I swear, I swear

As pointed up recently in the local media, common usage of foul language has become a plague in Poland. Presence of swear words used in abundance in workplaces, in public areas takes nobody aback. It is no longer a domain of blue-collar-worker males. These days people from all walks of life swear and this no longer is a reason to be ashamed. I cannot deny I am an exception, I do use foul language, at times a lot or even too much, yet I my (lame) excuse is that I have rules.

Much depends on circumstances in which one curses. In a casual conversation, unless in a specific circle of males and the talk is not heard by no one else I see no reason to use foul language. I also detest using it too frequently instead of a comma. When women (with some exceptions of those which also swear and I have palled up with) are around or when I talk to people I am not familiar with I also hold back from swearing. My major principle is to throw curses at a specific situations or behaviours, not against a person, therefore I refrain from insulting people personally.

In which situation do I find swearing acceptable? In anger or impatience to let off steam. For me, in terms of getting irritation off my chest it works perfectly and immediately. To a moderate extent, foul language is tolerable to emphasise some phenomena or describe some events. Funnily enough, I seldom swear behind the wheel (which does not mean I do not get infuriating by other traffic participants), although Poles excel at aggression in their cars which could be a topic for a different post.

In practice 90% of foul language flows from my mouth in the office… This prompts me to smoothly move on to another topic, namely #metoo, but let me leave it off for a separate posting. Not having a good weekend for work-related reasons (fretting rather than toiling away and to avoid confusion, nothing to do with #metoo), I will catch up some time later. Keep on hoping karma always returns.

Global warming

Although the conviction that global warming does exist and is a man-spurred phenomenon is more than prevalent among scientists, there are still single human beings who call this into question, just to mention the president of the USA (he recently begrudgingly confessed he noticed the process of warming, but back in late January 2019 when Chicago was hit by a cold blast, with temperatures down to -31C, he had denied it), or to quote the recent front cover of a PiS-affiliated newspaper (which incidentally does not live up to standards of gullet press).

The opponents of the man-caused global warming claim climate on earth went through phases of warmer and colder periods and what is happening now is just another cycle coming over. In principle they are right in the first part of their assertion, pertaining to history of our planet. They just badly ignore the pace of changes taking place. In the history, process of climate warming was spread over centuries; today we are witnessing it progressing decade and decade, i.e. the climate change is accelerated by the mankind.

To illustrate what is so wrong with the global warming, if anything at all (one of PiS politicians said recently the global warming is good,since water in the Baltic Sea would finally be warmer), imagine the atmosphere is a like a pot of water. When the water is cool, you can see it is smooth, but once you heat it up towards temperature of boiling, you can see particles fizzling around. The same happens on a global level in an ever-warming atmosphere – air moves over more quickly which means more extreme events occur around the world.

To use statistical measures, you may say mean temperatures would generally rise, but because of the “pot-of-boiling-water” phenomena, standard deviations from the mean across the globe and over time will be increasing. Also the frequency of extreme weather will get more intense. In 2019 we had 12 days heat (defined as day-time high above +30C) in Warsaw while the yearly average is 5. If each year actual readouts beat the average, something is wrong with the average (answer: it is derived from 1981-2010 period). Winters will actually get milder, but cold snaps and heavy snowfalls might hit heavily. Droughts will be interspersed with floods, just because of uneven distribution of rainclouds in the atmosphere.

Some side effects might disturbingly work the other way round. Ice melting in the Arctic and cooling down water in Northern Atlantic Ocean might impair the Gulf Stream which mildens the climate in the Western Europe, in a consequence making it harsher. Other side effects work as a self-propelling mechanism. The growing popularity of electricity-consuming air conditioning boosts energy production and consequently emission of greenhouse gases during heat waves. In such sense, each single heat wave gives rise to another one or exacerbates itself.

What to do to halt the global warming? It is untrue only governments are responsible for tackling it. The broadest answer is to consume less. What we consume must be earlier be produced while manufacturing of goods is generally responsible for emission of greenhouse gases. We should teach ourselves not to give in to aggressive consumerism and to buy only things we need to possess, look after them and use them as long as possible rather than replacing them out of whims. This pertains to clothes, footwear, consumer electronics, furniture and personal belongings, but even more to vehicles, the way we use them and how often we change them. I do not encourage you to stop using a car at all, but to give up nearly altogether on short-distance communing (disturbingly, 40% of passengercar journeys in 2014 were shorter than 2 miles, such short distance I last covered by car before Easter when I had to drive to the hypermarket to a big shopping) and switch to public transport where reliable (in big cities absolutely doable). Instead of an SUV changed every five years a compact car with a petrol-fuelled (not diesel!) or hybrid engine replaced every fifteen years. Plus we should vote for politicians who can boast being aware of the problem and active in tackling it. Here hats down to the mayor of Warsaw who is an excellent example of environmental-mindful local governor.

