Back in Poland

The detour through the Baltics (an extra we didn’t plan), came to an end and we rolled back over the border into Poland. When we left Poland into Lithuania, we were surprised by the amount of traffic (especially the trucks), going in and out of Poland towards the Baltic countries. Now we drove through a thick forested area and saw nobody. Even the demarkation of the border, was just a pole with a small sign. It reminded me of the book Sapiens (from Yuval Noah Harari). One of the things which separate us from animals, is that we are able to imagine. We imagine borders, where there are (visually) no real borders, it are lines drawn on a map and groups of people on either side determine how to live on their side of that line). In this case, I felt like a wild animal, moving over the imaginary line, without noticing any difference on the other side of the line. If the whole world could be like that, traveling would be so much easier, however, the difference in wealth in the world between countries makes that a mission impossible (we have seen that)

The summer season has started and we are not the only ones anymore on the road looking for nice peaceful places to camp. Once the weather gets warm and dry, it brings the people out. Poland is a little stricter with (wild) camping, so we have to be a bit more adventurous. The first night we found a nice little camp site in a Polish nature park on a lake. We were able to park the camper on a small hill and had a great view over the lake. A few Polish guys were camping out as well in tents and spent most of their time fishing, like the fisherman with small boats, which all gave a very peaceful vibe. Nearby we found beekeepers who have a very special way of beekeeping. There are so called tree-bees, who in the wild have their bee-haves in old or dead tree trunks. For over a thousand years, humans in the forests in this area, make bee-haves like old or dead tree trunks and hang them on healthy living trees. Bees don’t see the difference.

We have seen so far that camp sites in Poland are not that well maintained (compared with the ones in the Baltics). Also the facilities often lack maintenance. Luckily, we usually (if we use a camp site at all), only need a spot (if we can’t find a wild spot).

Bialystok was the second Polish city we were going to visit. Not a city to really recommend to make a detour for, but if it comes across you route its worth it to make a stop. The city is known for being the birthplace of the failed attempt to create a world language, to be spoken by all humans, in order to understand each other better (since often the essence of meanings can get lost when translating languages up and down). That language is Esperanto. Bialystok is also known as a popular university city and for its architecture as being a Belarusian city.

As we are visiting a city again, we make use of a citycamper parking/camping again, this time at a watersports center at a large lake on the outskirts of the city. The planning was to stay 2 nights, however, it became a rainy week and We ended up 5 days staying and that not on the most adventurous spot! We made use of the time by doing some shopping, writing my blog, doing some paperwork and between the showers some hiking trips around and near the lake.

We even had a great show from the local police, who where showing their skills and equipment to local school kids. Even though it rained, they were all out (including police boat, helicopter, waterscooter and vehicles).

A small camper with trailer had parked near us, followed by a bigger camper. The gentleman driving the small camper turned out to be a mobil camper technician, who drives around (mostly) Poland, to fix campers on the spot. And when talking to him I found out he really knows his stuff. Later, we would discover this guy would save the day for us, but later on that.

As the weather turned into a nice sunny day after a couple of rainy days, we packed up and drove into the direction of The border area of Poland and Belarus. We heard about the beautiful forests and wild European Wisent (kind of Bizon). As we got closer, we encountered the first boarder guard check. Same ritual as in the Baltics, papers checked and all was ok to proceed. Lake Siemianowka was close to the border in a sparsely populated area. The furthest we could go on the road was the settlement of Budy from there we entered a little overgrown forest road to see if we could find a nice spot at the lake. Marja again had to jump on the hood to move over tree branches and the Zetros crawled slowly through the forest. We stopped at a certain point and walked further just to see if it was a smart idea to continue with the truck. A half hour walk later we entered a wide open space with little groups of trees, high grass and almost surrounded by water, swamp and reed beds. It was beautiful and looking at the ”road” condition, we were sure nobody hadn’t been there for a while and we expected nobody to come soon either. We picked up the truck and although it was a pretty tough ride, we managed to get on the spot we wanted. In comparison with our Bialystok watersports center camp site, this was heaven. Rich bird life, we saw small deer coming out of the forest to eat the grass and we heard the sounds of the wild boars. The moment we were set up and I had my drone in the air for some overview footage, 2 fisherman came through the reet to do what they had to do and were super surprised with a drone above their heads and a big camper truck on the area they wanted to make a pitstop. With crossed legs they went back in their boat to try their luck somewhere else.

