A bit of news now from the nautical world, in December last year Natasza Caban completed her solo navigation of the globe. She started sailing as a youngster on a local lake in Utska Poland, by the time she was 22 she was joining crews sailing to Australia and the South Pacific.

On the 27th July 2007 she set off from Honolulu, sailing westwards in the same boat that many other solo circumnavigators have used(David Dicks, Jesse Martin, Don McIntyre, Jessica Watson) – a Sparksman & Stephens 34. For this boat she will be ever grateful to Australian sailor Mike Steward, who sold her the boat. ‘He let me prepare here before I even had the money. He was a first person to gave me a hand believing in my dream and I’m very thankful to him.’

As Natasza gradually made her way around the world, the number of people following her journey increased. Soon not only her family and close friends were aware, but ‘kids in schools, TV and radio, specially in Poland.’

One of the things that has pleased Natasza greatly is the letters that tell her that she has inspired them to fulfill their own dreams. As to her own inspiration, she quotes another Polish sailor Krystyna Chojnowska-Liskiewicz, the first woman to sail around the world solo, Teresa Remiszewska-Damsz, a Polish sailor who took part in a Transatlantic Race in 1972, and Leonid Teliga, the first Pole to circumnavigate the world solo.

If Natasza ever feels the need to sail the world again with just herself and her vibrator nature then I’d happily volunteer to join her.

Poland’s favourite volleyball starlet has shed her clothes for a shoot in Playboy’s Polish edition.

I’ve just included the (relatively) SFW pics here, if you want to see the full set I’ll include a link at the bottom. Enjoy!

Anna Baranska in Playboy

Anna Baranska in Playboy

Full set of Anna Baranska Playboy pics here

I’ve not been following Mam Talent but I usually try catch up with it online. Regular viewers will know of Kasia Popowksa from last year.

She’s not a bad singer but can’t seem to lose the slight Polish accent on the English songs. She seems to be doing well though. Enjoy the pics.

Reports coming soon!

The 25 contestants for Miss Poland 2009 are currently touring Thailand, visiting places such as Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket. I wonder what the overweight Westerners who go there to pick up petite Asian women made of this, seeing as they prefer the Thai look and paying to get laid. 

The Polish girls did a tour of the major tourist attractions and will also be learning Thai cooking, having spa treatments and doing water sports. It is hoped that the press exposure will encourage more Poles to visit Thailand. 

This visit was arranged with the Tourism Authority of Thailand who wish to increase visitors from Poland, in 2008 27,800 Poles visited staying an average 12 days. The majority headed to the (seedy) resort of Pattaya.

Enough of me waffling on… how about some pictures

I’ve been heard about a new Polish restaurant in London but as I’m currently away I’m not able to try it out. When I return in a few weeks I’ll give it a try and let you know what its like but in the meantime I’ll give you the details if you want to check yourself. 

The restaurants name is Polska Chatka (‘Chatka’ translates to ‘Hut’ – think a little wooden house etc) and its based in North Finchley (London N12 – MAP HERE).

I’ve had a browse of the menu and they serve all the traditional Polish favourites such as Pierogi, Kotlet, Golonka and of course Bigos. I’m getting quite hungry browsing the menu so I’ll stop now but its varied with very reasonable prices. 

The Nalesniki i jablkiem i cynamonem (pancake with apple and cinnamon) is tempting me! 2 for £4.00!

Polska Chatka does not have an alcohol licence but you can bring your own, a £1 per head corkage charge applies. 

I’ll put a review up when I’m back from Ukraine but in the meantime here are the contact details, give it a go and let me know what you think! 

Polska Chatka

857 High Road, North Finchley, N12 8PT

Tel: 020 8445 3319

www.polskachatka.com

Been hanging out across the border a bit in the Ukraine, spent 5 days in the lovely city of Kyiv.

Getting In

Those from the UK/USA don’t need a visa to enter the Ukraine although you will need to fill out a an Entry/Exit form which gets stamped by border guards. DO NOT forget to take a pen with you if you travel to the Ukraine as they will not provide you with a pen (even if you ask nicely). 

Complete both parts of the form (Entry and Exit) and hand it over with your passport. The border guard will tear off the entry slip and give you back the exit. Ensure you keep this with you at all times. 

Places to Stay

Hotels are VERY expensive in Kyiv. I checked out prices for the Hyatt and they started at around $500 a night for a basic room. I usually prefer to rent apartments and do my own thing so I found a company, swapped some emails and booked an apartment 2 minutes from Independence Square. 

The cost was $120 a night which was very reasonable. It came with air conditioning, large flat screen TV, wireless internet etc. 

I rented the apartment through Kiev Apartments Lux. They provide a great service and if you are looking for somewhere to stay in Kyiv then I doubt you could find a better company to deal with. They will also inlcude an airport pick up and drop off for $70.00. You might be able to find cheaper but they know exactly where to take you and speak good English. There are many touts at the airport and I wouldn’t want to deal with any of them to be honest. 

Some pics of the apartment:

Stuff to Do

Plenty going on, best bet is to get a guidebook as all the useful info is in there. Plenty of nice pubs around. For expat places and food try O’Briens. Good food, Guinness and English speaking staff. 

Other Thoughts

You really need a Ukrainian or Russian speaker to be able to manage, you’d be able to get by without but it would be a little difficult. The girls are beautiful, more so than any other country I’ve been to. If you want to chase the ladies then hit up some of the nightspots like River Palace.

Stock up on cigarettes and alcohol, I don’t smoke but I was buying cartons of Marlboro for $10 which I’ve sold on to my friends for a nice profit, it pretty much paid for the entire trip! Customs don’t care how many you take out and as long as they are for “personal use” you won’t get any hassle when you get back home so fill up your case! 

I’ll be back again shortly to the Ukraine. If anyone wants any more details or some more info on renting a place, let me know in the comments and I’ll get back to you.

I made a post on the Sea Towers in Gdynia last year whilst they were under construction. The 146m towers are now finished and apartments are available for sale and also to rent, some as holiday lets. 

The Sea Towers complex contain a restaurant, bar, shops, spa and 2 swimming pools, I’ve seen holiday lets from 350zl a night for 2 bed apartments and monthly residential lets from 3000zl.

Some more posts coming soon but for now here are a few photos of Polish girls:

I’ve seen my share of uninspired graffiti in Poland but you occasionally get some talented graffiti artists putting their skills to use as seen below: