KRAKOW

March 4-8

Heading off to Krakow meant the first trip to Poland for me… I didn’t know a lot about Krakow but had been a place of interest for me for a while.

I stayed at Mamas Hostel very central, just off the main market square and would thoroughly recommend it to anyone travelling to Krakow! Staff were fantastic, it was clean, comfortable, spacious and I met some very interesting people there…

Got in quite late on Saturday night, so after a quick chat I headed to bed for some kip. On Sunday I did a Jewish heritage walk, I opted for a guided tour this time due to the fact that I really wanted the knowledge on various things on this walk. My tour guide was Phil, and due to cold, non-tourist season, I was fortunate to be the only one taking the tour which allowed for us to talk a lot more about various parts of the tour, history and even good ol NZ which was of great interest to Phil. Many parts of the walk could be attributed to various scenes in the film “Schindlers List” which I found particularly interesting as I had not made the connection that Krakow was infact where this story took place. It really was such an interesting tour and I was very moved by the experience. Half way through the tour we also stopped off at a local pub and had a traditional drink in Poland warm (and spiced) beer (much better than it sounds I promise!)

After the tour I did a trip up to Wawel Castle which is set just off the centre of the city and along the river – a beautiful backdrop! Not as grand as some that I have seen but full of history and many a story to tell behind those walls I’m sure! After this it was back to the main square for a kebab (Krakow is full of kebab spots) – and it tasted fantastic!

That night Olivia (one of the girls I met at the hostel) and I went out and sampled the local booze – glass of apple juice accompanied by a very large shot a vodka! After a number of these we went to a Polish restaurant and had the most heavenly traditional Polish meal consisting of mushrooms (stroganoff style) and dumplings for starters, salmon and steak for mains and unfortunately absolutely no room for desert! Was an exceptional little restaurant…

The next day it was more walking around Krakow and after several hours of this I stopped off at a crepe place that had been recommended for lunch (very nice!) and then coffee at a local café… I then took myself back to the hostel for some afternoon R&R curled up on the couch reading a book. That night I ate at a Georgian restaurant, food was very enjoyable and so was the local Polish beer – oh and so was the gorgeous waiter that served me!!

The next day ZZ arrived early morning from Prague and after breaky at the hostel we took ourselves off for our day trip to Auschwitz. This was not the first visit to a concentration camp (the first one was Dachau in Munich) and to be really honest the first time you see and feel the horrors of such a place it is so utterly moving and emotional… something you can never forget. Given that Auschwitz was the second camp I did not suffer from shock and sheer disbelief as I had the first time. I still found it to be a very sobering and historic experience but was fortunately not left as heartbroken at the end of this visit…. I think this is an experience that everyone should do once in their lifetime… In the evening ZZ and I ate in a Medieval restaurant that served Polish food, once again the food was gorgeous and I found a new addiction with the local mushroom dish….

Next day we went to the Salt Mines – something I know very little about and they were simply fabulous – quite amazing to see these parts of our planet, incredible to think these places exist – was such a new thing for me to have seen and really enjoyed the experience.

That night, I flew back to London dreaming about what the next trip will be…. Krakow was a simple and pretty city so full of history… Polish people were lovely – so friendly… plenty of snow lay around the city and plenty of sun shone through the clear blue skies, the weather was amazing and the air so fresh!!

Loved my time at the hostel, particularly some of the interesting conversations I had with several people I met – the lovely thing about travelling and broadening your mind to new experiences…

Oxford Feb 18-19 2006

Well I had waited a while for my first major outing for 2006 but it was worth the wait! This was my first visit to the lovely city of Oxford and I was fortunate enough to have a friend who lives in Oxfordshire and was happy to put me up for the weekend. Was needing a restful weekend in the outdoors and away from London and that is exactly what I got!


After a homemade paella and restful chat on the couch on Friday night, We made our way into the city on Saturday for a VERY greasy cooked brekky in a well known and highly recommended café called Browns Café – was indeed a proper fry up! After that we made our way along the streets of Oxford, down to the river where we walked along in the fog, catching glimpse of the rowers on the water and breathing in the fresh air….

Next stop, the pub – The Turf – allegedly the oldest pub in Oxford (but this claim is challenged by 1 other in Oxford). Was a gorgeous wee pub where even I had to lower my head at times for fear of hitting the ceiling. I enjoyed a nice pint of local ale before hitting the sights again…
We went next to climb the stairs of University Church (this kind of reminded me of a miniature Notre Dame) offering a great circular view of the city.

After this we stopped for coffee and cake before making our way to the Natural History Museum (becoming a major fan of these since Washington! – love loitering at the animal displays!) After the museum it was time for another pint at the other bar in Oxford which claims to be the oldest – The Bear –and this time I did manage to crack my head on a light shade in the toilet after successfully climbing some very dodgy stairs! Being completely knackered after the days events it was then home for garlic dough balls, pizza and vino!

On Sunday we made our way further into the country to a place Uffington where we went to see “The White Horse of Uffington” a man made imprint of a white horse on a hill, believed to be over 3000 years old – quite a spectacular vision form afar. We walked up on to the hill to the horses head, soaking in the country air – one thing that I rarely experience these days with living in London.

Oxford has some beautiful old buildings and I found it a very lovely city to walk around. It is a relaxed and intimate city and I felt very rested after my couple of days away - as usual cant wait until my next venture out of London.

Next destination – Krakow!