After spending a great couple of days, we decided to continue. However, the moment we left the open area and entered the forest trail, I got stuck! And really stuck. So this was the second time during this trip. Good thing was that a few days ago we bought 2 big metal shovels, so at least we could move some mud and dirt, and see if we could get out. Together finding tree logs and pine branches, we worked for 2 hours, but didn’t see progress. So I decided (like last time) to walk and look for help. A 2 hour walk through the forest brought me to a little village were I found only 3 very old women. None spoke English and also showing the pictures of my situation on my phone, didn’t turn on the light in the room. This was not going to work, we had to try it ourselves. I walked back and started digging and preparing again, to lower the weight I even removed the 2 heavy spare tires from the lift on the back of the truck. Nearly seven hours after we got stuck, we got out. I pushed the paddle and drove as far that I considered to be out of the muddy zone.

So now we only had about another 500 meters to go, to be at a little open area in the forest on solid ground to make camp again. We were dirty, tired, hungry and thirsty and no appetite for further driving. We started packing back everything we used to get out and get the spare tires back. Well that is fun, rolling two huge truck tires over a muddy path through the forest over about 200 meters.

When all set, we continued, Marja on the hood, and drive, until I made a wrong turn (didn’t see a tree) and had to stop and back up. Wrong move, stuck again and deep this time, and with a tree in front of me. We tried for a while (including removing again the 2 heavy spare tires), but it was a hopeless situation. The only option we had left was to call the camper mechanic we met at Bialystok. After all he did say when we met, call me anytime when you have a problem, not realizing that that would be the case within a week. We asked him if he could organize a heavy vehicle to tow us out. He spread the word on our situation on social media (special sites for 4×4 people), and a towing company from Bialystok was going to send a tow truck. It took some time before that tow truck found us (even though we had sent our location coordinates and Marja kept honking). It was already night and I was waiting along the main dirt road in the area, to catch the tow truck. A little hedgehog came out of the woods to see what was going on and disappeared again. Due to bad phone and satellite reception (and the langauge problem) we had to call in steps to give directions, I called Marja, Marja our mechanic friend and he the tow truck. It worked and finally I saw the lights of the truck through the trees.

I had doubts about the tow truck. It was no 4×4, it was a flatbed (to carry regular vehicles on top) and it was long (with all the trees on the bends on the trail, it would be difficult or even not possible). He insisted it would work, though. We waited on the hood of the truck while they (driver and helper) would drive into the trail backwards (he wanted to use his back winch to pull us out). We waited, heard a lot of screaming (driver and helper were definitely not on one page with each other) and the noise of their truck. Now they got stuck in the mud! Another hour past and they got out and kept moving into our direction. Then they came to the realization that they couldn’t make the final bend, which I was already afraid of. That was how the first rescue attempt failed and they left (not after still charging me a show up fee). We decided to call it a day. Since the truck was stuck mostly on one side, the camper unit was now in a 15% angle, meaning we couldn’t sit or sleep straight. Bit of a challenge, but no choice, you improvise. We had a simple meal, showering like you standing on a sail boat and at night crawl up to the top of your bed every now and then, since we kept sliding down during the night.

We woke up early, weather was still dry and sunny, had an easy breakfast and discussed the next step. We called our friend again and he knew already the rescue attempt failed. He in the meantime heard of another option and would call us back as soon as he had positive news. And he did and had. Only about 10km from us was somebody with a tractor who saw our situation on the internet and was willing to help us.

Within an hour we heard the tractor riding through the forest (he knew how to find us with the given coordinates) and there was our new friend (Lucas with his son with his big tractor). He was well prepared with towing cables, chainsaw etc. The tow cable was attached so we could start the pull, however then the tractor wouldn’t start anymore. Luckily I carry an extensive toolbox and we were able within an hour to get the tractor started. After 5 attempts, the truck came out (I almost gave up). The tractor towed us all the way to the main dirt road with solid ground, just to be sure that we would not get stuck again.

