We took a bus today from Krakow to Zakopane, the heart of Polish ski country in the very southern tip of the country. Think Aspen in Poland. Another one of those “I’m in the Carpathian Mountains?” moments. In the summer it’s a great destination for hiking and breathing cool air; after yesterday’s high 90s, this mid-60s feels really nice. Tomorrow, weather permitting (today has been raining on and off, but tomorrow is supposed to be better), we’re going to hike up into the mountains. It could be fabulous.

Meanwhile, great moments in food. We walked maybe 30 minutes to a highly rated restaurant on Trip Advisor, and it was totally worth it. Among other great items, there was an appetizer sent by the gods if you’re doing the low-carb thing: smoked, fried bacon with smoked, fried cheese. Oh my god.

We’ve had live music with meals recently, too. Intermittently tonight there was traditional Polish music played at loud volumes, and two nights ago there was a wonderful guitar-violin duo playing in our restaurant. The night in between, last night, we went to a concert in a beautiful church in Krakow. Just an hour long, a little Vivaldi, Mozart, and of course (in Poland) Chopin. The orchestra consisted of five people, with a guitar soloist who was pretty impressive.

And lest we forget great moments in cocktails. Last night we decided to try a martini at a nice looking bar. We’ve learned to be specific about what we want. It’s common in this neck of the woods to be very precise about volume – the steak is 250 grams, the shot of vodka is 40 grams. So the martini on the menu was listed as 40 grams of gin, 20 grams of dry vermouth. Well, that 2-1 ratio may be the classic recipe, but we’re more 4-1 types, so we ask for 80 grams of gin to 20 of vermouth. So far so good. I watch him pour, it’s very precise, and he then proceeds to start salting the rim of the martini glass. You gotta watch these people like hawks.

Meanwhile, here are some of my favorite recent pictures. We’ll have more tomorrow from the mountains.

Just outside of Zakopane

One cow at a time

But lots of sheep up here

Musicians at Polish restaurant

Small concert in a church in Krakow

Musicians at dinner in Krakow