Alive and kicking (part 4): Kraków - Vilnius

I always have a great time in Kraków visiting friends, making new ones. But it was time to start moving. Kraków to Vilnius could be done in one day, but it's not summer anymore and there are not motorways (no big petrol stations) making it difficult to hitchhike at night. I decided to play it safe and stop for a couple of days in Warszawa. I wanted to see a friend anyways. 

Getting there went smooth. Had a ride in a car that was voted the "ugliest car in the world". Got to Warszawa quite fast actually and had to wait until the evening to meet with Martyna. While walking I saw a guy whose face was familiar. I knew that guy but from where? Then I remembered! To explain I need to go back to 2010, Praha. I was working two jobs, the C&B and the other one posing naked for art school. Now fast forward to 2014. There I was, walking beside the Warszawa Centralna and I saw this guy. Wait, I wrote this already. Fast forward a few more minutes into the same day. The guy stopped at the bus stop. I kept looking at him. I went up to talk to him and asked him in he lived in Prague a few years before. It was him! The guy that drew me naked! We remembered each other but couldn't remember our names. We had a small chat, I was with my friend and she asked him "how do you know each other?" to what he answer "I used to draw him naked". A girl standing nearby turned to look at us with a WTF face, priceless!!!  Can't believe that I almost moved here a couple of years ago. What was I thinking... no wait. I wasn't.

Anyways, I left. I was on my way by 10. After the first ride of about a 100Km I took a short break for breakfast. Then was a ride almost to the border. There I got stuck a bit. It was fucking cold. A short ride  a few kilometers from the border. Almost in Lithuania but not quite. It was still cold. The small shop in the petrol station was open 24 hours. That was good. I was reviewing my options = thinking if they would kick me out if I wanted to spend the night inside. A few drivers were going to Tallinn. A couple of other drivers wanted to take only Justyna but not me. Finally, one driver agreed to take us to Kaunas. He was going to Riga. On the Kaunas' ring road, he contacted another Polish driver that drove me to a petrol station on the highway to Vilnius. After a failed attempt of buying coffee and 30 minutes later I was on my way to the capital of Lithuania and was going to meet my friends Mikael and Simona. Haven't seen them since last year's Hitchgathering. 

Yay! I was finally in Vilnius! I didn't know what to expect, I've heard such wonderful things about it that I couldn't wait to get here.

the ride that took me into LT

Why I love Poland (Kraków)

Given the fact that I have been to Poland 11 times (2010, 3 times in 2011, 2012, 5 times in 2013 and now in 2014). I guess you can say that I do love this country. And since 7 out of those it's been Kraków, you can fairly say that I love Kraków. I have also been 7 times to Warszawa but I like Kraków more. Sorry.

This is the list of the reasons why I love Kraków. It took me a few days to come up with as I had a few days to think about it. I mean, I wrote on a sticky note a reason every time I thought about one. Also, there is no order in this list.

Without further adieu, I present you MY list:

• It's very cheap. Granada is cheap, but Poland is cheaper. The only thing I dislike (but I can tolerate) is that beer doesn't come with food. Thank you Graná, you "ruined my life".
• Polish girls.
• Pierogi.
• Wódka Żołądkowa Gorzka.
• Zapiekanka.
• 24 hour alcohol shops. No more "the chino is about to close!".
• Beer, cheap and good.
• Girls are good looking.
• Public transport is cheap.
• Hitchhiking friendly.
• More pierogi.
• People are very hospitable.
• Girls are hot.
• There are not many motorways making hitchhiking very easy.
• Polish truck drivers are the best. Don't even bother to make stupid jokes about this, it's because they are very hospitable and can even find you another ride to keep on going.
  SO JUST DON'T!
• It's cheap.
• Even though I'm not really into hiking that much, I have to admit that they have great hiking trails. I had been "forced" to do a couple in the past
• 75% of the girls you see while walking, on the tram, on the bus, are good looking.
• Pierogi Ruskie.
• Żubrówka.
• Zapiekanka with bacon.
• The Tatras. Yet, I have to Poland 13 times and never been there. Only once I went through them, when I went through Zakopane.
• Cheap mobile carriers.
• Pierogi with spinach.
• More wódka.
• Did I say it's cheap?
• Did I mentioned the girls?
• Did I say that hitchhiking is very easy?
• Have you tried their food? They even have a Pierogi Festival in Kraków! Why I did not know about this?
• 24hr alcohol shops.
• Pierogi with meat.