First there was a door. The front door to my family house, made before
war by some Mazur. Shabby, with flaky azure paint and three small lenses. I loved them. When my parents exchanged them for new ones several years ago, I promised myself that one day I would build a house for them. The door was waiting, and there was a house. Or rather a cottage, modeled on old Masurian arcaded houses. Made of fired logs joined in a dovetail, with a hundred-year-old Masurian tile and, of course, a turquoise door. It was designed by a friend of the architect and named the project Brutka, which is the Masurian `` bride '', probably from the German Braut. So we decorated it with dignity, as befits a bride. We dressed in natural materials, paintings by Polish artists, books and a lot of heart.
We invite you behind the azure door. Here, in front of the village beach on Lake Inulec, is our Chrosiówka, which is almost a hectare of yard and two houses. We live in the first one and we run a cozy agritourism in the attic, while in the second one you rule. An almost 100-meter wooden house is waiting for you. Real food and cordiality await you. In winter, warmth and books, in summer, the beach and sparks above the fire. Come on over. We are not going anywhere yet.
We offer you a nearly 100-meter wooden cottage, which we designed for 2-8 people. The most comfortable place to relax is for 2 couples or a family with children. Two families or a group of friends will also be fine. Our house is located in the village, deep in the yard, opposite the village beach on Lake Inulec, accessible to everyone. Right next to the beach we have our own fishing pier, hospitably moored at the shore of the House on the bay.
You will share the yard with guests of our agritourism located next door. It will not be some crazy crowd, because our agro can accommodate a maximum of 7 people. Of course, there are also us, our daughters and our dog Tofik.
The house and the area around the house are of course exclusive to you.
On the ground floor we have arranged a living room with a fireplace, a large table and a kitchen. There is also a small toilet. In the living room, the entire wall is occupied by a library. And not just any library. There are no random books here to fill the space on the shelves. There are many new items here, as well as classics, fantasy, crime novels and four shelves of children's books. The kitchen has everything, our Guests say. There is also excellent coffee from Kofikada and plenty of equipment for brewing it.
Upstairs we have arranged 2 spacious bedrooms with bathrooms. The bedrooms have air conditioning, each has a large double bed with a medical mattress and two fold-out beds that can be joined into one. The windows of the rooms offer a picturesque view of the hills and the forest and the village. The windows have blackout curtains and blinds.
The house is open all year round, downstairs there is underfloor heating (electric) plus a fireplace, upstairs we have air conditioning that has a heating function and radiators, in the bathrooms there are electric radiators plus underfloor heating.
The walls are decorated with so many paintings that you might think it's a gallery and not a house for rent. Almost all of them were painted by Polish artists. Some we won at charity auctions, others we bought at exhibitions, in galleries or received as gifts. Some of the furniture, lamps and accessories have an interesting history or come from local craftsmen. Some came from far away, for example the dining room table came to us from Sweden. Karolina and Marek from a friendly bistro-cafe Przechowalnia Marzeń found it in some Loopis. And the towel cabinet is an old display cabinet from my parents' house.
In addition, there are almost 50m2 of covered terraces. And on the terrace there are hammocks, sofas, an armchair, tables and chairs, where you can drink coffee or read a book. On the ground floor there is also one secret room, which we have reserved for ourselves. This is our workshop - the kitchen where our cheeses are made. But don't worry, we have our own separate entrance on the side and we only go there from time to time. And if you are curious about what is going on there, you can take a look and see how Chrosiówka specialties are made.
Our house is located in the village, so we have neighbors. We have an almost hectare yard surrounded by trees and bushes and it is usually very peaceful but we cannot guarantee complete peace and quiet. One of the neighbors also receives guests, sometimes someone mows the grass, and sometimes someone chops wood... As is the case in the countryside. In the summer, Zełwągi is a bit more noisy and cheerful, but from September to June we have a real idyll here:)
We have arranged the kitchen so that everyone can prepare something delicious in it. Don't hesitate to use it. You will find everything you need here:
- dishes, cutlery, pots, cups, glasses, bowls, cake tins, etc.
- induction hob, oven, toaster
- fridge, dishwasher and electric kettle.
And for coffee lovers, a whole set of accessories: a coffee maker, French press, Hario drip coffee maker and grinder, milk frother and Saeco piston coffee maker. And of course the best specialty coffee beans from the Kofikada roastery in Olsztyn.
