Off to Zakopane

After loading up on yet another mega breakfast, it's a quick walk to the bus stop. The #304 drops us at Rondo Matecznego where we cross the street and in a few minutes, catch a Szwagropol coach (20 zł each) to Zakopane. The bus climbs and climbs and after an hour, we can see snow in the distant mountains. The trip takes about two hours to go about 100 km. Once in Zakopane, we walk to the Pensjonat Tuberoza (Pilsudskiego 31) and check in at noon.

The place reminds me of those old small hotels in England with its elegant furnishings.

We immediately went out for lunch and found the Papitar at the bottom of our street. We started with a bowl of soup each: bigos and strogonow ( (8 zł each). Still hungry, we split a plate of pierogis (9 zł) and a piwo (beer 6 zł) of course. We braved the drizzle for a while, just wandering around the town to get a feel for the place. One street is super-touristy with seemingly 1000s of day-trippers but surprisingly, the competition has driven food and drink prices down.

Tourists and view of the Tatra mountains

Sean and his friends

Pulpit in the big church on the main drag

Tourist Trap

Our hotel has a highly-rated restaurant but it's closed today. Another place up the street is also closed until the weekend. It's off-season: too warm to ski; too cold and wet for most hikers. They suggest a couple of places and we end up at Trattoria Adamo, just off the main tourist strip. The atmosphere was spoiled somewhat by four brats treating the place as their playground. We asked to move tables to a quieter spot which helped a little. The food was excellent; one of the best meals we've eaten in Poland. We split a Caesar salad with chicken (16 zł and a plate of penne con fruta del mare, the latter loaded with mussels and a few shrimp (25 zł). Since we're here for six nights, we might try it again and hope for a better atmosphere. Total bill with a half-litre of decent white wine (30 zł)  was 80 zł with the tip ($27 if you've lost track).

Although the double bed has a pair of mattresses, they are new and firm with a negligible gap. We get a solid much-needed nine hours of sleep before heading for breakfast.