Polish parliamentary election in 2019 - what to expect?

I recall 27 May 2019 as a dejecting morning. The two-percentage-points victory of PiS over Koalicja Europejska instead of narrowing down broadened to seven percentage points. All cards meant to clinch the victory to the united opposition turned out to be stacked up against it. The ruling partly has won the actual poll before the autumnal parliamentary election, due in less than 3 months.

The defeat has taken the wind out of opposition’s sails. Blamestorming lasted short, yet the big anti-PiS coalition has not survived. Differences in terms of agendas were to big to be reconciled and most probably PO has wished to retreat from turning too far left and pushing some of its conservative electorate towards PiS.

PO, Nowoczesna and some little groupings and organisations will go as one bloc. After years of being stuck in the doldrums, they have finally gotten their acts together and presented an agenda (which is moderately leftist-liberal, therefore takes my fancy) and have realised they should speak about real problems, not substitute ones convenient for PiS and mobilising its fearful voters defending conservative values.

Leftist parties go united as another bloc, which seems natural. SLD, Wiosna and Razem might still have to endure some internal squabbles within the coalition, as Robert Biedroń and Adrian Zandberg are in my humble opinion too narcistic to shape up with the formula of wide coalition, each of them would have ambitions to play the first fiddle. Though they do not get my vote, I keep fingers crossed for them and hope they garners seats in the parliament as the second pro-democratic alliance.

PSL, despite the absence of the leftist activists in the PO-led bloc, has finally decided to set up its own coalition. The party has been undercut in its stronghold, i.e. rural areas by PiS. Besides, it has tainted itself by flirting with Kukiz ’15 which cannot be ranked among pro-democratic groupings. Moreover, there is a flank in PSL, namely Waldemar Pawlak and his henchmen, who lean towards PiS. Given all the recent moves, I cannot say I wish them well, but sadly all votes cast for them might go to waste if they do not cross the 8 percent threshold for parliament entry (assuming they are registered as a coalition).

Is PiS doomed to win? Let’s look at the history…

In early 2005 Donald Tusk had no chances to win the race for presidency, but eventually he failed in the run-off narrowly.

In the same year PO was bound to win the parliamentary election, while PiS was predicted to be the runner-up. The outcome was exactly the other way round.

In 2007 term of the parliament was shortened, since PiS was hoping to get full power. Instead, voters turned down Kaczynski’s vision of Poland.

In 2015 Bronisław Komorowski was an odds-on favourite in the presidential election and… lost it.

But in 2011 the situation was akin to what we have today. The ruling PO was not faring well and citizens had plenty of reasons to reject them. Yet PiS, then in the opposition was weak and lacking a proposal for Poles, therefore PO easily won the election with lukewarm water in the tap and despite several scandals and controversies. I believe today we should seek analogies with how things went in 2011.

These days, given the economic situation (i.e. the reckless spending spree of the current government and imminent slowdown), I believe in the long run the best option for Poland would be a victory of PiS, yet without simple majority in the parliament. PiS has to pay the price for its irresponsible fiscal policies and the bill will likely be issued over the next 4 years. On top, without a simple majority, wielding power will not be a bed of roses and would lead to several rotten give-and-takes that would dissuade some of the voters who have been deluded by PiS.

One thing which is certain is that a lot can change over the next weeks. I fear the worst, but hope for the best.

Saska Kępa

While chatting with a friend, I had to admit, with unhidden shame, I had never (except for in transit) been to Saska Kępa. Last Saturday I drove there to catch up a bit and improve my familiarity with districts of Warsaw on the eastern bank of Vistula (I venture there seldom).

I have parked my car (frequent thunderstorms on 13 July between two of which I took the trip were an excuse not to cycle) on the southern edge of Saska Kępa, far from any trees and close enough not to drive unnecessarily and give myself a decent walk. I firstly passed along ul. Paryska beneath Trasa Łazienkowska. The busy artery has been fenced off with sound barriers and the space beneath adapted as car park (comes in handy in case of hail).

