Poland

We had a great time in Krakow. It was bloody freezing the whole time we were there, barely getting above 0 degrees but that was ok because it snowed for basically the entire time which was lots of fun. Food and drink was pretty cheap - vodka is the standard drink there and most of the Poles drink it straight. A double shot or a beer will set you back about $3-4. We found this great pub just off the main square (supposedly the largest square in Europe) where we had the best flavoured vodka we've ever tasted - the mandarin vodka tasted like real mandarines, and so did the vanilla, not like the sweet artificial flavourings that you normally find. This place also did food, and I managed to get a plate of smoked salmon with caviar paste for $4! We ate traditional polish food for dinner - lots of ham and sausages and this sweet shredded cabbage mixture. The traditional food is pierogi, which is a cross between a dumpling and ravioli and is filled with meat or cheese mixture.

Krakow is about an hour from the Nazi concentration camps at Auschwitz so we took a tour out there which was a really interesting experience. We had a guide who took us on a 3.5 hour tour through the site, explaining how the whole brutal operation took place. The whole place was covered in a thick layer of snow which added to the whole bleak feel of the place. I've put some photos up with the rest of them so have a look.


On Sunday night I went to see Bill Bailey perform at the Nottingham Arena who was funny, though I didn't think it was as good as his previous shows. It was a bit odd going to such a big comedy gig (the venue is slightly smaller than the Brisbane Entertainment Centre) but he made full use of the venue - using massive visual displays, a giant ufo coming down from the roof of the stage and even went through the seated crowd area on one of those stupid segway bike things (crashing it on trying to return to the stage). They also record the show so you can buy a copy of it on CD afterwards which I thought was pretty cool so I'll post a copy of the show online once i've ripped it onto my computer. Though he did make use of a lot of images so some bits of it probably won't make much sense.