Hueco Tanks

When i got to Hueco on the 30th of December, i was told it had snowed!

I didn't believe it!

But it was true and the first two days there was snow on the ground and some top outs were harder due to the ice on them.

Hueco in the snow

31st - I went to East Spur on the first day. Warming up was quite the challenge but once warm, and if you kept moving, you stayed warm. After warming up, I went over to Glass Roof to try it for a bit. I figured out the bottom part pretty fast, and then tried the last few moves. The last one is a pain in the butt because you put your left foot on a glassy foot. It pops off every time you try to make the move to the last hold. I tried that move several times, and I wasn't able to stick it. I called it good, and i hope to get back to it. We then moved on to the tip of the spur where Daniel tried a project. I brought my sleeping bag out, so it wasn't too cold just sitting around.

Hueco Tanks

1st - Went out to East. I didn't get out there till 2pm, so it wasn't too full of a day. But i tried Crimpin Crist - so sharp. Did a few moves on it, and it's pretty fun actually. Then we went over to Full Service. I tried a few moves on that, but couldn't make to many moves. Maybe another trip.

Sunset

2nd - Went to East again. This time with my old climbing team. Lots of fun. I tried 10-10. Did all the moves and linked it into two sections. I was too tired to try it again. Later on in the day we headed over to Julio and Me, where I refigured out some of the beta and Faus figured out some other beta. We put it together and it made the problem work. We both tried it and worked it. It should go down next time.

3rd - I took a rest day. I hadn't climbed in two weeks prior to coming to Hueco, so my body and skin are taking a beating. For my rest day activity I decided to walk to the Park from the Ranch. It took me 1 hour and 45 minutes. Once there, I watched the video to get my north mountain pass. And got onto North and hiked around a bit. It was a good rest day.

From my rest day walk

4th - Isabelle and I got onto a volunteer tour. And we headed on over to East. We first stopped at Dragonfly. Where I gave the Low to Dragonfly a few tried. I felt really close. We then went to Julio and Me, where both Faus and I got to the big throw move and both would hit the arete. So close. On my last try, I punctured a hole in my finger. A mini split. It's the first one ever in my climbing career. I was so psyched, but also kinda bummed. We then went over to 10-10. On my first try I got pretty far on it. And every try after that just got worse and worse, till I couldn't even figure out the first move again. So tired. Maybe on another day.

My finger

Today - taking another rest day. My skin hurts. Body is sore. I got two more days left in Hueco after this. I plan to head back to Glass Roof and 10-10. Hopefully they go down. Psyched!

Old City - Stare Miasto

We went to my grandma’s office because they were having a small Christmas gathering. It was a lot of fun, laughter and food. We had some vodka as well, people started singing Christmas carols. More laughter. A great time!

We then went to an old part of town. The city put up lights all over the place. It was nicely lit up. Took some pictures of it all. Really pretty!

Palac Kultury - a gift build by the Russian 1955

Sw. Krzyza

Grob Nieznanego Zolnierza - grave of the unknown solider

Fontanna na Krakowskim Przedmiesciu

Zamek Krolewski - King's Castle

The next day we went to the health club again and workout some more. I did a small workout.

• 5 minutes running
• 25 pull ups
• 5 minutes running
• 50 push ups
• 5 minutes running
• 50 sit ups/crunches
• 5 minutes running
• stretched out A LOT

When I got home I was so tired that I took an hour nap. After that we went back to where we had gone the night before, but this time during the day so that I could take more pictures of the buildings. We went to the “Stare Miasto” (Old City). It’s where the King’s Castle is and a bunch of old buildings. So pretty, I wish I could have seen it back in the day, when King’s used to live there.

Barbakan

Zamek Królewski

Zamek Królewski

Pomnik Małego Powstańca

Kamienica na Starym Miescie

Recipe - Nalesniki (really thin pancakes)

• 2 1/2 cups of flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup of milk
• 2 1/4 cups of water
• pinch of salt

Flour

Flour and eggs

Add milk and water

Mix well

• Put oil on the frying pan, but not a lot. You have to figure out how much you need to pour of the batter so that the whole frying pan has a thin layer of the batter. The first one will not be perfect!
  

Pour batter onto frying pan

Let one side fry some until you can make it slide around by moving the frying pan

Flip it over and fry the other side - doesn't take more than 2 to 3 minutes to make one

Set them out on a plate

These ones have meat in them, but you can put nutella, jam, white polish cheese (still trying to find the name of it)

For the meat:

• Boil chicken with a one or two carrots
  
• use a mincing machine for the chicken and carrots
  
• add salt and pepper for taste
• fry it up on a frying pan

More about Poland

Monday morning we woke up at 6am and got ready to go to the health club. my grandma has been going at least two to three times a week. So, to not break her routine I went with her. Besides the fact that I need to get a good ass kicking.