I stroll further up ul. Paryska. The climate brings to mind outer districts of Western Europe’s bigger cities. New developments have been mixed with older ones, dating back to even before WW2. Nice area, maybe exceptional on this side of Vistula, but I know several other picturesque venues in the capital.

Ul. Paryska is famous for several restaurants, specialising in various cuisines, placed one next to other. In the foreground, an oversized SUV. I do not regret parking more than a kilometre from there. Climate of the place has not been spoiled by the noise and fumes from my car’s engine.

Here, a different story, a classic Citroen H Van (had to ask the search engine to find out what car I ran across). The model was manufactured between 1947 and 1981, but my search did not help me estimate which year which marvellously restored vehicle was produced in, yet somebody must have put in a lot of effort and money to bring the car back to such condition.

Yet another restaurant. I must say all eateries were not chock full of visitors. I was after lunch and my goal was not eat out. I do not recall seeing any people who looked like tourists, I believe only locals were hanging around on the lazy Saturday afternoon.

The snap taken from the corner of ul. Irlandzka and ul. Saska. These are not the main streets of Saska Kępa, i.e. ul. Paryska, ul. Francuska and ul. Saska which contribute to the climate of the district, but such narrow streets with well-restored houses and lush gardens. A place akin to Stary Mokotów, also full of older houses and shrouded in greenery.

Looking west at Trasa Łazienkowska. I saw the viaduct several times, but had never been on it before. I caught up. The traffic is sparse due to holiday period. As you note, the thoroughfare has a bus lane which has urged several drivers to change their habits and opt for faster form of transport.

I walk back towards the car wandering around the housing estate built in 1960. The climate of the place, especially the hexagonal cobblestone called trylinka in Polish remind of the ugliness of Wrzeciono. This provokes me to bear in mind over the last year much has changed for the better in life. Time to be appreciate it and be thankful for it.

By car? Whose car?

Time for a follow-up to last week’s post in which I have promised to compare a total cost of owning a car to using someone else’s car. In my analysis I assume whenever possible I use a bike or public transport and stick to four-wheel motoring whenever most convenient. My calculations pertain to my driving habits only and do not factor in any psychological or emotional elements, these are just hard numbers.

1. My driving profile, which will serve a base for comparison.

I drive on average 10,000 kilometres per year, of which:

- 4,000 kilometres are long-distance travels around Poland and abroad, they break down into one fortnight-long trip and four weekend (3 days) trips,

- 3,000 kilometres are mid-distance journeys are Warsaw and in the vicinity, each on average 15 kilometres from home and back, around two times a week,

- 3,000 kilometres are business trips around Poland.

2. Total cost of car ownership

The basic component is depreciation. I could claim my 8-year-old car does not lose value much and thus distort the comparison but I won’t. I assume I buy a brand-new compact car for PLN 80,000, I look after it, the car has no accident and I can sell it after 15 years of good service with 150,000 kilometres on the clock for one-tenth of its original value (in 2016 I sold my Megane II after thirteen years and five months for 15% of my father’s Megane IV price). Since I do not intend to get rid of it after a few years, I don’t care about high market value loss in early years; therefore I make a simplifying assumption that the car depreciates linearly.

After I buy the car, I need to pay fees in local transport and motoring office. PLN 180.50 gets amortised into 15 years.

Over the first 7 years I insure the car against theft, self-caused accident and other damages. I believe the risk is not very high, so I choose an insurance plan with the highest deductibles, which gives me insurance premium of 2% of car’s market value which then gets allocated over 15 years. Depreciation schedule for calculation provided by a leasing company (percent of original value after X years):

- year 1: 77%,

- year 2: 65%,

- year 3: 56%,

- year 4: 48%,

- year 5: 41%,

- year 6: 35%.

Good to realise after six years your car is worth little more than 1/3 of which you have paid for it.

Third-party liability insurance, with my highest 60% discount for accident-free track record of driving. PLN 586 is the exact amount of T-P liability premium paid by me in November 2018.

Just in case in take out also ancillary insurance policies, with the latter being required by my employer. Also the actual prices paid by me 8 months ago.

