Happy Holidays!
Krakow Day Two
On our second and last day in Krakow we planned to do a little shopping at the Galleria and tour the Wawel Palace. We took an Uber to the mall. Even though it wasn’t an unreasonable walk, it was frigid and snowing. It was a good mall as far as malls go: a three-story rectangular block with each of the long dimensions split into two rows of shops separated by an atrium. The mall had all of the shops that we have come to expect in Europe as well as several that appeared to be Eastern European chains. In the mall supermarket, Carrefour, we stocked up on mixes for Polish soups. Several years ago, we found this brand in a Polish deli in Chicago and they produce a very suitable soup.
From the galleria, we walked over to a restaurant reputed to have one of the best gołąbki dishes in Krakow, “Jadłodajnia u Stasi”. It was a small restaurant and nearly full when we arrived. The lady by the register told us to grab any open seat. Preferring to sit together, we waited for two together and within minutes a couple vacated a table. I got my gołąbki, and Soo ordered a breaded cod. A plate of cold sauerkraut salad was provided for us to share.
To drink, Soo ordered a drink called “fruit drink” on the menu that turned out to be a fruit tea that Soo raved about. We noticed that customers bussed their own tables as they left, so we did the same. And to pay, the cashier just asked us what we had and that’s what she rang up. No pretensions.
As it was approaching 15:00, still freezing and with the snow continuing, we headed back to our room.
In the evening we walked over to a Thai restaurant, Molam Thai, located only a couple blocks from our hotel. It is a modern-looking place packed with an after-work crowd and buzzing with a “happening” vibe. The menu is intriguing, skipping many of the tired favorites, but offering several dishes we had rarely seen outside Thailand. We ordered miang kham to start, followed by som tam and sticky rice, and khao soi. Each one was excellent. We were so pleased!
The following morning, we had a 06:00 flight to Munich and with the continuing snow, we left the hotel around 03:45. As soon as we arrived in Munich, my phone buzzed with an email that our Faro flight had been cancelled and we were wait-listed on a flight the following day. I left Soo in the Lufthansa business lounge and got into a 2½-hour line for customer service. Finally reaching an agent I learned that there was absolutely no alternative for that day, that we had been confirmed for the following day and that the EU compensation policy would provide lodging for €150 per person, meals and transportation. Before sorting a room, I had a tasty venison ragout for lunch in the business lounge. With €300 to spend we walked across the street to the airport Hilton, kicked back and had our meals brought up to the room.
Finally, on Sunday morning we headed back to the airport early and had breakfast in the business lounge and stayed long enough for another run at the venison ragout. Our plane left roughly on-time and miracle of miracles: our bags were on the same flight.
Even though our little trip ended with a thud, it couldn’t tarnish the glow of spending the holiday season in snow, with happy people and great food. I came to realize that with the chicken soup, rye bread, potato pancakes, and the way Soo devoured the sauerkraut salad, it seems that my heritage has rubbed off a bit.
Bob and Soo
Christmas in Krakow
A winter trip to see the Christmas Market in Krakow was one of the planned trips that we lost to covid in 2019. This year we made good on that plan. I decided to cash in some miles for the airfare and surprisingly, business class wasn’t unreasonably different than economy, so we splurged.
Our outbound itinerary was Faro-Lisbon-Vienna-Krakow. I learned that on these short European legs, business class doesn’t feature a primo chair. Though the airlines don’t sell the center seat in Business Class, they provide the same chairs as Economy: narrow, hard chairs with limited legroom. The big plus though is in the meal services and access to the business lounge. The Austrian Air lounge in Vienna was a particular treat, serving up a melt-in-your-mouth rinderbraten, Chestnut Foam Soup, and the best strudel Soo had ever eaten.
On the short flight to Krakow we got a hint of the next couple days when our flight had to circle several times while the runway was plowed twice. Since we were arriving close to midnight, I asked the hotel to arrange for a car and we found our driver right outside the arrival door. We drove through a steady snowstorm and arrived at the Hotel Logos in a half hour.
The large town square of Old Krakow is encircled by a park and our hotel was just outside this park. In the morning, with temps around 0°C and with a carpet of ankle-deep snow, we headed to the square and the surrounding area to do a little shopping and sight-seeing. The snow cover in the trees was a stunning sight. Maybe because there wasn’t any wind and the temps didn’t get above zero, all the tree branches seemed to have snow cover several inches high.
We found a shop that had a great selection of delicate glass Christmas ornaments that those of us of a certain age may remember from our childhood Christmases. And a bit later I found an insulated knit hat that I needed badly to keep my ears from falling off.
Time for lunch. We found a well-reviewed Polish restaurant right by the park, Restauracja W Starej Kuchni. For me, the attraction was a combination plate that included a pork schnitzel, a potato pancake smothered in goulash, ribs and sauerkraut, three pierogi, a Polish sausage, a tripe sausage, a baked potato and two dill pickles. I managed to put a serious dent into this meal. Surprised me too! Soo enjoyed her bowl of homemade chicken soup with a side of rye bread.
