Night of Museums

Hello,

I would like to tell you about a cultural event I am going to participate.
This year in my city Night of Museums starts on Saturday, 16 May at 5 p.m. It is a special day in which plenty of museums, galleries and other cultural institutions open their doors for everyone for free. The whole sightseeing takes place in the late evening up to 1 a.m. Besides the art, every visitor can take part in workshop, concerts and food and drinks. Moreover, that day there is an opportunity to visit places and parts of one museum which are not easy accessed other days.

It is the international event which was initiated in Berlin in 1997. Today in Night of Museums participate about 120 Polish cities. Unforunately, not every museum or gallery of one city is open during the event but for sure the selection is very considerable.

This year I am going to visit the Museum of Instruments, Henryk Sienkiewicz's Literary Museum, the Museum of Motorization. I am also intending to sightsee exhibitions of Institute of National Remembrance, which presents a few of them strictly related to the position of Polish women in Polish People's Republic. There are many other places to admire but unfortunately limited time does not let us participate in more than three or four exhibitions. I hope it will be an exciting day :)

Gomorra

Hi there,

Today I would like to tell you about the latest book I have started to read. The inspiration to begin was born during one of the classes when my group tried to translate a fragment from Polish to Italian.
The book named Gomorra, (in Italian Camorra), written by Roberto Saviano, was published in 2006. Its author is an Italian writer and journalist, who gained a fame after the publication. The book turned out to be a real bestseller, translated in forty languages and sold in ten million copies.

The main topic described in a plot is the activity of Neapolitan Mafia Camorra. Saviano tried successfully to enter inside the group to observe its rules, structure and illegal business which Comorra runs in Neapolitan harbour. The whole story comes around the illegal benefit related to smuggling textiles from China without paying taxes. The author presents Italy not as a paradise, which everybody wants to visit, but as a country fully-controlled by mafia. The book suggests that Comorra is the organisation that influences people's life in apparently invisible way. After the reading this point of view changes.

The whole book consists of eleven chapters. Roberto Saviano was written a really fascinating piece of art, which put him in a dangerous position. He realised that mafia dislikes his attitude through its attivity and the content of Gomorra as well. As a result Saviano had to hide himself in fear of vendetta. He moved out many times from place to place, living under pressure and got help from Italian government related to security.

On the book was based another appreciated piece of art, the movie Gomorra, which won many prizes, one during Cannes Festival. In 2014 Italian television Sky Atlantic broadcasted a TV series called Gomorra,  which also turned out to be a blockbuster.

I fully recommand this book for those of you who like tipically narrative books and would like to discover different point of view. 

The long weekend of May

Hi,

how are you? I am fine, especially because now there is a free time called the long weekend of May.
In Poland this period is related to three days in a row, every of which has its own characteristic features. The first of them is International Worker's Day or Labor Day. As the name suggests, this holiday is commemorated internationally. In Poland the first celebration took place in 1890. There were organised a lot of demonstrations against conquerors of that time, who occupied Polish lands. The organisers were people from left parties and workmen. After the Second World War, the communist authorities of Poland established the first of May the national holiday, free of work. During the period of communist system there were also organised plenty of processions and marches in nearly every Polish town and city. That kind of celebration was invented as to show the force of communist authorities, communist system and artificial impression of prosperity and contentment.

The second of May, though is not a free work day, it is also related to respect given to one of the most important symbol of Polish country, the flag. The Day of Polish Flag is quite a young holiday in Poland. For the first time it has been celebrated in 2004. The second day of May was checked not by accident. That day is also the day of Polish emigrant, What is more, in the second of May 1945 Polish soldiers, celebrating the victory over Nazism and the end of the Second World War, hoisted one Polish flag on the Victory Column in Berlin.

The third day of May is one of the most important national holiday in Poland. That celebration is related to the first Polish Constitution ratified the third of May 1791. It is a free work day. Genesis of this holiday is strictly related to independence of Poland. The first Polish Constitution was the first one ratified in Europe and the second in the world. The day was celebrated from 1918, the year in which Poland gained the independence. After the Second World War the May 3rd Constitution Day was celebrated up to 1946 when the communist authorithies forbad the celebration. The holiday was re-established in 1990.

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.