Our midpoint break in Zakopane was short but sweet. We spent a day and a half in the beautiful mountainous countryside of southern Poland. Although we arrived in the pouring rain on Friday afternoon, the weather soon cleared and we enjoyed hot, sunny weather for the rest of the weekend! It was great to reunite and talk with all the volunteers, and everyone had some interesting stories to tell. Even though we are all teaching in Poland, each of our experiences was a little different. For example, some people are living among cows and farmland, while others are in the heart of Tarnow Square. And although we were already providing feedback and lesson advice on our Facebook page, communicating face-to-face was a welcomed change.
When we weren't busy chatting, we were hiking and sweating up a giant hill (I forget the name), one of many that is part of the Tatra Mountains chain. Although there was a trolley that could have whisked us to the top, we chose to make the daring climb in order to get the full experience. On the way up, we stopped to gape at some picturesque views. Across from us we could even see Giewont, a chiseled peak that resembles a sleeping knight (with a cross in his mouth - how it got there is beyond my imagination!).
At night, we wandered around the main street. It summer tourist season, and the village was bustling! Various artists were performing on the sidewalks, and locals were selling their famous mountain cheese (it's very hard and I didn't care for it; I tried it smoked at dinner and it tasted somewhat better).
The weekend flew by and before we knew it we were back on the bus headed to Krakow, and then on the train to Tarnow.
What a wonderful midpoint trip! But hey, my whole time in Poland has been great so far!
PHOTOS OF OUR TRIP TO ZAKOPANE:
