Polish Hungarian Brotherhood ...

There is a nice saying about Polish-Hungarian Brotherhood. That the citizens of those two countries are perfect partners for....fighting and drinking. Well, we don't want to analyse that from historical perspective - now, do we?

What we can do now, is to enjoy the beauty of Hungary while doing so, trying to discover all the similarities and "family traits" on our own :)

Together with our great friends from BagIt Poland, we tend to enjoy simple holidays. You know that type, right? It's those times when one day you realise that if another minute will be spend in a particular place, you'll feel miserable. It's then, when you come to thinking that it only takes a car, your best mates and a bunch of positive thinking to have the holidays of your dreams.

Well, we felt like that and that's why 7 of us just left everything behind and went on a trip to Hugarian Heves region - to a little village in the Northern part of the country, called Egerszalók

It's amazing! Because it's simple! :)

Thermal parks with amazingly warm and healing water -
Hungarian best of the best

Wine, wine, wine -
Egerszalok is filled with little, family-owned wine cellars
with fantastic wine

Eger

Our team in Eger

Marzipan museum makes you want to eat it all inside :)

A treat for folklore fans like me

Restaurants have a great selection of amazing meals.
We tried some great ones, like that deer with fried potatos

Truly Polish-like views :)

and fun for all in one of many great swimming pools in Egerszalok

For those of you who managed to scan this post until now, a little something for dessert - that saying I mentioned in the beginning in Polish and Hungarian version:

Enjoy it!
Polish Hungarian Brotherhood

Keep Walking...When You Feel Like You Can't Stop

Why would people like us - young, lazy, city-lovers - like to relax in any other way than lying on a sofa watching TV?

Hey, here's an idea - there are some places, situations and people, that make you want to keep walking like there's no better fun than doing so:

- could your friends you haven't seen for so long
- could be your favorite Bieszczady Mountains in the deep South of Poland, you haven't been to for ages (or any other special place of yours)
- could be those special moments you just feel like you don't want to stop

Why not trying to do things differently for a change and spend some quality time with your Team? We've chosen Bieszczady and it was truly an unforgettable time. Highly recommended! (I mean, don;t you just love the views?) :)

Little stretching before we take off

First rule of good fun - know who you go with and ...were are you going!

Agi and Lukas - just married!

It's amazing how in Bieszczady Mountains the nature remains untouched...


In a role of brave daredevils - Agi and me


Relaxing together after a long walk to the top :)


Two best friends and business partners proudly presenting their
eco bag of BagIt Poland

We deserved it!
Nothing tastes better than a freshly fried fish after coming back to the base

Be a true...tourist for a change! Egypt recap 2010

Do you promise yourself each year - this time I will spend my holidays somewhere amazing and different? Thailand? Borneo? Tanzania? Anywhere, as far as it is original and cool. All the media we watch, all the blogs we read and our more less good friends from work define what "cool" should mean to you.

"Go to X, it's the end of the world, but the views are great, hotels are cheap and there are millions of tourist attractions out there" - they say.

But do you really want to end up like gazillions of tourists in the world - lying by the hotel's swimming pool, sunbathing and drinking beer most of the day just to go back to your home and tell your friends "I've been to this cool and fancy X-city/country"....?

If, like I, you are a true traveler and you'd rather stay home than be just one of those tourist, try to.....well, BE ONE for a change, even if it's just once in a lifetime!

I believe, that a true traveler is eager to discover the world as it is. And, like it or not, it is a tourist-dominated place.

Together with Mario, we have decided to try and be those tourists, lying by a swimming pool all day long :) We went to Egypt with a tour agency to find out how it is to be a tourist not a traveler.

***

Don't get me wrong - I love Egypt - it blew my mind since I was little. At that time I was dreaming about Pharaon, his pyramids, crossing the Sahara Desert on a camel's back.

But nowadays, Egypt became this all-tourist, 5-star hotel, one big resort for people from all over the world who have enough money to come and visit it and buy some "golden" souvenirs on a market, but not enough zest to leave their beautiful hotels and explore the unknown life of true Egypt.

It may sound bitter, but that's just how the life works, where business and money rule.

Anyway, with Mario, we discovered the Egypt a little bit differently. OK, we did stay in 5-star hotel with All-inclusive, but also there were some surprises on the way....

1. Polish President's plane crush - that news has reached us just as we landed in Hurghada and it shadowed are trip since then
2. Volcano's explosion in Iceland - that made us stay in Hurghada a whole week longer than we planned
3. Making friends with Hotel Receptionist - Wayer - took care of us and showed a non-tourist side of Hurghada

Looking at this now, I think it really was an amazing trip and I need to admit it, there even where some moments I felt like the Pharaon is close, watching us when we enter his ancient, mysterious world...

