Over the River and Through the Woods

This weekend Dorotka and I went to visit Babcia, and we had a lovely, if exhausting time. My grandmother just turned 80 years old, which is a little less than twice the combined age of my cousin and I, yet I think she has more energy than both of us combined. What with living through a World War, Cold War, and totalitarian state, she is probably the toughest woman I know. The fact that she still grows most of her own food, keeps her floors scrubbed spotless, and spends the winters sewing only support my claims.

So Friday morning I met Dorotka at Centralny, the main train station, and we bought our tickets and sandwiches and managed to snag window seats on the train. I started reading Life of Pi on the train (thanks Ben!) and really like it so far, but I’ve been warned that the ending is sad. We had a transfer in Olstyn, but didn’t have to wait more than 5 minutes for our train, so it was a good trip.

Ketrzyn, the town that Babcia lives in and that my mom grew up in, is really beautiful. There are a lot of old buildings made of red brick with red tiled roofs. And Ketryn is in the Masury region of Poland, which is the land of a thousand lakes. There is a beautiful, large lake in the center of town, and it was still frozen over from winter. There are other small lakes and streams throughout the town, and as you can see from this view of the field behind Babcia’s flat, there are lots of beautiful fields. I have a thing for hay stacks and farm land, so I think it’s pretty gorgeous.

If there is one truth that can be universally acknowledged about Polish grandmothers, it is that they like to make sure their family is well fed. We spent Friday night cooking and eating dinner. We made nalesnicki, which are Polish crepes filled with ricotta cheese and topped with cream and Babcia’s homemade jams. We made these nalesnicki with woda gasowana (carbonated water) so they were nice and light.

Babcia made Dorotka and I matching aprons, so we looked quite awesome and put together while we were cooking. She made them from the front and back of an old dress. The lady sure knows how to do some impressive clothing reconstruction!

On Saturday we went shopping for an arm chair, followed by a trip to the cemetery and then we came back to the apartment for more cooking. Here we are on the walk back-there is a path that goes from Babcia’s apartment to the town center.

A lot more cooking happened on Saturday, and I will post a recipe for Polish Pickle Soup later. But the real highlight of the weekend was Saturday night when Dorotka and I began poking around the many boxes and drawers full of treasures that my grandma has stored over the years. Babcia got into it herself, and at one point the three of us were all running around her flat trying on fashions that were at least 30 year old, and attempting to determine whether enough skilled tugging and pulling could make these (polyester) riches a.) fit and b.) fashionable. I certainly could have used the shrewd and imaginative eyes of my dear roommates, but I think I was sucessful in distinguishing between crazy awesome and just crazy clothes.

And finally, here is a picture of the best dressed Polish Babcia I have come across in my one month here:

She's cute, right?