Lucas was such a nice and friendly guy to help us out that he refused to be compensated (but we made good with that). Instead he asked us to follow him and have a coffee at his house. Well, we couldn’t refuse such a nice gesture and drove behind the tractor to his house, where, his wife, little daughter and mother were. We received a warm welcome and enjoyed the coffee. In the meantime the mother was busy in her kitchen making lunch, the family didn’t want us to go yet. Fresh eggs and lettuce from their own garden, home made bread. This was Polish hospitality at its best. Its the second time that we meet such amazing people because we got stuck. Maybe we should do it more often. We said goodbye to this nice family and left with good memories of this area.

Since we didn’t really got organized and cleaned after our second time being stuck in this forest, we didn’t drive that far. Actually we stopped almost on the opposite side of the lake were we had such a beautiful spot. Now we were at an official camp site which turned out to be the rest and recreation place for the army, police and boarder guards, who were stationed at a big camp nearby. So we had a lot of attention and a lot of security.

Our next call was Polands flagship park (Bialowieza Forest National Park). One of the last remaining pieces of original primeval forests in Europe. We first made a stop on an interesting piece of railroad with bridge which crosses the Siemianowka lake. Driving into the direction of the park we saw the first warning signs of crossing bizons, so we kept our eyes open. The park is bordering Belarus where the park continues (before the border was established the Bialowieza forest were royal hunting grounds, and where tree cutting was not allowed, hence the trees survived for centuries).

We drove to the far end of the park to the village of where on the border with Belarus, we had the biggest change to see the wild bizons. We passed a border guard patrol car but he didn’t stop us. Mind you, often we are confused with being a military vehicle. We reached the village and the official entrance of the park. Just as I parked the truck a border guard patrol vehicle came out of the park, passed us and after a couple of meters reversed. I stepped out, ignoring their presence and was actually expecting the same procedure.

This time was different. 3 guards stepped out of the vehicle, straight up, mean looking faces and approaching me with big steps. The guy in the middle had 4 stars on each side of his jacket, so this was a big guy. ”This is a restricted area, why are you here and which organization do you represent?” I was completely taken off guard by this new course of business. Which organization? I was just here to see one of the most beautiful spots in Europe to see a unique endangered animal, I am a tourist. Now he was confused. ”Didn’t I see the sign restricted area”? No, I did not! He said, well its in Polish. At the same time a Belarusian police helicopter flew over and ”my” guys got exited and run away to get a better view (since the tree tops were blocking the view of the sky). After a couple of minutes they came back and the ”star” guy, continued with his questions. Passports, vehicle document….I gave mine and the one from my wife. ”Wife”? He was confused, because he thought I was alone. He had to look in the cabin, by climbing the steps and noticed Marja with her big smile. Now, I saw the ice melting. While he gave all the documents to his lower rank colleagues to run some scans, he wanted to see the inside of the camper, to convince himself that indeed it was a camper and that we were no spies, journalist or human smugglers.

While waiting he explained the situation at the border, that it was all political, but no word about refugees. Then I told him that it was a pity, we couldn’t see the bizons. He then showed a picture he recently took when he was at the border, while the army was putting up the metal fence. There where bizons near the border but on the Belarus side, but that they get scared now of so much activity and that they stay further from the border, more in Belarus. I then realized that with erecting the fence all along the borders, between the EU and Russia and Belarus, it would be impossible for wildlife to cross to the other side, regardless the side they are. I know the consequences of these kind of fences, when they erected them in Botswana Afrika, thousands of kilometers of fence (game fences), it had an devastating effect on animals, since these fences went straight through migration routes. It’s not only humans who feel the consequences of these fences, also animals are a victim.

In the meantime, the conversation between me and the officer became friendlier by the minute. We now reached something we have in common. A little fishing town in Croatia, where he often goes on vacation and were Marja and I had our honeymoon. After almost an hour, the other officers came back to report all was ok. To find Sint Maarten on the map was a bit of a challenge and that people from there have Dutch passports was new for them.

