Prague to Krakow

I left on the 10:07 train to Krakow via Katowice. Irena made me a huge lunch that was impossible to eat, and like Ruza, gave me a bag full of pernic and other sweet stuff. I ended up sitting next to a Frenchman on the train who was also going to Kracow. We talked off and in French for the whole journey, and it was nice to be able to practice my French a bit. This was also the first train that was completely full, although it emptied out by the time it crossed to border. At the border, my passport was not stamped, which I thought a bit odd, considering it was stamped everywhere else (with the exception of the Budapest-Vienna route). What if I stay too long in the country? Anyway, the hostel I booked in Krakow got rave reviews online, so I was quite curious about it, and a little bit worried, as my solo hostel experiences have been mixed. I got to the hostel (which is very near to the castle), and the guy at reception offered me a cup of tea while checking in. Very nice touch. The hostel is very nice, but there was a severe gender imbalance, with only two girls out of about twenty people staying there. Very strange! I chatted for a while with a Belgian guy, who promoted his the glories of Belgian beer, and explained the European educational system. The hostel also organized an excursion to a club. While I normally would not go to a club, I thought that it would be interesting. We met in the lobby, and the owner of the hostel, Slawek, gave us two shots of vodka and a shot of black absinthe. It burned my mouth, but left me with a warm feeling. Apparently he has to go to Slovakia to buy it. To make a long story short, I went to the club and left very early in the morning. Alcohol is very cheap in Poland. I am quite tired now as I write this.