Eastern Poland: Freshly-Picked Raspberries

 Freshly-picked raspberries from our place in eastern Poland. My wife likes to make jam from them which goes well with porridge in the morning.

Warsaw: Passing a School of Art

 Passed this kind of School of Art the other week. My wife worked here in the early 2000s.

Bury (Lancashire): Passing Ramsbottom Theatre Royal

 Was having a walk round Ramsbottom last year and passed this interesting building:

Had no idea that Ramsbottom had its own small theatre. 

Have just been reading about how a group called the Summerseat Players have built the place up over the years. Would love to see a play in this theatre some time. Even from the outside, there is a special kind of homely atmosphere and charm.

Have always liked Ramsbottom, it's one of the better parts of Bury, my hometown. Really like the old-worldly road leading down to the steam-train crossing and station. The skeleton in the bottom right window caught me a bit by surprise:

Kotek's Incredible Ear

An incredible picture that my wife took of the leaf-like system of veins in one of Kotek's ears:

Above, Kotek is spread out on the table during an early afternoon snooze, while below, he is striking a Romantic-type pose:

Eastern Poland: Walnut-Collecting

At an overgrown plot of land in eastern Poland, my wife and I went picking up walnuts which had fallen to the ground. This required a bit of patience and pretty decent eyesight.

The local drunks use the almost hidden wooden hut below as a kind of party house:

Warsaw: Mural Being Painted

Was out walking a few Sundays ago, and passed this mural which seemed to be in the last stage of being completed. As can be seen, there was lots of scaffolding, and what can't be seen, there were about 8-10 young mural painters.

Warsaw: Patriots' Meeting

Caught the back end of a patriots' meeting at the War memorial near the Old Town in Warsaw last Saturday evening:

The meeting seemed to be headed by civic dignitaries with a Catholic priest standing alongside them.

It was a colourful occasion with Polish and other flags being proudly held aloft.

Was nice to see especially young people taking pride in their country and culture.

Warsaw: Old-Style Music at the Hotel Bristol

After enjoying Michał Urbaniak at the Old Town Old Marketplace Square, I chanced upon some wonderful, old-style Polish music at the Hotel Bristol.

 

Sometimes, vocalists were singing from the hotel balconies as the band played below, it was a truly great spectacle.

Michał Urbaniak at Warsaw Old Town Marketplace 15th August 2020

Thoroughly enjoyed the Michał Urbaniak concert at the Old Town Marketplace in Warsaw last Saturday.

Some people enjoyed the top-class Jazz music while having a meal:

The Old Marketplace really is a brilliant location for a concert:

I'm not that familiar with Jazz music but over recent years, I've been seeing more of it live. 

Read up on and listened to quite a bit of Michał Urbaniak before the concert on Saturday night, becoming aware that he has played in tandem with many top musicians in the USA. My Polish friend, Tomasz, prompted me to see Urbaniak through stressing that he was one of several Polish Jazz musicians massively admired in the USA.

And during the concert on Saturday night, I could see clearly why. 

Also found myself reading up on Michael "Patches" Stewart after the concert, what a trumpet player!

Puszek's Visit

 

In eastern Poland, we received a visit from Puszek, the next door neighbours' new cat. Sadly, their old cat, Mruczek, disappeared a few weeks ago. But still, it was good to meet Puszek. 

A few days after, and a local, athletic-looking Ginger Tom paid us a visit in the garden:

Brown Bottles of Perła

At our place in eastern Poland, you can get Perła in brown bottles, while in Warsaw, I can only find it in green ones.

For some reason, Perła tastes much better in brown bottles, it has an earthier taste.

Below, there's a shot of some of the vegetables we used last Christmas:

Hardy Country: Swans on the River

 

Nice shot of two swans on the river as I was leaving Dorchester to head towards Stinsford church and Thomas Hardy's birthplace home of Higher Bockhampton.

Sadly won't be getting to Hardy country (Dorset) this year, because of the Covid-19 situation. Between 2016 and 2019, I really enjoyed hiking round Dorset (plus a bit of Wiltshire, Somerset, and Cornwall) seeing many places which influenced Hardy's novels, novellas, and poetry.

In Dorchester and the rural settings around Stinsford and Higher Bockhampton, Hardy's presence can't help but be felt.

 

Warsaw Old Town: Live Jazz Music

 

When I went out Saturday evening for a stroll through Warsaw Old Town, I got a really nice surprise, my first live music in about five months.

Have just read that the Jazz na Starówce event runs throughout July and August. The Jazz music I caught last Saturday evening was top drawer:

Have just looked up the name of the band I saw, EABS, who are really well worth seeing.

With all the crazy things that have been going on this year, the Saturday evening Jazz Festival in Warsaw Old Town is a real breath of fresh air. Like I say, I really enjoyed what I caught last Saturday evening.

Bury (Lancashire): Bride and Bridegroom

 This model of a bride and bridegroom really caught my eye outside Bury Town Hall last year:

Warsaw: Passing the Methodist Church

 

Passed the Methodist church at Plac Zbawiciela in Warsaw the other week. Had never realised how picturesque the church entrance is, as I'd only ever viewed the place from a distance, usually while eating at the Que Huong Vietnamese restaurant a good few years ago.

The Methodists are quite well-known in Warsaw as they became established there well before the post-communist era, when communist authorities were quite happy for Protestant denominations to enter Poland to challenge the influence of the Catholic Church.

Next to their church, the Methodists have an English Language school:

Offering English Language classes seems to be part of the Methodists' proselytisation technique. The Mormons use the same strategy.

Kotek Looking Through the Window

Above, Kotek is looking out of the window, seeing the big world outside.

Below, he's relaxing on fresh bed-sheets:

Bury: Visiting the Tin Head Brewery

While staying at a friend's place in the Bradley Fold area of Bury, we visited the Tin Head Brewery on Bradley Fold Industrial Estate (worked at Stormseal assembling UPVC window units here in the late 1980s).

It was possible to have a nice game of pool in the brewing room:

While walking up to Bolton Road to catch the bus to Bury, I saw the secluded lodge below:

What a hidden gem this place is.

 

 

 

Mid-Summer Poppies

 Saw these beautiful poppies while out walking in Warsaw last Sunday:

Warsaw: A Bit of Live Music

It was brief but still it was the first live music I'd heard in six months: some great musicians on a small truck advertising the Warsaw Summer Jazz Festival at Plac Zbawiciela a few weeks ago.

The Warsaw Summer Jazz Festival went ahead at the Stodoła a few weeks ago. I was tempted to go to it, but was put off by the idea of having to wear a mask, signing forms etc. Would like concerts to just get back to normal, to be honest.

Sacred Heart Statue

Got this small statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus from an SSPX church in England many years ago (an SSPX priest also kindly blessed it).

Galway City: Watching Street Musicians

In both 2018 and 2019, I passed through Galway city for a couple of days, and loved the street entertainment on offer. Currently find myself cooked up in one place due to all the crazy stuff going on in the world, and would love to be out travelling, passing through places like Galway.

Sometimes, when a band attracts a big crowd, the atmosphere becomes amazing in Galway city centre:

Really like the place, the sense of occasion on the street.