To be sure we would leave the restricted area, we were escorted out by the patrol vehicle, before I had finished my conversation with my new ”friend” he said ”all nice talking aside, I officially have to give you a fine, but I leave you with a warning since you actually couldn’t know”. Nice guy, but I thought, enough is enough, we will stay away from the border for now.

As we left the border area, we still made a little detour on the edges of the park, just a last try to see the famous endangered European Wisent. And we couldn’t believe our eyes when driving a narrow forest trail we saw a mother and a calf! A unique side, because during this time (mothers with young), are very hard to see and now with all the human activity in and around the park, they become even more shy. Despite our encounter with the border guards, we manage to accomplice our mission of seeing the Wisent.

We drove further west towards an infamous place. A place as bad as Auschwitz, but far less visited, Treblinka a small village where nearby is a national monument Treblinka. After extermination camp Auschwitz, Treblinka extermination camp was the largest of its kind, where the Nazi’s killed nearly 900.000 people during WWII. Where the Nazi’s had no time left to destroy evidence at Auschwitz, Treblinka was nearly completely removed from the face of the earth. Even the murdered people who were buried, were dug up and burned. Their ashes used as road supplements. A site in the middle of a forest where so many people have been brutally tortured and killed, where now impressive granite stones are erected to remember those who died. Big concrete railway sleepers are placed (the original railroad was also removed by the Nazis), to indicate the last piece of the journey people (mainly Jews from all over Europe) made towards their final destination on earth. We walked around alone until sunset, it’s so difficult to comprehend that this could happen and that it happened. Where comes so much hate from, to decide as a group of humans, to just exterminate such a huge amount of people (including small children and old people)? There are answers, but as a civilized, peace and fun loving person, no answer will ever satisfy me, because its just not right and should never, never happen again.

Rain started, it was getting dark fast and we had to find a place to camp. Nearby was a national park (Nadbuzanski)), we hoped to find a nice private camping spot. However, like other parks in Poland, a lot of villages and houses are located in the park. On the map you see an area with a thick green line around it which indicates the park area. In reality its an area, which could also be the area outside the green marking. Between the villages we scout for patches of forest with little roads, but thats not always easy. But experienced scouters as we are, we always know where to ”hide” ourselves. Good thing is the color we had chosen for the camper. It is more or less camouflage (never take a white camper if you want to go the wild road). First thing we usually do when we arrive at a spot, is to have a bit of a happy hour. Just winding down from the days activity and driving, and reflect on what we have seen, done and experienced. Little drink and some tapas and enjoy the nature around us or (when on a camping), just seeing other campers doing their thing. In general we all do the same, only the outfits are different, but we all enjoying being in the ”outdoors”. Yes, we did find a good spot again (not without breaking some tree branches and some scratches on the paint).

We left early in the morning with as focus destination Krakow and we decided to make some distance and took the highway. As we reached the city of Deblin, we crossed the Wieprz river and saw from the bridge the beautiful white sand beaches and sandbanks in the river. It was about lunchtime, so we made the move. We had to drive over a small narrow dike and find a way to the river bank. A small dirt trail along huge old oak trees was the way in. The trail and next to the trail was very, very bumpy. It reminded us from the cotton clay roads in Zambia, when after the rainy season, the big footprints from elephants and hippopotamus, dried up like concrete and you could only drive very, very slowly. Anyway it was worth it, we reached the riverbank and had an amazing view over the beautiful river. We set up camp, had lunch and actually decided to stay for the night (we made a good distance that day, so we could allow ourselves for a ”free” afternoon). I continued to write on my blog and Marja also had some work to do. When finding such a beautiful spot, a proper diner should complement it. We still had in our freezer some great racks of lamb, marinated, which we bought at the butcher in the market in Tallinn. Keep the good stuff for the right moment!

