Zakopane: no rain; no sun

*FLASH* The salt mine tour page has finally been updated with photos *FLASH*

It's cold! The weather report said it was 6º at 8 a.m.; 5º at 10 a.m. Brrrr. Breakfast is great except for the coffee which is barely warm. Fried eggs and bacon along with cereal, several kinds of yogourt, sliced cheese, little packets of cheese, sliced meats, hard-boiled eggs, two kinds of jam, and a basket of bread. We waited till the light rain ended and ventured out for a walk. The first stop was to pick up a trail map at the tourist office for 8 zł. We followed the city map up into the hills until our path disappeared into a soggy pasture.

The last houses before the path ended

Sculpture park at the edge of town

Typical Zakopane House

Mural on the bank depicting executives carrying home their annual bonus

Lunch was at a self-service (samoobsługa) place next to the above bank. The daily special was a bowl of żurek (no egg, very little meat) and a platter of hamburger, mashed potatoes, and sauerkraut for only 14 zł. We're the only tourists. Everyone else is a housewife taking a break from shopping or a worker grabbing a quick lunch. You order and pay at the counter and take your own dirty dishes back when you're done.

Then we discovered a huge cemetery where the graves are slightly above ground and decorated with oil lamps and fresh flowers.

Fancy crypt in the very large cemetery

Literal translation: Tatro City

On the main road

In spite of the big lunch, we need some sugar and stop at a little cukiernia (bakery). Two scrumptious pastries are only 6.7 zł and keep us going for the next few kilometres. The main road is far too busy for enjoyable walking. We cross over the stream and up a steep hill to the road leading to the funicular railway. Then it's back through town for a brief respite before heading out for dinner. We end up at a place with a sports motif after skipping the places with loud live music. Clarisse isn't happy with her warm spicy beer with honey nor with her goulash (which was traditional but not what she expected). My Okocim porter goes down well with my chicken, mushrooms and bacon. The whole lot with an order of fries and tip is 60 zł.

House in town

Another style of house in Zakopane