Midieval + Interent
Trip Start
Jun 22, 2009
1
7
138
Trip End
Nov 03, 2009
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Torun,
Central Poland,
Poland
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Noon train to Torun. Signs are not clear on which train to take. Again, I almost miss it but I am ultra cautious and ask the conductor. This is it. Hop on.
Smoking and drinking are everywhere. The older couple are pouring themselves vodka as we leave the station. Everyone lights up. I search for a non-smoking cabin (train is moderately full and my 2 backpacks take up lots of overhead space). Even in non-smoking cabins, people smoke. They just have to leave the cabin (these are couchettes? Which are individual cabins with 8 seats but can only fit 4 – 6 comfortably.). Smoking is in bars, clubs … I can't escape it.
Torun is a striking Gothic town. Unlike Gdansk and much of Poland, Torun was not devastated by bombing in WW II. Gdansk is largely rebuilt on the base of the original buildings.
While arriving, an older woman adopts me. She helps me with the locker, buying & validating my bus ticket, telling me about Torun. She only knows a few words of English so it is mostly sign language. A nice welcome. With my large backpack, I learned that if I am just doing 1 night and there is much of a walk and/or much transport then I pack my daypack and leave my big backpack at the train/bus station.
Torun is gorgeous. Like Gdansk but more so. More of the older churches, cobblestone streets, medieval walls … No hostels near the old town so I stay at a hotel from the 19th century. Pretty outside, character but basic inside. This is the first town that I have seen a public WIFI service. Yeah! The flood of blog will begin.
I am starving. No lunch yet again. I am not sure if I have yet to have 3 meals in a day. Too much going on. I find a café, Union Pacific, right on the main plaza who makes a Polish specialty, Manekin which is basically a crepe. Also have a crepe for desert. Mmmm….
I am becoming an even bigger fan of the net-PC. While connections have been limited, I have been able to save lots of info to my PC. For example, foods of Poland from Wikipedia. I can have an idea what I am ordering when no English menu is available.
It is daylight for an extended period. I have been up at 5:30 (the weather report says 3:30) and it was light and it doesn’t set until around 10:30. This promotes a significant lack of sleep.
Getting enough electricity to power my stuff while at a hostel has been a little challenging. No plugs in the rooms. I don’t feel safe leaving it in the common room unless I am there. I have a single converter for my plugs but brought an extension cord. I can power my PC, camera and IPOD off of a single outlet
