Sunday, October 31, 2010

Rogale!


Here they are in all their beauty, Rogale.  I bought these this morning in Kandulski's.  Don't they look good?  Delicious!

I picked up the flowers from cousin Maryla's for Golina and she gave me a wreath to put on the grave of our mutual great grandmother and great aunt.  I passed by 3 cemetaries on the way and they were filled with people and the police were everywhere directing traffic.  I'm getting excited about tomorrow's trip.

Oto one w ca艂ej ich urody, Rogale. Kupi艂em te dzi艣 rano w Kandulski's. Czy oni nie wygl膮daj膮 dobrze? Pyszne!


Podnios艂em kwiaty od kuzyna Maryli do Golina i da艂a mi wieniec postawi膰 na grobie naszego wsp贸lnego wielkiego babcia i ciotka 艣wietnie. Min膮艂em 3 cmentarze na drodze i by艂y pe艂ne ludzi i policji by艂y wsz臋dzie kierowania ruchem. Dostaj臋 podekscytowani jutrzejszym podr贸偶y.

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Ogr贸d Autumn






Beautiful day!  We started by buying flowers for Monday at cousin Maryla's shop, then went to the Botanical gardens to see the colors of autumn there.  It was a good day for being outside, brisk, clean, sunny and warm.  We walked all over the place and saw as many beautifully colored items of nature as you could want.  This is a good place to go to because it's not full of tourists since it's too far from the main part of town but still not far at all.  It takes us ten minutes by car and when we lived in Gru艅wald we use to walk there.  Walking there was nice because we went by the cemetary and this time of year it is also pretty with colors.  Of course, today the cemetary was full of people cleaning headstones, putting flowers and candles, preparing for Monday.

After two hours in the garden we went to Pozna艅 Plaza, to Piotr & Pawel, because Joan was looking for the spice "cumin" but she didn't find it.  As we approached the Plaza we went over the last speed bump, entered the plaza underground parking lot and then started hearing........thump, thump. thump.  When I sped up it got faster.  I knew, or I thought I knew, I had my first flat tire in Poland.  We found a spot to park and I got out to look at the tires.  All of them looked OK but I knew something was wrong.

Great!! Monday we were suppose to drive to Golina and no shops were open Sunday or Monday to fix whatever the problem was.  We finished shopping, started driving back home and the thumping continued.  When we got home I did a closer inspection of the tires and found the head of a bolt stick above the tire tracks on the left rear tire.  I took a screwdriver and tried to pry it out but it would not move.  Next I took a pair of pliers and try to pull it out but it still wouldn't move.  Lastly, I took the pliers and turned the head of the bolt  and when I did that the air started to come out so I quickly reversed the process.  So I thought I would just take off the tire and replace it with the spare tire.  That's when I found out the spare was only to be used to get the car to a repair facility and not to exceed 80km per hour.  This wouldn't do and I was freaking out.

I called the shop where I had my tires changed on Wednesday to see if they could fix the tire but learned they were closed until Tuesday.  The owner said to look on the internet for Novax.pl because they were a tire store and repair place and he thought they would be opened today.

I found them on Google Maps, they have 5 places in Pozna艅 and were open until 5PM.  It was now 3:30PM so I made a copy of the map, got in the car and went to see them. I searched for half an hour but couldn't find the shop.  Finally I stopped a passer by and asked her if she knew the place of the address I had.  She did and it turned out to be on the complete opposite area of the map.  I jumped into the car, followed her directions and got there at 4:15PM.

I told the attendent there what my problem was, he told me to pull into the shop and in half an hour later the tire was repaired and I was on my way home.  It was a stressfull 3 hours because I thought our trip to Golina was in jeopardy and I didn't want to miss it.  It's a very special day, Nov. 1st.

Pi臋kny dzie艅! Zacz臋li艣my od zakupu kwiat贸w na poniedzia艂ek w sklepie kuzyna Maryli, a nast臋pnie uda艂 si臋 do ogrodu botanicznego, aby zobaczy膰 kolory jesieni tam. To by艂 dobry dzie艅 dla niezwi膮zany, szybki, czysty, s艂oneczny i ciep艂y. Szli艣my w ka偶dym miejscu i widzia艂 tyle pi臋knie kolorowe elementy natury, jak mo偶na chcie膰. To jest dobre miejsce, aby przej艣膰 do bo to nie jest pe艂ne turyst贸w, poniewa偶 jest to zbyt daleko od g艂贸wnej cz臋艣ci miasta, ale nadal nie chodzi w og贸le. To przenosi nas dziesi臋膰 minut samochodem i kiedy zamieszkali艣my w Grunwaldem u偶ywamy do chodzenia tam. Zwiedzanie nie by艂o dobre, bo pojechali艣my na cmentarz i tej porze roku jest to r贸wnie偶 bardzo z kolorami. Oczywi艣cie, dzi艣 cmentarz by艂 pe艂en ludzi sprz膮tanie nagrobk贸w, stawianie kwiat贸w i zniczy, przygotowuj膮c si臋 do poniedzia艂ku.


Po dw贸ch godzinach w ogrodzie poszli艣my do Pozna艅 Plaza, aby Piotr i Pawe艂, poniewa偶 Joan szuka艂 spice "kmin" ale nie znale藕li艣my go. Gdy zbli偶yli艣my si臋 do Plaza poszli艣my w ci膮gu ostatnich bump pr臋dko艣ci, wjecha艂 na plac parkingu podziemnego, a nast臋pnie rozpocz膮艂 przes艂uchanie ........ uderzenie, uderzenie. uderzenie. Kiedy przyspieszy艂o to jeszcze szybciej. Wiedzia艂em, lub my艣la艂em 偶e wiem, mia艂em pierwsz膮 opon臋 w Polska. Znale藕li艣my miejsce na park i wyszed艂em spojrze膰 na opony. Wszystkie z nich wygl膮da OK, ale wiedzia艂em, co艣 by艂o nie tak.

Swietnie! Poniedzia艂ek mamy przypuszczenia, 偶eby pojecha膰 do Golina i nie sklepy by艂y otwarte niedziel臋 lub poniedzia艂ek to naprawi膰 bez wzgl臋du na problem. Zako艅czyli艣my zakupy, rozpocz膮艂 jazdy z powrotem do domu i wali膰 dalej. Kiedy wr贸cili艣my do domu zrobi艂em bli偶szym opon i stwierdzi艂a g艂ow臋 kijem 艣ruby nad opon膮 utwor贸w z lewej tylnej opony. Wzi膮艂em 艣rubokr臋t i pr贸bowa艂 podwa偶y膰 j膮, ale nie by艂oby przenie艣膰. Nast臋pnie wzi膮艂em kombinerek i spr贸buj go wyci膮gn膮膰, ale nadal nie przejdzie. Wreszcie, wzi膮艂em kombinerki i odwr贸ci艂 g艂ow臋 艣ruby i kiedy nie, 偶e powietrze zacz臋艂o wychodzi膰, wi臋c szybko odwr贸ci膰 ten proces. Wi臋c pomy艣la艂em, 偶e po prostu si臋 opony i zast膮pienie go ko艂o zapasowe. To wtedy dowiedzia艂em si臋, wolne by艂o tylko by膰 u偶ywany do otrzymania samochodu do serwisu, a nie przekracza 80 kilometr贸w na godzin臋. Nie by艂oby to zrobi膰, a ja wariuj臋.

Zadzwoni艂em do sklepu, w kt贸rym mia艂em opony zmieni艂 si臋 w 艣rod臋, aby zobaczy膰, czy mog膮 naprawi膰 opon臋, ale dowiedzia艂em si臋, 偶e zosta艂y zamkni臋te do wtorku. W艂a艣ciciel powiedzia艂, szuka膰 w internecie Novax.pl, poniewa偶 by艂y one miejsce przechowywania opon i naprawy i my艣la艂, 偶e s膮 otwarte dzisiaj.

Znalaz艂em je na Google Maps, maj膮 5 miejsc w Poznaniu i by艂y otwarte a偶 godzina siedemnasta. By艂o ju偶 15:30 wi臋c zrobi艂em kopi臋 mapy, wsiad艂am do samochodu i uda艂 si臋 do nich. Szuka艂em p贸艂 godziny, ale nie m贸g艂 znale藕膰 w sklepie. W ko艅cu zatrzyma艂 przechodnia i poprosi艂 j膮, gdyby wiedzia艂a miejsce adres mia艂em. Zrobi艂a to i okaza艂o si臋 na ca艂ej powierzchni naprzeciwko mapy. Wskoczy艂em do auta, a nast臋pnie jej kierunk贸w i tam masz na 16:15.

