Łódź is a pretty cool place. Perhaps too cool. I do believe if Łódź challenged Wrocław to a hipster-off, Łódź would definitely win. But we weren't there for the hipsters or Piotrowska Street. We were there for Miś Uszatek!
If I am truly honest here, I think I enjoyed the Se-ma-for Animation Museum more than anyone who has ever been there, ever. Miś Uszatek was my first Polish teacher and what an adorable teacher at that. I was very happy to see him, his friends, his room, the wallpaper, all of it. I've seen almost all the episodes over the years, and I didn't catch on for ages that all the voices were done by one man. Of course there's more to Se-ma-for than Miś Uszatek.
The Museum tour begins with a stop in the movie theater where you will see a selection of old and new Se-ma-for creations. Then a tour guide, in our case a lovely young lady, tells the visitors all the most interesting things about Se-ma-for past and present. After that, visitors are free to roam around at their leisure. There's so much to say about the museum, but I don't want to spoil it for you so I'll just show a few pictures.
Our trip was a short one, so next we hit Piotrowska, the "mainest" main street in Łódź. We grabbed something to eat, did some sightseeing, hit some shops, and then headed back home.
In reaction to the lack of "Hel" t-shirts or any other Polish souvenirs in Hel, we hit the Pan tu nie stał shop pretty hard - Polish design, made in Łódź, to takie miasto w Polsce. We got 8 stamps in one visit. Is that a lot?
Visit their online shop at www.pantuniestal.com. When I wear my "zołza" shirt, people are so nice to me.
I almost forgot about the Łódź hipsters. They're all so very cool. The ladies, so ladylike yet functional and funky. The men, so dapper and colorful. I felt oh so very plain there in Łódź, but I got in some great people-watching. And about that hipster off? I think it would go something like this:
Łódż, I hope to see you again soon.
7 comments:
Dzieciom się podobało? Oglądały Misia Uszatka?
Polonizujesz się coraz bardziej. Strach się bać co będzie dalej. ;-)
They loved it too, and they're young enough that they weren't embarrassed by my enthusiasm. We have Miś Uszatek on DVD so sometimes it' plays non-stop. They like to talk about the episodes too. All bajki with a moral are good for opening discussions with kids. No, I take that back. Once we watched some crazy anime about a girls' school and their volleyball team. The moral was that if you don't work hard enough, it's perfectly acceptable for your coach to hit you with a stick because you're lazy and you deserve to be punished. After we got over the shock, we certainly discussed that one.
It's interesting you say that about my Polonization. Ladies in my life tend to say that I'm so Polish now, but men in my life say I'm so American. I think that they think I'm aggressive. I'm not aggressive. I'm assertive, and I think assertiveness is one of the character features associated with my nationality. Or maybe because it's because I'm so fond of burgers.
Wychowałam się na Misiu Uszatku :))
Ciekawe, co napisałaś o męźczyznach i swojej asertywności. Czy myślisz, że kobiety są nadal za mało asertywne w Polsce?
Izabela - I don't evaluate women's assertiveness at all. In my relations with women in Poland, the women are normal. - neither assertive nor passive in my opinion. I started thinking about it after receiving, over the years, comments from Polish men of how aggressive I was. Maybe it is because I don't temper my statements with apologies. I don't shift, scoot, or budge if someone is trying to intimidate me by entering my personal space. I walk on the right side of the hall or sidewalk and I will bump into you rather than make myself smaller. I swear. I eat. I drink. I'm a normal person, I think. It's hard for me to see myself as others see me with all the comparative subtlety. They are comparing me to themselves and to the people and women they know. I would say it's a language thing, but I've heard it when communicating in English and in Polish. I'd say it's a gender thing but I've heard it from men...and, well, I haven't heard it from women but occasionally a woman agrees when a man says it. A sign that I truly am aggressive? I am so much more assertive than the Polish norm that I am viewed as aggressive? That Polish woman are passive and think I'm aggressive but will only admit it when someone else brings it up? That Polish women agree with opinions expressed just to keep the conversation going? I have nooooo idea. In different situations it's probably a bit of all these reasons or none of them.
wow... it's the last thing I would expect to hear from you...
From my observation... American, Caucasian women are not aggressive at all... They are politically appropriate. And this is what I'm trying to learn from them ;)
BTW, How are you doing ? How do you feel in Poland? Have you addapted already? What part is the worst for you and what do you like most?
Are you getting ready for Thanksgiving ?
So then it must just be me ;)
I've been here for awhile, so I'm pretty adapted. I came here long enough ago that I understand the changes that are happening in Poland.
What I don't like (but it is not really about Poland) is that we are alone here. Excluding our friends, our little family unit of four is all we've got here. We make it "enough".
I like that Poland is not a gun culture. I'm fed up with the petty theft (but prefer it to getting shot). I love the architecture, new and old.
I like that i can easily pop over to the orchard and buy apples for 1.80 PLN per kilo and chat with the owner. No styrofoam platter, no plastic wrap, no four apples for four dollars.
I don't like the organization of the Polish school day. Kids start and finish at different times each day, and different from each other as well. It drives me crazy.
I don't like the dominance of religion. I don't like the hatred towards foreigners, in Poland and in the USA.
I really used to like that I could buy the same stuff here and there, not important stuff, but you know, my favorite toothpaste or something like that. I changed my mind about that when they opened a Cinnabon in the Market Square. Now I go out of my way to try to support more local products.
I could go on forever...
And about Thanksgiving, we do it every year the Saturday after Thanksgiving, but this year we have guests and some events to attend so we will either postpone it more or forget about it altogether.
And what about you Ms. Papuga? Are you all ready for Thanksgiving? How have you adapted? What do you like and dislike?
Since your post with the lovely door pictures, I have been searching for an over-the-door wreath hanger. No luck in finding one so far.
Fajne zapraszamy też na naszego bloga o pozycjonowaniu stron regionalnie w łodzi :)
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