Travel in 2020 seems daunting to say the least, with a global pandemic making everyone think twice about traveling anywhere let alone abroad. With confidence so low in travel I decided to take the plunge and took myself off for a short trip to Poland to see what it was really like to travel during these crazy crazy times, and to see if travel over the coming months is really that much different, and should we all start looking at finally traveling again?

Upon arrival at Bristol airport there really were only a couple of distinct differences between travel before coronavirus and during it. This was the now mandatory use of face masks, and the copious amounts of hand sanitiser stations and one way systems that have been put in place to keep the airports as hygienic as possible. The actual process of navigating through the airport has not changed and in fact has been make much easier and quicker with the distinct lack of people around. This meant that as an experience it was the most laid back and efficient journey I have ever encountered. From check in to the gate in less than 15 minutes which you can’t really complain about at all…. So far so good!

The actual entry into Poland was also very straight forward, with two additional forms to fill out. I have included links to both of these which are very easy to complete. There is the Outbound form, which is printed off and filled out before travel, while for way back, an Inbound form is required. The return form is filled out online, with a confirmation sent to your email address upon completion.

Wearing the mask itself felt quite natural after a few minutes as this was required throughout the journey. I had imagined wearing it on the flight itself to be an annoyance but I was accustomed to wearing it by then so it was not an issue at all for me to have on throughout. I may have looked like some sort of football ultra, off on a European bar brawl tour, but I assure you we all looked the same/similar.

Airports such as Krakow (pictured above) are very light and airy so travel at both ends overall felt safe and relaxing. The niggling worries I had going into travel during the pandemic was beginning to fade, giving me hope that the rest of the trip would be no different to travel pre pandemic.

Travelling into a city such as Krakow was no different to how the airport had been, with shops, bars and restaurants now fully open again and social distancing rules in place throughout. The centre was quiet and relaxed, giving me the perfect opportunity to sit in one of the many outdoor restaurants that surround the main square in the old town for a drink or two and take in the amazing architecture that surrounded me in the heart of Krakow.

The streets in the centre of town were even more quiet at night, which gave me the perfect opportunity to walk around and take some shots of the almost empty streets. Shops and bars were still open in areas like the Jewish Quarter, with just a little less queuing and waiting for a table required which was lovely.

After all this walking, I was also able to sample some of the fantastic local cuisine without needing to book a reservation or wait for a table like on my previous visit. This meant some of the more popular hot-spots were easily accessible with no waiting times.

The food in Poland as a whole is a dream, so it was a great relief that all the restaurants were open and still serving their amazing selections of food during my stay. Pierogi, which is a Polish dumpling was of course very much on the menu too. The tasty little balls of goodness are always a favourite with Pierogarnia Krakowiacy in the heart of old town one of the best spots to enjoy them at.

In the Jewish quarter I was able to take in some traditional Jewish cooking too with dinner at Ariel , a restaurant that served up a plethora of traditional Polish and Jewish food in the heart of the Jewish Quarter.

After spending some time in the city, I was excited to see some of the lesser known areas of Poland with its lakes, forests, mountains, and farmland making up large areas of the country.

I travelled about an hour outside Krakow to a more rural and less touristy area, giving me the opportunity to get the drone in the air again. I flew around one of the many lakes that are dotted around the area, stopping to capture a small island, a fisherman and some of the modern walkway designs that had been made along the banks for people to walk on/sit on.

As a huge wildlife fan I spent a lot of time in some of the lesser known places in Poland that offer an abundance of wildlife photo opportunities. I travelled further into the heart of this beautiful part of the country to find out more, and hopefully get some images in the process.

I took some time (about 8 hours) in one such forest to do some macro work with the 100mm F/2.8 which has been unusually underused up until now in 2020. With summer in full bloom here, the forest and meadows was brimming with some of the more overlooked animals Poland has to offer. Perfect for me to get some images of in the summer sun.

In one such meadow clearing on the edge of the forest, I came across a Sand lizard basking on his little log pile. I surprised him the first time so was unable to get a good image of him, but I came back towards the end of the day and honed in on him for the images below. These were on par, if not better than the Lizard images I got in 2019 in wales (see blog post - King Kunta), so I was really happy with the results.