Powiedzia艂em tam, co m贸j opiekun by艂 problem, powiedzia艂 mi ci膮gn膮膰 do sklepu, w p贸艂 godziny p贸藕niej by艂 naprawiany opony i by艂em w drodze do domu. To by艂 stresuj膮cych 3 godziny, bo my艣la艂em naszej podr贸偶y do Golina by艂o w niebezpiecze艅stwie i nie chc臋 tego przegapi膰. Jest to bardzo specjalny dzie艅, 1 listopada.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Surprised!

We talked so much about the Rogale yestereday that I decided to make a stop at Kandulski's today to buy a few to take home and, much to our surprise, there was Zbyszek. He stopped by for a coffee and we just happened to be there at the same time so we had rogale and coffee together.

One of the special light bulbs burned out in the bathroom and the only place that sells them, that I know of, is Castorama so we had to go there today as well as doing our weekly shopping.  At Real we spent 120 zl for food and bought candles for graves in Golina.  Tomorrow I will go to cousin Maryla's flower shop and have her make a bouquet for great grandmother Ludwika and great aunt, Genowefa's grave.  This year I plan to take my tri-pod for the camera with me so the night photos turn out better than last year.  We'll have to leave a little earlier than normal for this trip because traffic around the Mi艂ostowo cemetary will be very heavy and will take us longer to drive past it.  There are ususally cars parked on both sides of the road as well as on the island between the lanes.  Police coverage of all roads will be much heavier than normal to try to prevent accidents from speeders.

Rozmawiali艣my du偶o o yestereday Rogale, 偶e postanowi艂em si臋 zatrzyma膰 w Kandulski do dzisiaj kupi膰 kilka do domu i, ku naszemu zdziwieniu, nie by艂o Zbyszek. Zatrzyma艂 si臋 przy na kaw臋 i po prostu si臋 tam w tym samym czasie, wi臋c musieli艣my Rogale i kawy razem.


Jedn膮 ze specjalnych 偶ar贸wek spali艂 si臋 w 艂azience i jedynym miejscem, kt贸re sprzedaje je, to wiem, to Castorama tak mieli艣my tam dzisiaj, jak r贸wnie偶 spos贸b nasze tygodniowe sprawunki. Na Real wydali艣my 120 z艂 na 偶ywno艣膰 i kupi艂 艣wiece na grobach w Golina. Jutro p贸jd臋 do kwiaciarni kuzyn Maryli i jej zrobi膰 bukiet dla wielkiego babki Ludwika i ciotka wielki, powa偶ny Genowefy. W tym roku plan na moje tri-pod aparatu ze mn膮 tak, nocne zdj臋cia okaza膰 si臋 lepsze ni偶 w zesz艂ym roku. Musimy zostawi膰 troch臋 wcze艣niej ni偶 zwykle do tej podr贸偶y, poniewa偶 ruch wok贸艂 cmentarza Mi艂ostowo b臋d膮 bardzo ci臋偶kie i poprowadzi nas ju偶 do kierowania przesz艂o艣ci. Istnieje ususally samochody zaparkowane po obu stronach drogi, jak r贸wnie偶 na wyspie pomi臋dzy torami. Policja pokrycia wszystkich dr贸g b臋dzie znacznie wi臋ksze ni偶 normalnie, aby spr贸bowa膰 unikn膮膰 wypadku 艣cigaczy.

Nov. 1st

Just making preparations for our trip to Golina on Monday.  If you look at the "You are in Poznan" and scroll down to the fourth article you can read about this day in Poland, how it is celebrated and what it means.

Another important day is Nov. 11th, St. Martins day.  It is also a big day of celebration and is on the same page. In Poznan, on November 11 - you can buy a special tidbit recently entered into the register of protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications in the European Union. Rogal of p贸艂francuskiego dough has come back to the pagan times, when sacrifices dough, wrapped in the shape of  horns. It's called Rogale.

The ingredients in the crescent is strictly enforced, and every baker who wants  to prepare croissants, must obtain a special certificate. Filling crescent is highly characteristic and consists of  white poppy seeds, vanilla, crushed dates or figs, raisins and orange peel. Every year, in Poznan citizens eat up to 300 tons of these characteristic and delicious croissants.

Podobnie czyni przygotowania do naszego wyjazdu do Golina w poniedzia艂ek. Je艣li spojrze膰 na "Jeste艣 w Poznaniu" i przejd藕 do czwartej artykule mo偶na przeczyta膰 o tym dzie艅 w Polska, jak jest ono celebrowane i co to znaczy.


Kolejnym wa偶nym dniem jest 11 listopada, 艣w dni Martins. Jest to tak偶e wielki dzie艅 艣wi臋towania i jest na tej samej stronie. W Poznaniu, 11 listopada - mo偶na kupi膰 specjalny smako艂yk niedawno wpisany do rejestru chronionych nazw pochodzenia i chronionych oznacze艅 geograficznych w Unii Europejskiej. Rogal z ciasta p贸艂francuskiego ma wr贸ci膰 do czas贸w poga艅skich, kiedy ciasto ofiary, owini臋te w kszta艂cie rog贸w. To si臋 nazywa Rogale.

Sk艂adniki w p贸艂ksi臋偶yc s膮 艣ci艣le egzekwowane, a ka偶dy piekarz, kt贸ry chce przygotowa膰 rogale, musi otrzyma膰 specjalny certyfikat. p贸艂ksi臋偶yc Wype艂nienie jest bardzo charakterystyczny i sk艂ada si臋 z bia艂ego maku, wanilii, dat rozgniatane lub figi, rodzynki i sk贸rk臋 pomara艅czow膮. Co roku w Poznaniu obywateli je艣膰 do 300 ton tych rogali charakterystyczne i pyszne.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Remembrance of the Alhambra


Click the arrow, click on the picture and then on the new screen in the bottom right corner click the four little arrows for full screen.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

New


One of Joan's orchids that has been dormant for some time finally came back to life and gave us these new flowers.  It's a very unusual looking orchid but brightens up the room with it's yellow color.

Sunday, Monday

Sunday passed uneventfully into Monday with the only thing happening that was strange was church.  We couldn't make our usual morning mass so we planned to go to the 4:30PM one.  Both, the church website and the schedule in front of the church, said there was one at that time so we went.  We arrived 10 minutes early to a dark, unoccupied building, with no one there and no mass.  I don't know what happened but we waited and then left, dissapointed.

Monday we watched two movies om DVD,  P.S. I Love You and Slumdog Millionaire.  The better of the two was P.S. I love you.  Joan made a new supper for us, Fettucine Alfredo.  It was the first time she made it and it was good.  A friend told me a new joke going round Pozna艅 about the notorious NFZ, the national health system.  Notorious in the sense that sometimes you have to wait years for a non-essential operation.  The joke is that now NFZ is going to pay for abortions................you just have to wait a year for it.  This is only a joke, it is not really going to pay for them.

Niedziela przeszed艂 si臋 dosz艂o w poniedzia艂ek tylko dzieje si臋 to, co by艂o dziwne by艂o ko艣cio艂a. Nie mo偶e by膰 dla naszej zwykle masa rano tak planowali艣my, aby przej艣膰 do 16:30 jeden. Zar贸wno na stronie internetowej ko艣cio艂a i harmonogram przed ko艣cio艂em, powiedzia艂, 偶e jeden w tym czasie wi臋c poszli艣my. Przyjechali艣my do 10 minut wcze艣niej, do ciemnego, puste budynku, nikt tam i nie masy. Nie wiem co si臋 sta艂o, ale czekali艣my, a nast臋pnie w lewo, zawiedzeni.

Poniedzia艂ek mamy ogl膮da艂em dwa filmy DVD om, postscriptum Kocham ci臋 i Slumdog. Lepiej z nich by艂 postscriptum Kocham ci臋. Joan zrobi艂a now膮 kolacja dla nas, Fettucine Alfredo. To by艂o po raz pierwszy zrobi艂a to i to by艂o dobre. Znajomy powiedzia艂 mi nowy 偶art dzieje wok贸艂 Poznania notorycznie NFZ, krajowego systemu opieki zdrowotnej. Notorious w tym sensie, 偶e czasem trzeba czeka膰 rok na operacj臋 ni偶 istotne. 呕art, 偶e teraz NFZ zap艂aci za aborcje ................ po prostu trzeba czeka膰 rok na to. To tylko 偶art, to nie jest tak naprawd臋 b臋dzie za nie zap艂aci膰.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Rogalin




Beautiful day today so we decided to go to Rogalin to see how the palace looks now that is has been renovated.  I should have looked it up first on the internet because when we got there we found out you cannot see the main portion of the palace without a guide now and you have to call early to make an appointment.  All we could see for 7 zl each were the wings and the gallery.  It wasn't enough.  Yes, the wings are nice with the little rooms. some furniture and a gallery most of the family members starting with Zygmunt Raczy艅ski (1592) and ending with Edward Raczy艅ski in 1993 but not being able to see the main part of the palace was not. When Edward was 100 years old he bequeathed the palace and surrounding grounds to Poland.  He died when he was 102.   Someday we will make an appointment for a guide and go back to see it but there are other palaces we will go to first.

