Jacek made me do it…

This one goes out to Chee!

I had a problem uploading pictures yesterday so I’ll try again later. Today we are going to meet Zbigniew’s widow. We’re all a bit nervous. I’m sure that I will have a lot to say later if I can get to a computer. I’m still missing Poland.

We went into Munich briefly yesterday but I came back early and caught up on some much-needed sleep. I tried practicing with a practice mute. Not very fun. I can report that the beer at the Hostel is pretty great. Free pretzels and WWE on the bar TV too. I got the distinct impression that the common denominator of young people in Germany see the US through two lenses: MTV and professional wrestling. That’s something to ponder.

We arrived in Munich last night. I have to say that I was really sad to leave Poland.  I met so many great musicians, the country was beautiful, and I met a lot of people that were close to Zbigniew.  I will have time to post lots of pictures this week because our schedule is much less hectic.  The Hostel we’re staying in is a lot nicer than many hotels I’ve stayed in.  It’s also more expensive (so I heard).  I took us three and a half ours to get our van and get out of the airport last night.  We have some funny stories… wait, I gotta go.  I’ll write more later this afternoon.

There are some screen shots from our filming over at the Passion blog.

Click the link below to check out Erin Greenwell and Ryan Vinson’s cool slide-show!

http://www.passion-themovie.com/blog/

I will make a concerted effort to be more regular with the posts. We’re interviewing Zbigniew’s sister today and then I’m playing one more concert with the great Janusz Muniak. His band is fantastic. Really, really great. After that, we’re off to Warsaw to interview Ursula Dudziak and Thomas Stanko (among others). I can’t wait to tell you all about the Helicon Club. There’s a movie in itself just about that place.

We’re in Krakow! It was about a five-hour drive. Saw some crazy stuff along the way (ref. photo above). The Polish countryside is really beautiful; somewhat reminiscent of Pennsylvania.

Maria (on the left) is our Production Manager in Poland. She is amazing, has an infectious laugh, and is hooking us up in fine style. Kasia (on the right) is our translator. We have done four interviews so far and they wouldn’t have been possible without her. She has also been a great Polish tutor while on the road. I’ll tell you more later about Maria and Kasia’s lives and careers, what they do when we’re not here, etc.

I played at a jam session on Saturday night. As I walked into the club, I saw one of Larry Kohut’s Polish relatives. She switched to electric bass in the next set and some serious rump-smacking ensued!

I just got the word that “Now I Know”, from the new “Live at the Jazz Factory” CD, is going to be featured on a very cool podcast called Bowed Radio.

It will be somewhere in Episode #45 and it will air next Monday, October 15.

By the way, for those of you that haven’t checked out the site in a while, the new CD is featured on the home page in our new, ultra-modern, futuristic Flash player. All of the other pages of the site feature the entire Coffee Achievers discography for your browsing enjoyment.

I just ate two pieces of cheese and a cold cut for breakfast at the Hostel. That’s right, the Hostel. This ain’t no cushy, white-collar movie shoot/tour. We’re keepin’ it real. A fellow Bavarian resident at the Hostel just informed me that there is a child trafficking ring in Europe and the U.S. that is run by doctors an social workers. Evidently, they have the mothers declared insane so that they can sell their children into slavery. I need WAY more coffee (or less?). We’re doing three interviews today and then I’m playing at a jam session at midnight. Unfortunately, I couldn’t sleep past 7AM. It’s going to be a long day. Time to practice…

The Crew: Jacek Plichta, Jeff Hoagland, Erin Greenwell, Vincent Venturella, Janis Vogel, me, Erin Harper, Aneta Norek, Maria Graziewicz

I’m using my crappy camera phone because I lost my nice digital camera four years ago. In this picture, we are eating at a very good vegetarian restaurant in Warsaw called “Vega Bar.” However, over half of us look like the living dead. In your opinion who looks more evil, and why…….?

I thought I would be able to sleep, but I can’t. I don’t know if it’s excitement, anxiety, or the fact that all of the snot from my cold has been pressurized into my Eustachian tubes and I can’t pop my ears at all. We’re slowly descending from 40,000 feet over the south of England and I’ll try to send this when we get to Frankfurt. I saw parts of the Simpson’s movie dubbed in German. Couldn’t take the voices. They definitely don’t capture the tone of the original (Homer sounds too intelligent).

I wonder when I’ll get a chance to play my violin? Getting ready for a big trip like this, as many of you know, seems to demand time and energy from every facet of your life except from the one that is most important to the purpose of the trip itself.

I think our “Vegetarian” group was inadvertently designated as “Vegan” because we’re not getting the delicious-looking Lufthansa cheese. Had to eat a protein bar for breakfast. I tell you what… when I get back to Brooklyn, I’m gonna be pumped up (with beer most likely)!

My in-flight meal as a Limerick:

Side of diced sautéed squash with some spinach,
Over rice, “Hey would you like to finish…
This magnificent roll,
With some beans in a bowl,
By the way, the meantime now is Greenwich.”

Sad. Very sad. We’ll be in Warsaw by dinner time. Can’t wait. Maybe I’ll think of something insightful at the airport. Ahhhhhhhhhh! Relief. My ears just popped

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