Xmas / NY 2005

Well this was probably the first official time that I have had to “host” Crimbo – Guests in attendance were cuz Tarlei & Mike who had come over from Australia for their Europe tour , Cuz ZZ… Jen and her dad joined us for brunch before heading off for a more traditional meal elsewhere…

My day started with another hangover, (as the previous seven days had!), ZZ lying in the bed next to me, Several phone calls, a few tears, and plenty of few laughs…Mike and Tarlei arrived just after 11 and then…. BRING ON THOSE CHAMPAGNE COCKTAILS!

Well after 3 bottles of Moet, a truck load of wine, and a few tequila shots later, the day had almost gone… ZZ and I finished off the night with a Pyjama dance and then it was off to bed – this being my first xmas in London and done in true family style!

Fave gift would have definitely been the beautiful scarf given to me by Mum – has hardly left my body since!

For New Year I decided to get away from London for a couple days so took a train to the Lakes to see Jake, Jo and the kids– typical visit whereby I arrive at 4pm on New Years Eve and the drinking commences… after a few beers, Jakes baby (6 litre bottle of vino) was opened, then it was on to the most amazing brew of mulled wine I have ever tasted and then back to more vino (the more adventurous of us decided to mix a bit of whiskey in with our wine) – No tequila, but there was sausage roll jenga…

While there was not a lot of action on New Years day, I did get out the following day for a walk near the lake a and a final pint before hopping back on the train back to London….

Am really ready to put 2005 behind me and look forward to 2006 - have a great feeling about this year!

USA

November 2005

This particular blog has been a while in the making I know, but I will try to write a short (ish) overview of the wonderful 2 week adventure I had in the States just a couple of months ago…

It started with my arrival in Washington DC… I arrived mid afternoon on a Saturday and decided to head into the centre to catch the Washington Wizards play San Antonio Spurs (NBA) – On the metro I had a wonderful 1 hour conversation with a student from Bolivia (who had paid for my ticket due to my inability to work the machine!), and at the game sat and chatted with a young boy and girl along with their father, whom at the end of the game parted with hugs and best wishes for me – the kindness of these people was a very warm and welcoming entrance into this new city!

The next couple of days were filled with visits to war and various other memorials, The Smithsonian collection of museums (which could easily be the best in the world) and other various areas within the Washington district. I also visited Arlington Cemetery, for a few hours and I found this to be an incredibly moving experience, particularly the exhibition “Faces of the Fallen” which was a tribute to those that had fallen in this current Gulf War – I looked at every single face and read many notes that had been left, and couldn’t help but have a few tears to shed by the end – very sobering.

Was very impressed with Washington DC, not sure if I would want to live there, but I found it to be a very interesting city to visit with much to see of a very high quality - I had not expected to be so intrigued by all of the many things that I had not realised there was in Washington to experience.

After DC, it was off to NY, the place which had been such a major focus of this trip – wasn’t sure what to expect arriving in this big city that never sleeps but found it to be incredibly easy to navigate, never boring, very diverse, and completely crazy among other things!

NY was manic as I was always on the go doing something. Some of my escapades included, bus tours, harbour cruise around Manhattan Island, Empire State Building, Ground Zero, Central Park, Museums, NY Nicks, NY Rangers – my highlights had to have been Central Park, feeding a squirrel out of my hand in central park, Grays Papaya Hotdogs, The Rangers, and mouth watering steak (like I have not tasted since I left NZ - and possibly better!).

Met several people whilst here which meant that my evening entertainment was also taken care of - one guy, Grant, was from San Fran but had lived in NY before so it was great to have some local knowledge and someone to take me to the best spots… Below is a snap of me sampling the martini menu at a very classy wine bar...

Was absolutely shattered and ready to leave NY when the time came – decided I needed some R&R so made my way to Boston for a couple of days. I had not always planned to go to Boston but it ended up being quite possible the highlight of the trip – I simply fell in love with the people, the buildings and the atmosphere. I did a spot of shopping down Newbury St, did a trolley tour of the town, ate fish n chips at the harbour and enjoyed the most heavenly piece of carrot cake with coffee in a very cute little bookshop on Newbury St. I stayed in a gorgeous (B&B pictured below) and took a very laid back approach to the few days I had there – my time here was truly special and I am stoked that I decided to include this into my trip.

After Boston, I was off to Burlington, VT to have Thanksgiving with James and Rhonda, two of the kindest and special people one could spend it with. They also had the most gorgeous cat and dog, which of course completely did me in! On Thanksgiving eve we watched the traditional “Trains, planes and automobiles” over a few bottles of wine. I woke up on Thanksgiving morning to see snow falling all around their house which is surrounded by forest, everything was white and I honestly felt like I had died and gone to heaven – it was the most beautiful thing you could possibly imagine and I still dream about it! Friends came over for lunch, which consisted of extremely fine gourmet and it really was just such a special day that I was very grateful to have been a part of.

Was sad to leave James and Rhonda as I would have loved to have spent a couple more days with them and that is my incentive to return one day soon, but for now it was back to NY to spend my final wknd with the girls to celebrate Chloe’s birthday (which had been the reason I was over here in the first place).

Enjoyed NY the second time around for very different reasons as I was able to just go and relax and socialise for the last couple of days without feeling any need to be touristy. We all enjoyed some wonderful dining and good wine together and while Sinead and Janet hit the shops (something I had no desire to do) I took Chloe along to a Knicks game which ended up being a very adrenaline and entertainment packed event! My final hours in NY were spent strolling through Central Park one last time before heading back to the airport…

I do have much more detailed version of my trip for anybody that feels like reading it but I hope that this is still a good overview on my two weeks there. I cant wait to get back again – I really got just how big this country was and just how much I would still like to see and do in it!

P.S. Also have all my photos available on-line if anyone wishes to peruse the whole album!