We walked around the property after our short visit inside because the weather was so nice, 13c and it was too early to think of going back home.  It's a nice little drive from Pozna艅 to Rogalin down route 430 passing by Mo艣ina, only about 20 minutes, and there is a nice stretch of trees that look good at this time of the year.  Autumn is always a beautiful time of the year whether you are in Poland or the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Friday, October 22, 2010

Nov 1st.

So the big event of the Chopin competitions is over now and we must wait 5 years for the next one.I think it was an exceptional group of pianists this year and hope the next will be as good.

Now the next big day we are waiting for is Nov. 1st.  This is copied from the Polish Blog written by Kasia.

The celebration of All Saints, known and unknown, on November 1st was introduced into the Church Liturgy by Pope John XI in 835, while All Souls’ Day on November 2nd began more than 100 years later in 998, when the Abbot of the Benedictine Monastery at Cluny ordered the Benedictine congregations to say the mass and prayers in the intention of all the deceased.

In Polish tradition, especially the folk one, both these holidays, All Saints’ Day in particular, are devoted to praying for the souls of the dead. In this sense they are a continuation of the ceremonies for the dead performed by our ancestors.

On All Saints’ Day all Polish cemeteries are visited by great numbers of people who come to pray over the graves for their close relatives. Candles are lit. on every grave and flowers are put on them. The custom requires to burn candles, lay flowers on evergreen branches also on old, unattended and forgotten graves, visited by no one.

It was believed in Poland that on the night from November 1st to 2nd shadows of the dead, walk from cemetery to church to the night service celebrated for them by the ghost of the dead provost.

Tak wi臋c wielk膮 przypadku konkurs贸w chopinowskich si臋 sko艅czy艂 i musimy czeka膰 5 lat na kolejne one.I, 偶e to by艂 wyj膮tkowy zesp贸艂 pianist贸w w tym roku i nadziej臋, 偶e nast臋pny b臋dzie r贸wnie dobry.

Teraz kolejny wielki dzie艅 czekamy na to 01 listopada. To jest skopiowane z polskiego Blog napisany przez Kasia.

Uroczysto艣膰 Wszystkich 艢wi臋tych, znanych i nieznanych, w dniu 1 listopada zosta艂 wprowadzony do liturgii przez papie偶a Jana XI, w 835, a Dzie艅 Zaduszny 2 listopada rozpocz臋艂a si臋 ponad 100 lat p贸藕niej w 998, kiedy to opat klasztoru benedykty艅skiego w Cluny nakaza艂 Benedyktyn贸w powiedzie膰 masy i modlitwy w intencji wszystkich zmar艂ych.

W polskiej tradycji, zw艂aszcza folk jeden, oba te 艣wi臋ta Wszystkich 艢wi臋tych w szczeg贸lno艣ci, s膮 przeznaczone do modlitwy za dusze zmar艂ych. W tym sensie s膮 kontynuacj膮 ceremonii za zmar艂ych wykonywane przez naszych przodk贸w.

W dniu Wszystkich 艢wi臋tych wszystkich polskich cmentarzach s膮 odwiedzane przez rzesze ludzi, kt贸rzy przychodz膮 si臋 modli膰 nad grobami ich bliskich. Zapalaj膮 si臋 艣wiece. na ka偶dym grobie i kwiaty s膮 na nich. Zwyczaj wymaga pali膰 艣wieczki, sk艂adaj膮 kwiaty na wiecznie zielone ga艂臋zie r贸wnie偶 na grobach starych, bez nadzoru i zapomniane, odwiedzane przez nikogo.

Wierzono, 偶e w Polska w nocy od 1 listopada do 2 cienie zmar艂ych (Cienie zmar艂ych), w odleg艂o艣ci od cmentarza do ko艣cio艂a na nocny obchodzono je przez ducha zmar艂ego burmistrza.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Winner

Today started with the news Yuliana Avdeeva won the Chopin competition.  She was excellent although many of the pianists were also.  If you're interested you can listen to her winning final performance here.
http://konkurs.chopin.pl/en/edition/xvi/video/3_Yulianna_Avdeeva
A nice thing about the webpage for the contest is that they have all the performances archived so you can choose want you want to hear and see.  Tonight is the prize winners concert where the top 5 performers will play.

The day here was sunny until noon and then it turned gray and started raining.  Normal for this time of year, the gray days have returned.

I read that energy costs are expected to rise 22% as soon as they get the approval to do it and it seems like they will.

In Pozna艅, the election for the president of Pozna艅 will be soon and it looks as though the incumbent, Grobelny will win another term in office.

Dzi艣 ruszy艂 z wiadomo艣ci膮 Yuliana Avdeeva wygra艂 Konkurs Chopinowski. By艂a doskona艂a, cho膰 wielu pianist贸w r贸wnie偶. Je艣li jeste艣 zainteresowany mo偶esz s艂ucha膰 jej wygraniu fina艂owego wyst臋pu tutaj.


http://konkurs.chopin.pl/en/edition/xvi/video/3_Yulianna_Avdeeva

Zalet膮 strony internetowej do konkursu jest to, 偶e wszystkie spektakle w archiwum, wi臋c mo偶esz wybra膰 chcesz chcesz us艂ysze膰 i zobaczy膰. Dzi艣 w nocy jest koncert laureat贸w, gdzie top 5 wykonawc贸w zagra.

Dzie艅 by艂 s艂oneczny tutaj a偶 do po艂udnia, a potem si臋 szary i zacz臋艂o pada膰. Normalne o tej porze roku, szary dzie艅 nie wr贸ci艂a.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

1.04

Yes, that's the magic number of my PSA level now and still going down so that's good news. The doctor said to expect that for the first year after the radiation treatments.  I didn't think to ask him what happens after the first year.

Today we were to meet Zbyszek for our weekly Kandulski meeting but just before we got there he called to say the power was out at Kandulski's and we would have to choose a new place for today.  We went to Pestka, a shopping mall nearby and on the second floor overlooking the avenue is another pastry place where we had coffee, cakes and talked.  After we were done we went to Carrefour to buy some bread and milk and then went home.

We talked a little bit about next years vacation.  It's Joan's pick this time and so far she has Vienna, Prague and Spain to consider.  I don't know what her final decision will be but we haven't been to the first two and we loved the third so anyone of them is fine.

Tak, to magiczna liczba m贸j poziom PSA teraz i nadal spada wi臋c to dobra wiadomo艣膰. Lekarz powiedzia艂, aby oczekiwa膰, 偶e w pierwszym roku po radioterapii. Nie s膮dz臋, aby zapyta膰 go, co dzieje si臋 po pierwszym roku.

Dzisiaj by艂o spotka膰 Zbyszek dla naszego tygodniowego spotkania Kandulski, ale przed mamy tam nazwa艂 znaczy w艂adza si臋 w Kandulski i b臋dziemy musieli wybra膰 nowe miejsce do dzi艣. Poszli艣my do Pestka, centrum handlowe w pobli偶u, a na drugim pi臋trze z widokiem na alej臋 to kolejne miejsce, gdzie mieli艣my ciasto do kawy, ciasta i rozmawiali艣my. Po byli艣my zrobieni poszli艣my do Carrefour, 偶eby kupi膰 chleb i mleko, a nast臋pnie poszed艂 do domu.

Rozmawiali艣my troch臋 o nast臋pne wakacje lat. To Joan wybra膰 ten czas i do tej pory ma Wiedniu, Pradze i Hiszpanii do rozwa偶enia. Nie wiem, co jej ostateczna decyzja b臋dzie, ale nie byli艣my w dw贸ch pierwszych i kochali艣my trzeci wi臋c ka偶dy z nich jest w porz膮dku.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Tests

I went to the hospital to have my blood and urine tested for the PSA report which I will get tomorrow when I go back for the results. I only had to wait an hour for the doctor once I registered at the hospital so that wasn't so bad.  I feel fine, except for a little soreness in the rib cage from the fall in Granada.

Tonight three more contestants play at the competition, two Russians and an Austrian.  It's been great watching the live performances.

Poszed艂em do szpitala, aby moje badania krwi i moczu do sprawozdania PSA b臋d臋 si臋 jutro, kiedy wracam na wyniki. I tylko trzeba by艂o czeka膰 godzin臋 dla lekarza kiedy艣 zarejestrowany w szpitalu, tak aby nie by艂o tak 藕le. Czuj臋 si臋 dobrze, z wyj膮tkiem troch臋 b贸l w klatce piersiowej od upadku w Granadzie.


Wieczorem trzech zawodnik贸w gra膰 w konkursie, dw贸ch Rosjan i Austrii. To by艂 wielki ogl膮dania na 偶ywo.

Monday, October 18, 2010

Finals and new Malta Swimming Complex




Cold day today in Pozna艅.