After the success of the lizards, I spent a period of time searching around the meadows and woods for more macro shots to take. Summer is always my favourite time for macro, as every square inch of grass seems to be teeming with interesting species to capture a photo of.

One real treat was when I was told about a White Storks nest in the local area I was staying in, at the top of an old chimney stack. I had only seen one fleetingly fly over my head while in a taxi in Marrakech which has always stuck with me, so I was very keen to see if I could get a photo or two. Upon arrival to the nest I was immediately struck by the sheer size of it. The nest itself can weigh up to a tonne and is quite a sight to behold on its own let alone having four fully grown stalks stood on top of it.

I was able to get fairly close to the nest using the 400mm F/5.6, but still wanted to get the nest in some of the images as well to try and showcase its size.

While Photographing the storks, my eyes were also drawn to some telegraph wires to the right of me where several Barn Swallows were sitting. After the success of the House Martin images I took back in June (see Blog Interior Crocodile Alligator), I was keen to get some images of these too as they sat on the wires above my head.

I found that bringing the colours down in the sky really accentuated the colours on the birds and made them pop more.

I kept the same black and white theme for some starlings that were settling in to roost on some high voltage power lines a little later that day, and again for a corn bunting that was using one of the lines high up above my position to survey the ground below.

I love the minimalist quality black and white photography gives bird photography and it works especially well on bright sunny blue skied days like this one.

My final ‘high wire photo’ was a very unexpected one. I could see it off in the distance but I was unsure what it was exactly. As I got a little closer I was able to see that it was a Shrike or ‘butcher bird’ as it is known to some. This was a bird that took me right back to my childhood because, if like me you were a 90’s child, I’m sure you can remember the harrowing images of the Shrike that killed the poor vole family and stuck them up on thorns in ‘The animals of farthing wood’? - Harrowing to say the least when you are a 6 years old watching a children’s cartoon about animals.

Another chance encounter came about while I was cycling around a lake one hot, sunny afternoon. I stopped near some reed-beds to dip my toes in the lake and cool off a bit when I heard the unmistakable sound of a reed warbler in the reeds directly next to me. I knew the chance of actually getting an image was slim due to how thick the reeds were, but gave it a go anyway. I was having no luck as expected and was about to give up, when a breeze moved through the reeds, clearing a path of sight through to where the bird was perched. For that split second I had my window of opportunity and took the shot. The images that came out were even better than I had expected.

And finally on this whirlwind trip to Poland is the saga of the Black Redstart. With Fewer than 100 breeding pairs in the UK, the Black Redstart was a big surprise for me to see so often while in Poland. I first encountered one while stood outside a local shop as it went about its business across the road from me. I immediately knew it was a bird I had not seen before by its dark body and orange tail, which flicking up and down as it went. It became my mission over the next few days to try and get a decent image of one. As time worse on and my time came to a close on this trip I had still been unable to capture a decent image of one. I awoke early on my last day and took myself off around the local neighbourhood to try and find one…

I was again greeted by fleeting glimpses and missed shots. With frustration growing, I returned to base only to discover across the road, on top of a fence there was one perched. I took my chance and got the shot below of a juvenile Black Redstart watching me from its safe distance…Mission accomplished.

Shortly after taking this image it was time to leave Poland, and get back to the UK. My flight was very similar to the first, with the added extra of a temperature screening upon entry to the airport. If you have a temperature over 37 degrees (basically a fever), you may not be allowed access to the airport. I did think that flying with a fever was not advised before the pandemic let alone now so it did not concern me. I clocked in at a healthy 34 degrees so was good to go.

Much like on the way back I breezed through and back to Bristol without a hitch. I was asked at border control if i had filled out the correct form online (which I had 48 hours earlier) but that was it. Again the face mask was worn at all times until back outside the airport in the not so sunny Bristol air.

With air corridors finally opening up, Poland is a great ‘alternative’ and overlooked destination for either a short city break, or a longer trip into the less explored areas of the country. Looking past the obvious world war two connections and sights that go with them and you have a country brimming with places to go and things to see that deserves more than one visit only two hours away from the UK.

FIN