Malbork, Poland to Toruń, Poland

Today’s ride took me through some of Poland’s heartland on a very hot day. I left Malbork early after a cup of coffee and godbyes to Lucas and Kamila, my lovely hosts. Malbork is home to one of the largest Medieval castles in the world, and seeing it with the sun coming up was spectacular. 

 
My bike looks handsome next to it, no?Somewhat less handsome are the communist era apartment buildings around the castle, but I suppose those represent a period worth remembering just as a Prussian castle does. 

 
I hit the road out of town and quickly found myself zipping through small towns, farms and lakes, including this one with a few old men fishing.
 
And this one with a church steeple just visible over the trees.  
The morning riding felt great, with cool temperatures and crisp air, and legs feeling pretty cooperative despite it being my eighth straight day of relatively long distance. All that would change by late afternoon!

  
Here comes the sun.

  
Uwaga! That might just be my favorite word for warning/danger in any language. The word’s sound perfectly expresses the meaning. You wouldn’t need to understand Polish to get it if someone yelled “Uwaga!” at you. There are the sorts of things one has time to mull over on a long bike trip. 

I had second breakfast in a gorgeous little park in Kwidzyn, polishing off the rest of my blini from Kaliningrad (they hooked me up with a big stack of those things), on which I spread honey and sprinkled walnuts. Not too shabby, especially with a nice cup of espresso.

Finally, into the afternoon heat. It got up above 90 today and once again the headwinds were strong. I can’t wait to encounter one of these wind turbines facing opposite my direction of travel.


I arrived in Toruń at around 5 pm hot and exhausted and was miraculously greeted with a cold beer and delicious bread with homemade strawberry jam by my Warmshowers hosts (the last I have scheduled at this point). These stays with hosts the past few nights have been so enjoyable and have really reminded me of the essential warmth and goodness of most people, something I too often forget.

For the most part, other than the driving rains in Latvia, I have had great conditions, but the next few days look like they are going to be really hot. The past two days have been around 85-90 miles each and tomorrow will be another one! Come on legs! 

  

12 thoughts on “Malbork, Poland to Toruń, Poland”

  3. Gabriel! Lovely. I don’t think you overlook the fundamental warmth and kindness of people at all — but I totally appreciate your feelings of graciousness and humility when someone shows you kindness. I think that’s because you see a connection — that’s how you are, too, pal.
    “My bike looks handsome, no?” You are already picking up some quirky vernacular.
    I think it’s time you grow a touring beard, man, or at least some sort of ever-evolving facial hair. Just do it.

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  4. Gabe;
    I have been following your travels and look forward to each posting. Your photos range from gorgeous to quirky and I get a kick out of some of your comments.
    Please remember the pronunciation of those consonant heavy polish words. I will have to learn as Pat and I will be traveling from Malbork to Wroclaw next month and might need one or two.
    Happy traveling!
    Christine Janikowski

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  5. Oh, Gabriel! Such a fantastic journey and amazing photos. I can’t help but notice that you seem to be following the fabled religious path of the wind turbine repairman. And now the heat. Of course, it’s feast or famine, no? Shivering one moment, cursing the rains and then parched and blistered from the sun the next. I thought of you today as I went from serious cranky pants shivering snivel to just loving the world, feeling of the challenge and beauty of the weather. I think it might have been the Oh, Henry! bar I swallowed in one bite but regardless, I thought of your prior post on how quickly the mindframe can swing on the bike. Wishing you frequent fermented refreshing beverages in the coming heat wave. Hugs.

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  7. “…communist era apartment buildings around the castle”. I don’t need to leave my Ballard neighborhood of Seattle to see apartments just like that.

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