Today the finals began for the Chopin competition.  Miroslav Kultyshev (Russia)Programme: Fryderyk Chopin - Concerto E minor op. 11; Daniil Trifonov (Russia)Programme: Fryderyk Chopin - Concerto E minor op. 11; Pawe艂 Wakarecy (Poland)Programme: Fryderyk Chopin - Concerto F minor op. 21 and Evgeni Bozhanov (Bulgaria) were todays performers.  There are 10 out of the 91 contestants left.

An interesting thing happened today.  By nature, I am somewhat of a stubborn person and when I set my mind on something I strive fairly hard to achieve it.  The breakdown of my old laptop has bothered me since I could not find an answer as to why it happened  and the advise I received from MS, HP and a repairman did not help me at all.  Therefore I made the decision to buy a new laptop.

Well, today I started searching on the internet for answers to what a black screen with only a white cursor was caused by.  I read about 7 articles, descriptions of the problem and possible causes.  You have to understand that I could not get anything on my screen, no startup message, no password screen, no icons, nothing.  I tried previously hitting the F8 button which gives you the Safe Mode screen and Restore to the last good configuration button but they didn't work at all.  So in the 8 article I read, one sentence in the third paragraph said, "Press the F11 button when you turn on your computer and the Restore System button will appear.  Follow the instructions".

I did exactly what it said and guess what, my system was restored on the old laptop to the last good configuration and now I have two laptops that are working.  I was happy and sad at the same time.  Happy that I finally solved the unsolvable problem but angry that I had spent money on a new computer because no one could tell me how to fix the problem.  Oh well, that's the way it goes sometimes.

Dzi艣 fina艂 rozpocz膮艂 si臋 dla Konkursu Chopinowskiego. Miroslav Kultyshev (Rosja) W programie: Fryderyk Chopin - Koncert e-moll op. 11; Daniil Trifonov (Rosja) W programie: Fryderyk Chopin - Koncert e-moll op. 11; Pawe艂 Wakarecy (Polska) W programie: Fryderyk Chopin - Koncert F-moll op. 21 i Evgeni Bozhanov (Bu艂garia) by艂y dzisiejszych wykonawc贸w. Istnieje 10 z 91 zawodnik贸w po lewej stronie.


Ciekawostk膮 si臋 dzisiaj. Z natury jestem troch臋 upart膮 osob膮 i kiedy mog臋 ustawi膰 na czym艣 staram do艣膰 trudne do osi膮gni臋cia. Podzia艂 moim starym laptopie nie przeszkadza mi, poniewa偶 nie mog艂em znale藕膰 odpowied藕, dlaczego tak si臋 sta艂o i doradza, jakie otrzyma艂em od MS, HP i mechanik nie pomo偶e mi w og贸le. Dlatego podj膮艂em decyzj臋 o zakupie nowego laptopa.

C贸偶, dzisiaj zacz膮艂em szuka膰 w Internecie odpowiedzi na to, co si臋 czarny ekran z bia艂ym kursorem, tylko by艂a spowodowana. Czyta艂em o 7 artyku艂贸w, opisy problemu i mo偶liwe przyczyny. Musisz zrozumie膰, 偶e nie mog艂em nic na ekranie, bez 偶adnego komunikatu o starcie, nie ekran has艂a, nie ma ikon, nic. Pr贸bowa艂em wcze艣niej uderzenie przycisku F8, kt贸ry daje ekranu Tryb awaryjny i przywracanie do ostatniej dobrej konfiguracji, ale przycisk nie dzia艂a w og贸le. Tak wi臋c w 8 artykule czytam, jedno zdanie w akapicie trzecim powiedzia艂: "Naci艣nij przycisk F11 po w艂膮czeniu komputera i przycisk Restore System pojawi. Post臋puj zgodnie z instrukcjami".

Zrobi艂em dok艂adnie to, co powiedzia艂, i wiecie co, m贸j system zosta艂 przywr贸cony na starym laptopie do ostatniej dobrej konfiguracji i teraz mam dwa laptopy, kt贸re pracuj膮. By艂am szcz臋艣liwa i smutna zarazem. Szcz臋艣liwy, 偶e w ko艅cu rozwi膮za膰 nierozwi膮zywalny problem, ale z艂y, 偶e sp臋dzi艂em pieni臋dzy na nowy komputer, bo nikt nie mo偶e mi powiedzie膰 jak rozwi膮za膰 ten problem. No c贸偶, to tak to jest czasami.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Cold mass.

 Blake and Ben Dittenber
 Blake, Bree and Ben
 Blake, Kim and Ben
Blake and grandmom, Marilyn Mapes

We went to the mass last night at the new location, a church right next to the university building on Fredry street.  Nice old church but like most old churches, no heat.  Last year the masses were held in a chapel in a university seminary so it was warm in the winter but it won't be this year.  We were also saddened to hear there will only be once mass a month in English so most of the time we will go to our local church.  It was a rather strange experience yesterday because I forgot some of the prayers in English but now I know them in Polish.

Today in the afternoon we went to the cinema and saw the new Julia Roberts movie, Eat, Pray and Love.  It wasn't too bad, not the best film I have seen.  The Cinema City Kinopolis we went to was huge.  I don't know how many screens they have but it's a lot.  It also has stores on the first level and an indoor go-kart track.

Here's a few more new pictures from the Dittenber cousins of Michigan.

Poszli艣my do masy ostatniej nocy w nowym miejscu, tu偶 obok ko艣cio艂a do budynku uczelni przy ulicy Fredry. Nice starego ko艣cio艂a, ale jak wi臋kszo艣膰 starych ko艣cio艂贸w, nie ciep艂a. W ubieg艂ym roku odby艂y si臋 mas w kaplicy seminarium na uniwersytecie, tak by艂o ciep艂o w zimie, ale nie b臋dzie w tym roku. Byli艣my r贸wnie偶 zasmuci艂a mnie b臋dzie tylko raz w miesi膮cu masy w j臋zyku angielskim, wi臋c wi臋kszo艣膰 czasu pojedziemy do naszego lokalnego Ko艣cio艂a. By艂o to do艣膰 dziwne do艣wiadczenie wczoraj, bo zapomnia艂 kilka modlitw w j臋zyku angielskim, ale teraz wiem, 偶e je w j臋zyku polskim.


Dzisiaj po po艂udniu poszli艣my do kina i zobaczy艂em nowy film Julia Roberts, Jedz, m贸dl si臋 i mi艂o艣ci. To nie by艂o tak 藕le, nie najlepszy film widzia艂em. Cinema City Kinopolis poszli艣my by艂 ogromny. Nie wiem, ile maj膮 ekrany, ale jest to du偶o. Posiada r贸wnie偶 sklep贸w na pierwszym poziomie oraz kryty tor gokartowy.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Mass

At last they have started the English masses again.  It's been changed to a different location, 11 Fredy Street, at Naj艣wi臋tszego Zbawiciela.  It starts at 8PM, just like it did last year.  We've been waiting for the notification and it came today so we will go tonight.  It will interesting to see how many people show up.

The neighbors below us our renovating their apartment so for the last week we have been constantly serenaded by the sound of hammers and drills.  Not a nice experience, especially when you're trying to listen to the Chopin finalists perform. 

For those of you who might be interested, here is a link to the live broadcasts of the performances but keep in mind the times listed are Poland times. 

http://konkurs.chopin.pl/en/edition/xvi/online/broadcasting

The third stage ended today and now will be the finals. To the left of the screen it says "sessions", click on that and it will show you the time of the next performance. At the proper time, go back to that link and click on the arrow in the black space and you will see the live broadcast.  On the bottom right of that screen is a small icon, click that and you will have a full screen.  To exit it, just press your Esc button.  So far the leader, according to the peoples vote, is Evgeni Bozhanov from Bulgaria.  The Polish candidate is 6th and the American is 10th.

W ko艅cu zacz臋li angielski mas ponownie. To zosta艂o zmienione w innej lokalizacji, 11 Fredy Street, w Naj艣wi臋tszego Zbawiciela. Zaczyna si臋 o 8 wieczorem, tak jak to mia艂o miejsce w zesz艂ym roku. Czekali艣my do zg艂oszenia i wysz艂o dzisiaj tak p贸jdziemy dzi艣 wieczorem. To interesuj膮ce zobaczy膰, jak wielu ludzi pojawia si臋.


S膮siedzi poni偶ej nam remont ich mieszkania wi臋c w ostatnim tygodniu byli艣my stale 艣piewem d藕wi臋k m艂ot贸w i wiertarek. Nie bardzo mi艂e do艣wiadczenie, szczeg贸lnie gdy starasz si臋 s艂ucha膰 finalist贸w Chopin wykona膰.

