Means to an end
Most people tend to associate the place with striking dock workers in the early 1980s. Last time I’d been to Szczecin (Stettin), it was to see the old town and castle. I remember enjoying the experience. This time I came on a mission to sort out 3 things: buy a copy of Ryszard Kapuśćiński’s „Imperium”, buy a sleeping bag and buy some travellers’ cheques. Thus I was exposed to a different side of the city.
The train ride was full of overdressed uni stundents. Denim, too much make up and Britney-style fake tan fluid are a big thing here. According to my way of thinking, if you have bad skin, then such ‘beauty practices’ will only accentuate the fact.
On the main shopping streets, capitalism seems to be burgeoning, with a vast array of things for sale. Outside of that, the city is still pretty grim. More often than not, the plaster upon buildings is somewhere between black and grey, with bricks showing in places. Some buildings are still peppered with bullet holes from WWII. There’s heaps of young guys with shaved heads in tracksuits who obviously have little to do.
I got the book pretty easily. The sleeping bag required a visit to 3 different shops. The travellers’ cheques, involved being told to go to another branch of the bank, where a bimbo woman, with all the airs of doing me a huge favour, called 2 other branches to see if they had any cheques. Result: they had about $200 worth, stashed away in a safe somewhere.
The train ride was full of overdressed uni stundents. Denim, too much make up and Britney-style fake tan fluid are a big thing here. According to my way of thinking, if you have bad skin, then such ‘beauty practices’ will only accentuate the fact.
On the main shopping streets, capitalism seems to be burgeoning, with a vast array of things for sale. Outside of that, the city is still pretty grim. More often than not, the plaster upon buildings is somewhere between black and grey, with bricks showing in places. Some buildings are still peppered with bullet holes from WWII. There’s heaps of young guys with shaved heads in tracksuits who obviously have little to do.
I got the book pretty easily. The sleeping bag required a visit to 3 different shops. The travellers’ cheques, involved being told to go to another branch of the bank, where a bimbo woman, with all the airs of doing me a huge favour, called 2 other branches to see if they had any cheques. Result: they had about $200 worth, stashed away in a safe somewhere.
posted by nekonote1903 at 3:49 am
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