Tessera
Folgen

Tycjan Chmiel

@tycjanc.bsky.social

Cat slave and Swift landlord based in Szczecin, Poland, one of Europe’s largest population of White-tailed Sea Eagles 🦅 Keen on (urban) wildlife, active travel and Pogoń Szczecin.

5645 Posts753 Follower508 Folgt
Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 3d ago

If you’re in northern Poland and would like a nice day trip to a historic smaller city, Grudiądz is for you 😺 Located on the east bank of the River Vistula, it’s best known for its long row of medieval brick granaries overlooking the river. 🧵 1/4

Founded by the Teutonic Knights in the 13th century, Grudziądz later became an important trading centre within Royal Prussia. Today it combines Gothic architecture, remnants of its medieval castle, and a well-preserved old town with parks and riverside views. The city is also known for its cavalry traditions and its role as a regional industrial and commercial centre. This photo shows the medieval granaries of Grudziądz rising above the grassy banks of the River Vistula, with the church towers and defensive walls making a very distinctive skyline. On the left the reconstructed castle tower rises above the trees.
Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · last wk.

Another of the #ŚląskaSwifts has just fledged, right in front of my nose! I was sitting on my balcony at 9 pm when suddenly I heard a fluttering & a small thud & saw a fledgling lying on the balcony ledge. It had mistimed its flight slightly 🙀 It sat there for a second & then flew away to freedom 😻

Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · last wk.

Our first swiftlet has just fledged! I thought we might get at least one going this evening as we have a lovely full moon and they often go off when it’s a bright night. Fly well, and hope to see you again in a couple of years! 😻😻😻 #ŚląskaSwifts

Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 2w ago

For a brief hour when we were in the eye of the storm, I went out for a walk along the forest path behind our holiday cottage & suddenly there was this European Larch with a ‘Natural Monument’ sign by it. I was very surprised that someone would have thought to recognise it! #ThickTrunkTuesday

A low-angle view looks up into the crown of a very tall European larch, designated in Poland as a Pomnik Przyrody (Natural Monument). This legal status is given to individual trees and other natural features that are considered exceptionally old, large, rare, or otherwise significant, and gives them special protection. The larch’s straight trunk rises high above dense undergrowth before branching into a broad crown of fine, drooping twigs. Mature deciduous trees and dark green conifers surround it, while sunlight filters through the canopy onto the green vegetation below. Wispy white clouds stretch across a bright blue sky overhead. In the foreground, a red wooden sign mounted on a post reads “Pomnik Przyrody – Modrzew Europejski” (“Natural Monument – European Larch”), identifying the protected tree.
Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 2w ago

With all the rain they had in NE Poland recently, a lot of fields turned to ponds and very quickly the ‚Kumaki’ (European Fire-bellied Toads) moved in. We stopped to look at the Storks in the field but quickly noticed the calls of the toads. A proper frog chorus! 😺

Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 2w ago

One thing I enjoy about travelling is the food, and on my last trip I enjoyed the potato offerings in Podlasie, although they did a lot of freshwater fish dishes too. It was all very simple, homemade fare, nothing fancy but freshly made and filling (info in ALT text) 😺

A white plate holding two whole fried freshwater fish (likely roach, płoć), served with boiled potatoes sprinkled with dill and a cabbage-and-carrot salad (surówka), on a dark wooden table.A white plate holding four thick slices of babka ziemniaczana (traditional Polish potato cake), browned and crisp on the outside, topped with sautéed onion and small pieces of bacon. A generous serving of shredded cabbage and carrot salad (surówka) sits alongside. The plate rests on a dark wooden table.A vintage-style advertising poster for Pigwoniada, a quince-based lemonade produced in Podlasie, displayed on the wall of a lakeside café in Suwałki Landscape Park. The poster depicts a European bison standing in a forest, with two bottles of the drink hanging from its horns. One is labelled “z miodem” (with honey) and the other “klasyczna gazowana” (classic sparkling). The slogan at the bottom reads “Moje Podlasie” (“My Podlasie”). I had the sparkling version and it was very tasty, if a little sweet.
Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 2w ago

With all the rain they had in NE Poland recently, a lot of fields turned to ponds and very quickly the ‚Kumaki’ (European Fire-bellied Toads) moved in. We stopped to look at the Storks in the field but quickly noticed the calls of the toads. A proper frog chorus! 😺

Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 3w ago

The Wigry National Park near Suwałki has some very interesting natural and cultural features. It’s post-glacial so some of its lakes (the ones known as ‚Suchary’ (dry) are deep and ‘dead’, with little aquatic life. But they’re beautiful nonetheless 😺 (See ALT text for more info)