Dla tych, kt贸rzy mog膮 by膰 zainteresowani, tutaj jest link do transmisji na 偶ywo wyst臋p贸w, ale nale偶y pami臋ta膰 razy wymienione s膮 chwile, Polska. http://konkurs.chopin.pl/en/edition/xvi/online/broadcasting

Trzeci etap zako艅czy艂 si臋 dzi艣 i teraz b臋dzie w finale. Po lewej stronie ekranu jest napisane "sesji", kliknij na to i poka偶e czasu nast臋pnego wydajno艣ci. W odpowiednim czasie, wr贸ci膰 do tego link i klikn膮膰 na strza艂k臋 w czarnej przestrzeni, a zobaczysz na 偶ywo. W prawym dolnym rogu ekranu, 偶e jest ma艂a ikona, kliknij j膮, a b臋dziesz mia艂 pe艂ny ekran. Aby wyj艣膰, wystarczy przycisn膮膰 przycisk Esc. Do tej pory lider, zgodnie z g艂osowania narodami, Evgeni Bozhanov z Bu艂garii. Polskim kandydatem jest 6. i American 10th.

Friday, October 15, 2010

Competition.

Listening to the artists perform at the Chopin competitions has been good all week.  I like it better than actually being there in Warsaw to see them because the cameras give you much better coverage with close up shots.  Of course, not paying for tickets is a huge plus because it is expensive to be at all the stages of the competition.  Now in the final stage it seems the two leading candidates are Russian and an Australian is in third place.  That can all change with the final performances.  The biggest surprise today was the leaving from the competition by one of the Russian candidates who had to leave because of health reasons.  It was a big shock to the audience and, I imagine, to the performer.  I had to feel sorry for him, all the preparation that it takes to first be accepted to the competition and then to make it to the final stage and have to leave.

We were tuned in all morning to the music and then in the afternoon we had our weekly meeting with Zbyszek even though we had him over for dinner last night.  As usual, Joan had questions for him about the Polish language and so he spent about an hour explaining things to her about use of certain words and how they change depending on the sentence they are used in.  It's always amusing to listen to the two of them when this type of discussion goes on.

S艂uchaj膮c artyst贸w wyst膮pi w konkursach Chopin by艂 dobry przez ca艂y tydzie艅. Podoba mi si臋 bardziej ni偶 rzeczywi艣cie istnieje w Warszawie, aby zobaczy膰 je, poniewa偶 kamery daj膮 o wiele lepsze pokrycie z bliska zdj臋膰. Oczywi艣cie, nie p艂ac膮c za bilety jest ogromny plus, poniewa偶 jest to droga, 偶eby na wszystkich etapach konkursu. Teraz w ko艅cowym etapie wydaje si臋, 偶e dw贸ch czo艂owych kandydat贸w Rosji i Australii jest na trzecim miejscu. To mo偶e wszystko si臋 zmienia z fina艂owych. Najwi臋ksz膮 niespodziank膮 by艂 dzisiaj odp艂ywaj膮 z konkurencji przez jeden z rosyjskich kandydat贸w, kt贸rzy musieli opu艣ci膰 ze wzgl臋d贸w zdrowotnych. To by艂 wielki szok dla publiczno艣ci i, jak s膮dz臋, do wykonawcy. Musia艂em go 偶al, wszystkie przygotowania, kt贸re trwa do pierwszego zosta膰 przyj臋te do konkursu, a nast臋pnie zrobi膰 to do ostatniego etapu i musia艂 opu艣ci膰.


Byli艣my dostrojone rana do muzyki, a nast臋pnie po po艂udniu mieli艣my cotygodniowe spotkanie ze Zbyszkiem nawet je艣li mieli艣my go na obiad w nocy. Jak zwykle, Joan mia艂a dla niego pytania o j臋zyk polski i tak sp臋dzi艂 oko艂o godziny wyja艣niania rzeczy z ni膮 na temat stosowania niekt贸rych s艂贸w i jak si臋 zmieniaj膮 w zale偶no艣ci od zdania s膮 u偶ywane w to zawsze zabawne, aby wys艂ucha膰 dw贸ch je, gdy tego typu dyskusji toczy si臋 dalej.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Chopin

Nice cold day today with a little rain. Zbyszek came over at 5:30PM for dinner and then had to leave at 7PM to see his mother.  I stopped at Kandulski's and picked up a few pastries for after dinner.

It's a great time to be in Poland if you like Chopin.  The International Competition has been going on all week and broadcast live on TV Kultura so you have the opportunity to hear and see some excellent pianists who are hoping to win this years award.

Milo zimno dzi艣 dzie艅 troch臋 deszczu. Zbyszek przyszed艂 na 17:30 na kolacj臋, a nast臋pnie musieli opu艣ci膰 przy 7PM do matki. Zatrzyma艂em si臋 w Kandulski i podni贸s艂 kilka wypieki po kolacji.

Jest to doskona艂a okazja, aby by膰 w Polska, je艣li chcesz Chopina. International Konkurs trwa ju偶 ca艂y tydzie艅 i transmitowane na 偶ywo w TV Kultura wi臋c masz okazj臋 us艂ysze膰 i zobaczy膰 znakomitych pianist贸w, kt贸rzy maj膮 nadziej臋, 偶e wygra to wyr贸偶nienie lat.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Little visit.




Cousin Luka Paluch and her husband, Marek were in our neighborhood today and stopped by for a visit.  They could only stay for about an hour because of work committments but we had a chance to talk.  They are having their house insulated from the outside and Luka's father, Leszek, is doing the supervising of the workers.  We knew they were coming so we spent yesterday cleaning the house in preparartion for the visit.

Tomorrow night we have invited our friend, Zbyszek, over for a 呕urek dinner and maybe a movie.  He's interested in seeing our new computer setup so I thought it was a good time for a dinner invitation also.

My system is all setup and I'm using Avast, temporarily, for virus control.  Everything except my Roxio Easy Creator program loaded with no problem to this new 64 bit system.

The third picture is the Dittenber family on Senior night for Blake, in the white uniform.

Kuzyna Luka Paluch i jej m膮偶, Marek by艂y w naszej okolicy i zatrzyma艂 si臋 dzi艣 na wizyt臋. Mogli tylko pozosta膰 przez oko艂o godzin臋 z powodu committments pracy, ale mieli艣my okazj臋 porozmawia膰. Oni maj膮 sw贸j dom izolowany od zewn膮trz i ojcem Luka, Leszek jest robienie tego, nadzorowanie pracownik贸w. Wiedzieli艣my, 偶e oni przychodzili, wi臋c sp臋dzili艣my wczoraj porz膮dki w domu w preparartion do wizyty.

Jutro w nocy zaprosili艣my naszego przyjaciela, Zbyszek, ponad 呕urek na kolacj臋 i by膰 mo偶e film. Jest ciekaw nowej konfiguracji komputera, tak my艣la艂em, 偶e to dobry moment na zaproszenie do kolacji r贸wnie偶.

M贸j system jest wszystkich instalacji i u偶ywam Avast, tymczasowo, do kontroli wirusa. Wszystko, opr贸cz mojej Roxio Creator Easy bez problemu za艂adowa膰 do tego nowego 64 bitowym systemie.

Trzecie zdj臋cie jest rodzina Dittenber na Senior dob臋, na Blake, w bia艂ym mundurze.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

New machine.


Resolved the problem with the new laptop downloads and it's working fine though I can't use my old Norton virus disc with this 64 bit machine.  Here's a few pictures of the new setup. The first one is with the laptop closed and the bigger screen being used.

Rozwi膮zano problem z nowym laptopem i pliki do pobrania to dzia艂a dobrze ale nie mog臋 korzysta膰 ze starego dysku wirusa Norton z tym 64-bitowe maszyny. Tutaj kilka zdj臋膰 nowej konfiguracji. Pierwszym z nich jest zamkni臋ta z laptopem i wi臋kszy ekran u偶ywane.

Monday, October 11, 2010

I'm back.

Computer meltdown caused my absence these last few days.  Saturday morning when I tried to login  all I got was a black screen with a white cursor.  I tried everything to fix the problem with no luck.  Finally I called a repairman, left a message for him that I needed help but got not reply.  Sunday I called back and he told me he no longer repaired computers and to call Microsoft on Monday.  I called and they said it was an HP problem to call them in Germany for help.  I  called them and they said call Microsoft in Poland for help.  I called them and they said call HP in America and after the 4th call I was told it would probably cost between 1500-2000 zl to fix the laptop.  Joan and I talked it over and decided it would wiser to just buy a new computer with a guarantee than fix the old one.

So today I spent in Saturn, Komputronix, Sferis and Wobis looking at different setups and prices.  In the end I bought an ASUS 15" laptop, smaller than I wanted but I also bought a 22" LED monitor screen, wireless keyboard and mouse.  In essence I have a larger screen now but still have the ability to take a laptop with me when we take our little trips.

