgrzymi zrobili.

To jest ca艂kowicie mo偶liwe, dlatego, pierwsze 艢wi臋to Dzi臋kczynienia mo偶e faktycznie by膰 s艂awne w Wirginii raczej ni偶 w Massachusetts. Kilku ludzi w Wirginii m贸wi膮, 偶e to jest. Jednak nikt nie m贸g艂by powiedzie膰 je偶eli indyk by艂 g艂贸wne danie tamtego dnia.

Polscy osadnicy przyszli do Jamestown prawie dwa stulecia przed rewolucj膮 ameryka艅sk膮 i formacj膮 Stan贸w Zjednoczonych z oryginalnych trzynastu kolonii. Historia Jamestown jest podstawowa i cz臋艣膰 sk艂adowa ameryka艅skiej historii. I teraz, jak zaznaczone komentator radiowy Paul Harvey m贸wi艂by, “teraz znasz reszt臋 historii.”

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Biedru艣ko visit.

Old picture 1940's from adjoining park.
Biedru艣ko
Nieszawa
Ziel膮kowo
Obejzierze
Before I tell you about our adventure today Joan reminded me to tell you about yesterday's surprise. I went in the morning to Kobylniki to meet with an acquaintance. As soon as I arrived she hurried me to the back to the house where she has a beautiful garden. She kept pointing to the bushes and telling me to watch. In a moment I saw something big run between them. It was gray in color, about three feet high, two feet wide, hairy and made a lot of noise. It was a wild boar. My friend lives next to a forest, left her gate open and the boar wandered in. Earlier she had made a call and 5 men arrived to capture the boar. One had a roped to put around it and the others ran after it. Finally, about 40 minutes later they were able to remove it from her garden. It's the biggest pig I have ever seen. Her daughter came over with a videocam and took pictures of the whole event.

Today was a calmer day. We left at noon for Biedru艣ko and Nieszawa to see the two palaces I wanted to visit. We took route 11 out of Pozna艅, turned left on 196 and went to Biedru艣ko first. It's a very small village, has a large Army base and sits high up on a hill. It only has 4 streets and we drove around looking for the palace but couldn't find it. Everytime we took a street we ended up leaving the village and turning around to go back. Finally, after the third return trip, I said if we don't see it this time we're leaving. On the road out of town, there was a tiny entrance way to the right, pretty well hidden so I made a quick turn and drove in. It led right to the palace. It's small by most standards but in an excellent location, high on the hill. It has a circular drive where we parked. There was no one there. It's really beautiful even though it hasn't been restored and probably won't be. We walked all around it, taking pictures. The ciruclar drive is at the front door but the side door is where you get the best view of the palace. I was able to walk up the stairs to the sidedoor and take two pictures of the empty inside. It has parquet floors and it looks like a lot of the old fixtures are still intact. In front of the side door was a round fountain bowl and in front of the bowl is a staircase that leads down into the forest. Opposite of the main entrance is a nice solarium. When we had made a complete circle of the place the front door opened and out walked a security guard. I said good morning to him and asked if it was possible to take pictures of the inside. He was friendly but said we could only take pictures of the outside. He went on to say that the palace and the surrounding 50 hectares were owned by the Polish army. The village is famous for its huge military training ground, which was organized by the German Army at the beginning of the XX century. After World War One, the training ground was taken over by the Polish Army, and it has been used by it since then, with the exception of World War Two. The palace was built 140 years ago and the army bought it for 7 million zlotys.

From Biedru艣ko we went back to route 11, continued north past Murowana Go艣lina and then took route 187 to the left. Just past the village of Bial臋zyn we took the road on the right to Nieszawa. It's a very small village at the end of the road. The palace there is one of the worst we have seen. Again on a high hill overlooking a valley but nothing has been done to save it from the elements and time.

We left Nieszawa, Joan chose the road to Oborniki. I do the driving, she is the navigator. On the way to Oborniki, we passed through Uchorowo, another small village. On our left was a long stone fence and anytime I see a stone fence or a wrought iron fence I just know there is a palace or manor house behind it. I wasn't wrong. We drove down the road next to the fence and came across another beautiful manor house but it was private and I couldn't get close enough to take pictures. So, on to the next village, 艁ukowo.