A wide panoramic view of Suchar I, a small forest lake in Wigry National Park. Calm, dark water reflects the surrounding mixed forest, with lighter green deciduous trees around the shoreline. In the foreground, dense vegetation almost reaches the water’s edge, leaving only a narrow opening to the lake. The sky is overcast with large grey clouds, creating soft, even light across the landscape. The lake is completely enclosed by woodland, giving it a quiet, secluded atmosphere.An information board beside the Suchar I viewing platform on the Forest Educational Path in Wigry National Park. The board explains that Suchar I is a small forest lake with no inflowing or outflowing streams, formed after the last Ice Age around 12,000 years ago. It describes these lakes as dystrophic, meaning they are nutrient-poor, acidic and rich in humic substances from surrounding peat bogs, giving the water its characteristic dark brown colour. The text explains that a floating peat mat surrounds much of the lake and supports specialised plants including bog-mosses, cranberry, cotton grass, bogbean, round-leaved sundew and marsh Labrador tea. It also notes that fish are scarce or absent because of the acidic water, while dragonflies, beetles, amphibians and European beavers are common; a beaver lodge is located nearby. A cross-section diagram illustrates the peat bog and lake, and a column of botanical drawings identifies plant species visible from the viewing platform. The board also includes a photograph of the nearby beaver lodge.Several traditional flat-bottomed wooden boats are moored alongside a simple wooden jetty on the sheltered edge of Lake Wigry. Tall reeds surround the shoreline, while calm water reflects a cloudy summer sky and the overhanging branches of a silver birch.A panoramic view across the Long Lake Wigry (Jezioro Długie Wigierskie) under dramatic dark-grey storm clouds. Water lilies and tall reeds fill the shallow foreground, while the open lake stretches towards wooded shores and small forested peninsulas in the distance. The still water reflects the changing sky, creating a calm but atmospheric scene.
Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 3w ago

This summer I went out east to the borderlands with Lithuania to experience the peace & quiet of #Podlasie, #Poland. We stayed in a place called Cisowe Wzgórze in the village of Rowele where there were cute little holiday cottages to rent. Very charming, as you can see, and also very peaceful 😺

A modern dark timber cottage with a steep gabled roof is partly hidden by dense shrubs and climbing plants. Two large picture windows overlook a wooden deck, with a light-coloured shade sail stretched between the upper walls. A white chimney rises above the roof, and the cottage is almost entirely enclosed by mature trees and leafy vegetation, creating a private woodland setting full of birdsong. A traditional whitewashed cottage with a steep wood-tiled roof and bright blue shutters sits behind a wide lawn. Flower beds filled with yellow and pink blooms frame the front of the house, while birch and evergreen trees surround the garden. Dark, heavy clouds overhead contrast with the colourful planting and the light-coloured walls.A single-storey traditional dark timber cottage with green wooden shutters and a wooden tiled roof stands beneath large mature apple trees laden with fruit. A rustic wooden covered porch shelters the central entrance, while shrubs and flowering plants line the front of the house. The cottage is surrounded by a lawn and enclosed by mature trees, giving it a secluded, shaded setting.
Jan Rosenow@janrosenow.bsky.social · 3w ago

Two-thirds of global energy is wasted, mostly as combustion heat. Electrification gets rid of most of that waste rather than replacing it. From my keynote at the Eurelectric PowerSummit.

Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 3w ago

In the first (and probably last, tbf 😹) of my series on ‘Polish isn’t as bad as you think (honest!)’, here’s a simple way to show you that you can at least read their improbable-looking consonant clusters 😸 How hard can it be?!

A small gift shop called Gadżet-Szop located in a renovated single-storey yellow building with a red tiled roof. A large sign above the shopfront is flanked by three display windows advertising the shop’s opening. A white car is parked on the cobbled street outside in front of the shop. The entrance on the left has a freestanding signboard and a rose-gold balloon in front of the door, giving the shop a welcoming appearance.
Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 3w ago

For #PostBoxSaturday here are the traditional and latest versions of the idea, in the village of Rutka-Tartak in Podlasie, Poland. The parcel machines have taken us by storm and there’s now one on every corner, either run by the PO or by private operators like InPost 😺

A small red Polish post box stands on a metal stick on grass verge outside the post office in the village of Rutka-Tartak, Podlaskie, Poland. Behind it is a white Pocztex parcel locker (Automat Paczkowy, APM) with rows of locker doors, a touchscreen, and card reader, enclosed by a metal fence. The cream-coloured two-storey post office building, which doubles as a private house, displays the red Poczta Polska sign above the entrance, with the Polish coat of arms mounted nearby. Residential houses and an overcast sky complete the rural village setting.
Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 3w ago

Well that was a rather marvellous performance by the Spanish football team, wasn’t it? I should have expected it, but I was seriously impressed with how they dominated every aspect of that game. ¡Enhorabuena! Et toutes mes condoléances aux Français. Vous avez fait un superbe tournoi.

Tycjan Chmiel@tycjanc.bsky.social · 3w ago

This week have been staying in Stork Village (that’s not its official name - there were just a lot about!). As we left, lots of the youngsters decided to put on a show of flying and landing practice 😺 They’ll be off on their travels before long. Good luck to them all 😻