Annual servicing involves a thorough inspection of the car’s condition, changing oil and filters as well as fixing up minor (cost below PLN 100) malfunctions. PLN 700 is very close to actual price paid by me in April 2019 at Renault Dyszkiewicz.

MOT, in Polish a technical inspection confirming a vehicle’s roadworthiness. Over 15 years it has to be done 12 times (after 3^rd, 5^th and each next year), therefore the expense of PLN 114 is averaged out over 15 years.

A brand-new car comes with one set of summer tyres. To drive 150,000 kilometres in Poland you need two sets of summer tyres and two sets of winter tyres. Three sets of tyres to purchase over a vehicle’s life, each setting you back PLN 800 (of reasonable quality, yet a bargain in low season hunted), allocated over 15 years.

The tyres need to be changed twice a year. I have no-frill tyres, but in vehicles with pressure sensors are change is more expensive. My father was charged PLN 118 in April 2019 for such service.

Odds and ends are insignificant expenses, such as car wash, light bulbs, liquid washer, wiper blades, air fresheners, cosmetics, etc. They add up to PLN 200 per year on average.

Planned (due to wear and tear) and unplanned (breakdowns) maintenance and repairs – the most debatable item. How have I arrived at the amount? I have summed up all my expenditures on my previous car (aged between 8 and 13 while I had it) and current car (aged between 5 and 8 while I have had it) and divided by 8 years of car ownership. I have arrived at PLN 1,860 per year and then I multiplied it by 11 and divided by 15 (I assume over first 4 years since driving out of factory the car does not require outlays due to wear and tear and defects are covered by manufacturer’s warranty).

Petrol – I here assume price of 1 litre of petrol is PLN 5.00 and the average petrol consumption is 7 litres per 100 kilometres (if I drive at reasonable speeds beyond town and very rarely get stuck in traffic jams, perfectly doable).

As mentioned at the beginning, I take business trips by private car, therefore I am eligible for mileage allowance of PLN 0.8358 per kilometre which is the money (free of income tax) my car earns for me.

I believe I have included all the costs. Have I forgotten about something?

3. What if I do not own a car, but still need to use a car in the same manner?

With business trips the private car is replaced with a company car borrowed from a workmate. No costs to bear, mileage allowance goes away!

For a longer holiday trip, I need to hire a compact car for a fortnight. I return it 15 days after picking it up and pay a charge of PLN 99 per day, nearly the cheapest rate for a car found via search-and-compare engine.

For the weekend trips, I hire a compact car to return it 3 days 4 times over year after picking it up and I am charged a higher rate of PLN 129 per day.

The rented cars need to filled up. However if I can safely assume my well-looked-after car with carefully run-in engine repays me with lower fuel consumption, a hire car’s engine’s condition would not be that good and it would consume one litre of petrol per 100 kilometres more.

Finally, travels around Warsaw. Long before setting out to write the post, I have made a calculation of how much my “average journey” would cost, had I used Innogy go. I assumed price per minute of driving at PLN 1.19 and price per minute of sitting at PLN 0.19. A journey composed of 25-minutes-drive, 2-hour parking (I cannot finish my journey beyond Warsaw), 25-minutes-drive would set me back over PLN 80, meaning over one year I would spend over PLN 8,000 on local travels. Seeing total lack of cost-effectiveness, I started asking Uber for quotations of 15-kilometre rides in the evenings or over weekends. The average quotations were between PLN 30 and PLN 35 per ride (Uber beats traditional taxis at night and beyond Taxi zone 1), so I assumed the cost of PLN 32 per ride, meaning there-and-back cost is PLN 64, this repeated 100 times a year, which squares with my pattern of local driving roughly twice a week.

Besides, I own a parking space in a garage beneath my flat, which I would own anyway, so I do not include the cost of it, but if I did not have a car, I could sublet it. As I have observed, people seldom appreciate merits of shielding their vehicles from elements of weather and the key factor shaping demand for parking lots in underground garages are problems finding an open-air free-for-all parking lot around. Sadly in my neighbourhood this is not a problem, besides in a nearby building a private investor has bought up several places in the underground garage and is still struggling to find tenants. I believe the maximum price I could get is PLN 140 per month (not a trouble to find a garage in Ursynów for PLN 150 at OLX or Gumtree) and the space would be rented for 11 out of 12 months, besides I pay a flat property rental income tax of 8.5%.

