There's a disarming honesty to those who abandon all the usual pretence, and just ask you for what they want. Somehow it's become standand practice in Polish cities for young guys who want beer, but who lack the necessary funds, to just ask strangers for money for beer.

There's no carefully constructed, sympathy inducing pretext. "Excuse me sir, I need some money for beer."

It usually takes me several moments too long to process the Polish, so I find myself muttering "nie ma" (I don't have any) pretty often, but I actually feel inclined to give them some.

I never go to monster land

Something an 11 year old student prepared on a slip of paper today. We were playing an acting/guessing game, kind of like charades. She was the 11 year old sister of a 7 year old girl, who then had to act that sentence out.

język Polski stary film posters, from the Wrocław main square

The caption reads: "(the) Terrible Horseman" (Polish doesn't have articles, like the/an/a)

Be calm, this is only a power outage... (Airplane II)

 

Self explanatory! Although this is a very cool poster. 

Hau hau!

 

Polish dogs speak a different dialect to those in English speaking countries. Instead of "woof woof" they say "hau hau." This particular dog didn't know he was a cultural experience for me. I think he may've wanted a kiss, but I can't be sure. Dogs are very inarticulate creatures.

flame trees

The trees are undressing themselves, in a final burst of colour. Yellows and rusty browns. It's deceptively chilly, about 5 degrees in this photo. Winter is closing in.

Further along a group of teenagers were playing out some melodrama. I didn't know what it was, until one of them staggered a few meters away from his friends, and had a wee off the bank - without breaking conversation. A 2L juice carton on the ground was another give away. It's 1pm on Monday. But I guess teenagers take a creative approach to school attendance everywhere.

Public drunkeness is going to get dangerous soon; last year it was absurdly cold, -20 during the day in Krakow, and apparently it got to -15 in Wroclaw.

But I'm secretly looking forward to it. It's going to be my first full European winter. Lots of skiing and hot spiced wine, and just sitting around and being warm, which suddenly becomes an activity when it's so cold.

 
The park near our place. Soon it'll be back in monochrome, and the cycle will be complete. It's already quite brisk, despite the sunlight. Już nie długo do zimy.

Possibly the last round of wild mushrooms, collected from outside Wrocław. 

 

Mushroom collecting is national past time during the warmer months, and for a while everyone was fond of complaining it'd been a really bad year. But a few warmish, damp weeks and above freezing nights, and it's ended with a bang. 

 
  I stupidly left my wallet at home, otherwise I would've bought some. Katastrofa!

Gnome with a key to the city. :) He looks particularly mirthful. Maybe he's been imbibing with the piwo river gnome.