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 Hello,
The Great Masurian Lakes District - a paradise for water sports
enthusiasts – is my first encounter with Poland.
A fierce wind, this time to my advantage, adds about 150 to
200 km a day to my mileage indicator, in other words, a lot
of cycling is done these days. No need to grumble though:
throwing my weight on the pedals in the middle of nature,
free as a bird, is my idea of a summer job this year.
Vast grassland and wide lakes alternate in the Polish province
of Pomeren.
The little town of Torun at the picturesque banks of the Vistula
river is the birthplace of one of the most famous Poles: Nicolaus
Copernicus. Thanks to him we know that the earth orbits around
the sun.
The lowland is dotted with many country estates, spread out
over the different villages. This region is called "Wielkopolska",
the cradle of the Polish nation with Gniezno and Poznan as
most important cities.
The inhabitants of Poznan are renowned for their brimming
enthusiasm and their sense of duty. The sunny terraces on
the old Market Place are filled with many tourists admiring
the typical souvenirs they managed to snap up from the local
artists. Proud as a peacock are the inhabitants of their renaissance
town hall, a real ‘pièce de résistance’.
The tourist focal point is the bell tower where every day
at noon, two metal goats appear and but their horns together
12 times.
For most of the tourists devoutly religious Poland doesn’t
evoke images of Spanish costas. To a weather-beaten Viking
like me though, due to my countless wanderings throughout
Northern-Europe, Poland brings a Mediterranean feeling. The
continuous sunshine and the sun-tanned Polish machos- yes,
they do exist - strengthen my impression! There are even reckless
drivers, so what could look more Italian?
If you don’t believe me there’s always the popularity
of the Pope whose photograph is prominently displayed in public
places. And to finish the picture one can always dream away
on the southern tunes of Radio Vatican.
 I
savour this heartland of Europe with its slants and woods
- awash with ancient trees - its lakes and extensive cornfields.
Cycling through the low mountains of Silezia I reach the province
capital of Wroclaw. Like Poznan Wroclaw was put to ashes but
the many restorations have produced an enchanting town centre.
Via the beautiful valley of Klodzko I continue my journey
in the direction of Bohemia in the Czech Republic. These last
11 days I have cycled about 1500 km often in more than 30
degrees so I deserve a much-needed break.
A splendid idea is a visit to the Czech capital Prague.
 Splendid
weather adds to the magical atmosphere in this city, famous
for its 100 towers.
I cross the Karlsbridge, which is the most important bridge
of Prague. Embellished with countless statues, the bridge
has spanned the Moldau River for centuries.
It’s impossible to summarise Prague in a few lines if
you consider that complete books have been written about the
town. But I just want to jot down for you the funniest legend
I have heard about the bridge. It goes way back into its history
and here’s how the story goes.
Centuries ago it was decided that the small wooden bridge
a bit further downstream needed to be replaced by a more solid
version. The town’s chief engineers got together for
a brainstorm and decided that in order to make the bridge
strong as an ox they needed to add a powerful ingredient to
the mortar. The proud architects’ mind was made up; honey
liquor and eggs would do the trick! Delivering all the eggs
was too big a task for the chickens in Prague, therefor the
Bohemian and Moravian towns had to chip in as well.
But this mad "egg"story gave rise to misunderstandings.
Some cities thought that the inhabitants of Prague were starving
and send them cheese as well! And the cleverest idea came
from a small town that didn’t want the eggs to break
on transport! They had all the eggs …………
cooked.
Enjoy your meal!
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