So I am back from Poland now.
For these who are interested (i even received two text asking how I am doing, thank you!) I can write you how it was.
Sadly, somehow i did not thought about making pictures.
So I left Glasgow Monday night with one of our drivers. I had set up a connection from Dover almost to Berlin with one of the trucks from Polish company I spoke with on another forum.
Sadly, as it often hapens in our place, we had to do a detour to Plymouth with some urgent delivery, therefore I was unable to catch the Polish truck as he could not wait for me. My workmate dropped me off near Dover truck stop, but there was nothing interesting there, so I just walked down to the ferry terminal. I am amazing how many ■■■■ bottles lies in the ditches, I used to do a lot of hitchiking and I never saw these in Europe, at least not to such degreee. Disgusting.
Finally I arrived to Dover, it was about noon. I went to the terminal and asked how much it cost to travel as a foot passengers. 30 quid. Well, not as bad, but I will try my luck first. I stopped in the wee layby outside Police station, pulled my tacho card over and the first truck stopped. It was Lithuanian guy. He said he is not allowed to carry passengers, but he does not give a ■■■■, as this is his last run, the boss changed the way they pay him so he is now paid per kilometer and he is not happy with it, so after he comes back to lithuania he will change his job. He told me he is going only to Antwerp, and advised me to ask around if anyone is going to Poland. Contrary to popular opinion there were only three or four Polish truckers on the ferry (but maybe because it was just after Easter, so they did not came to the UK yet) and nobody was going any better way for me. So i stayed with the Lithuanian chap. He played me some war movie when we were waiting for a ferry on his laptop, I can’t say what it was, because I can’t read russian, but I could understand enough to keep track of what’s going on. Good fun.
It was very nice guy and we had a nice chat, he was speaking pretty good English. He dropped me out on that Texaco services just before Antwerp. Just before it, I went to the Polish CB channel (it’s 29 for Poles abroad) and asked for a lift, but got no answer. He dropped me off, I walked around asking few people and then just went to put my finger up at the end of the services. A Polish express van was parked there, the guy come up to ask if that’s me that was on the radio. It turned out that after I got out, someone was already asking about me. He told me that he is watching some movie and invited me to his cab for a tea. I thanked for it and told him that I want to catch something before it gets dark. He then offered that he will be calling on CB for some lift for me, what he did, and soon the Polish truck pulled over to pick me up.
The new guy got me to the old border near Venlo. He was very nice gentelman and his truck was just in mint condition, perfectly clean in and out - it was a nice change after that Lithuanian truck, which was a bit scruffy. We had very nice conversation and, again, just before he dropped me off, he called up on CB radio.
In Venlo I met some other Polish hitchhiker, he was there for 8 hours. So when the next truck pulled over for me I spoke with a driver and he took the boy instead of me - the guy was very sleepy and he had a big backpack, I was afraid that if he will be left there, he got asleep (it was about midnight) and someone will mug him, so since the driver offered a lift just to one, I sent him with the truck, just asking to give another call on the radio for me.
I hoped that someone will turn up soon, but sadly nothing like that happened. There was absolutely no traffic on the car park, so since the cafe was shut, I just sat on the bench outside the spedition offices and took my book out. About 3 hours later some truck started its engine, so I walked over to find it being another Lithuanian driver. He agreed to take me to Berlin, but he had to go for Loading to Hamburg first. Actually he offered to take me right to Warsaw, as he was about to head to Moscow and he had two beds in his truck and the upper was not in use, but I told I have to be there fast and that after he will finish his driving time, I will try to get something else.
He moved all his stuff to upper bunk and offered that I will have some sleep, so I had a proper sleep this night.
In Hamburg the German Ordung turned up to be a bit outrated. They could not fit the load on his truck (jumbo wagon and drag on small wheels) so they decided to split the pallets and load it by hands. It was drums, amplifiers and guitars, so it was not so easy due to unusual shapes. It took them several hours (I offered my help, but they declined - the driver is expected only to open the rags, and they do the rest) and when they finished their boss came and told them that they need to take it all out again and count. I could help with translation, as the Germans were speaking English and the Lithuanian guy was speaking some russian, so I was able to communicate with him on basic level.
I thanked him for his help and decided to leave him there and go find something faster. I went to the custom terminal nearby when I asked Polish trucker for a lift. He told me that he can give me a lift to the motorway heading for Berlin. On the way he met some friends, stopped and chatted with them on CB, but nobody was heading for Poland.
When he dropped me out, I was instantly offered a lift by some old, battered mercedes with two young Germans in it. They said that they travel a lot by hithiking so they offered me lift to bigger service area about 70 km down the road. On the way they shared a beer with me and we chatted about Die Toten Hosen (a german punk band) singing songs in Polish - they were keen to know if they pronouncation is good. It is:
We agreed that the Polish version is better than the original:
Just after I got off, I again walked along the parked trucks and was offered a lift to Szczecin by some nice German trucker, but since he was waiting for an ■■■■■■ due to oversize load, he told me that I should try to get something first and only if I fail, I come back to him.
