Frankfurt (Oder)

Hi everyone,

Today I would like to tell you about my next sightseeing trip. Tomorrow I am going to Frankfurt (Oder) with my boyfriend and my friends. There is no problem to arrive there from Poznan because there are two different trains which leaves in the early and late morning. The journey takes only about two hours and that time the train moves on the distance of 177 kilometers.

Frankfurt (Oder) is German town located on the Oder River. The nearest Polish town is Slubice. The town has nearly 60.000 inhabitants and it is the one of Branderburg federated state. Frankfurt was located in 1253. In the medieval times it was a strong trade town which was dominating in the river trade. Unfortunately, Frankfurt was devastated during the Second World War, especially the midtown. It is interesting to know that the border between Germany and Poland ran alone the Oder River and one district of Frankfurt became a new Polish city called Slubice.

In the town we can sightsee the Gothic Town Hall, the neo-Gothic post office and The Church of Peace (Friedenskirche). Frankfurt has a museum of its own history from the 13th century up to our times. It is called in German Stadtarchiv Frankfurt. There is also a boulevard along the Oder River from which we can admire Polish Slubice.

Although Frankfurt (Oder) is not the enormous city, it has the tram network, which consists of five tramways.

EDIT before the trip:

I have also see an old and unfortunately devastated theatre. It looked like a people's theatre because of the elements of its decoration outside. 

I must say that Frankfurt (Oder) made me feel very enthusiastic about living abroad. Simply before I have crossed the border, I felt the change of lifestyle and the quality of life. It is not a very populous town but it is quite big in relation to its area. Yesterday it was Saturday but it was no crowd on the streets and in the shops too. The people are not afraid of leaving their goods without care (I saw one bag without it and its owner who was jogging around but she was not taking care of her bag).
The prices are also not very high. I think there are similar to these Polish if we convert it into zloty. There were also organised one peaceful street demonstration of members of Communist Party but it was totally controlled and nobody was agressive.

I visited also the suburbs of Frankfurt and tipically residential areas. The building are well-cared, repaired, redecorated and in good living condition. There was a total silent in this area. It showed me that not very far away from Poland it is a town where the life is quiet and I hope better and simplier than in Poland.

The real spring is coming ;)

These days has started really pleasurable period of the year, it means spring. For me it is important time in which the nature awakens and the surroundings makes me feel happy. Many people say that sunlight gives them the new sense of living and force to change something in a good way.

In my opinion spring is the right season to start practising some sport activity. In Poznan, where I currently live, lot of people take up jogging or go to the outdoor gym. It is really laudable initiative to build this kind of place in which people of all ages can take up sport. Outdoor gyms are situated near the parks and squares, giving us an opportunity to stay fit without paying some amount of money. The outdoor gyms are open at all times but, of course, when the weather is bad, it is nearly impossibile to use it. The second opportunity accessibile in spring is the system of bicycle hire. To my mind it is a good alternative for people who change their flat every year and it is a problem for them to buy personal bikes. This kind of service is available in nearly every big Polish city. Unfortunately, it is also seasonal, starts in late spring and finishes in early autumn.

In spring many people decide to be more active than they were during winter. There are organised sport events such as marathons and short-distance runs. If you want to participate in it, you sometimes have to pay some amount of money which is destined to create your personal initiation pack and cover the organisational costs. This kind of activity may be also an opportunity to raise money for charity.  

The springtime may also be atractive for children who this time try to play outdoors, refusing to sit in front of the computer. They moves willingly, especially when the weather cooperates. It can be very positive attivity for their health in times when many children are obese.

It's a time for eating :)

Hello,

this moment I would like to start a discussion about eating. To say the truth, I cannot imagine my day without a nutritious breakfast and a warm dinner. As I can cast my mind back to the childhood, I do not remember every single day without those two particular meals.

To my mind breakfast is an important part of my nutrition. I am not able to think clearly and study without eating nothing after a getting up. From some time my breakfast has consisted of oatmeal, a little sunflower seeds and a banana combined with three spoons of natural yogurt. This mix gives me a power and I can feel full of energy after my first meal.

For me dinner is also important. I firmly believe that it should be the most caloric meal of a day. The more colorful it is, the more healthy it can become. I love cooking so I try to prepare different one for every weekday. However, if I do not have much time, I prefer cooking for two days to eating out.

Why do I eat out rarely? In my opinion a food preparing is an important part of life. I often spend lots of time reading new recipes to prepare something special which I have never done. Additionally, I think that I never know what is the quality of food served in restaurants. It means what is the origin of the ingredients used to prepare it. I really cannot guess if the food has not been refreshed and if someone else has not been eating it before my turn. I know that for one my manner may be strange but today when food is often modified, I try to be responsible for myself. In my live I follow the rule that you are what you eat.

My favourite cakes

Hello,

because of the Easter time, I would like to reveal you which cakes are often made in my house for this occasion.

There are many types of cakes which are related to the Easter. The most popular and also the sweetest is Mazurek. It is a real mix of many pastries, sponge, short and half-short. Combined with fudge and richly ornated, this cake can become a real tidbit, especially for children. However, my family do not like that caloric cake but me and my mother always bake another delicious ones.

The pound cake is always present in my family house during the Easter. We often bake one or two from different recipes. This year te first is made with my grandmother's way, another with the mother of my aunt's friend. For me both are delicious. The grandmother's is drier than another and the second is with milk chocolate glaze.

We have also made two poppy-seed cake, but this year they have not gone well. We had used to much poppy and as a result the two fractured. However, I believe that they are still delicious so I will check one tomorrow.

To tell you the truth, my favourite cake is a fruitcake. It is full of dried fruit and nuts so it becomes a really nutrient dessert. This year I have made it with confects, walnuts and almonds. Unfortunately, it has also fractured, similarly to the poppy-seed cake, but thanks God it is without a sad layer.

My mom has also done an experiment related to a new kind of cake she had never done before. We do not know its exact name and the origins of the recipe but I could call it a cake with fudge. It is a really easy cake to make because it is no need to bake it. The base is done with biscuits, we used these wholegrain, so we also saved electricity (:-D). The second layer is the chocolate fudge (really), then the Mountain cream cake, another biscuit layer and finally orange jelly. It is a dessert for the people who love eating much and well :)

Well, there were my special Easter cakes. It happends that we make also a cheesecake but this year we wanted some change.