Acazia Official Poland Blog – Poznan’s Palaces
My first taste of Polish air was a face full or smoke pit. As previously mentioned, the hostel wasn’t too far from the station and though the whole road outside the building was under construction, I found it relatively easily. Polo Loco https://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Poco-Loco-Hostel/Poznan/59885?dateFrom=2019-10-07&dateTo=2019-10-10&number_of_guests=2 or as I liked to call it, the crazy chicken, was on the third floor. Now by third floor I don’t mean two flights of stairs, I mean three. In Europe their ground floor is our first floor; their first floor is our second and so on. So up I went and down I flopped with my fat beast of a bag.
If Germany was cheap, Poland was discount. The prices in accordance with the exchange to the CAN$ are so incredibly low it’s almost laughable. My hostel cost less than $10 a day, and groceries even less.
Throughout the week I did the usual; found the new grocery store, wrote, worked, wrote some more, watch some videos and enjoyed my time. Lunch and dinner were a mix of pasta, pastries and some fine microwavable hotdogs and cheeseburgers with breakfast being fresh fruit, tea and cereal (for the first time in a month.) I found a mall not too far way and took a walk through. It was easily thrice as large as the biggest mall at home. And despite most stores and brands being Polish, or at least European, there were some familiar sights too.
The big adventure this week was the Imperial and Royal castles as well as the old town center. First was the Imperial castle, build in 1905. I ventured outward in the perpetual grey sky that hangs over Poland. I circled the property first before entering the back garden. It was a lovely little patch of green in the mostly grayscale city. With no signs or attendees to be found, I walked right in the back door, started looking around, only to find office spaces. Curiously, I ascended to the next floor; offices with meetings in progress. I was getting strange glances, so I ducked out of there quick. Maybe the front door? Not much there either. I think it was some kind of theater, currently closed with custodial workers and of all things a coffee shop still working.
Well that was disappointing; I wanted a castle. I was going to the other one tomorrow, but since the previous was a bust and there was still plenty of daylight left, I figured I might as well do the Royal one today as well. A few songs later I found my way up the winding cobblestone road to the old castle door. I was about to reach for my wallet when I saw the ‘Today: Admission Free’ sign. Not pre-planned, just lucky or meant to be.
185 steps to the top of the stone tower; not too bad. The view of Poznan was incredible, stretching for leagues in every direction. Church spires crowned the city with far of forest and industrial buildings filling out the scenery. The castle grounds were small but practical, built atop a tall wall of brick. Inside, the keep had been transformed into a museum. Hundreds of years old pottery, clothing, books and coins were displayed in full glory. It was pretty empty aside from a far off school field trip, so I nearly had the whole place to myself. I tried not to get all giddy when I found the armory of arms and armour, and in the basement, the treasury.
When it was finally time to call it quits (I was hungry) I quickly toured the old town center and would have stayed longer, but the rain started again. I’m sure it has a fascinating history, with its building being all sorts of different pastels. Unfortunately, the walking tours in English were on days that poured, with the sunny days being reserved for Spanish. A terrible design flaw in my opinion. Anyway, win some lose some.
My roommates? A cool pair of chaps from the UK or a cute Russian girl? Nope. I talked to basically no one all week except for one ancient Asian lady with a thick Australian accent. What’s with all the Aussies? For some reason my 12 bed dorm had only those kind of grumpy people you just avoid and as usual, a few party goers. On the last two nights I had 3, yes 3 old lady snorers. One even left her light one which lit up the whole damn room. It was so bad, so terribly loud and annoying I had to switch my head and feet position to turn away as far as possible and run gentle music on high volume all night in my headphones just to sleep. I miss sleeping soundly. Oh, and the first on-suite bathroom I’ve had since Amsterdam was closed for half my stay with a broken door handle. Cool.
The train to my next destination leaves early afternoon, so I’ll have plenty of time to get ready to go. I’ll probably do a little more novel work before I make my way there.
7 Comments
Dad
Miss ya pal❤
Your Biggest Fan
I love that you have created this blog so that your family, friends and interested public can read what you are doing and provide feedback. This is what a travel blog is all about, sharing your journey and having that connection with the reader through their response.
I think I am in love with Poland! It seems you also have a gift for photography – not surprising 😉
The colours, the old world charm, the ambience. Too bad about the rain but there is beauty in it and you have captured that grey sky so incredibly. The castles are fabulous. I literally laughed out loud picturing you stalking around an “office” building. I wish I could have seen the excitement on your face as you entered the armoury!
The only unfortunate part about your travels is the people you will find yourself sharing accommodations with. While you may find some interesting people, there will always be the snorers and those that hog the communal bathroom; this will result in increased patience or frustration – lol you decide.
I am glad you are on budget if not better than planned.This will keep you going for as long as you want. No time limit needed with plenty ‘o’ cash flow. Hotdogs? You have got to try the Polish sausage – kick it up a notch. When in Rome… .
The book continues to be great and Sundays have now become the new Wednesdays. Stay safe Ty, love you oodles <3
Ray
Ty, I am sorry, I had a wee chuckle about the communal living and people who snore. Living in barracks made me wish for home more than ever, but eventually I got used to it, and found a balance in life that worked for me. I am 100% sure that you will find your own balance.
I am glad you have seen your first castle, but wait until you get into southern German, there are tons! All I can say is enjoy the history of each area, Poland was a place where not so long ago the tyranny of an evil man caused the deaths of so many. Sobering thoughts mitigated by the spirit and life of so many who have rebuilt their country and are proud to share it with others! I love that you have embraced the travellers lifestyle, and the local foods can be cheap as heck, yet yummy! That is one thing I miss is the different foods from each country I visited, so I am jealous!!!
I am loving the new book, it is outrageously engaging, funny, and dramatic all at once, THAT is the talent of your writing!!! You have so many people, family and friends who want to read more, so it is pretty cool that you have found your mojo on the road to get so much writing done in such a short period of time!!!
Have fun, and I cannot wait to see where you end up next!!!
GRAM
Amazing as always Ty. I felt myself alongside you as you crept through the offices and cringed with you while trying to sleep through the snoring grammas. I’m sure Aly can sympathise lol. Try the different types of food and drink like your biggest fan and Ray say. You will be pleasantly surprised by some I’m sure. What you’re doing is simply fantabulous! You’re life will never be the same and you’ll have some amazing stories to pass on. Always remember we are all right there with you and remember it is much better to regret things you’ve done rather than regret things you didn’t do. XXX
Jody
Hi Ty! Right out of the gate you made me laugh! I can just imagine the looks that you were getting at the first “castle”, and what luck at the second one! Even though the groceries are inexpensive, I really hope you take the opportunity to eat lots of the local food, so many amazing new things to try. It sounds like you might want to indulge in a pair of ear plugs, some people can snor like chainsaws, lol. As always, I am looking forward to hearing about your next adventure. Until then, stay safe and have fun. Love you <3
Linda
Hi Tink. Hope you are getting better sleep at your next stop! How nice to be able to save a little on your food budget however.
Fortunate to find the Royal castle had free admission and, I can picture your face as you encountered the arms and armour!
No doubt you had some inspiring ideas from your visit for your novel.
Can’t wait to read your next blog as you move onward. Travel safe. Love you.
Grandpa
Hi Tink
Always glad to hear about your adventures. The castles in Europe are spectacular, funny how you had to go through the back door at one of them. That’s nice that your meals are costing you less. I hear you had a real special Thanksgiving yourself, hamburgers yummy. I laugh with every word and await your next installment. Be safe, have fun and keep writing your book.
Love you and miss you ?