I found some Polish container truck no problem, he was going to Zielona Góra and then Wrocław by the route often choosen by our very own coffeeholic. Except that he was taking some detours from the motorways to avoid the BAG control points. He told me that they target Polish trucks and they stop them and waste their time. He said he had never anything wrong with it, but they always waste at least 45 minutes of his time, so since he is regular on that route, he decided to just avoid their favourite places. It was a brand new Daf XF with a heavy box sitting right on the back on the trailer, and it was raining, so I could feel how crap it is to drive in that configuration.
When we were aproaching Polish border, my Warsaw host was still on the phone asking if I can do something to be there quicker (I was planning to go to WrocÅ‚aw or PoznaÅ„ and stay there overnignt) so we went on CB again and started to look for next transport for me. Someone answered that he can take me if I can change him behind the wheel… I told them that I do can, unless it is an artic. He said “no, it’s only a small bus”.
We stopped on the border and I jumped to the blue VW Transporter - one of these who carry seasonal workers to Holland. He had no paid passengers, so I was able to drive it (otherwise I would need a passenger carrying permit). He was pretty easygoing: “This are the keys, here you have cash for motorway tolls, and I am going to sleep”. And he did as he told me - he just went to the back of the van and went to sleep in second row of the seats (his friend was already sleeping on the back seats). He just warned me that “there will be some lights on the dashboard and the mileage won’t be displayed, the computer went crazy after I clocked out 1 000 000 kms on it”. I was a bit afraid and I was expecting a banger even worse than our work vans, but actually the lights on the dashboard was the only problem - the van was driving perfectly, the engine was very powerful (as I was told later, it was chipped up), brakes were sharp as a knife and there was only very small loose movement on the steering wheel, far under the legal limit. I wish our company vans were driving so good after half of this mileage - so much for great british standards of vehicle maintenance 
We agreed that I will drive him to WrzeÅ›nia, and then he take the wheel again, unless I will be feeling good. Since I had a good sleep in that Lithuanian lorry, I drove as far as to Åowicz when I woken him up, as he mentioned something that he wants to take Warsaw from the side. He just looked on the clock (it was about 3am) and said “forget it, go whenever you need in Warsaw and I will take it from there, there won’t be any traffic problem at this time”. So I had a lift right to the address I needed.
As my Scottish friend joked, on the wave of all these jokes “in soviet russia…” - “In post communist Poland hitchhikers give you a lift” 
Actually it was very nice drive, altough it took me some time to get used to LHD vehicle again.
And that’s my trip.
Since I am writing about driving in Poland, I have to say something here: I have to partially admit that some of you were right: Warsaw drivers are crazy as ■■■■. I am from SE Poland and I am shocked what’s going on on the streets: I was riding a taxi cab in the evening and he was doing 130 km/h on 60 speed limit and when the lights turned red, he just pressed the acceleration pedal.
But this is for sure not normal for Poland - I think this is just Warsaw. I am rarely in Warsaw (I was there only once in my life by car, and it was terrible experience) but Warsaw drivers have opinion of crazy people in the rest of Poland and now I can see that it’s true.
I think this is for following reasons:
- Warsaw is like an Asian city. No bypass, just a wide arteries cutting the town across, several lanes each way - like in Moscow or Phopnyang.
- Warsaw seems to be pretty isolated from the rest of Poland - nobody I know really have any reason to go there, and you can see it on the streets: most of the cars have local number plates while in Wrocław, Poznan, Gdańsk or Kraków cars from other parts of the coutry are common sight. Therefore the people in Warsaw have noone to learn the good standards from.
- There are also rarely any foreigners. I saw only old British car (so I guess Polish guy), one Italian, few Belarussians and two Moldavians. And then the column of american 4x4s on diplomatic number places skipping the queue by driving on the pavement. And they are wondering why noone likes them?
So now I have to admit: if you were in Warsaw I can see why you are appaled by Polish driving standards. But this is not Polish standards, these are Warsaw standards, and me, being Polish, I am also appalled about them (and I had to drive car there for two days).
After Warsaw I found a cheap flight from Bydgoszcz to Glasgow Prestwick and decided to go also to PoznaÅ„ to visit some of my other friends. When I arrived there it was like being back to civilisation…
Flight was crap, Ryanair is crap (or rather: its what you pay for) and I hate flying. I really liked my trucking trip and I think I will consider doing it again if I will have time. I had some offers from Trucknet guys who go to the Europe regularly, and I think I can establish a nice connection by getting to Amsterdam/Brussels and take a Polish train from there, which will cost me 23 euros… Much nicer than flying, of that I am sure 
Thanks again for all lift offers. 
.No surprise there then. 