I leave the figures without comments, you should reach the conclusion yourself.

By car? Why?

When choosing a property to buy (I consider a purchase to meet one’s own housing needs) one of primary factors taken into consideration is a location. A prime place to reside in, apart from unmeasurable factors which boil down a spirit of the place and features of a specific dwelling, such as layout, storey, amenities, must be well-located.

Why have I chosen to live a particular part of Ursynów? Not just my fondness of the district and its distinguishing climate, but practical reasons. Needless to say I spend just a fraction of non-sleep time at home, but I get about regularly to specific places.

To work – regular route covered back and forth usually five times a week. My dwelling is just less than a kilometre from the entrance to an underground station, which gives an opportunity to have two short walks, one in the morning, one in the afternoon. The door-to-door journey takes me on average 45 minutes, assuming I march to or from the underground station. If I am in a hurry or carry a laptop and a bag with packed lunches for two consecutive days, two bus lines: 179 and 192 can take me the underground and save my time. The underground trains, unless somebody attempts to commit suicide or leaves unattended luggage, are the most reliable and quick form of public transport in Warsaw. My goal of not being car-dependent in terms of commuting to work has been attained. Since moving in, I drove to work once, to bring a table delivered by a courier to my office. The door-to-door journey in each direction lasted 50 minutes…

To do the grocery shopping – three or four times a week. Lidl, being my primary discount shop where I stock up in basis stuff is less than 100 metres from my door; for no apparent reason some of my neighbours drive there to do the shopping… Biedronka where I reluctantly venture to hunt “second item cheaper” bargains is next to Metro Stokłosy, so I can pop by there on my way from work. Auchan where I shop around once a week is nearly 3 kilometres away and sadly there is no direct bus connection there. I can walk to the shop, but lugging a heavy bag with my spine is a no good idea… I take then 179 bus and change it for 504 near Multikino. Tesco Kabaty is available by 179 bus, yet I dislike the hypermarket, its layout, plus its pricing policy is inferior to Auchan, Lidl and Biedronka...

To visit my parents – once or twice a week, 9 kilometres by car (which is the shortest distance I happen to drive if I sit behind the wheel) or 7 kilometres by bike, weather and circumstances permitting. Close enough to pay them a late afternoon visit, if I don’t feel like putting in calling on them into my weekend agenda and sufficiently close if at emergency (they are getting older so such factors needs to be taken into account). But going to Nowa Iwiczna by public transport means a door-to-door journey no shorter than fifty minutes (compare it to 20 minutes by car in non-peak hours or 25 minutes by bike) and this shortest journey involves a three-kilometre walk through Las Kabacki… I have never tried it and do not intend to try.

To the swimming pool – located roughly a mile from my house, I get there by 504 bus. I laugh at people who drive 2 kilometres to a gym to have some exercise…

I generally do not understand why so many locals drive around Ursynów, especially since the district is nearly constantly jammed because of the ongoing construction of Warsaw’s Southern Bypass. Since moving in I have used the car for mid- and long-distance journeys. The car sits idle on average on 3 out of 4 days (nearly 3,000 kilometres covered over 3 months) and used only when it is far more convenient way of moving around than public transport or a bike.

Would I consider selling the car and switching to car sharing or car rental then? In a week I will present to you a number-backed analysis with detailed assumption which would answer the question whether with my car usage patterns it makes economic sense to own the car. I will compare the total cost of ownership to costs of hiring a car for long-distance journeys a few times a year and switching to car-sharing for mid-distance trips around Warsaw and its suburbs.

The hottest June, ever

May 2019 around the middle of its second decade, stood a chance of being the coldest since 1991. Eventually, thanks to lack of incidences of extreme cold (no frost, +1.1C on 6 May was the coldest moment of the previous month) and after reasonably warm third decade, the mean temperature stood at +13.5C, not much short of the long-term (1981-2010) average of +14.0C.

