So here we are in Poland. In an apartment in Krakow to be exact. We arrived to rather muggy heat after a two hour flight from Newcastle and an informative and relaxed taxi ride. The apartment is large, with high ceilings, a proper sized double bedroom and a one person bathroom, which is beautifully appointed.

After aquainting ourselves with the flat, we made our first move onto the busy pavements outside, walking for all of ten seconds to a Thai restaurant which is directly under these flats. The meal was okay rather than spectacular. Advertised as ‘Thai street food’, Susie chose a dish with a three pepper warning. She thought it couldn’t possibly be as hot as in Thailand….wrong!

We both opted for a fried ice cream dessert. This has a potential to be spectacularly good. In reality it was a mango ice cream in a large ball of coconut covered dough which had the consistency of an old leather handbag. The service was good though….

Lacking the essentials for breakfast this morning we found a place round the corner instead. The waitress was charming and sat us at our table whilst informing us that their coffee machine had broken down and they could only offer us tea. We ordered a pot each and some pancakes which were nice but a bit bland. This isn’t going well so far, is it?

We made our way to the main market square. Wandering about we came across a large stage where a short performance by a Polish folk group took place. This involved some loud whistling….by the group not the crowd I should point out..

Susie spotted a stall selling bread. She bought a loaf of unknown quality, which resembled a large house brick both in shape and weight. We’ll see what it’s like in due course, providing we can locate a saw or brickies chisel. I’d spotted a pierogi stall opposite the bread seller. One executive decision later, we each had a plate of these small fried dumplings. I’m certain the ones we had weren’t an example of Polish culinary art. Fried for all of five seconds in luke warm oil, they were….challenging to eat.

We made our way back to the apartment via Wawel Castle and the river which was a pleasant walk under increasing grey cloud. Tonight we went along to Trezo, barely five minutes walk along Midowa, our street here. It’s advertised as Polish Mediterranean cuisine. Scanning through the menu I ascertained there were no pierogis offered and we opted for chargrilled chicken breasts instead. These were very well executed and the desserts that followed even better. Our waiter spoke perfect English and was polite, attentive and talkative. We may well be back…

We are looking forward to a day out with our Polish friends, Jareck and Iwona tomorrow….