We were about to buy Krakow bubliks (obwarzanki - a type of Krakow bagel, with a bigger hole and made of different dough), one with poppy seeds and the other with sesame seeds, from one of the street vendors. Ahead of us was a very young friar who smiled to me and I reciprocated that. When he was walking away with a bagful of bubliks, he approached me and told me I had a very nice and friendly smile, he asked my name and acknowledging my crutches, wished me to get well soon. It did make me feel better. The day was cloudy, chilly and dull, very few people around were eager to share a smile. You see, especially in Poland strangers rarely exchange smiles whereas if you are in, well, let's say: Ireland, Austria or, especially, the Philippines, passers-by smile to each other, acknowledge each other's right to exist and to feel good, despite own problems and hardship.
Yes, it's commonly true that any generalisation is unfair and that we are all different. No, I'm not going to refer to the traumatic past of my homeland in an effort to justify the martyr's expression on so many faces of my compatriots. I'm sure you can read about it elsewhere.
I'm smiling to you! :-)
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