Friday, July 08, 2005
Poland again!
A few Saturdays ago, a couple of friends and I made a quick trip to Poland. By quick I mean we left about 4am and returned that evening at 9pm. While going anywhere at 4am is not my idea of fun, it really is a good idea. There was hardly any traffic on the autobahn, and we arrived in Poland about 9am. So plenty of time to shop at all the shops! We got a little confused when we first crossed over the border, every time I go it looks different. Between the construction rerouting the road, and all the new buildings popping up, it is a trick to remember exactly which way to go. Our first attempt was wrong, we stopped at a little gas station/shop to see if we could manage some directions, or buy a map. Unfortunately, we were just more confused after we left there, and they had no maps, so we headed back the way we came to try a different route. We knew there were more gas stations so we stopped at a larger one, more like a truck stop. Inside they had a large selection of maps, and we unfolded one to see if it had the area we needed on it. After doing that, we saw how simple it was to get where we needed, so we folded the map back up and took off! We just didn't want to buy a map of Poland we didn't need!
We made it to Boleslawiec, and started stopping at the shops outside of the town. We decided to look in them first, and we could always stop back by on our way out of town. There is just so much to choose from, it can be a bit overwhelming at times. Even if you choose a particular pattern, then you can pick from all the types of dishes, casseroles etc. in that pattern. Almost all the stores take dollars, euros and credit cards, they just want our money! Then there are the kids that wash your windows for money, they are very persistent. We shopped and shopped and shopped, stopping for lunch at a small restaurant that had surprisingly good pizza. Near the end I think we all had pottery overload, but we all had gotten things that we really liked. I found the polish pottery butter bells I was looking for, and also a couple more casserole/serving dishes. I didn't get too much, since we have to ship all this stuff back to the US eventually. We really are trying not too accumulate to many things, so I had to restrain myself.
Every time I go I think that it is getting more and more expensive, which it is. But overall it is still reasonable for the quality of the pottery, and it's something to keep forever. I have a box packed up in storage in Tennessee, just waiting for my return. But since I can't remember exactly what is in there, I keep buying a few more things every time I go to Poland. Just in case there is something I need....
We made it to Boleslawiec, and started stopping at the shops outside of the town. We decided to look in them first, and we could always stop back by on our way out of town. There is just so much to choose from, it can be a bit overwhelming at times. Even if you choose a particular pattern, then you can pick from all the types of dishes, casseroles etc. in that pattern. Almost all the stores take dollars, euros and credit cards, they just want our money! Then there are the kids that wash your windows for money, they are very persistent. We shopped and shopped and shopped, stopping for lunch at a small restaurant that had surprisingly good pizza. Near the end I think we all had pottery overload, but we all had gotten things that we really liked. I found the polish pottery butter bells I was looking for, and also a couple more casserole/serving dishes. I didn't get too much, since we have to ship all this stuff back to the US eventually. We really are trying not too accumulate to many things, so I had to restrain myself.
Every time I go I think that it is getting more and more expensive, which it is. But overall it is still reasonable for the quality of the pottery, and it's something to keep forever. I have a box packed up in storage in Tennessee, just waiting for my return. But since I can't remember exactly what is in there, I keep buying a few more things every time I go to Poland. Just in case there is something I need....
