Nail-biting walk

Waiting for the results to come in. Trump's declared victory. Time for a walk, catch the sunset, detach myself from the news. An hour's daylight before, an hour's walk home in the dark - two hours, 12,000 paces. Below: W-wa Jeziorki station, southbound ('down') platform. The northbound ('up') platform is directly behind me. On the horizon, the Warsaw skyline; it's been over a month since I last ventured into town.

The main part of today's journey is along ul. Dawidowska/ul. Starynkiewicza; the first part is in Zamienie and after crossing into Dawidy Bankowe continues on to Dawidy. Over 2km long, the road runs dead straight. To the right, the fields which are now being carved up by the S7 extension. To the left, a whole lot of new and uncoordinated housing developments running off Starynkiewicza at right angles, generally of between ten and 20 new houses. Below: at the moment a rutted, muddy track with wasteland to one side, within two years another such estate. But what a sunset!

Below: ul. Jana Miklaszewskiego, the road from Dawidy Bankowe to Łady (pron. 'Wuddy'). On the horizon the church of St Matthew the Evangelist, Łady.

Below: The time is right for racing in the streets. The recently-rerouted 715 connects Ursynów with Aleja Krakowska via numerous suburban villages; now it runs down ul. Karczunkowska. However, it's nowhere near as convenient as the old 209 (now rerouted to terminate on ul. Baletowa). The old 209 began its route one stop from our house and was therefore extremely punctual. The 715 and 727 which now run down Karczunkowska have a long route from their respective termini, and punctuality is questionable. If a bus can be 10-12 minutes late, but it only takes eight minutes to walk to Puławska, why bother waiting?

Below: ul. Polnych Kwiatów (lit. 'Flowers of the Field Street') is another poorly-planned estate that runs off Starynkiewicza at right angles. No asphalt further down; five new streets to the right of Polnych Kwiatów bearing such poetic names as 'Forget-me-not Street' (ul. Niezapominajki) and 'Green Meadow Street' (ul. Zielonej Łąki). This is what happens when developers decide street names ('Tulip Corner Street' (ul. Tulipanowy Zakątek) and Water Lily Street (ul Lilii Wodnych) are in the same vicinity.

Below: the new tunnel, through which ul. Baletowa will pass under the S7 extension, which will be built over this steel structure. In the meanwhile, Baletowa does a little semicircular detour around the site. I'm very impressed at the speed with which work on the S7 has been carried out; it is due to open to traffic in the spring of 2022. For once, I think this is feasible - if Section B of the contract (this is Section A, Section C connects with the existing S7 near Grójec) is ready on time (it's running late).

Below: home via the Jeziorki ponds; recent rains have raised the water levels so it's no longer a muddy lake bed here. The backs of the houses that face ul. Trombity are beautifully illuminated, adding a touch of glamour to lakeside living, Jeziorki-style. I once talked to a couple who were looking to buy property along here - their biggest worry was flooding. It's drought they should have concerned them. I hope there will be proper snow and frost this winter.

And who's here to greet me when I get home? It's Felusia (now nearly three months). Below: a bit unsure about the camera... (I'm shooting with it at chest-level, using the screen on the back to compose and focus, so she's staring into the lens.)

Now she's feeling happier. A very lively, intelligent, inquisitive and affectionate cat. 

This time two years ago:

Insights in the search for consciousness

This time two years ago:
Loving Vincent - review

This time seven years ago:
UFO credibility test

This time eight years ago:
Junction ready for road to unbuilt sports centre

This time nine years ago:
Park nad Książecem - Vistula escarpment, beautiful autumn

This time 11 years ago:
Obama wins US presidential election