After lunch and an effective warm up, we took an Uber to Oskar Schindler’s enamel factory. The factory has been converted into a museum chronicling Krakow’s fall and occupation in 1939, Krakow’s role in the Holocaust, and Schindler’s role in diverting potential holocaust victims. All I can say is that the afternoon was deeply disturbing, even more than the movie.
Oskar Schindler’s desk:
Back at the room, we warmed up for an hour before heading back out to the Square to experience the Christmas Market. The Market was a visual treat with the lights and the snow and the massive St. Mary’s Basilica in the background.
We found a row of food booths with the first one on the end dedicated to all things pork, including various sausages and massive pig knuckles.
As tempting as this booth was, I had minimal room left after my lunch combo, so I homed in on the smell of potato pancakes.
The pancakes were priced at 2 for €2, but I was so full that I asked if I could have one. No deal. So I picked out the two crispiest ones. The lady places my crispy potato pancakes on a plate and hands the plate to a lady in the back to load up a dollop of sour cream. When the lady in back tries to hand back the plate, she accidently dumps my food on her work table. So the lady in front starts over, looking for a couple more crispy pancakes, but finds only one. At that point, I tell her that I would be happy to take one of the broken pancakes that were dumped on the table, and she proceeds to give me my two broken pancakes and the one replacement pancake. Wanting only one, I wind up with three. Good thing that Soo was willing to give me a hand. We headed over to a table and had a nice conversation with a lady and her daughter who also traveled to Krakow for the Fair. After eating what seemed prudent, we then methodically went through all the booths where Soo found a few more ornaments while I sipped a hot Gluehwein.
On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at the Spice Pan, an Asian food truck where Soo got an excellent rendang chicken and I sampled a lemon-infused dark beer.
Bob and Soo
Changing Seasons
As September left behind the summer heat and even provided a few early sprinkles, the garden in general, and roses in particular just took off. It seems like everything came into bloom as once with clusters of large blooms. The French bare roots that we brought over were most gratifying because there was a lot of risk that they could thrive in this climate. But they seem to be over the hump.
Here is our old friend the Charles de Gaulle rose.
In related news, we have attracted the lovebirds! We knew from the beginning that they were around. Soo heard them high in the tallest trees and every now and then would spot one or two. We figured that they either escaped or were released from captivity. Although the doves and sparrows take advantage of the feed we put out, we never were able to attract the lovebirds.
Then, toward the fall we finally spotted a few coming into the garden to eat the orange tecoma flowers. They would bite off the flower at the stem, chomp off the seeds, and spit out the rest. While visiting the garden, they must have gotten more confident from watching the other birds pigging out on the seed assortment. Slowly and with great care they began to approach the feeding tray. Over a week’s time, their number has increased and we commonly see about a dozen jockeying for position in the tray.
The funny thing is that while the doves would shoo off the little sparrows and dominate the tray, the lovebirds stand their ground and do not budge regardless of the hysterical wing-flapping from the doves. Plus, they share with the sparrows!
Bob and Soo
East Side Story
As I have shared previously, the west side of our garden was primarily meter-high thatch, seemingly dead, plus a mosquito-infested ruin of a pond. With Soo’s care, many of those seemingly dead plants revived and are now close to becoming showpieces. The west garden is now Soo’s rose garden together with the pond area shown previously.
Although we have a few projects still planned for the east garden, it is far enough along to review the project. The east side of the garden area was primarily the owner’s junk yard, filled with construction materials left over from his DIY projects.
The first thing we needed to do was to hire a team with a back hoe to clear out the space.
From here, Soo was able to start mapping out her plan for the garden, putting in the first few planting areas by repurposing some of the lumber saved from the junkyard cleanup.
We also cleaned up the greenhouse and replaced the cover. I built several planter boxes from junk lumber.
Boulders that were dug up during the tree removal were used to block out planting areas and the start of pathways.
In the open area, we put in a pergola on a platform of tile and artificial grass.
And that is pretty much where we are today. The irrigation system is in. Putting in the pergola and greenhouse were milestones. We have brought in a lot of really interesting plants and are eagerly looking forward to seeing them mature. Hedges will grow out to be wind breaks and to mark out some of the paths, separating areas of the garden. Putting in the pathways will be a major project, in fact, maybe the last big one.
Bob and Soo
Pond Update
I was kind of thinking that I would do a post on the renovation of the pond, start to finish, sometime in February. But the supplier who was providing the bridge to my gardening contractor apparently ripped him off, and it took until June to get it resolved. So it goes. There is still one last thing we need in order to finish the pond off, but this is probably a good time to post a retrospective.
Here is what we inherited: a pond of indeterminate size, overgrown with water lilly stalks the width of Schwarzenegger’s arm, with a rotting plywood bridge.
