I have yet been unable to post any new pictures but hopefully in the next few days I can do so. I have since Tuesday been staying here in Nowy Sanz with Marcin, Milka, and their son Nicodem. You might remember that I met them in the first week staying with Nancy and Wiesieck. I had been invited in that time to come and stay with them and was looking forward to the chance to be here as it is a small town near the Tatra Mountains. Since my arrival I have spent most of my time relaxing and enjoying their company and the chance to once again feel at home in someone else's home. The Polish I think come from the same school as the Irish when it comes to hospitality and their welcoming of outsiders. After a difficult period in Krakow it is wonderful to just relax and enjoy a new place.

On Thursday I went to a nearby village with Milka and Nicodem and we walked for most of the day through the hills around that village. It was a beautiful area and air was as fresh as any in these lungs for quite some time. I have learned as well that on my journey I must balance my time in cities with plenty of time away from them otherwise each city begins to look the same and monuments in those cities become objects to check off having seen in my europe guide. This journey also wouldn't be nearly so meaningful without the many opportunities I have had to build real relationships with people and even if only for a short time to become a part of their lives and them mine. Tomorrow morning we will go together to a village near Zakopane and spend the next to days exploring the Tatras. I'm looking forward to doing some hiking especially in such a beautiful area as this. I was never one for hiking in Arizona because the landscape there did it for me the way that a root canal might. Here on the other hand I am surrounded with grass and trees and wild flowers and the hiking juices have emerged from the depths. I may or may not be able to post while there but if not I will add more before leaving here for Slovakia next week.