Day 1: Prologue to Krakow

Stayed up late lasta night drinking some pretty strong homemade liquor with my friends and their father. I convinced myself that it would be good for getting rid of my jetlag and it seems like it did the trick. They filled with a full breakfast this morning before I took off. They gave me more of this homemade goat cheese that I had last night, but the highlight was probably the goat milk which came with a natural creamy froth that was better than anything Starbucks does.

When I was inspecting my bike, I was surprised at how good the condition was after five full years of disuse. However, I noticed a funny grind in the rear tire that would probably need immediate attention. Nevertheless, I needed to get back to Krakow to meet my mom at the airport so I took off just after nine.

Not far down the road I stopped to adjust some straps and apply some oil to the rear wheel. My friends passed by in the car on their way up north. I explained that I was just making some minor adjustments even though the oil did not seem to be fixing my problem. A little further up the road I stopped again and finally realized that my makeshift paniers were pull the fenders sideways and causing the rubbing noise. A little more adjustment and the bike was like new again.

As I got onto the busy four-lane road I realized that the traffic wasn't that bad and I was going to have a smooth ride into Krakow. I gave a few load yells as I recalled the freedom and fun of cycling around in a faraway land. Although the road was pretty busy, it did not detract from the beautiful scenery or my dreams about the adventure to come. Before I knew it, I was pedaling up to Wawel Castle in oldtown Krakow and checking into the apartment I had reserved.

Of course I was a bit late getting out to the airport to pickup my mom, but she was waiting patiently for my arrival. We were able to put her bike on the bus and get it back downtown. We drug the oversized box over to a bench in the middle of a boulevard and proceeded to assemble it under the tree there. At first, I was a bit worried that someone would ask us to leave, but everything worked out. The only problem was disposing the huge empty box when we were done. I left it near the garbage can behind our apartment building.

We headed out for a quick walk to familiarize ourselves with the city. We were able to pickup a used Rough Guide at a bookstore in town and sat down for dinner at a funny pub just off the square. Things were almost as I remembered from five years before and I was happy to have a few Polish beers in me. After a quick check of the email, we were off to bed.