before we go for it you should know that i’m just troubles
Wednesday, June 18th, 2008
you will lose it anyway
Tuesday, June 10th, 2008
For you, I’d give up all I own and move to a communist country
Friday, June 8th, 2007Biurową ciszę zagłusza dźwięk telefonu. Niespodziewana moc melodii sprawia, że wszyscy Kollegen odrywają wzrok od monitorów i oczami szukają posiadacza telefonu z tak niespotykanym dzwonkiem. Uśmiechaja się, bo to miła odmienność od codziennej rutyny i wszechobecnych standardowych ustawień. A ja uśmiecham się do nich. Jeszcze chwila, gdy zerkam na wyświetlacz kto dzwoni i odbieram krótkim “Siema”. Kollegen wracają do pracy nieświadomi, że ta fajna melodia, która tak bardzo im się podobała, to pierwsze takty Stawki większej niż życie.
Spent a week working in Waldorf and staying in Oberflockenbach. At first it felt like vacation… Countryside, fresh air, nice weather, big bed, room with a balcony. Big Salsa Party in Heidelberg on Wednesday. But after a week of spending too much time with 2 Hungarians and 1 Polish I feel like I need more privacy. But finally – the weekend has landed. Since I am not coming back to Poland for a weekend I had to arrange my time here in Germany. Just in case took my palm with GPS maybe to visit around. So I started planning and checking how far it is to some cities around. Chose HOME, calculating…, 450 km, 4 hours.
Hey Nacho, what are you doing this weekend? Are you in Brussels, can you sleep me over? I will be coming with a friend. What kind of party? Garden party, barbecue… Awesome! I’ll be there.
Hey Aurelie! You bitch, you never pick up! I am coming to Brussels for a weekend. Just to let you know. I hope to see you! Ciao!
So the story continues… Brussels again.
Carnaval
Wednesday, April 18th, 2007Pictures from exactly one month ago. My last weekend in Brussels. Carnaval in Belgium. In the middle of the night gins start marching in their wooden shoes. Behind them a drummer and another guy with a flute. this night is not a one to sleep. First people are joining. You cannot just start waking with them – you have to be from this community or know somebody. They enter houses on the way. They drink champagne and go to another house. They dance in front. Then enter and drink champagne. Cause this is not a night to sleep. This is the night to spread the magic.
This was a magical night which ended up with a big fight among 3 friends with a lot of fuck-offs and go-to-hells. But who would remember such detail after one months? :-)
Thanks Aurelie.
See You Around
Tuesday, March 27th, 2007
This one is dedicated to one Spanish Bastard and one Belgian Girl because of whom my stay in Brussels was such an amazing time. I will not even try to write how I feel about the time we had and how I felt leaving you. Even though it feels hard and cuts like a knife – life moves on. Time to spread some magic somewhere else!
Thanks guys. Much Love! And see you around!
missing puzzles
Friday, March 9th, 2007
Symmetry.
Space ship has landed.
Visiting Lille (Ola, Natalia, Magda, Szymon, Justyna)
(Lille)
This guy doesn’t fit here. Tomek visiting Brussels.
Nacho as always super-polite. And Marvin – South African.
Prince charming.
This is what happens when people borrow your camera (Ivana’s farewell party).
Just love this street and the contrast of small narrow houses and big skyscrapers (close to the place I’ve always parked).
Visiting Brussels is fun!
Rue Royale – the most important street in Brussels (Szymon lives here).
(temporary shaving)
On the way home.
Be my Valentine.
the best day of my life
Wednesday, February 28th, 2007Dear children,
I remember one evening in 2007. We were coming back at 2 pm in the middle of the night with some friends (Aurelie, Nacho, Cedric). We were quite tired (completely drunk). Suddenly we have noticed strange patterns on the Dexia building which was on our way home. Some psychodelic colors and figures moving on it. It looked as somebody was playing some crazy version of tetris on it. We came closer and noticed that this was happening for real, not because we were so tired (completely drunk). There was a control panel and you could control the patterns displayed on the building! But it was 2 am, so they were already closing.
We came there the following day. We were tired again but we made it on time. Using the big touch panel we painted the building in squares, lines, colors… It was awesome. We were playing like kids for a long time.
I remember that day clearly. This was one of the best days in my life.
Your grandfa,
Szymon
Nobody would like to live like that. Nobody but me.