Temple of Hatshepsut in the back and us as tourists :)




Ancient painting - so fresh yet so old...

Monumental columns in Luxor Temple

Obelisk

The entrance to the temple

A Nile River cruise - here by the river, the time has stopped...

Colossi of Memnon

...and back to sunbathing :)

Hurghada is like a never-ending market place


Mario - making some friends

With Wayer, who helped us survive the time
of waiting to go back home

More pictures available in the album on the right hand side. Enjoy!

Guess what's the best New Year's Resoution?

For all you guys up there, who think there is nothing like fulfilled New Year's Resolution, I've got a surprise! - there are plenty and not because someone set them up for some kind of easy-peasies, but because they actually though their resolutions through!!!

So if you still wonder, what's the best New Year's resolution, here are some hints and tips (all worked on me so far!) :)

1) First, take one that concerns your professional side of life -be realistic, while remaining optimistic. :) Mine worked brilliantly - Like most of you, guys, I always wanted to engage myself into something new, a new idea, business or project.

Thanks to my friends, I manged to fulfill all of these criteria. BagIt Poland, is an eco bag business set up by three of 'my boys' from Rzeszów. They now produce and sell 100% eco bags from cotton and jute and I am proud to be helping them to develop that business.

Big opening of BagIt Poland - Rzeszów 2010

at the RemaDays 2010 fairs - BagIt Poland's offer of eco bags

It does not have to involve much of your time daily, but something like that will sure give you a lot of satisfaction and....one fulfilled Resoution!

2) The second one could represent your private area of life. Think of your hobby, beloved sport or something you simply like to do in a free time. Now, this is a good one and guaranteed to be fulfilled!!

Mine was to keep up with a dose of sport in my busy schedule. And, I know you think - "I promised to do that to myself like million times now", but take a good direction here. You need to get fun from it, right?!

So, now, together with Mario, we are scheduling our first ski trip this year (in sunny Italy), then there is swimming pool once a week and fitness classes (that one starts from this Tuesday). And finally, my passion and big love - dance!!!

After more than 2 years of not dancing two times (or more) a week, I will finally be able to do that again! Whoa!!! :) It's thanks to Resovia Saltans' ensemble anniversary, which is due to Novemeber this year. So we are going to practice once a month! Maybe, it's not insanely much, but at least I feel like I fulfilled my another New Year's resolution! :)

Resovia Saltans during one of the performences (Mazur dance)

So, there you go...there are just two New Year's Resolutions, that are achievable by simply anybody. And if you need another one, just for the end, take that one:

SPEND AT LEAST TWO OURS A DAY WITH THOSE YOU LOVE AND AT LEAST 1 HOUR ALONE, JUST BY YOURSELF...after all - there needs to be balance in everything!

Happy New Resolutions!
:)
Yours, Marta
xxx

XXI Century Molecular Kitchen With Wojciech Modest Amaro

One of the adventures everyone of us is taking upon every day is...cooking. Judging from some of my friends and mine experiences, quite frankly it is not the easiest adventures in our lives. It's a lot of messing up, mixing, time management and stress there...

There are, of course the cook books that are suppose to guide us during those experiences and discoveries. And there is a Polish ones to, that our mothers, grandmothers and grand grand mothers commonly used for years.

But modern cuisine is something more than those old granny books. We all see that and we are all eager to bring some freshness and sexiness to our kitchens. That's why programs like "Simply Cook" ("Po prostu gotuj") with Pascal Brodnicki or Jamie Oliver series are so extremely popular. It's because we all search for this perfect recipe there.

The XXI Century Gastronomy by W.M. Amaro*

And here I went, just last night, to a event that has changed my way of thinking of cooking totally. It was a promotion of a book of Wojciech Modest Amaro titled "Kuchnia XXI wieku" (XXI Century Kitchen). Not writing too much about the event itself (it was really nice though), the food was simply spectacular and brilliant.

It's because Wojciech Amaro uses a "molecular kitchen" technique that, simply saying, means using the lab techniques and science in everyday life cooking. So, we have a lot of liquid nitrogen there, fantastic creamy coups in test tubes or spheric Apple raviolis.

More info on molecular gastronomy here:

But I will say no more, just that you should really try (I can't wait to do that and let you know about this) :)

Now, let th dishes say for themselves....

Polish style Duck

Unusual sturgeon

Foie gras

*pictures come from the media materials from the event
The book is aprox. 50 PLN (so I was told), so I think good price for students ;)