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Spain has been the target of our annual two-week-long tours for several years. We were planning this trip for months but there was always something which stopped us from moving ahead. We either lacked the courage to face certain kinds of danger or didn’t have sufficient budget or proper equipment to visit at least half of the places we had planned to see. This year, to our big surprise, we manged to arrange everything what we needed to embark on the journey to Andalusia.

The crucial component of any venture is strategy and related preparations. We formed a group of five people: three girls (Kasia, Daria and me) and two boys (Bartek and Tomek). Then we divided tasks according to individual interests and abilities. The female part of our team was tasked to take care of aesthetic aspects of our adventure such as creating personalised T-shirts for each of us and buying Polish souvenirs for our friends in Spain, focusing on what Poland is mainly famous for: vodka and ‘ptasie mleczko’ , a traditional Polish goody which is pretty similar to a British chocolate covered marshmallow.

We made a list of all the necessary things which could help us to survive such as practical wet wipes, gas cylinder, ‘Chinese’ instant soups, films for ‘old-fashioned’ cameras and other brilliant inventions of our civilization. Bartek and Tomek took care of more practical matters. They checked the technical condition of our car, replaced the tyres, prepared trailer to transport the paragliding equipment and cooking equipment such as portable gas stove and at the end they checked the condition of our tents. We thought that we were very well-prepared and everything looked perfect. Unfortunately, we were wrong….Later, it turned out that something had escaped our notice (I’ll write about it later on).

A week prior to our trip we sat down together and developed an action plan and calculated the best possible route. Obviously, in the course of our journey everything was changed. Luckily, all the modifications were positive. Then we supplied our portable refrigerators with kabanos sausages, potted meat, bottles of beers and other nutritious foods.

In the early morning (14.08.2015) we dressed our ‘expedition T-shirts’, hopped in the car and our long-awaited 8,000km journey started, thereby fulfilling the dream of each of us.

again

Having unpacked my backpack and printed photos of extreme summer adventures, it's time to go back to reality and face the challenges of student life. The energy batteries are fully charged, ready to beat the autumn blue and look back at the last two months. Now it's time to reminisce about the trip that I had always dreamed of - welcome to Andalusia!

Oh maaaan!

YUMMY!

No, this post has nothing to do with cakes. Needless to say, it’s still a delicious chunk of knowledge about emerging wave of new trends, especially when it comes to male generation. The time when young people are becoming financially independent from their parents, getting marriage in their early twenties and having kids before thirty has already passed – irretrievably, I’m afraid. They said that thirty is a new twenty-somethings.

Ever since I turned 21, I’ve been not celebrating a birthday but I started to call it anniversary of 21st birthday. Last time I celebrated my second one. I’m not really proud to admit that I belong to the club of these youngsters who follow the rule of “go with the flow”, doing a lot of things just to stay “cool”. And we truly hate when our parents say: ”When I was in your age…”. This statement holds such a tremendous pressure. Let’s be honest, your twenties won’t last forever.

The research conducted by Dr. Meg Jay from the University of Virginia shines the spotlight that 80% of the most defining moments in your life happen by age 35. The is the dual nature of being twenty-something: probably it’s the best period of your life and the worst at the same time. There are a lot of upcoming decisions that can shape your life forever. Sadly, most of us, after graduating, still don’t know what to do in life. That’s why we’ve been labelled as Choisters, Millennials, Emerging Adults,Twixters or the Lost Generation. Interestingly, there is one more name for successful young males who have a strong financial stability, they are called: Yummy.

Yummy is a modern term for “young urban male” under 30. Why doesn’t this trend relate to females? HSBC market research indicates that the increasingly number of luxury buyers are yummies. These men usually obtain apartments in major cities, buy luxury cars, and they are investing a lot money in luxury brands, in general. Why? Because they love to spoil themselves. They don’t think about all these responsibilities like marriage, kids or even about having a girlfriend. (Now, all the single ladies can put the blame on yummies!)

Many luxury brands have launched exclusive lines of products specifically for this kind of men. Burberry, Prada and Gucci predict sales growth of 9 percent because of yummies’ fat wallets.