As the time flew, diner time was almost there. Marja had spent a good time of the afternoon in the kitchen preparing this great meal (rack of lamb, asperges and pesto paste). And believe it or not, the very moment Marja stept out of the camper with two nice damping and good smelling plates of food, a large old Russian made army truck drove in our direction. We are used to onlookers of all kind with or without uniforms, so I thought ”great timing for another talk about our truck”. The truck stopped, an army officer with a stars on his shoulder, stept out of the truck, placed his cap on his had, straightened his uniform and marched in my direction. After a kind greeting, he said some things in Polish from which I understood that we were not allowed to stay or park the truck where we were. Military area he tried to say. How could I know? No signs, no fences or gates, nothing what could relate that this was a military area, let alone I could not stay here. ”You have 5 minutes to leave”. What! I saw the disappointment in Marja her eyes, she spent so much time in the kitchen and rack of lamb is one of her favorite dishes. I think he noticed the disappointment on our faces. And actually, I think I never realized (until he saw Marja with the 2 plates of delicious food), that the truck was a camper and we were campers. He gave us ”10 minutes”, which actually was like, ok finish your food and then get out. They drove of to a polite distance, but with an eye still on us. (It seemed that besides we were parked on military grounds, we were also near the landing area of a military airbase, was wondering already, why all those fighter jets were flying over us all the time).

So under the watchful eyes of the Polish army (safer then that you can’t get, when having a gastronomic meal), we had our diner. Unfortunately, the chosen wine had to stay in the bottle, since we now (in the early evening) had to find another spot.

We enjoyed our Tallinn rack of lamb, cleaned up and packed up and moved towards the army truck, who drove behind us, to just make sure. I thought, how many more times are we going to be escorted out during our journey? It started to rain with a lot of thunder and lightning. A national park nearby was our first option. It was difficult to find a good spot in the dark and with the rain. Also this park had too much habitation, so we were not successful. We continued driving and on the Garmin (which shows you all the roads, also the unofficial ones), we noticed a small path through a section of forest. It turned out to be an unmaintained service road for the high tension cables. Perfect place, out of sight and safe enough. Again we were lucky.

Our stock of fresh food was getting low and by now it was time to move to the big city of Krakow. Poland’s second biggest city and a bucket list place. Lots to see and do in and around. Time again for a city camper parking/camping. Since it was not a big place, the holiday season had kicked in and Krakow is popular, we made a reservation. (It was also the only such place in the area, so better safe than sorry).

On our way to Krakow we did a little detour, to see the most beautiful village of Poland (Zalipie). Well this is according to websites and tourist information. Its known for its painted houses, painted with flowers. Well its a community of scattered house (lot of new type construction homes, which are not painted) here and there a painted wall on an older house or a painted dog house. Center piece is a museum and an old house (which are both beautifully painted), but to call this Polands most beautiful village, no, not for me, we have seen far more beautiful villages. If indeed bus loads of people come to see this village, I wonder what their impression is when they leave. So my conclusion is, that its not always as you expect, based on information you find in guides or internet. Anyway, we saw it, judged it and now finally up to Krakow.

Since the Zetros did some hard work in the mud and mud and dirt was still all over her, we went to a truck wash center at the outskirts of Krakow. Its always fun to see how enthusiastic people get when they see the camper truck. Mercedes Zetros is a not common truck on the road (I haven’t seen one yet) and especially the total design is eye catching. (Most of the trucks are ”flat-noses” these days, because of cargo transport efficiency, the Zetros has a nose and a nice one). She got a very good cleaning job, the guys did it like it was their own.

Driving into Krakow towards the camp site was not too bad, at least I didn’t see many signs of trucks not allowed. As I said, we made a reservation, but on arrival, it looked like the site was pretty occupied and the few spaces left, were way too small. When the people at the reception saw the truck, they said first there was no place for us. Well we made a reservation and we were not going to move. A friendly lady of the camp site, which also has a small hotel, came and told us we could use the parking of the hotel. Well that was way better anyway, more space and more private. So we were good. After setting up camp (and Marja found the washing machine on the campsite), we walked to the Old Town of Krakow. Its a 3km walk and you walk along the boulevard on the Vistula river. It was a wonderful summer evening and the boulevard was full of people of all kind. Small and big boats on the river, restaurant boats were docked along the boulevard. On an almost 90 decree bent in the river, on a hill is located the majestic Wawel Royal Castle. Its the most historical and cultural significant site of Poland. An amazing impressive structure when you visit Krakow for the first time.

We found a nice Michelin recommended restaurant in one of the small streets in the old town and had a great diner out. Something we hadn’t done for a while. An interesting conversation started with the people who were at a table next to us.