Here also was another fence. I pulled up next to it, got out of the car and took the pictures of this place. It has 3 cars in front of it so maybe there are several families living there.

We travelled to Oborniki but decided to take another back road, drove a few different roads and ended up in Ziel膮tkowo where we found another magnificent house.

From Ziel膮tkowo, Joan said turn right, turn left, turn right and we ended up in G贸rka. There we found another house in deterioration.

Along the way we came across the yellow house, the color was absolutely ugly and Joan took a picture of it.

Zanim powiem tobie o naszej przygodzie dzisiaj Joan przypomnia艂a mi by powiedzie膰 tobie o yesterday′s niespodziance. Poszed艂em rano do Kobylniki by spotka膰 si臋 ze znajomo艣ci膮. Skoro tylko przyby艂em ona pop臋dzi艂a mnie do plec贸w do domu gdzie ona ma pi臋kny ogr贸d. Ona kontynuowa艂a wskazywanie do krzak贸w i powiedzenie, 偶ebym oczekiwa艂. Za chwil臋 zobaczy艂em czemu艣 du偶y bieg mi臋dzy nimi. To by艂a szaro艣膰 w kolorze, oko艂o trzech st贸p wysokich, dwie stopy szeroki, ow艂osiony i zrobiony du偶o ha艂asu. To by艂 dzik. M贸j przyjaciel 偶yje obok lasu, zostawi艂 jej bram臋 otwarty i knur w臋drowa艂 w. Wcze艣niej ona przeprowadzi艂a rozmow臋 telefoniczn膮 i 5 ludzi przyby艂y chwyta膰 knura. Jeden miany wi膮zany po艂o偶y膰 dooko艂a tego i inni bieg艂y za tym. W ko艅cu, oko艂o 40 minut p贸藕niej oni mogli usun膮膰 to od jej ogrodu. To jest najwi臋ksza 艣winia, kt贸r膮 kiedykolwiek zobaczy艂em. Jej c贸rka przyby艂a z aparatem fotograficznym video i zrobi艂a zdj臋cia ca艂ego zdarzenia.


Dzisiaj by艂 dzie艅 uciszaj膮cego. Wyruszyli艣my w po艂udnie do Biedru艣ko i Nieszawa by zobaczy膰 dwa pa艂ace, kt贸re chcia艂em bywa膰. Wzi臋li艣my szlak 11 z Pozna艅, skr臋cili艣my opuszczali艣my na 196 i poszli艣my do Biedru艣ko po pierwsze. To jest bardzo ma艂y wie艣, ma wielk膮 Armii baz臋 i siedzi wysoko na wzg贸rzu. To tylko ma 4 ulice i podwie藕li艣my szukanie pa艂acu ale nie mogliby艣my znale藕膰 tego. Za ka偶dym razem wzi臋li艣my ulic臋 zako艅czyli艣my opuszczenie wsi i obr贸cenie dooko艂a by wr贸ci膰. W ko艅cu, po trzeciej podr贸偶y powrotu, powiedzia艂em je偶eli nie widzimy tego tym razem wyruszamy. Na drodze z miasta, by艂a drobna droga wej艣cia w prawo, do艣膰 dobrze ukryta tak zrobi艂em szybki obr贸t i wjecha艂em. To prowadzi艂o w prawo do pa艂acu. To jest ma艂e przez wi臋kszo艣膰 standard贸w ale w doskona艂ej lokalizacji, wysokiej na wzg贸rzu. To ma ko艂ow膮 przeja偶d偶k臋 gdzie zaparkowali艣my. Tam nie by艂 nikt tam. To jest naprawd臋 pi臋kne nawet gdyby to nie by艂o przywr贸cone i prawdopodobnie nie b臋dzie. Chodzili艣my wszystko dooko艂a tego, bior膮c zdj臋cia. Ko艂owa przeja偶d偶ka jest na froncie drzwi ale drzwi boczne s膮 gdzie pokonujesz widok pa艂acu. Mog艂em chodzi膰 na g贸r臋 do drzwi bocznych i zrobi膰 dwa zdj臋cia pustego wewn膮trz. To ma parkiety i wygl膮da na du偶o stare przynale偶no艣ci s膮 jeszcze nietkni臋te. Przed drzwiami bocznymi by艂a okr膮g艂a miska 藕r贸d艂a i przed misk膮 jest schodami, kt贸re prowadz膮 na d贸艂 do lasu. Przeciwleg艂y g艂贸wne wej艣cie jest mi艂e solarium. Kiedy zrobili艣my kompletne ko艂o z miejsca drzwi frontowe otwarte i z chodzonego stra偶nik. Powiedzia艂em dzie艅 dobry do niego i poprosi艂em czy to by艂o mo偶liwe by zrobi膰 zdj臋cia wewn膮trz. On by艂 przyjacielski ale powiedzia艂, 偶e mogliby艣my tylko zrobi膰 zdj臋cia na zewn膮trz. On poszed艂 dalej powiedzie膰, 偶e pa艂ac i otaczanie 50 hektar贸w by艂y posiad艂e przez polsk膮 armi臋. Wie艣 jest s艂awna z jego ogromnego wojskowego trenuj膮cego gruntu, kt贸ry by艂 zorganizowany przez niemieck膮 Armi臋 na pocz膮tku stulecia XX. Po Wojnie 艢wiatowej Jedna, trenuj膮cy grunt by艂 przej臋ty przez WP, i to by艂o u偶ywane przez to od tego czasu, z wyj膮tkiem Wojny 艢wiatowej Dwa. Pa艂ac by艂 zbudowany 140 lat temu i armia kupi艂a to dla 7 milion贸w z艂otych.

