Cześć!

So the first event of Tuesday was a kid jumping out the window. Ok, so we are on the first floor, the kid is 13, and it was really kindof funny looking back, but I was embarassed when the principal came and talked to him and another teacher came and told me that maybe that wasn't a good idea. Ok, duh! We were playing a life-sized board game. I asked the kids to come up with what to do on each space, and one of them said "jump across the window." I told them that they could not do that, but they could sit in the window sill. Oops. Too tempting...

I love my haircut! I was kindof nervous, but the stylist seemed to really know what she was doing and everything turned out well. My hair is now about two inches shorter, and thinned out in layers so it feels much lighter. I also have swept bangs. It turned out just the way I had envisioned. Yay for successful haircuts!

Yesterday after school, my host mother took the host siblings and I too an indoor pool. I haven't been to a public pool just to splash around anytime lately, but I had a really good time. They had a big, waterpark-style slide. Is it sad that I had a ton of fun with this? I went frontwards and backwards, laying down, and sitting up, trying to run into Anna, David or Ola...everything. Later we went to a huge store. Like Walmart super center size or bigger. I got some stuff to make legit chocolate chip cookies for the food lesson next week. (I have not yet seen these in Europe.)

Today, I met the girls in my second class to go shopping in the city. They are all about 12. When I mentioned to them that we could do some shopping when we went into the city, they all screamed like crazy! It was pretty much hilarious. They are at just the right age to take... young enough to where going shopping is a super fun event that they are not "too cool" for, and old enough to know what is going on and feel free to have fun with it. I invited my host siblings and their 16-year-old cousin to come along. They didn't seem to enjoy themselves but I think that they felt obligated to be there. That kinda sucks... I wish that they had not felt that way and just gone on home. One memorable moment was when we were on the bus on our way to the city. There was a guy who started talking to my girls and he was wearing a shirt that said:
Boys
On
Stag
Shitfaced
and that he was. Like a good teacher, I gave the "he's drunk" signal to them and made sure they didn't give out any names... but that was pretty funny.

Tomorrow, we will go to Zacopane. (I guarantee that that is spelled wrong.) I am not sure what exactly is there, but it is supposed to be beautiful. It is far away and will take all day, so I think that the family is really putting themselves out. That is very nice... just makes me feel kinda bad because there is no way that I can repay them for everything that they have done.

I have slacked off in the picture department so here are some from the past weeks:








Here is my little classes "class monster." They named it "Emily." How endearing. ;)













My little class














View from Dagmara's man's sailboat on Lake Rożnów










Asha and her kids in the Old castle ruins atop a big hill













The view from atop that hill. Um, can you say "good place to take a date?"













Anna and me in Sanok






















Some of the the neighborhood kids outside of the Merchut's house







My girls today in the city









-------Some noteworthy things I have discovered about Poland---------



Alcohol - Beer and Vodka are big. You can drink them when you are 18, and they will actually ask for your ID, unlike some other european countries. However, drinking is socially acceptable, and most adults seem to do it quite a bit. I have been offered beer or Vodka almost every day. I like this. Don't judge.


Catholisism - Everyone is Catholic. Like 97% of the population. (An actual statistic) When I went to church with the family last week, it was full and there were people outside. They sat there the whole time. I am pretty sure that they could not tell what was going on. I would have gone home. Why waste your time sitting and picking grass? Is church an obligation thing? A ritual? Not so sure how I feel about this one... it seems like you lose some of christianity when it is a ritual... like everyting. However, this is not my place to judge... I do not know for sure what those people think or believe. I just don't plan to be a part of it myself.


Food - Great. I will be recipe-clad when I arrive in Texas.

History - People seem to be open about talking about communism in Poland and other historical things. You can definitely tell when you come across something left over from then.

People - Generally very warm. The people working in the school and my host families have been absolutely wonderful, but they are not the only ones. People everywhere have been nice... unlike some experiences I had in Hungary...

Style - The girls dress up a lot, especially those in the city. I think that they start from a young age being taught how to dress and that it is important.
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Signing off!
Emily