After clearing out the plants, we got an idea of the size and shape of the pond.
Finally, this is what we have today:
We have eighteen koi now, and one goldfish that somehow snuck in. We are baffled by the goldfish, but Soo thinks it may have been hiding in a water iris plant that we bought. The last step will be to erect a couple triangular canvas sail-shades to protect the koi from birds. Then we can remove the netting that still covers the pond.
Bob and Soo
Better Late Than Never!
Almost September and look what popped up in our garden!
Bob and Soo
A Little Break
After ten months with a singular focus on improving our new home, we decided it was time for a little break. Before the pandemic hit, we had been planning a short trip to Évora, so it was past time to revisit that plan.
As a tourism destination, Évora offers prehistoric megaliths, Roman ruins, a Portuguese walled city, and a higher concentration of terrific restaurants than you can find just about anywhere.
We broke up the 2 1/2 hour drive with a stop in Beja for lunch. The Restaurant Frango à Guia is a modern restaurant that offers much more than chicken. For example, I had Dogfish Soup, an Altentejo specialty, that was superb. An hour after lunch we pulled up to the Hotel Olive, a modern hotel located near the Bone Chapel which was our first stop the following morning.
This morbid chapel was built in the 16th Century by Franciscan monks who exhumed over 5000 corpses to decorate their house of worship.
After the Chapel visit, we wandered the streets, shopped a little and stopped frequently for drinks as the temps approached 44C (108F). The next morning we went to check out the Roman Temple which was as impressive as advertised.
Right next to the Roman Temple, we saw a poster for an Yves Saint Laurent exhibit focused on his use of color following his time in Marrakech. The exhibit was divided between a small church and a gallery next door. In the church portion, the center aisle was taken up by some of his clothing designs.
To me, the floor-to-ceiling tilework of the church was much more impressive.
While the exhibit did in fact feature a few of YSL’s color projects, the bulk of the exhibit featured the works of young Morroccan artists, and this part of the exhibit was spectacular. The art showed a variety of media, several of which aren’t typically thought of as art media. For example, one artist’s medium was clothing, not clothing to wear, but clothing meant to be displayed as statements on their own merit.
Every single meal that we had was wonderful. Surprisingly, three of our meals were Asian, and all excellent.
Heat aside, this was a fine break. But now it’s back to work!
Bob and Soo
Dahlias
Lots of dahlias popping up the past month or so. And they keep on coming!
Bob and Soo
Free at Last!
Last night, we went to our first local street fair in over two years. This was the Lagoa Wine Festival, an event that was cancelled in 2020 and 2021. It is also an event that has been one of our favorites. It is held along a winding street leading up to and past the Lagoa central marketplace. Laid out along the street are booths where wineries from all over the country offer tastes of their creations.
In between tasting booths are food and crafts booths, cooking demonstrations, lots of alfresco eating, and entertainment stages.
Near the head of the street, a paella vendor was just getting a batch going and she told us that it would be ready in about twenty minutes. So we started by getting a glass of sangria at one of the food booths. As we were walking away, the guy manning the booth called us back and with a big smile handed us a couple chunks of his home-made chorizo while his wife told us all about how he made it. We took a slow stroll to the end of the street and sat by the big stage just watching people and reflecting on how much we missed being able to do this.
We always show up early for these fairs, early meaning when it is still daylight. Thus, our people-watching consisted mainly of young couples with kids, both tourists and local. Lots of folks had their dogs and cats in tow. After just basking in the feeling of community, we headed back up the street to the paella stand. As we passed the guy who sold us the sangria, he waved us back over again, and with another big smile hands us a couple chorizos of a different style from our first sample.
The paella was very tasty, loaded with bits of meat and assorted seafood. The lady asked if we like the crusty bits–I think she was reading my mind–and scraped some onto our plates. We strolled back down the street and paused for awhile at the new act on the small stage.
Now that my stomach was lined with rice, I was ready for some tasting. I bought a glass and my two tickets and headed off. At each booth, winemakers and reps were eager to talk about their wines, what they were were trying to do with their blends, what the harvest was like. I wasn’t intending to buy anything and most people don’t seem to buy at this festival. I’m still trying to find room for all the bottles we moved from Lagos. But I tasted an alicante bouschet that was bright and fruity with just the right hint of acidity and Soo decided to buy it for me, (Herdade da Rocha, 2018)
As night fell, the show started on the main stage and the streets got much more crowded. We stayed for a few songs and decided to head home.
As we walked back to the car, we talked about the toll of the past couple years, with these fairs as just one example. The food, the wine, the music are all well and good, and we certainly missed them. But the magic in these local fairs is the feeling of community. Young and old, singles and families, tourists and locals, even dogs and cats all come together. And all of that individual joy is added and magnified and reflected back.
Bob and Soo
Bob and Soo 