It looks like this spring has been a series of weekend retreats. As the writing of my book occupies the major part of my weeks I find a few free days to enjoy the weather. Last weekend I spent in Tatra, the highest Polish mountains, located in the south of the country. This was a great weekend because my Italian friends joined me and we walked together. It was their first time in the Polish highest peaks. Here is a review of our stay so you could plan your visit there. A weekend retreat – the itinerary This was a classic weekend retreat with two extra days. We met on Saturday in Kraków where my friends arrived by plane. We drove to Zakopane and stayed for the night in a hotel with a breathtaking panorama over the mountain range. We left on Sunday morning and climbed to Wiktorówki for a mass, and continued our walk up to the valley called Dolina Pięciu Stawów Polskich (Five Lakes Valley). We stayed overnight in the refugee there, hoping for the crowds to vanish. On Monday morning, we continued our walk up to Świstówka and walked down to Morskie Oko, one of the most popular places in the mountains with overwhelming crowds. We walked down back to Polanica, from where we took the bus and returned to Zakopane. We stayed for the night in Kraków, from where my friends went back to Italy the next day. Overall we walked 25 kilometers, with the drop of over 3000 meters: 1500 meters up and 1500 down. The Tatra Mountains The High Tatras is a special place for me. Not only I visited these parts of the world with my Dad when I was a child but also I was visiting it regularly as a teenager. I felt always a strong connection to the snowed peaks and rocks, small lakes and cascades. I have many wonderful memories from the trails there, both in spring and winter time. The mountain range is pretty modest and the moment you climb up to 1500-1700 m.a.s.l. you can see almost all peaks at the same time (it’s only about 175 km²). There is a National Park established over fifty years ago and the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The crowds The modest surface of our highest mountains results in crowds. In order to avoid people you should probably visit this place in late autumn or early spring but it might be risky due to the difficult weather conditions. It is good to avoid May and June as the school trips tend to visit Morskie Oko making the noise and the mess all over the place. The best way to escape the tourists is to go up, where only a few people go, stay in a refugee overnight and walk even higher the next day. The Weekend We had a great time, no doubts about it! The weather was splendid even though the forecast was very pessimistic. There was not even one drop of rain and two days were full of sun. We were lucky to bring with us summer outfit, hats, and shawls to cover the skin. We had a few snack brakes with an amazing panorama in front of us. The Controversy One of the most famous tracks in the Tatra Mountains is the Eagle Path. There is an ongoing debate whether the path should be closed down due to the recurring deaths of the inexperienced climbers or whether it should be left as it is. I walked the Eagle Path a few years back and it is rather demanding. I would not suggest you to walk it unless you are experienced, have no fear of heights, are able to follow the via ferrata and can handle the extreme fatigue.  