Z Biedru艣ko wr贸cili艣my przes艂a膰 11, kontynuowani na p贸艂noc przesz艂y Murowana Go艣lina i wtedy wzi臋li艣my szlak 187 na lewo. W艂a艣nie za si膮 Bial臋zyn wzi臋li艣my drog臋 na prawie do Nieszawa. To jest bardzo ma艂y wie艣 przy ko艅cu drogi. Pa艂ac tam jest jeden z najgorszego zobaczyli艣my. Znowu na wysokim wzg贸rzu przeoczaj膮cym dolin臋 ale nic nie by艂o zrobione by uratowa膰 tego od element贸w i czasu.

Zostawili艣my Nieszawa, Joan wybra艂a drog臋 do Oborniki. Robi臋 p臋dzenie, ona jest nawigatorem. W drodze do Oborniki, przeszli艣my Uchorowo, inn膮 ma艂膮 wie艣. Na naszym lewym by艂o d艂ugie kamienne ogrodzenie i kiedykolwiek widz臋 kamienne ogrodzenie albo ogrodzenie 偶elaza kutego, kt贸re w艂a艣nie znam jest pa艂ac albo dworek za tym. Mia艂em racj臋. Kierowali艣my na d贸艂 drog膮 obok ogrodzenia i przeszli艣my przez inny pi臋kny dworek ale to by艂o prywatne i nie m贸g艂bym dosta膰 si臋 blisko do艣膰 by zrobi膰 zdj臋膰. Wi臋c, dalej do nast臋pnej wsi, 艁ukowo.

Tutaj te偶 by艂o inne ogrodzenie. Zatrzyma艂em si臋 obok tego, wydosta艂em si臋 z samochodu i wzi膮艂em obrazy tego miejsca. To ma 3 samochody przed tym tak moze byc tam s膮 kilka rodzin 偶ywe tam.

Podr贸偶owali艣my do Oborniki ale zdecydowali艣my si臋 wzi膮膰 inn膮 tyln膮 drog臋, kierowali艣my kilkoma r贸偶nymi drogami i zako艅czyli艣my w Ziel膮tkowo gdzie znale藕li艣my inny wspania艂y dom.

Z Ziel膮tkowo, Joan powiedziana skr臋caj膮 w prawo, skr臋caj膮 opuszcza艂a, skr臋caj膮 w prawo i zako艅czyli艣my w G贸rka. Tam znale藕li艣my inny dom w zepsuciu.

Naprz贸d droga przeszli艣my przez 偶贸艂ty dom, kolor by艂 absolutnie brzydki i Joan zrobi艂a zdj臋cie tego.