Winter. For most of us it is winter sports and hot tea by a fireplace. It has also the second face: snow-capped, impassable roads, no electricity and cold freezing thoughts in a head. To warm up, you have to clear your way to the log store first, and here comes an obstacle to open a door because it is frozen and covered by snow. Traveling to a shop is not possible until a snowplough arrives. It comes every two-tree days but even when the snow is removed, the white nightmarish blizzards cover the roads over and over again. For that reason it is better to make significant food reserves.
It's not a horror or the biblical apocalypse; it's winter in the Suwalki Region.
The Polish cold pole – winter starts in early November and lasts until April. However, it is almost the end of April and in the neighbourhood of Suwalki, night temperature is sub-zero. Last few winters have not been so severe, though. The snowdrifts do not cover the world. I remember when snow was so abundant that it reached the windowsills and we needed a snow shovel to leave the house. In our yard, even off-roaders had problems to get out.
Heavy snow damaged electric lines and caused notorious blackouts. I remember Christmas when due to lack of electricity a hydrophore did not work and to have water, it was necessary to melt the snow in pots. To move a car from a snowdrift was possible only by using a tow of the largest tractor and slowly breaking through roads, passing snow tunnels up to the roof of a car.
Snow clearing was of no use. Snowstorms came anyway and the roads were blocked again. When the snow was on the shoulder level, arctic frost appeared and the whole world looked like a glowing diamond field.
A beautiful view one might think but outside you could not stay longer than 30 minutes. Your nose froze, your hands in two pairs of gloves were ice-cold. In such moments temperature outside during the day dropped to -20 degrees C (-4 degrees F) and at night -30 degrees C (-22 degrees F).
I’m presenting a film showing the real winter in the Suwalki Region. From the perspective of a warm chair it seems charming but copping with it every day is not so attractive:
Over the last few years, winters have not been very cold, even at the Polish cold pole. However, this year the snow queen came and showed herself in all her glory, covering everything with a white quilt.
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