The first days of June brought the first whiff of proper summer, long awaited after spring deficient in warmth we had got accustomed to in previous years. Day-time highs over the first decade of the month did not reach +30C. The first incidence of heat was recorded on 11 June. The month saw in total 8 days with temperature exceeding +30C (beating the yearly norm by 60%). Over the entire month the temperature did not fall below +12C. The heat waves were interspersed with just warmth…

The hotness reached its climax on 26 day of the month when June and all-time records were broken in several weather stations across Poland. In Warsaw the official meteo station on the fringes of Okęcie airport recorded +35.3C (thus the previous record set on 21 June 2000 of +35.1C was broken). Poland-wide record of +38.0C was also broken on that day, when +38.2C was measured in Radzyń, Wielkopolska. The heat eased off the day before yesterday and yesterday. I have made use of +12.1C dawn-time low yesterday to air out and cool down the dwelling and thanks to this I have enjoyed mere +24C inside, while outside temperature soared again to +35C (precisely it topped at +35.2C)

As I write this post, full-month temperature data lack the last 5 hours, but with a sufficient dose of certainty I might say the temperature averaged out +22.9C, which makes it the hottest June since records began (well ahead of June 1917 whose mean temperature ran at +20.4C) and the third hottest month in Warsaw since records began, after July 2006 (+23.5C) and August 2015 (+23.0C).

The current decade has been abundant in incidences of record-breaking heat and near-misses in that respect in Warsaw…

29 April 2012, +30.4C, when temperature peaked above +30C for the first time in April

8 August 2013, +37.0C, all-time heat record in Warsaw

21 March 2014, +22.4C, short of +23.0C March heat record

1 September 2015, +34.9C, new September heat record set

23 December 2015, +14.4C, short of +15.0C December heat record.

2 November 2018, +19.2C, new November heat record set.

If the global warming (no matter if the mankind has caused or has just contributed to inevitable natural trend) is not halted, heat waves will be more frequent and will last longer, making our lives more miserable… The climate is akin to a pot of water. While it gets hotter it begins to swirl. The same happens to the weather. Anomalous events, such as heat waves, droughts, floods, cold snaps, blizzards will get more frequent. In terms of precipitation and temperatures we will see higher deviations from the mean, weather events will go into different extremes on different continents…

Short-term hope lies in long-term forecasts. July and August are predicted to be colder than June and near long-term average, which gives some hope for a nice warm, yet not sultry summer.

Delfin - book review

The book has become famous for mere one sentence which, if my memory serves me right (after reading the book myself, my copy changes hands and a queue of people waiting their turn to borrow it from is long enough for me to keep a list), can be found in the last paragraph at the bottom of page 239, in which the author mentions in passing Mr Morawiecki (current prime minister) and his wife have adopted two younger of their four children (one of tabloids has highlighted the piece of news which allegedly had been known publicly).

Conspiracy theorists (on whose side I am this time) claim the tabloid’s publication has fortuitously coincided with release of another book (I have also read it), by Tomasz Piątek, Morawiecki i jego tajemnice, which explores and backs by references links between Mr Morawiecki, his father Kornel and several people from Mr Morawiecki’s milieu with… Kremlin. Just like Mr Macierewicz, whose secrets, including ties with the Russia Mr Piątek had discovered, Mr Morawiecki does not feel like commenting on the book (suing for a libel does not come into play, since Mr Piątek brings up facts, ask numerous questions, but does not make affirmative statements).

Returning to Delfin, the author, Piotr Gajdziński, formerly a chief public relations officer of Bank Zachodni WBK (whose CEO Mr Morawiecki was between 2007 and 2015) and a close workmate of the current prime minister, actually washes the dirty linen in public. Shedding light on events from corporate past of Mr Morawiecki which took place more than a decade ago (Mr Gajdziński was fired by Mr Morawiecki in November 2010 for lack of line-toeing submission) does not take my fancy, but the end of familiarising ordinary people with what Mr Morawiecki is like, justifies the means. In this instance I believe the effort of the author has definitely been the lesser of two evils (the bigger would be keeping it to himself).

I will not divulge the content of the book, nor will paint the picture of Mr Morawiecki’s traits. I want you to reach out for the book and find it out yourselves! Cross my heart, to my best knowledge, which goes beyond what is written in the book, the picture painted there is accurate and by no means exaggerated. Those who know my identity realise what I wish to put across…

The transfer of Mr Morawiecki to politics was a great relief to Bank Zachodni WBK. Sadly, at the expense of the entire country. Mr Morawiecki has the right to have his own views (even despite pretending to have been someone else before his shift to politics), yet his traits of character should disqualify his from being a statesman (but make him a perfectly suitable candidate to perform managerial roles in wicked corporations). Each day of his premiership goes to the detriment of Poland not because of his views (which do currently do not square with mine, but did twice when I had chances to talk to him face to face), but because of what he is like.

