Today I was reading Rothko’s “The Artist’s Reality”, and in the chapter “Subject and Subject Matter”, he discusses an idea of a still life and a portrait, how one painter’s still life is more like his or her portrait than say one still life by one artist is to the other artist’s still life and one artist’s portait is to the other’s portrait, even if they are of the same still life and of the same figure. This thought was very powerful to me, how different people could see things differently, and really helped me to get to understanding what Rothko has been saying in his book so far. (I had at times gotten a little lost, but this seemed to really bring many threads together for me.)

It’s a bit of a challenge then, if we all live in the same world and see the same things, how is it some saw it so beautifully and others not?

I was reminded of an old question that I once contemplated many times and now contemplate again: what does it mean to live beautifully? I thought back to all those times I meditated on this subject, back to times when I could let time flow freely and move about with ease, a quieter, more observant time…

To live beautifully, to imagine a daily life filled with curiosity and appreciation, a life where one’s senses are fresh, where one moves freely in this existence full with a joy in simple pleasures, a satisfaction with every breathe…

This past weekend here in Krakow I was feeling a little drained from all the personal work I had been putting in as well as heavy reading, so I had stopped by Empik to purchase with Lisa and friends and while there I decied to purchase an issue of National Geographic magazine. I had never really read National Geographic, though I have had many friends who were very much fans of the magazine. While in the store I took a look and saw that this month’s issue had some articles I thought would be very interesting (one on future power sources a.k.a. alternative energy, and one on the history of and current state of nuclear countries and “the bomb”). I found myself completely engrossed, both with the writing and the photography. In the times I’ve perused National Geographic I’ve always found the photos very beautiful, but I have to say, the experience of the magazine as a whole was completely stunning. Something about this time reading the magazine, I was very much deep into the articles and just blown away by each and every photo. Perhaps the topics which National Geographic generally cover have become more important for me lately, or perhaps it is that I have enjoyed photography and taking photos very much here in Krakow. Either way, I very much enjoyed the magazine, and am looking forward to subscribing to this wonderful treasure when I return home next week. =)

Ever since college I’ve always been one for cafes, having spent many an hour in them, reading books, working away on ideas and what not. In college in Athens, Georgia, I spent a great deal of my time at Joe’s by the 40 Watt until that closed, and after that until I left Athens I spent many hours daily at Blue Sky Coffee (which I was very sad to see was closed the last time I stopped by Athens.). Many of my thoughts on life and music were produced at these two cafes…

In New York and San Francisco both, I have long sought to find a cafe setting which I could really find myself comfortable enough to work away. In New York, the only cafe I really found myself enjoying very much was The Pink Pony, which I seemed to have discovered all too late, only a week before it had switched owners to become a sort of restaurant/cafe. I still enjoy the Pink Pony very much and find myself there usually at least once every time I go to visit New York, but still, it lacked a quality which I have long wanted to find. In San Francisco, Lisa and I will go to a few cafes, the Blue Danube on Clement St and Central Coffee come to mind, but I still find myself not quite comfortable.

Maybe it’s not the cafes though and that I am simply in need of a different setting now for my work…

Exploring Krakow’s cafes has been quite an enjoyable experience, as they truly have some of the finest I’ve been too. Not that the ones which I so enjoy are extremely fancy (though there are certainly those that are), but perhaps it’s that they simply have character, a degree of ambiance to them that’s very inviting.

The Dym Cafe Bar on Tomasza Street is a neat place where one can pick up a coffee and sit for a while uninterrupted. The place has a feeling of being well worn by people, the furniture aged by use, the room a bit smoky. The crowd seems to be very artsy, hipster-ish, but that’s okay. This was the first cafe I really found myself coming to and it reminded me a lot of the coffee shops in Athens.

Lisa and I found Cafe Migrena on Gołębia Street the other day somewhat by accident, looking first for a teahouse which ended up being closed that day. Lucky for us that this place was not a few stores down and that we should have ventured it. The interior had lovely and warm orange walls, some fantastic black and white photography of people at the cafe, and very good music at a nice quiet volume, very comforting. The clerk there was incredibly nice, and the house tea (Herbata Migrena) which I had was an absolutely delicious and smooth fruity tea. A very comfortable little cafe (only four small tables), I found myself wishing very much for such a place in San Francisco.

The last cafe I’d like to mention is Cafe Larousse, also on Tomasza Street. This small cafe (also only four small tables) is very dark inside, the walls are covered with pages from the classic French Larousse Dictionary. The cafe worker there was incredibly nice, the music again very good and also quiet, we found it to be a very nice place to sit and read, having an espresso and slices of very good cheesecake (sernik). We were both amazed at how fluidly the worker there was able to switch between Polish, English, and German, and of course her very warm demeanor.

There are just so many wonderful cafes here. It amazes me that the ones I mentioned above are all within a block’s radius from the main square, all just so fantastic for working. Perhaps I’ll find myself trying to search for a cafe like these in San Francisco, but I have my reservations that I’ll find such a place. If only I had a cafe in San Francisco that I could go and sit at to work away…

This past weekend, Lisa’s very close friend and colleague from school came to visit us in Krakow (she is studying and researching in the Czech Republic). We had a lovely time going around the old town in the sweltering heat, shopping, site seeing, and pleasant eating and conversation. Saturday we had an absolutely wonderful French meal at Cyrano de Bergerac in certainly one of the more beautiful cellars in the city. (That meal was outstanding!)

Sunday morning, before going to the train station, we all enjoyed an incredibly delightful breakfast in the Rynek Główny (the main square). We sat outside at the Cafe Europejska and enjoyed one of the best breakfasts I can remember.

The food was incredibly delicious, with all of the details of every small thing we ate just perfect. Jen and Lisa had the Polish Breakfast and I the Viennese, accompanied with very good coffee. The service was great: we had actually discussed how much we enjoyed the service there, how little they interacted, simply doing their job, but always kept aware if you needed anything. Really as if they wanted to just be off to the side to let you enjoy your meal and conversation, and that was exactly how it was. Our meal was fantastic, our conversations were long and enjoyable.

Sitting outside without any music on, it was delightful how quiet the morning was, with only the occasional sound of horses hooves clicking on the cobblestone and the carriage following behind. I tried to think of breakfasts and brunches out in San Francisco and New York, how rushed meals feel in comparison, how noisy they are, no sense of peacefulness and leisure. It’s a very important thing, I think, to experience this kind of meal experience. It is so incredibly satisfying.