Tuesday, February 20th, 2007Things always get crazy at the end. First Ola arriving to Belgium for her Erasmus, so we have spent some weekends travelling with her and Magda and later on with Natalia (damn, Polish chicks is one of the reasons for not living in Poland… but they get you everywhere). Going to Lille to meet with Justyna and Geoffrey. Then Tomek coming for one week for a training and hanging out with him almost every night, spending the Valentine’s Day together (ending up on a drink in the red district). And of course hanging out with Nacho and Aurelie. Pink adventures. Breakfasts at the Turkish place. Evenings in Mapamundo or Delirium. Faro, Kriek and the Peanuts Wine. Amazing time. And the feeling of leaving which got me when I was walking the well-known way to pick up Aurelie from work for the last time during the last night in Brussels. It just hit me. Again leaving the place I started to love and, even worse, people I love. And I just can’t believe happened in just 2,5 months (2 months of leaving in a hotel don’t count). Great adventure and a big temptation of stability. I really loved the time in Brussels and it is fucking hard to move on.
The way back home is always long.
But… I am coming back there for one week in March!
:-)
And today I was flying via Zurich. I have seen Alps in the light of the sunset. There is hope. Can’t wait to see Himalayas. :-)
full of magic, beauty, opportunity… and television.
Sunday, February 11th, 2007Lots of things happened recently. Really good time. Magic moments. Impossible to describe. So just some photos…
Staying in Brussels till the 20th. End of an era.
something to remember
Monday, January 22nd, 2007Really crazy road trip to the Belgian coast. Me and Ignacio. Evening. Can’t say anything more (in case my kids were reading). Living is bad for your health. 
Photo with an Indian (Ignacio claims he was a sailor, but I am sure he was an Indian).
like a dream within a dream
Monday, January 22nd, 2007New Year’s Eve (or Sylvester) was for me one of the biggest cultural experiences for me. And it was all because of visitors – Ignacio’s friends coming to Brussels for a few days – 4 Spanish and 1 French.
Being with them was really great (even though they spoke Spanish a lot and I couldn’t understand a shit). After some time I understood that comparing to the Polish people, we should be on a prosac all the fucking time.
On the 31 we went first to Eindhoven. Just visiting which ended up with a nice photo session (picture above).
The thing that amazed me most was… cooking. These guys were working on that like well-oiled machines, which ended up with a table full of food.
In Spain you start ny eve with food and start drinking/partying at midnight. In Poland at midnight you are already fucking drunk and you are half way to a hangover.
Then there were fireworks and eating 12 grapes for 12 prosperous months (Aurelie joined us after family dinner).
Then there was a big rain in Brussels.
Then we went to a pub.
Then we did a lot of walking.
And then we went to a party on a barge.
And then we went home.
I really enjoyed it! Perfect ny eve. And no hangover!
More pics here.
it’s never pure
Saturday, December 30th, 2006Some pics from Brussels:
Concert at the pub of 2 million beers.
My street in a morning.
My district. I like the contras – small narrow houses vs. big skyscrapers.
One of those weekends that make you a few months older
Tuesday, December 19th, 2006One of those weekends that make you a few months older.
Friday – going uninvited with Ignacio to a party of our neighbours. 3 girls+1 guy living in a fucking nice 2-storey apartment. Maaaaany people (students), Żubrówka with apple juice and beers. Somehow couldn’t find a common language with those.
Saturday – I cook my first ever tortilla! We were invited to some latino friends of Ignacio. They work here as corporate bitches in PWC, E&Y, etc. Having a good life here. Nice looking girls/wives, nice clothes and expensive watches. Good food and good drinks. And quite nice after all. And a funny Serbian guy – Slavic blood rules! And the quote of the evening ‘you don’t understand, cause you don’t have an MBA’. Bottle of Gold Wasser, wine, tequilas.
Sunday – having a walk (looking for a car which we left). Then driving to Antverpen. Seeing around (so crowded!), beer, red district, back to Brussels, Ixelles, falafel, beer.
Monday – corporate life – 9-20. Nothing works right, everything crashes, error messages all around. Fucking bad day except for the fact they I bought a ticket to Mexico. Princess, I am coming!… in may. And going with Ignacio to the Xmas fair – hot wine and beer at Monk.
pics
Friday, December 15th, 2006
corporate rats
they put xmas decoration everywhere. brussels is lovely now. just the snow is missing.
