What I love about Polish culture is that it is so unselfish e.g. on Xmas eve which is the big celebration, tradition has it you lay an extra place and put a candle in the window lest someone is lost in the snow so they can enjoy Xmas Eve with you. I define hospitality as sitting 8 around a table for 4 happily. I was really sad when I heard a friend spent Xmas alone because when he asked his sister to join them, she said he hadn't given enough notice. Needless to say they weren't Polish.
I was thinking how much I'd like to do a kulig again. "There were a lot of festivity during the carnival in Poland - feasts, balls, weddings, masquerades and hunting. One of the colorful customs during this time is a festivity called Kulig. It originated with the gentry, but was practiced to different degrees by most of the population. The closest neighbors arranged the sleigh ride at night, visiting other homes. The suprised host had to receive the unexpected guests with everything in the cellar and pantry, after which he joined the party, which set out for the next house. At each house there was not only feasting, but dancing as well. Men and women, wrapped in furs, went on sleigh; the servants on horseback holding lighted torches. It was an unusually colorful and noisy sight, where intoxicated and merry men fired shots to just for fun of it." (Source: www.polstore.com/html/kulig.html)
I have only been on one kulig but it was brilliant. I went on a Polish holiday by myself which included 5 days over the New Year in the mountains adjacent to the Eastern border. It was so much fun.
The Polish countryside has some weird trippy features by the way - now you are going to know I am crazy but twice I have experienced a weird time warp phenomena but only in woods in Poland and two different sets. The woods are alive and magical. No I wasn't eating any mushrooms either. They're the kind of tales you tell around a camp fire. Will have to blog about those too.
Back to the kulig I went on or I would have felt the need to tell you a host of stories. The local farmer brought round his horses and cart. Wheels are replaced with skis and seats are planks of wood covered with hay for upholstery and then blankets. You climb on and weave your way through snowy countryside drinking vodka to keep warm and being taught Poland's dirtiest songs.
One I remember goes something like:
Can a normal fish ravage a whale?
Chorus:
Of course, why not
He needs it too
4 times times 2
8 times one by one
And in the morning again
Can you make a baby with a healthy girl in a bath?
Chorus
Rude rude Poles. Check out my facebook videos for rude games played at Polish weddings. A favourite game at New Years is taking a girl and boy and two sleeping bags zipped together. They stand inside and the challenge is to come out wearing each others clothes.
So the kulig. You take it in turns to ride on the sledge at the back. It's really good fun. Then you come back to toast sausages on a massive open fire. Usually I hate New Years Eve and find it an anticlimax but the two mountain ones have been great and the one last year in Luxor was awesome too. The hotel put on a pirate theme and the entertainment and food was awesome. Luxor was wonderful and I'd go back several times which is rare for me to say about a holiday destination. In fact dad wants to live somewhere with a better climate so I am getting him to check out Luxor.
I made a friend at the Polish mountain one - a waiter who said he was psychic. I tested him by asking questions about me and he got all of them right. He was the one who told me I'd pop my clogs at 46. He some freaky stuff indeed and in the end scared me a bit. One funny thing was that has asked if I'd like to accompany him on a walk to get more vodka. So we set off at 11pm and I was thinking to some late night shop but no we were knocking on doors in the village asking if they had any vodka.
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