Looking for simple, good food, we started cooking ourselves - we make rennet cheeses, bake sourdough rye bread, make real live apple vinegar and brew beer. It turned out that the devil is not so black and that the secret is good ingredients and a bit of heart. For cheese, we only use milk from Zelnący cows, appropriate bacteria cultures, rennet and salt. The breads are made from organic rye flour from a 600-year-old mill in Reszel, grains, water and salt. Drop by for a slice of bread with butter!
Neighbouring Małgosia's you can also order amazing challah, and sometimes you can count on making a home-cooked dinner:)
During the season, you can eat well in the nearby Królicza Nora, Smażalnia Ryb Muranka (which is worth kayaking to the other side of the lake). Delicious waffles and ice cream are served in Studnia Smaków - just 100m from us! All year round, you can eat deliciously in the atmospheric Oberża pod psem or Słowiczówka or in Słoneczny Port or other numerous pubs in Mikołajki. We can also point out more tasty addresses in the area. And the best coffee and breakfasts are served in our favourite bistro Przechowalnia Marzeń in Mikołajki (open from May to September).
In summer, we recommend the village beach right outside our windows or the wild beaches in the forest. We also have a private family beach across from my parents' house, just 700 meters away. But in our opinion, the village beach still wins! Firstly, it's only 100 meters from the entrance (because you have to cross our backyard). Secondly, our lake is a quiet zone, so even when there are a lot of people on the beach, it's still idyllic and peaceful. There's a volleyball court, a gym, an amphitheater, a decent playground, a jetty, safe water access, and plenty of sand.
We have sun loungers, hammocks, three kayaks, and for anglers, we have our own jetty – right next to the village beach, moored at the neighboring property.
Cyclists will be in heaven here. The number of bike paths (especially off-road and off-road) is impressive. There's also a 300-kilometer route around the Great Lakes, the Masurian Cycling Loop. We ride a lot ourselves, and we're happy to share the routes with you on mapy.cz or use another method if you prefer. We have a few bikes on site, some of them older, so if you'd like to bring your own, we have storage space. There's also a professional rental shop in Zełwągi offering new bikes and electric bikes. Note: there are very few trails dedicated to road bikes! We recommend trekking bikes, but a city bike will do just fine too :)
There are also three kayaks for paddling. And in the cabin, we have board games, cards, and balls. In the living room, we also have a TV and DVD player, plus about a hundred cult films.
Set aside some time to read books from our library (it's worth it!) and enjoy simple pleasures like enjoying aromatic coffee, gazing at the stars, long evenings by the campfire, and quiet afternoons in a hammock. Only then will you feel like you have more time for everything.
For those of you who are visiting Masuria for the first time, we also recommend such evergreens as Mikołajki (5 km from us), Pranie Forester's Lodge, Gierłoż, rafting on the Krutynia River or the more wild Sapina or the Boyen Fortress.
The cottage is an ideal place for children at any time of year. If the weather is absolutely crap, we have two fancy play areas in the cottage - a few boxes of Lego Duplo blocks, a stove with lots of accessories, teddy bears with all the furniture and a wardrobe full of clothes for dressing up. Plus games, a few hundred books and children's books. There is also a large TV, DVD and a box of fairy tales.
In the yard we have a nice playground, rather for older children (although more than one preschooler bravely manages). Wojtek made all the toys himself, and our daughters were the designers.
The second playground, this time more for younger children, is right next door - on the village beach. That is, exactly opposite our property. On the beach, as on any beach, there is also a pile of sand, an amphitheater, half a hectare of meadow and an outdoor gym. And a safe entrance to the water with a jetty - our children claim that the water has the perfect temperature from May to the end of September ;)
We invite you to workation! We don't have fiber optics, but there is really good coverage from most operators (LTE). You can use your own or our WiFi (in the T-Mobile network). It is enough to send and receive emails, browse websites and send standard attachments. You can also easily make a video call on a camera, not always in full HD quality but without interrupting the sound and image. There is an eight-person table in the dining room, and in the living room, working on the sofa, you can warm your feet by the fireplace. We have the best working conditions in our two bedrooms in the attic of the cottage. Each room has a comfortable desk with a chair, and there is also air conditioning if it gets too hot or too cold. In the summer, we recommend working on the terrace, there is a table with two chairs or comfortable sofas and hammocks. And there is great coffee without limits!
