Mind your V's and W's

You must be wondering if I have been able to learn any Polish during my first month here. The answer is 'not really,' and I will tell you why. First, Polish is just about as hard for me to learn as Korean was. Polish is a Slavic language, with just as many unpronounceable sounds as Korean has, along with a different subject/verb/object order. Second, I don't have a brain that is conducive to speaking multiple languages. I just don't soak it up like other people seem to do.

So I am here today to tell you practically the only thing I understand about the Polish language: The W's are pronounced like V's.

Sylwia = Sylvia

Weronika = Veronica

Wiktoria = Victoria

Oliwia = Olivia

Wisa = Visa

Warsaw = Vorshava

Krakow = Krakov

In addition, J's are pronounced like Y's.

Maja = Maya

Julia = Yulia

Anastazja = Anastasia

I know I have a dizzying intellect, but there you have it, the extent of my knowledge of the Polish language. I also know how to say 'hello' and 'thank you' but lately I have been interchanging the two phrases which makes for an awkward hello and many strange looks in my direction, so I have cut back on using them for fear of saying the wrong one.

Happy Name Day!

Here in Poland, and in most predominantly Catholic European countries, people celebrate their Name Day in addition to or in lieu of their birthday. This celebration stems from way back in the day when people were named after a particular saint and would celebrate that saint's Feast Day. Of course now the list has grown to accept a wide variety names in addition to saint's names. But imagine my shock and awe to learn that I had my own Name Day, given that the name 'Amanda' is neither European nor Catholic in any way.

Well folks, I am proud to announce that in addition to celebrating my birthday (which is August 30th in case I happened to allow you to forget), I will now be celebrating my Name Day on October 26. Celebrations include giving the celebrated chocolate and flowers and possibly eating cake.

On my first Name Day ever, I was the lucky recipient of this rose and I also received two boxes of chocolate. Not too shabby for only telling a few people.


I also figured I would use this forum to make a list of things I have observed so far about Poland and it's culture:

1. Everyone wears their wedding ring on their right hand. For a few days I didn't think anyone was married...
2. People drive on the right side of the road, right as in direction not correctness.
3. Most of the country is Catholic, which means lots of cathedrals.
4. Children don't start school or learn to write until they are 7 years old because "their little bodies can't handle the cold temperatures of the winter."
5. Teens can drive and drink, not simulataneously, at age 18.
6. Polish teens are much cooler and more respectful than Korean ones, not to mention much taller.
7. There is a noticeably large disparity between the attractiveness of Polish men and Polish women, and in no way does it work in my favor.
8. Most families have 1 to 3 children.
9. The Poles are eerily good at making pizza.
10. Polish children know and love 'Gangnam Style.'

I Left My Heart in Krakow

I was THIS close to passing up on the opportunity for a weekend trip to Krakow, but luckily after someone mentioned the word castle, I was easily persuaded to change my mind. After a brutal first week of teaching, it was nice to leave behind the chaos of the classroom for a romantic weekend get away...with my 4 female co-workers. Little did I know what Krakow (pronounced Krakov) had in store for me: a 3 story bunk bed, a castle, a gorgeous main square, a traditional Polish dinner of pierogi, and a gorgeous Saturday filled with sun and shopping, followed by a rainy Sunday complete with a 3 hour walking tour and no umbrella, rain boots, or raincoat. Imagining Amanda as a cranky, drowned rat does not do it justice. In spite of the weather, I had an amazing time and cannot wait to return.

The Hostel

I slept on the top...which was only scary on my way down...and felt a lot higher than it looks.

Wawel Castle

 

Main Square

Bachelorette Pad: Volume 3; Polish Edition

This post comes to you from the living room of my new 4-story walk-up flat.

My flat building, freshly painted orange/salmony pink.

That's me on the top!

My dining room.

My living room...

...which converts to my bedroom.

My office.

My horse painting.

My kitchen.

My bathroom. Sans sink.

Great place ain't it? Come and visit me!