Turned out they were working for an American defense company and were here in Poland to sell ”stuff” to the Polish Government. For most of the world, war is evil, but for some its just business. And with the increased budgets for defense in the Nato countries, its prime time for these companies. The world was like that, is like that and I am afraid it will not change. Peace time and war time, it will always benefit certain groups of people. Anyway, it were nice people, had a good conversation and a good laugh while the large towers of the Wawel Royal palace were looking down at us.

Next day we had the bicycles out and made a tour along the river boulevard after we first stopped at the Tadeusz Kosciuszko Mound. From here you have a magnificant view over the City of Krakow and its surroundings . It was a gorgeous sunny day and thousands of people were out, strolling along the boulevard or biking. It was so lively, we hadn’t seen it for a while like this. We stopped at a very popular ”beach” bar along the boulevard. Lots of beach lounge chairs and great cocktails and of course a nice view on the boulevard. Wherever you are in the world, people like to sit on terraces zip a drink and watch other people. Nice to see the similarities of people in different countries.

We continued our trip and went back into the old town and there we entered what Krakow is most known for, its huge Rynek Glowny Central Square. A very lively central city square. Like most of the old city center squares in the European cities, its those squares That makes those cities so unique. Many restaurants with terraces, lots of activities on the squares, music, street artists, its all there. Also on this square we found a nice Michelin recommended restaurant and we (again) met interesting people we had a chat with. He was a professor in bio-engineering and was teaching on a university. And I could imagine that he always had his class-rooms filled. A very charismatic and entertaining person, very pleasant to listen to. We got, again, a bit more wiser.

The following day we made a long trip with the bicycles along the Vistula river. Nice sunny day and again a lot of bicycles were out. Once you leave the outskirts of Krakow, you are in the open. Forests, nature parks, dikes, rivers ands farmland. Its so nice just to be on the bicycle. What we didn’t realize at a certain moment that there are more rivers and/or tributary rivers, besides the Vistula river. So yes, when we thought we were heading back to Krakow following the river, we were exactly not! So, we had a very long ride back. Luckily we could make a short curt via a ponton. One of these looked so similar to then ones we had so often used while in Africa.

We decided to stay one more day in Krakow and took the bicycles up north of Krakow where there was another small national park (Ojcow NP). Via the northern suburbs of Krakow we cycled by apartment blocks of the Soviet times, little city parks into the hilly northern back lands of Krakow. Villages, farmlands and steep hills to clime. But after a good hour and half of cycling, we entered the entrance of what looked like a hidden secret valley. The green mountain slopes, small pasture lands and little deserted roads. The valley is known for its beautiful cave formations, a very romantic castle ruïne, rock formations and a small village, with a number of taverns. What we did not expect is the hundreds of school kids, who came with buses from the other side of the park, were there was a big bus parking. So our feeling of being alone in a secluded please was short lived. This was also not the first time that we encountered large groups of school kids, who are carried around by busses to sight seeing places or museums at the same time we are there. It is the end of the school year, so schools organize these school trips. And actually, its nice to see, that these trips are organized. Its part of the teaching and learning process, especially if its is about nature, culture and history. These trips have so much more content and value than trips to an amusement park (but maybe less fun).

The moment we decided to leave the park, it started to rain and I mean to rain a lot! We took the shortest route home, along the local high ways. It was also rush hour. Completely soaked and dirty we made it home. The laundry still hanging at the front of the truck was also soaked. In a ”tiny” home, its always a bit of improvising. We use the truck cabin as our dry-room (having some dry-lines inside), when we are not driving, to optimize its use and safe space in the living quarters.

That night we stayed home. Took a hot shower, get some pizzas from the freezer (always have these kind of things in stock for these situations). It was time to call it a day and end our stay in Krakow.