Back from the recovery

Back in Warsaw, at home from the sanatory. The fortnight lasted quite long, yet I was doing my best to make the most of the pastime.

Friends familiar with the purpose of my journey had been wondering why I had not chosen a less distant destination (especially since long time spent behind the wheel is a hard time for lumbar spine). Firstly, my everlasting fondness for Dolnośląskie region draws me there, secondly, my only family well beyond Warsaw live in Jelenia Góra, who have kept me company for some time.

I also could have chosen a posh resort specialising in therapy, however given I am still rebuilding my savings after my flat purchase and the threat of a surgery (cost of PLN 30,000) and subsequent recovery has not been fended off, I have opted for a state-run sanatory with the full-board stay and three cure sessions per day set me back 175 PLN per night. If you count out three treatments which cost around 75 PLN, the remaining 100 PLN was the price for a single room and three meals a day (turning up to the canteen punctually at 8 a.m., 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. was infuriating to me) which was a cheapie, so I should not complain about the standard of a run-down two-star hotel which was my dwelling for nearly two weeks.

The usual day schedule from Monday to Friday was repeatable: three treatments between breakfast and lunch and then time off. The only weekend was also free of sanatory-based activity.

Not every day after morning treatments and exercises I had enough energy to take trips (some exercises and treatment can be exhausting), but I have done my best to make the most of my presence in South-western corner of Poland. I have not revisited places I had popped by in 2009 and 2013.

To the right, on the last day of May, I drove (without a car I would have gone crazy there) to visit Wodospad Kamieńczyka. I had been advised not to strain myself, so I slowly climbed a mile-long ascent, on the last section quite steep, but the effort was worth it. The waterfall in the seclusive, yet commercialized place is a marvellous venue.

On the next day I took a longer trip to see Zamek Czocha, one of less known attractions of the region, yet with fascinating history. The guided trip around the castle's nooks and crannies (duration 1 hour 20 minutes) is a must if you are in the vicinity of Jelenia Góra.

On Sunday I took my aunt and my niece for an all-day foray to the Rock City in Ardsprach, Czech Republic. The place had been recommended to me by many of my friends and they had been absolutely right. Despite crowds of visitors (most were Poles) and heat (+26C in the afternoon) the excursion was more than enjoyable.

The last destination of an afternoon trip on Wednesday before the check-out was Harrachov in Czech Republic, a winter resort famous for ski-jumping competition. My goal was to behold Mumlavsky Vodospad, literally a murmuring waterfall. Hidden in a forest and on business day in low season not plagued by droves of people. Only a group of Czech pupils were hanging around. I could not make a longer pause because of thunderstorm hanging in the air and threatening to burst out.

On my way back to Warsaw the obligatory stopover was Wrocław (one not-just-in-business visit this year ticked off). I walked around Ostrów Tumski and market square for more that an hour, then headed for an eatery to munch a lunch and set off to Warsaw.

Impressions?

My hopes for a company were dashed soon after the arrival. Average age of a sanatory guest is around 70, maybe except for some soldiers on a three-week ZUS-paid stay who began their day with a tin of beer before breakfast (and nobody bothered to pay attention to their inebriation); not my cup of tea. The very elderly people with their irritating habits can also make a young man’s life a misery.

My general observation is that the entire sanatory system ought to be torn down and built from scratch. In Poland a sanatory is a form of state-subsidised holidays for pensioners rather than form of cure for those in need regardless of age. My ideas for a turnaround are simple.

1. Prevention is better than cure, while sanatoria are focused on curing pain rather than on causes (in my instance, the goal was to prevent a surgery).

2. The system, just like in many other institutions, is based on pretending. If you don’t enforce what they are bound to provide you with, a sanatory will pretend to help you and you will pretend to be helped.

3. The sanatoria and towns where they are located should get focused on treatments only. Today, some parts of the ancillary business such as discotheques contribute to miracles of recovery then patients ill in the morning pull through on their way to the dancefloor.

Yesterday I was at the orthopaedist to have a professional examination of my MRI. I thought I was already on the mend, yet it turns out my spine might require a surgery in a few years, even despite continuous exercising. The vision of getting under a surgeon’s knife works as a first-rate motivation to me to sacrifice twenty to thirty minutes each evening to ward off the worst eventuality…