Witamy w Polsce

Welcome to Poland! The road here was fraught with 3 security checkpoints, turbulence, and a 5-hour stint at Chicago O’Hare Airport Penitentiary (where maps/signs don’t exist and internet ain’t free). But, I finally made it and was excited to be met at the Warsaw airport by my new boss. And what a success that meeting was, if you call dropping your laptop smack dab on the concrete sidewalk after somehow managing to successfully carry it through 3 security checkpoints, making a good first impression on your new superior. This little mishap would ruin the next two hours of my life as my mind obsessed about the problems I had inadvertently caused my laptop; the most probable scenario being that my computer would be broken forever and I would have no way to contact you fine people. Luckily and to my amazement, when I arrived at my apartment, my computer turned on and nothing appeared broken. Unluckily, when I tried to connect to the internet, my request was denied.

So there I sat, on my first Saturday in Poland: alone, disoriented, internet-less, Polish currency-less, foodless, and slightly regretting my recent life decisions. But as with everything in my life that I have done that was definitely worth doing, I started out with that exact same feeling. So I picked myself up by my imaginary boot straps and set out in search of a store where I could purchase food using my card. And this brings me to:

Polish Life Lesson #1: Always determine if a store takes credit cards before piling your food items next to the cash-only register. If you don’t, it will result in wandering the streets aimlessly in search of a bank or ATM because you’re too embarrassed/stubborn not to return to the small store to pay for your food.

Polish Life Lesson #2: Learn how to say “I don’t speak Polish” in Polish. In this country, you look similar to everyone around you, therefore they will automatically assume you speak Polish, which is the exact opposite of what you are used to.

Polish Life Lesson #3: Leave large bulky purses at home. A lot of stores are considerably smaller than you are used to and it is just better to avoid knocking over beer bottles when your purse falls off your shoulder and then knocking over more bottles when you try to fix the first mess you made, all the while being reprimanded by the Polish clerk, who was presumably saying something like: “Leave it alone! I will clean it up! You are like a bull in a china shop! Who let you in here? Make your purchase and get out!”

Despite my clumsy setbacks, I am learning my way around and now have a cell phone, internet, and Polish zloty in my pocket. It is really gorgeous here and the architecture is better than I ever could have imagined. I think things are going to be just fine. More stories and pictures to follow!

From Ugly Duckling to Swan

I may be a day late and a dollar short, but here it is folks. The end of my Korean experience happened all the way back at the beginning of May, and it has only taken me a month and a half to write about it. Let's see, where to start. A lot of people have asked me if I was sad to leave Korea. My answer continues to be that "I really miss the people and my students, but I was ready to go." I could focus on the few negative experiences I did have and talk about the boring life lessons I learned from it all, but instead I am going to focus on the strange/absurd/awesome experiences that are way more fun to read about. Here they are in no particular order:

1. Getting 5 sessions of laser hair removal on my underarms for 45 bucks. This does include being laughed at by the girls working at the clinic and not understanding why my underarm hair is funny. To me it is no laughing matter.

2. Getting 4 cavities filled by a transgendered Korean-American dentist, whose technique was less than gentle when taking out an old filling to replace it with a "new and better one."

3. Seeing both my ovaries on a screen with an ultrasound done by a nice Korean Gynecologist. (Health update: Both right and left look to be doing just fine.)

4. Day drinking, covering my body in mud, and acting like a child with all my besties at Mud Fest. One highlight of the day does not include getting mud thrown in my eye rendering me blind and ripping a hole in my soft lens contact. If you want to talk about a case of "The Blind Leading The Blind" imagine me and my buddy Josh (also with mud in his eyes) blindly trying to get help for our mud filled eyes.

5. Video taping all my friends bungee jumping.

6. Riding an ATV for the first time.

7. Eating an improperly prepared shrimp brain.

8. Being told by students that I look like a vampire, my eye color is funny, and that I need to lose weight if I want a boy friend because I am "cute."

9. Living in a high rise apartment where the fire escape plan was a hook in the wall, a rope, and a harness...

10. Being told by my Korean boss at my goodbye party that he thought I was only "so-so" looking when I arrived but that I blossomed into my looks.

These are just to name a few and all I can think of at the moment. Needless to say, my last 2 days were filled with lots of tears. I have never been good at goodbyes and it is always hard to end a chapter of your life even if you know it's time. My time there is very important to me because it served as my transition from ugly duckling into swan. My boss saw that change physically in my appearance and I see that change mentally and emotionally in my soul. My views about myself, you, and the world were all molded and formed in a way that never would have happened anywhere else. And I wouldn't trade it for a million bucks.

Desperate Times Call For Desperate Measures

In my defense, this book is 2 1/2 inches thick. I have small hands. I had no other choice and it's nothing a little tape can't fix.