Accelerating The Speed Of Light
Tuesday, December 5th, 2006
Moved to Brussels! :-)Yeap, since Monday I am renting a room in downtown. Leaving with a Spanish guy (who went to Sweden at the moment) and feeling better. No more fucking hotels (at least for a while) and their prison-cell-like rooms, no more boring neighbourhoods. So if you wanna visit – just come.Some weeks ago I went for Poland-Belgium in Brussels.
I rarely watch games on TV and don’t care much about football… I’ve never been to a game like this, but it really was a nice experience. Thousands of Polish supporters and a good game. And we won!
Hard time at work – 10 hours per day at least. :( And it’s not even close to the end of the project. So it will be worse I suppose. :( That sucks. Totally.
And studies… Have to learn something from time to time. I never switch off.
Thinking about New Years Eve… Options: Poland (seaside), Brussels or Turkey. Will have to decide till the end of this week.
weekend in Brussels
Tuesday, November 14th, 2006Alone, with a little backpack and a guidebook in my pocket I hit the city on Friday evening. My weekend in Brussels. They didn’t have any beds for me in the first hostel. Fortunately another one (crappy one) had one for me. Wandered around with a music in my ears a little bit more, read a book and went to sleep quite early. It was weird – pretending to be a traveller – sharing a room with these American guys traveling around Europe. Kinda lonely, kinda cheating.
Saturday wasn’t much better. Went thousand of kilometers walking in the old town, ate something shitty, drank a beer or three. Not so entertaining. And in the evening I felt like i’ve seen it all and planed to go to Antwerpen the following day. I had too much time for thinking. I re-thought my life. Twice.Then back in the hostel I joined a Spanish guy and Canadian (my roommates) for a beer. Canadian one was funny – he had a belt with the Canadian flag on it. So each time he met a new person he was saying “hey, i’m Canadian” and showed his belt. Just imagine the gesture. Cok komik.So we had a beer or seven (0,25). And met some Greek guys going to a party. All dressed up, almost 30, came here for some conference for NGOs. One of them looked just as this Chechenian ruler (on behalf of Putin) – of course I told him that and he got a nickname “Chechenian”. Spanish guy took us fucking far away to a club where we had to wait in a queue and they didn’t let us in. Quote: “7 dicks = no way”. So we went to have some Greek pitas and tried to get into another club. They wanted 10 euros per person – so me and Ignacio (Spanish) gave up and went back to the hostel (3 AM) with beers in our hands. Greeks stayed.In the hostel I was there were me, Ignacio, Canadian (Zee) and another one. Another one I haven’t met and his was sleeping and stinking like fish. Ignacio had a bed side by side with Zee (who was half sleeping). We were laughing our asses off of the situation. Ignacio laid down next to Zee and I kept saying “oh come on, give him a hug….”. Positive evening.
“What time is it?” “Quarter to 10.” “Damn! So we are about to miss the breakfast!”
“Zee are you coming with us?” “No – I cannot eat dirty. I will take a shower.” “We go – we are dirty Europeans” and we went down with Igancio – again couldn’t stop laughing. Especially when we saw all those people at the breakfast. I think we were still a little drunk. And smelly. We had the same t-shirts and bad breaths. People were quite confused and we couldn’t stop laughing. Just our ugly faces – reasonable enough.
Sunday was chilled out. With Ignacio went to Ixelles – nice district of Brussels. Cafeterias, parks, cigarettes, young people. And telling stories. Ignacio is an engineer – chemistry, recycling. He just got a contract to Brussels and stayed in hostel while looking for an apartment. And now comes the crazy stuff. He’s been to Dogubayazit – my favourite place in Turkey. He’s been to Zakho! Crazy small world.
To sum up – I had a fucking nice weekend. :D
Came to my fancy hotel on Sunday evening. Smelled like fish. Shaved, took a bath and switched to the role of the corporate worker again. But maybe this weekend will have some follow-up.
Work – not so good. Starting to be stressful, demanding, not nice. If they don’t kick me out in the next 2 months it means they never will. :-) Anyway – trying to be positive. And I am sick of my hotel. 4th week here, 4th different room. One of the colleagues always asks for the same one. But that’s not a problem. Life in a cage is. But maybe I will try to do something about it.
