My longest drive (not golf)

[Taunton Blue Genie]

Drove home from Poland yesterday, 19.5 hours, 1077 miles, 7 countries, 5 stops, 1 Chunnel. Gonna repeat it all going the other way next month!

Polish motorways the best, German services €0.70 for a dump, more roadworks in Germany than UK, why is fuel 60% more here than in Poland. Some great place names Peter shag en, Wankum. Less than 20 cars on the Chunnel train, though customs in less than 1 minute, it takes 2 hours at Heathrow.

Anyway what have I missed besides the Jacks & Pep both losing?

I used to leave near Wankum. By the way, when you say that you haven't had a struggle with the language do you mean that you have mastered Polish or that you have found English speakers wherever you go? And whereabouts are you in Poland? I've been to Poznan, Kłodzko, Zakopane and Krakow. As soon as things open up I will do a slow road trip (i.e. 10/11/12 days or similar and taking in walks along the route) to Berlin via the Romantische Strasse (Nuremburg, Würzburg and Regensburg) and Leipzig, park up in Berlin, return home for a week or 10 days, fly back to Berlin and meander back via Hanover and a few other locations before my former-hometown on the Dutch border and pop into Gent on the route. Hopefully, taking some footy games in en route. I would also ensure that I only speak German to Germans. I may also have different friends join me on different legs of the route.

[Des Parrot]

By the way, when you say that you haven't had a struggle with the language do you mean that you have mastered Polish or that you have found English speakers wherever you go? And whereabouts are you in Poland? I've been to Poznan, Kłodzko, Zakopane and Krakow.

Virtually everyone I've come into contact with has spoken English, fortunately at work it's a prerequisite as it's the language of the (Japanese) company. If the person doesn't speak English then we normally get by with a series of grunts and nods. I can read quite a few words and once you start to understand the structure it helps. I've got no chance with pronunciation though. Rz = J !!! The closest city is Lodz pronounced Wootch (dz = ch and what look like an L is more of a W as the L has a line through it)

My favourite so far is when I went into an Ice Cream shop and the elderly lady behind the counter dragged out what I think was her grand-daughter, who was around 8 or 9 to ask me in English what flavours I wanted.

I'm in a place called Ksawerow, outside Lodz, about 90 minutes SW of Warsaw.

I used to work in Venray NL, not too far from Wankum

[Taunton Blue Genie]

Virtually everyone I've come into contact with has spoken English, fortunately at work it's a prerequisite as it's the language of the (Japanese) company. If the person doesn't speak English then we normally get by with a series of grunts and nods. I can read quite a few words and once you start to understand the structure it helps. I've got no chance with pronunciation though. Rz = J !!! The closest city is Lodz pronounced Wootch (dz = ch and what look like an L is more of a W as the L has a line through it)

My favourite so far is when I went into an Ice Cream shop and the elderly lady behind the counter dragged out what I think was her grand-daughter, who was around 8 or 9 to ask me in English what flavours I wanted.

I'm in a place called Ksawerow, outside Lodz, about 90 minutes SW of Warsaw.

I used to work in Venray NL, not too far from Wankum

I lived in Kevelaer, 25km east of Venray.

[Des Parrot]

I lived in Kevelaer, 25km east of Venray.

Wife’s uncle is buried at Kleve, not far away, shot down on his first flight in 1944

[Taunton Blue Genie]

Wife’s uncle is buried at Kleve, not far away, shot down on his first flight in 1944

I sometimes visit German friends who live in Kleve.

[Tuerto]

I used to leave near Wankum. By the way, when you say that you haven't had a struggle with the language do you mean that you have mastered Polish or that you have found English speakers wherever you go? And whereabouts are you in Poland? I've been to Poznan, Kłodzko, Zakopane and Krakow. As soon as things open up I will do a slow road trip (i.e. 10/11/12 days or similar and taking in walks along the route) to Berlin via the Romantische Strasse (Nuremburg, Würzburg and Regensburg) and Leipzig, park up in Berlin, return home for a week or 10 days, fly back to Berlin and meander back via Hanover and a few other locations before my former-hometown on the Dutch border and pop into Gent on the route. Hopefully, taking some footy games in en route. I would also ensure that I only speak German to Germans. I may also have different friends join me on different legs of the route.

I worked in London With Poles, on and off for eight years. My Polish isn't bad (spoken) and i can understand a bit. When you are forced into a situation, it seems that you have to try and learn new things. I did that, and i can communicate in a basic way with polish people.