Krachu Computer spowodowane moj膮 nieobecno艣膰 tych ostatnich kilku dni. Sobota rano przy pr贸bie logowania wszystko, co mam by艂 czarny ekran z bia艂ym kursorem. Pr贸bowa艂em wszystkiego, aby rozwi膮za膰 problem bez powodzenia. W ko艅cu zadzwoni艂em do serwisanta, zostawi艂 wiadomo艣膰 dla niego, 偶e potrzebuj臋 pomocy, ale nikt nie odpowiada. Niedziel臋 oddzwoni艂 i powiedzia艂 mi, 偶e ju偶 naprawione komputery i wezwanie Microsoft w poniedzia艂ek. Zadzwoni艂em i powiedzieli, 偶e by艂 problem HP, aby po艂膮czy膰 je w Niemczech o pomoc. Zadzwoni艂em do nich i powiedzieli, po艂膮czenia w Microsoft Polska za pomoc. Zadzwoni艂em do nich i powiedzieli w HP w USA i po 4 po艂膮czenia Powiedziano mi, b臋dzie to prawdopodobnie kosztowa膰 od 1500-2000 z艂 naprawi膰 laptopa. Joan i ja rozmawiali艣my go i postanowi艂 to m膮drzejszy po prostu kupi膰 nowy komputer z gwarancj膮 ni偶 naprawi膰 stary.

Tak wi臋c dzisiaj sp臋dzi艂em w Saturn, Komputronix, Sferis i Wobis patrz膮c na r贸偶ne konfiguracje i ceny. W ko艅cu kupi艂em ASUS 15 "laptop, mniejszy ni偶 chcia艂em, ale te偶 kupi艂 22" ekran LED monitor, bezprzewodow膮 klawiatur臋 i mysz. W zasadzie mam wi臋kszy ekran, ale teraz jeszcze zdolno艣ci do podj臋cia ze sob膮 laptopa, gdy bierzemy nasze ma艂e wycieczki.

Saturday, October 09, 2010

Interesting meeting.

I had an interesting meeting today with an acquaintances sister.  She's lived in Schaumburg, Illinois for the last 12 years and will be moving back to Poland in 2 years.  She lives very close to where Joan and I lived in the U.S. before we moved to Poland and there were so many places we both know in common.

Tonight we had dinner with our friends from England at the Valpolicelli restaurant off the rynek.  Most of the outside cafes are gone now from the rynek because of the colder weather and the ones that remain had no customers sitting in them.  We ate inside because it was too cold to sit outside.

Finally got back into the routine of doing our Polish lesson exercises and I had a huge amount of vocabulary words to go over, 543 words.  I like this system, SuperMemo, because it forces you to do it everyday or the words just keep piling up.  Unfortunately when you go on vacation there is no pause button so I had all of these waiting for me to do.  It will take a couple of days to catch up.  Interesting for me was that when we were in Spain and someone asked me something in Spanish I always replied in Polish instead of English, then realized it and replied again in English.

In a few days Poznan will host the 11th Poznan’s Marathon. Participants of the marathon will set out for the route on Sunday, the 10th of October. For the last couple of months, the Pozna艅 Marathon has been under the patronage of a late deputy mayor of Poznan Maciej Frankiewicz, indefatigable promoter of sport and recreation.

Presently, the start list includes as many as over 3,500 people. Poznan Marathon, once again, is going to be the largest such event in Poland.

The route of the marathon was marked out around Poznan's centre. Each of the runners will have to cover two loops 21 kilometres long each. The best ones will cover this distance within 2 hours and 15 minutes. The time limit for all other runners is set at 6 hours.

Mia艂em dzi艣 ciekawe spotkanie z siostr膮 znajomych. Ona mieszka艂a w Schaumburg, Illinois w ci膮gu ostatnich 12 lat i b臋dzie powr贸t do Polska w ci膮gu 2 lat. Ona mieszka bardzo blisko miejsca, gdzie Joan i mieszka艂 w USA, zanim przeni贸s艂 si臋 do Polska i nie by艂o tak wielu miejscach oboje wiemy wsp贸lnego.

Dzisiaj udali艣my si臋 na kolacj臋 z przyjaci贸艂mi z Anglii w restauracji Valpolicelli od Rynku. Wi臋kszo艣膰 z zewn膮trz kawiarni odesz艂a od Rynku ze wzgl臋du na ch艂odniejsze dni i te, kt贸re pozostaj膮 nie mia艂 klient贸w, siedzi w nich. Jedli艣my w 艣rodku, poniewa偶 by艂 zbyt zimno, aby siedzie膰 na zewn膮trz.

Wreszcie wr贸ci艂 do rutynowej robi nasz polski 膰wiczenia lekcji i mia艂em ogromn膮 ilo艣膰 s艂贸wek, aby przej艣膰 nad, 543 s艂贸w. Podoba mi si臋 ten system, SuperMemo, poniewa偶 zmusza Ci臋 o to codziennie lub s艂owa po prostu stale narastaj膮. Niestety, gdy jeste艣 na wakacjach nie ma pauza tak mia艂em wszystkie te czeka na mnie zrobi膰. To zajmie kilka dni, aby nadrobi膰 zaleg艂o艣ci. Ciekawe dla mnie by艂o to, 偶e kiedy byli艣my w Hiszpanii i kto艣 zapyta艂 mnie co艣 w j臋zyku hiszpa艅skim zawsze odpowiada艂em w j臋zyku polskim, a nie angielski, to sobie spraw臋, 偶e i powt贸rzy艂 w j臋zyku angielskim.

W kilka dni Pozna艅 b臋dzie gospodarzem 11. Pozna艅 Maraton. Uczestnicy maratonu okre艣lonych dla danej trasy w niedziel臋, 10 pa藕dziernika. Przez ostatnie kilka miesi臋cy, Pozna艅 Maraton by艂 pod patronatem p贸藕no Zast臋pca Prezydenta Poznania Maciej Frankiewicz, niestrudzony propagator sportu i rekreacji.

Obecnie li艣cie startowej znalaz艂y si臋 a偶 ponad 3500 os贸b. Pozna艅 Maraton po raz kolejny b臋dzie najwi臋ksz膮 imprez膮 tego typu w Polska.

Trasa maratonu zosta艂a wytyczona wok贸艂 centrum Poznania. Ka偶dy z zawodnik贸w b臋dzie musia艂 pokry膰 dwie p臋tle 21 km d艂ugo艣ci. Najlepsze z nich obejmie ten dystans w ci膮gu 2 godzin i 15 minut. Termin dla wszystkich pozosta艂ych biegaczy wynosi 6 godzin.

Friday, October 08, 2010

Thursday.

A day of food shopping and meeting with Z. It's 26c in Malaga, 12c in Pozna艅. What a difference.

From the "it's a small world" department, this Saturday we are meeting with someone I met through the internet. He is from Pennsylvania but his wife was born in Przyjma, Poland, the birthplace of my grandfather and her mother still lives there. They came for a month's vacation to Przyjma but will be in Pozna艅 Saturday so we agreed to meet at the town hall and have lunch in the rynek.

I've been taking the 3 medications for pain in my back and it's helped but not completely taken it away. Guess it's just gonna take some time to heal.

Na zakupy 偶ywno艣ci i spotkanie z Z. To jest 26c w Malaga, 12c w Poznaniu. Co za r贸偶nica.

Z "jest to ma艂y 艣wiat" dzia艂, w t膮 sobot臋 spotykamy si臋 z kim艣 spotka艂 si臋 za po艣rednictwem Internetu. On jest z Pensylwanii, ale jego 偶ona urodzi艂a si臋 w Przyjma, Polska, miejsce urodzenia mojego dziadka, a matka nadal tam mieszka. Przybyli na miesi膮c wakacji Przyjma, ale b臋dzie w Poznaniu sobot臋 wi臋c um贸wili艣my si臋 na spotkanie w ratuszu i zje艣膰 obiad w rynek.

By艂em przy 3 leki na b贸l w plecach i to pomog艂o, ale nie w pe艂ni uwzgl臋dniona j膮. My艣l臋, 偶e to tylko zajmie troch臋 czasu, aby uzdrawia膰.

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Alhambra


Click the arrow, then click the picture, then on the bottom right of the picture click the 4 little arrows to get the full screen view.

Tuesday, October 05, 2010

Back home again.







Back home again after a long daay of traveling.  We started at 11AM to the Malaga airport and then had to wait for the plane to fly back.  This time we were at the front of the line and took the seats by the center emergency exit door so I would have some leg room.  It was much better.  The three hour flight took longer because of delays and we didn't arrive in Wroc艂aw until 7PM.  Our train didn't leave until midnight so we had plenty of time for dinner.  We left Malaga in 25c weather and arrived in Wroc艂aw to 10c.  We were prepared for it with sweaters and jackets in our bags so we went to the bathroom at the airport, changed clothes and took the bus to the rynek for dinner.

Another snafu in the train tickets because when I told the agent in Pozna艅 last week that we would return at Monday at 12 minutes after midnight he booked the ticket for Monday and not actually Tuesdays early morning.  I had to get a refund for the ticket and buy two new tickets.  Although we travelled second class we had our own compartment this time, probably because there were so few people on the train at that time of night.

We arrived back in Pozna艅 at 2:30AM and took a taxi home.  Still with no relief from the back injury, I had to sleep sitting up in a chair because it was impossible to lie down.  This morning I went to the hospital, saw a doctor, had xrays and a USG done to see what the problem still is.  I thought for sure I had some cracked ribs but the xray showed none and the doctor said it was just the trauma to the ribcage that was causing the pain.  She gave me three prescriptions for different pain medications to take and said it would take a month or two to recover from the injury but other than that I should be fine.

Another good thing that was verified by the USG is that the stones I had last year have all been dissolved thanks to the Chinese herbs I was advised to take from my friends husband in New York who is an herb specialist.  So I do not need the operation that the doctors here wanted to perform and that I am still on a waiting list for.

Aside from the injury, our trip to Spain was fantastic.  The weather was perfect all week, shorts and t-shirts, the food was just as good as I remembered it, the sights and scenes were incredible, the people friendly, many spoke English and Joan loved it as much as I did.

HI, it's Joan.........
Yes I love Spain!  The sites are beautiful and it was good to see mountains again.  Flowers everywhere and many fountains.  The people were very friendly and smiled a lot!  The food was delicious and I'm in love with Gazpacho!  David used to tell me about Gazpacho but experencing it was beyond words.  The store front windows had beautiful clothes and looked comfortable.  I could live in Spain but I would need more money.  I know it gets very hot in the summer but when we were there the temperature was perfect.  So, I'd better buy more lottery tickets!  What was also nice is that when you step up to the crosswalk, cars actually stop!  People were helpful.  I was in a drug store and I wanted to find something and a woman spoke English and helped me find what I needed. She just overheard me and said she could help me!  I can't wait for my next vacation to Spain!

Powr贸t do domu po d艂ugim dniu sp臋dzonym w podr贸偶y. Zacz臋li艣my przy 11AM do lotniska w Maladze, a nast臋pnie musia艂 czeka膰 na samolot na lot z powrotem. Tym razem byli艣my na pocz膮tku wiersza i zaj膮艂 miejsca w centrum awaryjne drzwi wyj艣ciowych, wi臋c chcia艂bym troch臋 miejsca na nogi. To by艂o o wiele lepiej. Trzy godziny lotu trwa艂o d艂u偶ej ze wzgl臋du na op贸藕nienia i nie przyby膰 we Wroc艂awiu a偶 do 7PM. Nasz poci膮g nie wyjecha艂 do p贸艂nocy, wi臋c mieli艣my du偶o czasu na obiad. Wyruszyli艣my w Malaga 25c pogoda i przyjecha艂 do Wroc艂awia do 10c. Byli艣my przygotowani na to, swetry i kurtki w nasze torby tak poszli艣my do 艂azienki na lotnisku, ubrania zmieni艂y si臋 i wzi臋li艣my autobus do rynek dla obiadu.

Innym snafu w bilety kolejowe bo gdy powiedzia艂 agent w Poznaniu w zesz艂ym tygodniu, 偶e wracamy w poniedzia艂ek 12 minut po p贸艂nocy, 偶e zarezerwowa艂 bilet na poniedzia艂ek, a nie faktycznie wtorki rana. Musia艂em dosta膰 zwrot pieni臋dzy za bilet i kupi膰 dwa nowe bilety. Mimo, 偶e jechali艣my drugiej klasie mieli艣my w艂asne pomieszczenia tym razem, prawdopodobnie dlatego, 偶e by艂o tak ma艂o ludzi na poci膮g o tej porze nocy.

Przyjechali艣my z powrotem w Poznaniu 02:30 i trwa艂o do domu taks贸wk膮. Jednak z 偶adnej ulgi od urazu kr臋gos艂upa, musia艂em spa膰 na siedz膮co w fotelu, poniewa偶 nie mo偶na by艂o po艂o偶y膰. Dzi艣 rano poszed艂em do szpitala, zobaczy艂em lekarza, mia艂 xrays zrobi膰 USG i zobaczy膰 co problem nadal jest. My艣la艂em, 偶e na pewno mia艂em p臋kni臋te 偶ebra, ale xray pokaza艂 nic, a lekarz powiedzia艂, 偶e to tylko uraz klatki piersiowej, kt贸ry by艂 przyczyn膮 b贸lu. Da艂a mi trzy recepty na r贸偶ne leki przeciwb贸lowe do podj臋cia i powiedzia艂, 偶e si臋 za miesi膮c lub dwa, aby odzyska膰 od urazu, ale poza tym powinien by膰 w porz膮dku.

Inn膮 dobr膮 rzecz膮, 偶e zosta艂o potwierdzone przez USG jest, 偶e kamienie mia艂em w zesz艂ym roku, wszystkie zosta艂y rozwi膮zane dzi臋ki chi艅skich zi贸艂 To zale偶y od mojego m臋偶a si臋 przyjaci贸艂 w Nowym Jorku, kt贸ry jest specjalist膮 herb. Wi臋c nie trzeba operacji, 偶e lekarze tutaj chcia艂 wykonywa膰 i 偶e wci膮偶 jestem na li艣cie oczekuj膮cych na.

Opr贸cz szkody, nasz wyjazd do Hiszpanii by艂o fantastyczne. Pogoda by艂a idealna przez ca艂y tydzie艅, szorty i t-shirty, jedzenie by艂o tak dobrze, jak przypomnia艂em sobie to, zabytki i sceny by艂y niesamowite, przyjaznych ludzi, wiele m贸wi艂 po angielsku i Joan polubi艂a to tak samo jak ja.

HI, to ja, Joan .........

Tak, kocham Hiszpanii! Tereny s膮 pi臋kne i dobrze by艂o zobaczy膰 g贸ry ponownie. Kwiaty, wsz臋dzie i wielu fontann. Ludzie byli bardzo przyja藕ni i u艣miechn膮艂 si臋 du偶o! Jedzenie by艂o pyszne, a ja jestem w mi艂o艣ci z Gazpacho! David m贸wi艂 mi o Gazpacho ale experencing to by艂o poza s艂owami. Sklep szyby z przodu mia艂 pi臋kne ubrania i spojrza艂 komfortowe. m贸g艂bym 偶y膰 w Hiszpanii, ale b臋d臋 potrzebowa艂 wi臋cej pieni臋dzy. Wiem, 偶e to jest bardzo gor膮ca w lecie, ale gdy byli艣my tam temperatura by艂a doskona艂a. Tak, lepiej kupi膰 wi臋cej bilet贸w loterii! Jaki by艂 r贸wnie偶 艂adne jest to, 偶e kiedy wchodzisz na przej艣ciu dla pieszych, samochody rzeczywi艣cie stop! Ludzie byli pomocne. By艂em w aptece i chcia艂em znale藕膰 co艣, a kobieta m贸wi po angielsku i pomog艂a mi znale藕膰 to, co potrzebne. Ona po prostu us艂ysza艂 mnie i powiedzia艂, 偶e mo偶e mi pom贸c! Nie mog臋 si臋 doczeka膰 na moje nast臋pne wakacje do Hiszpanii!

Sunday, October 03, 2010

Castillo & Alcazaba

Bishops Palace
Polish Consulate
View from highest tower



Malaga bullring
Alcazaba

We started our day with breakfast in front of the Malaga cathedral and then visited the Bishops palace which is now a museum.  We wanted to go and look at the Castillo and Alcazaba but didn't want to really make the long climb up the hill.  Thanks to the internet we found bus#35 that took us practically from our hotel to the top of the fortification, the highest point in Malaga.  The cost was about 5 zl each and well worth the price for us.

The 360 degree view of Malaga is spectacular and I photographed it from the top of the highest tower, going to right of the first 360 picture.  Malaga, the Mediterranean sea, the bull fighting ring, the harbor, the old castle and Malaga again made great pictures.

From the highest point we walked down to the Alcazaba and then had lunch of gazpacho soup and fried calamaries but first let's start with the Castillo.

Castillo de Gibralfaro is an ancient fortress on a hill of 131 meters in Malaga. It dates back to the time when the Phoenicians founded the present city of Malaga. At the beginning of the14th century, Yusuf I of the Kingdom of Granada constructed Gibralfaro Castle, on an old Phoenician enclosure. The name is derived from the Phoenician word for light, Jbel-Faro, meaning "Rock of Light". The castle overlooks the modern city of M谩laga and the Mediterranean Sea.  The views from all of the towers are incredible and well worth the trip to see.

At the end of 2005, a thick forest of pine s and eucalyptus trees were planted on the hill. On its outskirts are the historical buildings of the seminary and Alcazaba.