Rob had given be a workout to do, but I couldn't do it because my knee was really hurting while doing squats. I decided to instead do some other things:

• On the oliptical machine I ran 5km in just under 11 minutes
• Did a workout set about 3 or 4 times where I did the following

1. 10 pull ups
2. 15 leg lifts
3. 10 push ups
4. 15 backward sit ups

• I did a bunch of abs on different machines
• I jumped roped for about 5 to 10 minutes
• I finished up with a pull up pyramid starting at 1 going to 10 and back down to 1

Man I feel wrecked. I also stretched out some and will do more stretching throughout the day.

My grandma and I

My grandma and I went shopping yet again, at another mall. We didn't get much. But we did a lot of walking and once we left the mall we did some sight seeing. Saw some old buildings and a few churches, all really pretty. Also saw the hospital where my mom was born. And we passed by the zoo. We headed back home after that and made some food.

Sw. Floriana Church

Czterech Spiacych Trzech Walczacych (4 asleep 3 fighting)

Old buildings

Cerkiew Prawoslawna

Grandpas house

I went to my grandpas today. I hung out there for the whole day. I also asked him a few questions about my family tree, since my grandma didn't know the answer to all my questions. He helped me fill in some few empty spots but I still have a few left.

Grandpa

My grandpa has a lot of sport channels, so we were watching the Winter Games. There was a polish ski jumper that got third place, Adam Malysz. There were two more polish guys that made it in the top 10. We also watched the cross country skiinga nd swimming. A new american swimmer won two gold metals while I was watching, but has won many more at the event.

My grandpa and his wife

And then we ate some more. And they kept handing me food, almost every 5 minutes I was asked if I wanted food. It was hard to keep saying no, finally I just said that I can't eat that much because I'm trying to stay in shape for a future climbing competition, which is true.

My grandpa and I

My grandpa was interested in climbing and how the competitions work. He, like everyone, asked if it was based on how fast you climb up the wall. I told him that there was a speed climbing event, but that there was also sport climbing and bouldering. I started to explain it all but he just wasn't understanding it.

Zuzia, my grandpa's dog

He gave me a scenario, what if three people all get to the top of all the climbs in the competition. How do you figure out who wins. So I said that it barely ever happens that two people climb all the climbs, but if they do I think that there is a super final. He didn't like that answer, and we talked and argued about it for about an hour. EPIC!

I have decided that when I get older, about 65 or so, I will travel. I will either buy a caravan and travel around the US, and hit up all the national parks, all the national land marks, everything or move to Europe and just travel around to all the famous places and tourist sports in Europe. Better yet, I'll do both. I got start saving up for this now!

Lots of eating not enough working out

Leaving my grandma's apartment, we are welcomed by even more snow. We were heading yet again to do some shopping.

Cars parked infront of my grandma's apartment

We took the metro to get to where we needed to go. We were going to the last stop on the metro called kabaty. Right outside the metro stop there is a big store, similar to Walmart, but it's named Tesco.

Metro station by my grandma's place

My grandma for some reason can't stand stores like that so it was kind of epic because she wanted to leave really fast and made it hard to get around. It's big but it's not as big as Walmart, so it is very crowded so it was hard to follow my grandma (who didn't have a cart and was walking really fast) and I had a cart.

Tesco

We ended buy a good amount of stuff, but we had to take the Metro back home, meaning we had to carry all of the stuff back home. We also bought a Christmas tree, off the side of th road. There are so many random places where people are selling freshly cut Christmas trees. We got a pretty small one, but it's big enough for us. It'a about three feet tall.

Grandma

I've been here two days and havn't worked out. I've done some abs and have been stretching every night, but I need to do more. So i'm going to start tonight.

Rob sent me a few work outs to do, since I don't have a pull up bar, I changed one of the them up a little bit. I did 15 minutes of Cindy's which are usually:

• 5 pull ups
• 10 push ups
• 15 air squats

You do as many sets as you can in that time limit
Instead, I did the following:

• 10 push ups
• 15 air squats
• 20 crunches

I feel so out of shape - I don't know how I will survive!

First days in Poland

not much has changed here in poland
everything looks the same and feels the same
there are a few more building up
a new car wash built by my grandma's place

it is pretty cold out through
this morning it was -10C so about 14F
the wind was blowing a little making it a bit colder
but we still headed into town
my grandma loves to buy me stuff so i let her
she got be an awesome warm black jacket

i'm still a little bit jet legged
so i'll probablly be going to bed early today as well
i forgot to take my camera with me today
but i'll take it with tomorrow and take some pics to put on here
i haven't been able to figure out the wireless here yet,
i don't think my grandma has it,
so maybe i'll ask the neighbors and see if i could get their password