I won’t be writing a daily blog – wifi access and motivation are going to be key factors in determining publication regularity.

However, I’ve finally arrived at a destination where I’ll be spending more than two hours… Warsaw.

For those of you who were on the edge of your seats with last night’s gripping escapade of a public transport system that works to the benefit and convenience of the population… so nobody then… some of you may be delighted to and relieved to learn that I made it to Warsaw.

Planes, Trains and Automobiles it was not. That horror was endured by my cat/house sitter trying to get back to Manchester from Rome. With a cancelled flight she wasn’t able to make her connection in the Italian capital and she had the anxiety of getting back in time to feed the Furry Little Shits.

Awards need to be given for creativity and commitment to the wellbeing of cats… she despatched a travelling companion via Vienna with a spare key to increase the chances of Smokey and Bandit being fed within six hours as opposed to eight. (Nobody wants Larry the Cat triggering a Parliamentary Select Committee on this one).

The cats are fed, currently being placated, still… they will milk this one for a month… and I’ve made it to Warsaw via five trains, two buses and approximately 29 hours.

As an aside…

For individuals to be able to reduce their carbon footprint, society needs to change. Our expectations (of reasonable journey times and distances, annual leave allowance, how many meetings and conferences we have to attend in person, reasonable locations to spend a weekend) need an overhaul.

The expectations I am talking about are those we place on ourselves, on other people and that we feel the pressure of, notably from our employer, from advertisers and therefore the unseen face of the Economy.

We cram as much experience into a one week or a two week holiday as possible and nobody wants to spend over 48hours on a return journey when that time could be spent relaxing.

So, the ‘affordable’ societal answer will be for everyone to limit their horizons with travel being only for the wealthy. We wont slow down life’s hectic pace. We’ll take an individualised remedy rather than a societal solution.

Back to Warsaw

Warsaw is a beautiful and fascinating city. It has all of the central European charm of colourful buildings that you’d expect, along with a clear sense of its history and a desire to help people understand it.

September 2019 marks the 80th anniversary of the invasion of Poland by Hitler. There are a number of events taking place across the city to raise greater awareness of the events.

For example, I stumbled into a multi media exhibition about the actions of General Maczek – an undefeated officer. I’ve also spent an afternoon learning about the Warsaw Uprising after finding a stunning monument to commemorate the 63 days in 1944. (Pictures below and also on my linked Instagram account).

Tomorrow, I’ll be doing one of my favourite things… wandering the city looking at street art and also dodging into one of the museums that has free entry. On every day of the week, some of Warsaw’s museums are open without charge to the public. This could save me a fortune.

I’m also determined to track down some cake. As soon as I arrived here I went to the Hotel Bristol to reserve afternoon tea for tomorrow… it’s only served Thursday-Sunday. Which is a shame for me, because I hear it’s good.

Back to the drawing board then.

*Featured photo: Copernicus wondering why someone had fastened reflective tape around his wrist.