Bison on the Horizon

Poland is famous for a couple different bisons. One of the rites of passage for most visitors to Poland is the drinking kind, the second are the living kind, and now there seems to be a third one to add to the list, the city-dwelling, plastic kind.

For myself, I remember my introduction to the drinking variety quite early on in my Polish experience. Żubrowka is a brand of vodka with a distinctive flavour, colour and aroma. Every bottle has a blade of bison grass, thus it's name plus it's yellowish colour. On it's own, the vodka doesn't seem to be anything special, but the simple addition of apple juice (sok jabłkowy) turns the spirit into something more, a magical taste that for some reason has a cinnamon taste to it. The creation goes by a couple of different names to my knowledge, with the most common appellation being tatanka, but I've also heard jabłecznik or szarlotka, the latter also having the double meaning of apple pie or a homosexual!

Of course the name Żubrówka comes from the Polish word for bison, żubr, and these magnificent beasts can be found in Białowieża Primaeval Forest. The European buffalo, or wisent, actually went extinct in the wild in the first part of the 20th century, but thanks to a few being left in zoos they were successfully reintroduced into the wild from an original breeding stock of only 12 individuals. I haven't been to the park yet myself, but it's something I definitely need to do someday, to see the bisons and maybe throw something into Belarus as it's right next door!

Now the third variety of bison has been spotted in Poznań, and I'm not talking about the other drinking kind, the beer Żubr, I'm talking about the big plastic kind. Seemingly appearing out of nowhere, big plastic bison have been scattered around the city. I've spotted them in the fountain park near Most Teatralny and in Plac Ratajskiego. If you spot any more please help others by commenting below or on the bulletin board to the right. While not dangerous on their own, when combined with alcohol, the situation creates an uncontrollable urge to try to jump on the beasts and ride them. Injuries have resulted, so please approach with due caution!