The Alcazaba is a Moorish fortification in Malaga. Created from the 8th century, much of it was built around the middle of the 11th century for King Badis, the Zirid ruler of Granada, to serve as the palace of the governors of the city. 

It is built on a hill in the centre of the city, overlooking the port, and comprises two walled enclosures. It was formerly connected to the city ramparts which formed a third defensive wall but only two inner walls remain. The first, built around the topography of the hill, completely encloses the second inner area and is dotted with defensive towers. The entrance is through a gateway called "Puerta de la B贸veda" (Vault Gate), but nowadays it can also be accessed by an elevator. The entrance gate doubles back on itself, a design intended to make progress difficult for attacking forces. The pathway winds up through landscaped gardens which contain a number of ornate fountains, passing the gateways of "Puerta de las Columnas" (Column Gate), which reuses materials from the Roman ruins and "Torre del Cristo" (Christ's Tower) which turns at right angles to again impede the progress of attackers, The "Torre del Cristo" once served as a chapel.

The inner enclosure can only be accessed through the "Puerta de los Cuartos de Granada" (Gate of the Granada Quarters) which acts as the defense to the western side of the palace. On the eastern side is the "Torre del Homenaje" (Tribute Tower) which is in a semi-ruinous state. Inside the second wall is the Palace and some other dwellings which were built on three consecutive patios during the 11th, 13th and 14th centuries and includes the "Cuartos de Granada" (Granada Quarters) which served as the home of the governors. The inner enclosure also houses the Archaeological Museum.

In 1487, Ferdinand and Isabella captured the city after a long siege, and raised their standard at the "Torre del Homenaje" in the inner citadel.

A side note..........we found a restaurant named "Cheers" in front of the cathedral and also the Polish Consulate.  While we were having dinner, a wandering saxophone musician came by and a customer seated at a table with about 20 people asked if he could play the instrument.  The musician gave it to him and the customer played "Sto Lat" on it.  I stood up, raised  my glass to him and shouted "Sto Lat" and all 20 people stood up with their glasses and we toasted.  It was a funny incidence.

Zacz臋li艣my dzie艅 od 艣niadania w przed katedr膮 Malaga a nast臋pnie odwiedzi艂 pa艂ac biskupi, kt贸ry jest obecnie muzeum. Chcieli艣my i艣膰 i patrze膰 na Alcazaba i Castillo, ale nie chcesz naprawd臋 d艂ugo wspina膰 si臋 pod g贸r臋. Dzi臋ki internetowi mo偶emy znale藕膰 autobus nr 35, kt贸re mia艂y nas praktycznie od naszego hotelu na g贸r臋 fortyfikacji, najwy偶szy punkt w Maladze. Koszt to oko艂o 5 z艂 ka偶da i warte swojej ceny za nami.

360 stopni widok Malaga jest spektakularny i sfotografowa艂em go ze szczytu najwy偶szej wie偶y, b臋dzie prawo od pierwszego 360 zdj臋cia. Malaga, Morze 艢r贸dziemne, byk ringu, portu, starego zamku i Malaga ponownie si臋 wspania艂e zdj臋cia.

Z najwy偶szego punktu zeszli艣my do Alcazaba i wtedy mieli艣my posi艂ek zupa gazpacho z kalmarami i sma偶one, ale najpierw zacznijmy od Castillo.

Castillo de Gibralfaro jest staro偶ytnej fortecy na wzg贸rzu, z 131 metr贸w w Maladze. Pochodzi z czas贸w, gdy Fenicjanie za艂o偶yli dzisiejszego miasta Malaga. Na pocz膮tku the14th wieku, Yusuf I Kr贸lestwa Granady wykonane Gibralfaro Zamek na starej szafy fenicki. Nazwa pochodzi od fenickiego s艂owa 艣wiat艂a, Jbel-Faro, czyli "Rock of Light". Zamek z widokiem na nowoczesne miasto w Maladze i na Morze 艢r贸dziemne. Widoki z wszystkich wie偶 s膮 niesamowite i warte podr贸偶y do zobaczenia.

Pod koniec 2005 r., jest g臋stym lasem sosnowym s i eukaliptusowych drzew zosta艂y posadzone na wzg贸rzu. Na jego obrze偶ach s膮 zabytkowe budynki seminarium i Alcazaba.

Alcazaba jest w stylu maureta艅skim fortyfikacji w Maladze. Stworzy艂 od 8 wieku, w znacznej cz臋艣ci zosta艂 zbudowany w po艂owie 11. wieku przez kr贸la Badis, w艂adca Ziryd贸w Granady, aby s艂u偶y膰 jako pa艂ac gubernator贸w miasta.

Jest zbudowany na wzg贸rzu w centrum miasta, z widokiem na port i sk艂ada si臋 z dw贸ch 艣ciankach obudowy. To by艂o dawniej po艂膮czone z murami, kt贸re stanowi艂y jeden trzecia mur贸w obronnych, ale tylko dwie wewn臋trzne mury pozostaj膮. Pierwszy, zbudowany wok贸艂 topografii wzg贸rza, ca艂kowicie zakrywaj膮ce sekund wewn臋trznej powierzchni i jest usiany wie偶e obronne. Wej艣cie jest przez bram臋 o nazwie "Puerta de la Boveda" (Vault Gate), ale w dzisiejszych czasach mo偶e by膰 r贸wnie偶 dost臋p do windy. Brama wjazdowa dwuosobowe z powrotem na siebie, konstrukcji przeznaczonych do post臋pu trudne dla atakuj膮cych si艂. Wiatry droga w g贸r臋 przez ogrody, kt贸re zawieraj膮 szereg ozdobnych fontann, mijaj膮c bramach "Puerta de las Columnas" (kolumna Gate), kt贸ry ponownie wykorzystuje materia艂y z rzymskich ruin i "Torre del Cristo" (Christ's Tower), kt贸ra porusza si臋 na prostopadle do jeszcze utrudniaj膮 post臋p w napastnik贸w, "Torre del Cristo" kiedy艣 s艂u偶y艂 jako kaplica.

Wewn臋trznej obudowy s膮 dost臋pne tylko poprzez "Puerta de los Cuartos de Granada" (Brama Granada Quarters), kt贸ra dzia艂a jako obrony zachodniej stronie pa艂acu. Po wschodniej stronie jest "Torre del Homenaje" (Tribute Tower), kt贸ra jest w stanie p贸艂-rujnuj膮cy. Wewn膮trz drugiej 艣ciany pa艂acu i innych mieszka艅, kt贸re zosta艂y zbudowane na trzy kolejne dziedzi艅ce w wieku 11, 13 i 14 i obejmuje "Cuartos de Granada (Granada Quarters), kt贸ry s艂u偶y艂 jako siedziba gubernator贸w. Wewn臋trznej obudowy znajduje si臋 r贸wnie偶 Muzeum Archeologiczne.

W 1487, Ferdynand i Izabela zdoby艂 miasto po d艂ugim obl臋偶eniu, i podnios艂y standard w "Torre del Homenaje" w wewn臋trznej cytadeli.

Na marginesie .......... znale藕li艣my restauracj臋 o nazwie "Cheers" przed katedr膮, a tak偶e polskiego konsulatu. Podczas gdy jedli艣my obiad, w臋drowny muzyk saksofon przyszed艂 i klient siedzi przy stole z oko艂o 20 os贸b zapyta艂, czy m贸g艂by gra膰 na instrumencie. Muzyk da艂 mu go, a klient zagra艂 "Sto Lat" na jej temat. Wsta艂em, podnios艂em szk艂a do niego i krzykn膮艂: "Sto Lat" i wszystkie 20 os贸b, wsta艂 z okular贸w, a my tosty. To by艂o 艣mieszne wyst臋powania.

Saturday, October 02, 2010

Granada to Malaga







I've made some mistakes in my writing the last day or two, I'll blame it on the mental and physical condition I'm in and just wanting to post as much as I could while I could sit up.

This morning we had time to vist the huge Granada catheral before we left for Malaga.  It's one of the biggest I have seen.

The road to Malaga was very nice with lots of nice scenic pictures so I will just let the slideshow do the work instead of me describing it.

Zrobi艂em kilka b艂臋d贸w w moim pisaniu ostatni dzie艅 lub dwa, b臋d臋 za to wini膰 psychiczne i kondycj臋 fizyczn膮 jestem i po prostu chc膮 odpowiedzie膰 jak mog艂em, a mog艂em usi膮艣膰.

Dzi艣 rano mieli艣my czasu na vist ogromne catheral Granada, zanim wyjecha艂 do Malaga. To jedna z najwi臋kszych jakie widzia艂em.

Droga do Malaga by艂o bardzo mi艂e z mn贸stwem malowniczych 艂adne zdj臋cia, wi臋c b臋dzie tylko niech pokaz zdj臋膰 do pracy, zamiast mi opisywa膰