Busy Saturday!

Well, it's Saturday again and there is plenty of work ahead of me!
The outside world saw me in the afternoon, here is the evidence from my perspective:

Picture postcard clouds above Place, Skarzysko-Kamienna

View of Plac Florianski

Former Zwiazkowiec (Unionist) Cinema

Krasinskiego Street

Tadeusz Kosciuszko School, the oldest in town

New roundabout with Armii Krajowej St leading to the forest

Wilenska Street

The fenced plot has long been for sale... 

Although there are already many pictures here today, I can't resist adding the sunset sky:

On collecting

There is an old man in one of the houses with a garden further across the street. He keeps a few pigeons in a little shed at the back of his garden. Regularly he lets them out and they fly around in an orderly group, making a few circles above the air, then duly get back to their abode. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't outdo the pigeon collector described here: http://www.kinston.com/news/local/local-man-keeps-massive-pigeon-collection-going-1.51722.

:-)

Looking for spring

When I was a schoolkid, at this time of the year and spring was on the doorstep, our teacher would take us all on a walk up the street leading to the nearest forest. We would look for the first spring flowers, catkins and pussy willows and so on. I couldn't imagine that my present little dwelling would overlook that very street. The street bears a different name reflecting political changes. I do agree that The Polish Home Army deserves commemoration, especially after so many years of condemnation. However, I miss the old name: 'Zgodna'. If you look for the English translation, the dictionary will fetch a number of adjectives which shows the difficulties a translation poses. See for yourself:  http://www.translatica.pl/slowniki/po-angielsku/zgodny/ or, if you are in a hurry, you can read on:

zgodny
przymiotnik

1. compatible
2. agreeable
3. consistent
4. compliant
5. concordant
6. unanimous
7. consonant
8. harmonious
9. congruent
10. conformable
11. peaceable
12. conforming
13. coincident
14. accordant
15. accommodating
16. concurrent
17. congruous
18. corresponding
19. united
20. coherent
21. good-natured
22. consensual
23. agreeing
24. in accordance
25. complaisant
26. concerted
27. acquiescent
28. consentient
29. agreed

 Fascinating, isn't it? :-)

Now, a few pictures from yesterday walk up the above mentioned street:

Looking down Armii Krajowej Street

Two days later, on Saturday I walked the other way. Here are pictures:

I do hope the little wooden house on the left will be preserved. After all Skarzysko doesn't have that many old buildings and this one was not just an ordinary dwelling. In the 1960/70s one could eat homemade dinners here at a family run restaurant. Men would meet there to play cards, many of them smoking like chimneys. Also, when artists came to perform at a local cultural centre, they would dine here. I remember in a nearby street lived an old lady who had a beautiful painting by Leon Wyczolkowski. A little girl, accompanying my mother on a Sunday afternoon visit, I loved looking at it. I think it showed a fisherman in the sunset light... 

Alert to any signs of spring,  I spotted one crocus outside the florist shop:

:-)

Smiling strangers

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! :-)

Fingers crossed!

Another day of my knee recovery. Waiting to see what the doctor says this afternoon. Fingers crossed!
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

I'm back from the doctor's. Everything is healing properly! Hurrah! On the way we encountered an interesting live brass band playing 'al fresco' at Krakow Planty:

However, it had nothing to do with The Feast of Trumpets depicted in Aleksander Gierymski's famous painting:  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Swieto_trabek_I.jpg
And I don't think any of the instruments resembled the one my sibling acquired recently:

Who knows, maybe my young nephew will get inspired and learn to play it...

Now, let me add a few more of today pictures:

At renovated Sukiennice Gallery of 19th Century Polish Art we saw both the permanent collection and the current exhibition 'Artists- The Witnesses of  The 1863 January Uprising'.

I looked at the Old Town Square through the gallery window:

After the feast for the eyes, our body needed some energy supply, especially that the gallery rooms were not much warmer than the exterior and despite that all visitors have to leave their coats at the cloak room. I knew where we would go to satisfy our appetites. We only needed to cross the square and go to the left of St Mary's Church!

A meal at 'Magia' was a great success. Those who read my blog may know that I discovered this cafe a few weeks ago when attempting to visit Hipolit House Museum near mentioned and shown above St. Mary's Church (the one with the trumpeter and Veit Stoss altar ). The cafe owner came to greet us and we immediately felt welcome. Moreover, he recognised m and wholeheartedly recommended his signature broccoli tart which indeed turned out to be delicious, just like the homemade Polish style dumplings called 'pierogi' which are not a novelty any longer on the British Isles. An ample size pot of properly brewed Yunnan tea complimented our meal on this,yet another, bitter cold day. We teased ourselves analysing the list of homemade cakes and deserts. It was simply too tempting to refrain from ordering just but one to share and sample, but we had to resist that. We simply were too full and also we had to rush to tick off the next points on our busy itinerary. Of course, you will be pleased to learn that Hipolit The Cat could be seen at The Magia as usual. However, he was in his own world, totally oblivious to our attention.

It's not easy to take pictures in a public place as you need to avoid people. They may not necessarily wish to inhabit your blog, I suppose.

Good night!:-)

A visit from a birdie