Yummy has never heard of the term of aging gracefully. He is obsessed about his perfect image. He is able to allocate a large part of his budget for cosmetic and beauty treatments. According to a study of the Spanish Institute for Aesthetic Medicine, the number of beauty treatments fell by 32 percent among women, but increased by 20 percent among men, mostly singles.

Dear Yummy, you are not “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”. It’s time to reduce your level of selfishness. Nobody wants to be alone forever.

This goes for both females and males: our generation decided to grow up when we want to and as fast as we need to. The most imperative thing is to move forward, not backward. If you don’t know what to do with your life now, try to think how you see your life in five or ten years.

If you have difficulties doing it, watch this video and answer this question: who is your hero?

A round of applause to Matthew McConaughey! Let his speech be an inspiration for you:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMN-e1jjJlc  

Good Morning TV: Wake up and smell the coffee

I have a special morning routine. I have to get out of bed by 6:30 a.m. at the latest and I try my hardest to sit down on my sofa at 7:00 with a cup of coffee and sandwich watching a morning show. I truly love breakfast television, especially over the weekends when I can fully enjoy the whole programme. Why? Sometimes it's just good to see that someone had to wake up much earlier than you to get to work. I'm pretty sure that most of you, in a moment of utter boredom in the morning, reach for the remote to see what was going on in TV. 

The vast majority of the breakfast shows are hosted by a small team of hosts who are trying to convince you that you wake up with them for a reason. They are pretending that they are all in a great mood, full of enthusiasm, even at 6:00 a.m., asking with a broad smile: Who do you want to say 'Happy Monday' to? 

There are some common rules and some repetition across all the morning shows around the world. Most of the names start with a salutation and then they are followed by a country's name like: Good Morning Britain, Good Morning America, Good Morning Greece, Good Morning Asia or simple, Good Morning. All of them focus on providing mixture of news, sport, entertainment, current affairs and weather updates. Studio design has the same structure almost everywhere in the world, especially when it comes to fake background of a city view or any other outdoor view which is just pretending to be real. 

Here is my subjective opinion about the most popular shows. 

Good Morning Britain which is often abbreviated as GMB. As you can guess, it's a flagship UK breakfast television show. Nevertheless, for me it looks more as a news programme rather than morning show. Instead of a comfy breakfast sofa, there is a vast glass-topped desk taken straight from the news room. Actually, the most interesting part of the show are guest invited to the studio to talk about certain news stories. However, many seeing it as the first real competition from ITV for BBC Breakfast. 

The huge advantage of BBC Breakfast is the fact that the programme is broadcast seven days a week, every week of the year, including weekends and public holidays. Also, we have a sofa here which adds sort of warm atmosphere and enables the guests to feel more relaxed. 

Well, everything starts in the US. Most of the morning shows are being inspired by American version. The most popular one is obviously Good Morning America debuted in 1975! The show won the first three Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Morning Program. As it's typical for American style, everything that happens here is on a large-scale. GMA studio is located in the heart of New York, Time Square, which might be regarded as the central of the world's entertainment industry. Expect from a glossy table in the studio why don't put there a large, comfy breakfast sofa too! Fun personalities, fast-paced stories, and great energy between presenters add a special value to the show.

Surprisingly, my favourite morning show is the one that I always watch when I'm back in my home town. It's called Good Morning TVN (Polish name: Dzień Dobry TVN). During the summer holidays it is replaced by Good Morning Vacations. TVN is one of the largest and most reputable Polish commercial television network. The structure of the show is slightly different from British and American versions.

First of all, each episode is hosted by a couple of presenters. The studio is quite large, there is a huge, comfy sofa and some of the discussions and interviews are conducted at a special table. Most importantly, the studio is located on the top floor of a building in the heart of Warsaw. The background behind the presenters is real. Another element that differentiates the show from the others above is a kitchen. This is a place where special guests (sometimes well-known TV personalities) are preparing their favourite dishes during the show. All the hosts are wearing a bit less formal clothes than those in British or American versions to add sort of casual style to the show. Good Morning TVN has also its own café - TVN Café. It's good to go there and drink a coffee, seating next to your favourite hosts!