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I have a confession to make: the last two months I had a huge problem with regular running. Although I was staying at home and did not travel I found it very hard to motivate myself and keep running routine. Here is a short post on how to deal with running routine crisis. I’m sharing with you the process of how I did it so you could benefit out of my struggle. Excuse 1 First, it was about the weather conditions. The temperature near freezing, strong wind and often rain slash snow discouraged me. I used the poor weather as an excuse for not running. I don’t know where do you normally run but this is quite popular to use this excuse. To overcome it I bought winter running outfit so I had no more excuses, or so I thought. Tip 1 The Norwegians say that ‘There’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes’ and this is so true! The moment I bought long trousers and warm jacket this problem has disappeared. Before I bought it I considered it to be expensive but this is not true. You can buy relatively cheap winter outfit in big supermarkets. I bought mine for less than 20 EUR (trousers, sweatshirt, and hat). Thus, I thought the problem is over. But it was not. Excuse 2 I had a proper outfit and thought I dealt with an issue but this was not the end of my struggle. I used the second most popular excuse: I feel so weak I can’t run. Even short runs made me feel awful. I felt drained out and had no pleasure whatsoever. I run sporadically after forcing myself with all my motivation only to prove to myself that this is such a rotten idea! Tip 2 When you find running too difficult drop it for a week or two. Yes, I actually advise stopping runs for a while. It is normal to feel weak from time to time due to the seasons’ change, different diet or million other things it is OK to drop this activity for a while and there is a reason behind it. First to give your body time to adjust, second to treat yourself with love and third to keep the healthy attitude. My mistake was I was forcing myself to run harder and I did not listen to my body. This was wrong! Excuse 3 “There are so many things I need to do I have no time for running”. Now this is a classic. Too often we use this excuse in a variety of situation but it is especially popular in cases of physical activities. They tend to keep falling down on our lists of priorities and get occasionally back at the top when we ate too much and celebrated too long. Tip 3 There is only one remedy to overuse of this excuse: you need to be honest with yourself and say it clearly that running is important in your daily routine and you are keeping it one of the top three priorities. What matters is that this is not a one-time thing. You need to keep repeating it from time to time, and what’s even more important, when you fail in doing it you have to go back to the roots and start over again. Best advice So there I was, struggling with these three excuses with no real effect and yesterday I went for a long lonely run. I stepped back and decided that I should focus on what dragged me to running in the first place. I remembered this was a pleasure, feeling of total freedom and the contact with nature. Thus, yesterday I run 11K with no time pressure, no average pace control, enjoying the spring that came, listening to the birds and consciously focusing on the present. You know what? The weather yesterday was awful. It was around +7C, it was raining and there was a strong north wind and I enjoyed every second of my run. Why? Cause I was focused on how enjoyable it was, how well I listened to my body, how I controlled my breathing and how beautiful the world is. It was quite clear to me that the real power of a man is to control himself. I tend to realize this truth every now and then and I find it deeply inspiring. How do you deal with the similar crisis? Do you have a good method to share with other runners? Let’s keep strong and share the tips to stay focused and motivated!  

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Poznan is easy to love. Not that I am biased by the fact of being raised in this city. Poznan is simply a very attractive place to visit and to have fun. Let’s say you’re coming to Poznan to visit me. Where should I go with you? What should we see together? Here are few places in my home city I would like you to visit. All are really special to me. For a good start To fully appreciate any place you need to relax first. There is no use to running around like a mad cat. So first I’m going to take you to a cafe. Poznan is known for a variety of cafes located in the heart of the city. There are many places to enjoy your coffee or snack but there are three places I particularly like. Our first stop is Kamea Cafe on Wroniecka Street. There are couple of reasons why I picked up this place. First, I remember it from my high school times. This cafe was located elsewhere but successfully survived more than a decade serving fabulous desserts. Second, I like the interior design of this place. It’s not excessively fancy nor rustic, its brown color creates a nice atmosphere of leisure and feast at the same time. Third, the fruit and ice cream desserts are delicious! I’m not going to tell you which is my favorite. You need to figure it out for yourself. And lastly, I have good memories of meeting my friends here. When I lived abroad and stayed in Poznan for few days a year there was always an issue on how to meet all friends in a very short time. And, more importantly, not having an apartment in Poznan: where to meet them all? Kamea was just perfect for long winter evenings and bright summer nights. Having my dessert in Kamea now brings all these wonderful moments alive. So this is a special place to me. Where next? Another place, another story. Dominikanska Street no 7 hosts Tea Shop Chimera. It combines exquisite tea selling with cozy cafe and good restaurant. Surprised? Well, although this mix sounds weird I think this place is very successful in hosting guests of all kinds. Since I remember this tea shop was here and in my high school time this was one of very few places where we could drink a high quality green or white tea. For years this was a place of meetings with my school mates, which is especially joyful many years after graduation. People from my high school spread around the world so whenever there is a holiday season we try to gather in Poznan. This is a tough task but we managed to meet few times after we parted at the end of high school. Just recently, visiting Chimera with my Italian friends I discovered how good the local kitchen is! My dear friend ate here an exquisite duck with dumplings and red cabbage (pretty traditional Polish food) and she told me that this was the best duck she has ever eaten! Here is something extra for you: Erin and her family recently visited Poznan and they picked up best Polish food. Find out what foreigner appreciate in Polish kitchen! Good company The last place I wish to share with you was discovered recently. Hosting Laurence and Vera from Finding the Universe travel blog few weeks ago I tried to find a very particular place to have our coffee at. And found one! Through a radio station International Poznan I’ve heard a story of Erik – an American guy from Seattle – who runs a small coffee shop at Ratajczaka Street, 18, called The Bigfoot Cofee Shop. This place might be tricky to find as it is located along a street restricted to traffic. But when you find it you will love it! Erik is one of the most friendly people I have ever met. I’m not going to share his story here. To know him you will need to visit this place for yourself. Let me just tell you that his coffee machine and sandwiches are delicious! Plus: his photographs of Poznan he exhibits on walls are fantastic! You can see that he loves our city. This story continues. Follow me to know Poznan and let’s go to Food Market together! Disclosure: this post was kindly supported by City of Poznan, however, all opinions are my own and not influenced in any way.  

