Friday creatures

If someone says it's not worth trying to save a seagull,
'cause it's just a pest, like a rat, or a mouse,
I'd say, I like rats.

*

Below, Bron having a morning kip on my husband's lap; a clever bumblebee dozing beneath an anigozanthos; the young seagull I tried to save, in vain; our latest coffee spot find; sunset at the beach (Fred's legs); Little Mary relaxing after a garden adventure; evening walk at the beach.

Peaks and politics

The past week and a half has been rather busy and full of all sorts of emotions. Fred and I paid a visit to my parents, who live down in Lower Silesia. We also stopped in to see Fred’s aunt and her husband in the Opole Voivodeship, and caught up with a good friend of ours who's only recently moved to Waldenburg (we spent some valuable time with her and her three rats).

In the middle of it all, we had hoped to get a bit of hiking in – and we did! Last Tuesday, we managed to wander through the highest peak of the Table Mountains, Szczeliniec Wielki. It’s a marvellous spot, and we were lucky to catch a few hours of fairly decent weather.

The next day, we took a stroll through Waldenburg’s King John III Sobieski Park, and of course we climbed the observation tower, which is known for its panoramic views of the town. After saying goodbye to our Waldenburg friends, on the way back to my family home, we visited The Holy Trinity Church of Peace in Świdnica, the biggest wooden Baroque church in Europe.

By Saturday, we were heading back home to Dublin, keen to cast our votes in the presidential election (the flight itself was a bit rough).

Then Monday came, and brought bad news with it: the nationalists had won. It’s disheartening how many controversial politicians win on the back of aggressive, conservative rhetoric alone. Nawrocki, the new Polish president, seems cut from the same cloth as the Orange Man over in the States – a shady character, voted in mostly because religious talk still holds sway over people living in fear. Have nothing to be ashamed of anyway, I didn't vote for him, but still ...

Below, the first morning in my family home and my late grandma's flat window seen from the garden; a cat idling outside our favourite coffee shop; one of my parents' cats, blind Niunia; walks with my Mum and husband; me hiking through Szczeliniec; one of the Waldenburg's mosaics; the Waldenburg boys; friend's recommendation; the Holy Trinity Church of Peace in Świdnica; my pork pie, my folks.

Every day is a gift: a disorganised reflection

On Monday morning, while I was waiting at the bus stop, I noticed a flurry of feathers drifting through the air on the opposite side of the road. A few birds, mostly starlings and sparrows, were gathering them one by one, very diligently. The owner was, unfortunately, deceased. A wood pigeon, I assume (I saw another nearby, collecting twigs and swooping dangerously low over the street). Yes, that's it. Life is dangerous. 

On Wednesday, we came back from town to our village. I slept for about ten hours, just couldn't help myself.

Thursday and Friday were a bit busier at work – nothing major, but compared to the previous two weeks, I was very efficient. April claim they call it. Almost know what I'm doing. 

Since my last post, only good things have happened to us, but the same can't be said for our neighbours. One of them died on Tuesday – a good woman who loved our Richard, and who, unfortunately, also loved to smoke, even with her heart issues. And the cat I was minding in February is at the end of her life. She might be put down tomorrow. 

Below, Saturday's very unusual supper of mine, a pizza from Tony's; Sunday's meeting with a friend; a glimpse from Tuesday evening's walk with the Dog; a cute, knitted arrow pointing the way to my husband's workplace and a dead bumblebee found during the same Thursday walk at the outskirts of Droichead Átha.

Dublin zoo

What an absolutely splendid day. I felt much better than yesterday, though sleep was still rather elusive. The weather was lush, and we decided to make good use of it. I left Fred to decide for himself where he fancied taking me. Dublin Zoo, he said. We sauntered around for three hours. I’m not massively into the whole wild-animals-in-captivity thing, but the walk was really enjoyable and I'd count the whole escapade as a lovely way to spend the afternoon. Plus, we'd taken great care to style our outfits properly for the occasion (btw, Fred gave me a present: a black and white square scarf printed with moths, made of silk, by All Saints).

What I love most about this place is how green it is, with plenty of trees, and how spacious most of the enclosures are – the animals can actually hide from visitors if they want to, which in my opinion is exactly how it should be.

After the visit, we devoured pizzas at Milano in Blanchardstown, barely chatting (we didn't realise how hungry we were).

Below, red panda tucked away in a tree, my favourite place: the giraffes enclosure next to the rhinoceros (not visible in the photo), the comparison between humans and the western lowland gorillas, and their "island" in the last photo (there's one gorilla in the background, hardly visible, with its back to me).