10 Ways to Stay Happy at Work

For decades, Monday has been considered the worst day of the week. It’s not always easy to stay motivated and even happy and smiley when you’re getting down on yourself about the deadlines, a fire-breathing boss, a huge pile of work you have on your desk or how you feel about the office as a whole. It's even harder when you are a young practitioner who actually just started a "real" career. You are getting nervous more often and giving up more quickly.

Here are a few ways to survive at work and remain happier at work (even on Mondays).

1. Start your day with you favourite coffee. Coffee is your wake-up call. It contains caffeine, a natural stimulant that gives your day an energetic start.

2. Don't forget about breakfast! Breakfast is the crucial meal of the day. Coffee and healthy breakfast is a perfect combination to kick-start your day.

3.Keep positive. Everything starts in our mind. I know it's hard to believe but happiness is largely a choice. I can hear you arguing with me now, but it's true. You can choose to be happy at work. Sound simple? Yes. So you are in control of how you feel about your work every day. Remind yourself why you got into your job in the first place and stay as positive as long as you can.

4. Stay organized. Spend some time to create your to do list every morning (while drinking a delicious coffee) and keep a restricted schedule to stay focused.

5, To much stress? Get walking—outside, if you can. Or at least close your eyes, hold you breath, count ot ten.

6. Keep your personal life at home. Try to not think about any personal problems and focus on work.

7.Take a Breather. You are not a machine, you are human. Take a lunch break. Even for 15 minutes. Sit down to eat your lunch and step away from your computer a bit.

8.Ask for feedback. Don't be afraid to ask. Find out what it is you can improve on and set your mind to improving it. Take some notes in your diary.

9.Reward yourself. Finish a horrible assignment? Grab a piece of chocolate or cake. You deserve it.

10. Make your work bestie. It’s so really essential to have that kind of person at work you can vent to. however it's not easy, you have to be very careful. Take time to get to your co-workers. Having a good people around you and enjoying working with them are hallmarks of a positive, happy work experience.

"Feelings, vibrations... It's all what music is about" Gentleman

SYMPHONICAL is an artistic project involving collaboration between classic music and reggae.It had its premiere. It had its premiere on the 30th of April 2015 in "Sala Ziemi" in Poznan. The main star was Tilmann Otto who is widely known by his stage name- Gentleman. He is the international reggae musician from Germany. More than 40 young musicians from Poznan performed with him and his band the best of hits of Gentleman with participation of orchestra and choir.

There is no doubt that performing with such a star like Tilmann Otto is an incredible experience not only for young musicians but also and for reggae fans. A devoted crowd of fans couldn't wait to welcome their idol. They had been waiting in a long queue since 7:00 A.M. to enter the building where the concert was taken place.

Is was a magical and memorable event. It was clearly noticeable that Gentleman felt great on the Polish stage and was in fantastic mood, especially when he tried to enunciate several words in Polish. He said that any time he visited Poland, he is surrounded by amazing people with incredibly positive attitude. It's important to stress that the concert wouldn't be such an unusual event without the participation of talented Poznan Boy's Choir under the direction of Jacek Sykulski.

I can't wait for another concert of Gentleman in Poland. Next stop- OSTRÓDA REGGAE FESTIVAL! Have a seat, put your headphones on and enjoy this music:

What can you do in Poznan during the spring?

KONTENERART
It's a mobile centre of culture and art. This great event organised by independent artists starts on Thursday 30th of April. It's a perfect place where you can take a rest, meet new people, develop new skills during art worhshops and take part in variety of concerts, artistic programmes and exhibitions. Kontenerart is located along the Warta River so you can relax on the shore which resembles a big beach.

WARTA RIVER

If you like nature, you should definitely go there with your friends! Don't forget to take a portable grill, buy some sausage and beer so that you can have a small barbecue party! According to the latest news, drinking alcohol will not be punished as it was last year. Get ready!

BUŁGARSKA STREET

Are you a football fan? The tournament seasen has just started. Don't miss a chance to support Lech Poznan and try to feel this amazing atmosphere.

Enjoy the spring!