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Wang Church is the main touristic attraction of a little mountain village Karpacz. It is situated in southern Poland just at the foot of an old mountain range Karkonosze. This whole place is way off the beaten track of foreign tourists and hikers and I bet that most of you have never heard about it. Continuing my story of a week spent on hiking there this spring let me tell you few things about this church. This church is extraordinary: not only very old but also originally Norwegian. Surprised? I think most people are. Especially if you think how few of these churches last until today in Norway! It was constructed in 12th century in a small norwegian village called Vang from where it took its name (Wang in Polish). The history of this little wooden church until 19th century was pretty straightforward: it stood where it was constructed and served the local community for worship purposes. But then, in 19th century, something went differently than the ordinary. It was too small for the community and it was decided to be relocated so it could be used somewhere else. To make a long story short the edifice was taken to pieces and shipped in boxes, first to Szczecin, then transported to Berlin and finally reconstructed in Karpacz (in 1849). Apart of being an important touristic attraction in the area it is used by the local Lutherans until today. There are many curious details of this outstanding piece of architecture, like as it was constructed without a single nail, which is so hard to believe! Most of all, however, it is striking how different it is when compared with all other buildings in the area. It is bizarre. Even though the traditional houses around are also wooden these norwegian architectural details (lions, winged dragons, runes) are striking. It is carefully crafted and very well conserved so this is quite a treat for fans of norwegian architecture. If you are interested in norwegian architecture check this post by Jeff. He goes in depth of these marvelous constructions. What I love the most about this church is its smell. It is very special for two reasons: its age and my memories. As the construction is out of norwegian pine and the elements lasted for about 8 centuries the smell is very particular and – obviously – hard to describe. Try to think about old wooden buildings, like a mill or a barn. All years passed, all violent seasons’ change, everything marked it so the current smell consists of impossible to identify ingredients. For me it was also very special because it reminded me my childhood. It is an amazingly powerful experience: to smell the same smell after 25 years. Literally! THE SAME! 25 years is nothing when compared to 8 centuries so it hasn’t changed a bit! If you are curious what is the smell of the Wang church you need to visit it for yourself! Photo gallery from Karkonosze is here.  

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Few weeks ago I took 5 days off and went to the Polish mountain rage called Karkonosze. If you’re not Polish you probably have never heard about. This mountain range is small and not very popular outside the country, however, it has numerous fans throughout all Polish regions. Some people visit it on annual basis and I think there is a certain charm about it. I spent there few holidays with my parents when I was little and I had really good memories so when the time came to decided whether I should go or not I went there without a second thought. I completed 5 one day hikes and climbed the highest peak called Sniezka (1603 masl) twice. I’m not sure if I describe all trails walked but I think this gallery gives you a rough idea what these mountains look like. And I’m pretty sure you’ve noticed the striking difference between Karkonosze and the Dolomites. Or German Alps. So deliriously different! The special thing about it was the end of winter and beginning of spring. I could literally touch both seasons at the same time. And the weather was just spectacular! These trails are really easy and well marked so you could walk it without any problems, also with small children. There are also many mountain huts along the paths: both Czech and Polish. When the weather is nice this is a very pleasant place. Some people – like my parents – bring here their kids to let the mountain bug bite them. It worked for me. Read the story about a fascinating norwegian wooden Wang Church in Karpacz!  

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