After cleaning and storing the bicycles the next day, we left Krakow. We first had to stock up at a supermarket, but the first 3 attempts were not successful due to road and parking restrictions. Today we planned to go to Auschwitz concentration/extermination camp. A site, I think , everybody must have heard of. The site is the main symbol of the Holocaust, the planned extermination of Jewish people (and others) in Europe. The site is pretty much in tact, the way the Russian Army found it, when they drove the Germans away. I say pretty much, because, yes the buildings, fences, watch towers etc are still there (and well maintained). But it is impossible to really imagine what it must have looked liked when the camp was in operation. The sight of the victims, the sounds, smell, its all not there. The ”silent” witnesses are the personal belongings, the victims left behind before they got murdered. Behind big glass windows, are separated (as they were separated by the camps authorities), thousands of shoes, suit cases, glasses and a mountain of human hair. When I saw all that, I got cold. You hear about it, read about it, but being in the place itself and looking at all these items, of which each has a personal story behind it, you cannot understand the why of it. In Treblinka, we were alone and walked over the former camp grounds and already we were impressed, shocked and sad. However, Auschwitz is hard to describe, the final spot we visited, was the gassing chamber itself. Standing in the middle of a dark dirty concrete room, where over a million people have been killed, made me feel sick. From the other hand, I realized that its worth to fight for freedom, equality and tolerance. Auschwitz is visited by thousands of visitors a day. Even though it is a place of horror and so many people died a horrible death and it should have been destroyed and removed from the face of the earth, it should not. Like the communist statutes collection in Lithuania, also ”bad” history has its place in memory. Safe to not forget, not forget to not repeat.

One of the top areas to visit in Poland are the Tatra Mountains, a mountain range part of the Carpathians, shared between Poland and Slovakia. The most beautiful national parks of Poland are located in these mountains. On our way from Auschwitz to Zakopane (city from where most of the hikes start into the mountains) we made a night stop at nice lake. After driving almost for 3 months through mostly flat lands, we were delighted to be between mountains and valleys. We have been through, over and on the Alps, Dolomites, Sierra Neveda and the Pyrenese, now we were going to add the next European mountain range.

The next morning we drove over the smaller mountain roads, passing villages with a total different architecture. It was like being in a different country. Often mountain communities are different from the low land areas. The way people live, build their homes, the language etc. The speed of living is also often a few gears lower.

However, once we got closer to Zakopane, we realized that the urban human had taken over the neighborhood. The Tatra mountains in Poland are also Polands only wintersport/ski area. Its also were the only Alpine sky lift is located. Shops, bars, restaurants and several entertainment establishments was what we found and despite there was no snow, traffic was busy. The nearest campsite at the foot of the mountain range in Zakopane was still pretty vacant and we found a generous large field with trees to set up camp. During the afternoon it became bussier and many Pools who came out for the weekend, set up their tents around us. It was fun to see from the truck how our surrounding was ”invaded” by colorful little tents and how evereybody was trying to find the ”best” spot.

Early next morning we started our big hike/climb to Polands highest mountain top, the Rysy (2500m). A close to 4 hour climb of which the last 100 or so meters to the summit is the most steep and dangerous. However, you don’t need any special climbing skills, just be in good shape. The landscape through which we hiked is more than stunning. Mountains often offer spectacular views and have a great variety in rock formations and vegetation. Little lakes, ponds of fresh melt water and the hundreds of small streams, bring life to the mountain slopes. Millions of little colorful flowers, a feast for the many butterflies, dragon flies, bees etc. Birds and an occasional deer or alps marmots, all play their role in mountain life.

Along the way you have conversations with co-hikers and sometimes you pick up nice suggestions for places to visit or have in-dept talks with other travelers (often much younger people than us) who try or dream about traveling the world. Its interesting how other people try to live their dreams, their motivation and their way of traveling.

When almost back at the camp, a big down-pour on our heads (we are getting used to it), again we arrived soaked at home. We were tired of our long but very rewarding hike to Polands highest mountain top. Hot shower, easy meal and early to bed.

This was our last day in Poland, a country which was shared like a cake between larger powers in the past, a country with a rich history, a country where nature is mixed with habitation and where the Jews suffered the most during WW2. We know the Pools as hard working family people. They came en masse to the west to work hard and make money for a better future at home. The huge amount of new single resident homes scattered through the country shows how Poland has progressed since Lech Walesa (the charismatic leader of the Solidaridad movement) started the road to independence. We love to see and feel that “gezelligheid” is for sure a word that describes a large part of the Polish life.