Warsaw

Last weekend, Patsy and I took off for Warsaw to meet Amber at the airport on Monday. We left Olsztyn Saturday morning and spent the day Saturday and Sunday hanging around Warsaw. To be real honest, Warsaw is not my favorite city...it's a typical big city, and those just aren't my favorite anywhere! But, we did get to eat some good food, look around the mall a bit, and enjoy people-watching in Old Town. And, of course, the hilight was picking up Amber at the airport Monday! Here are a few shots from our weekend away:

As we sat in Old Town Sunday afternoon, it was great just to watch all of the people walking around and to see the town come to life after being so dead throughout the winter. I enjoyed watching the horses as they waited for customers to take carriage rides. The horses were huge and, honestly, I felt kind of bad for them. They just looked bored to death and when they tried to walk on the cobbleston, their shoes slipped so it looked like it was really hard to walk. I also noticed that they would shift their weight from one back leg to the other. If you look closely you can see that this horse is doing just that. It was so interesting to me. I didn't know that horses did that!
Also in Old Town Sunday, we saw all of these bears! They are large fiberglass bears from countries all over the world through UNICEF. An artist from each country designed and painted a bear, and they are being displayed in different countries to promote unity and peace. They have the bears all set up to look like they're holding hands, to show unity. It was really neat to walk through and see all of the different countries. In this picture above, you can kind of see the lines of bears. There were TONS of bears...and people!
This was the America bear. It was a beautiful sight to see =)
And, finally, on Monday morning before we left to meet Amber, I took a walk and ended up by some water!!! There is a river that runs through Warsaw and, I'm telling the truth here, walking by it was almost like walking along the pier in Huron. Almost.

The Birthday Continues...

I almost forgot to post pictures of my "Lake Erie in a box" birthday package from my parents! Sheesh!
Have no fear, here they are.

Let's just start with the center, the coup de gras: a piece of genuine Lake Erie driftwood, with a message spelled out in alphabet noodles!!! Does anyone reading this blog remember doing that on seashells??? Yes, my mom did this for my birthday and wrote: "HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESSICA, LOVE AND HUGS, MOM AND DAD". How great is that?? She even glued some genuine Lake Erie sand on there, too, as well as sent a little bag of sand, a few shells, some lake glass, and two lucky stones that my dad hunted down! There was also a Beach Towel scented candle (it smells great but cracks me up...my beach towel NEVER smells good!), foot lotion (to be ready for sandals), sunless tanner, a little notepad with a lighthouse on it, and Tranquil Waters scented oil. Ahhhhh...it's almost like sticking my toes in the water. Thanks mom and dad!
Now, let me first preface by saying that I'm not a huge fan of just slapping a picture of myself on here, but I wanted to show off the pretty shirt my grandma Davis sent me. It's so cute! And, it is perfect for summer here, as it's not usually too hot. I love it! Thanks grandma!
Also, if you look close enough, you can see my other birthday present from my parents: earrings and a necklace made of Lake Erie lakeglass! Seriously! I love it--it's a great gift and so special! You can check out the website where they bought it here.

Flying Crocs and A Spring Day in Olsztyn

Amber is in the States right now for a little visit and to celebrate her brother's graduation from college and her friend's wedding! Fun stuff! So, I decided to post a few other photos that I had just to make it feel a little bit more like she's here=)

This is a self-explanatory picture. But, I must mention that this wasn't staged at all! I was diligently working at my computer one day, and there was an incoming Croc that landed just like this! Good thing the window wasn't open!
Now this picture shows another one of Amber's favorite tricks...the hairband snap. We will frequently be sitting at our weekly team meeting, and WHAM! She gets me. I will admit that this one is staged, but I'm pretty sure she let it rip for real after the picture was taken!

These other pictures are some shots of a great afternoon we had last Sunday. The weather was absolutely beautiful...in the low 70's and sunny! So, after church and a little lunch, Amber and I packed up and headed out without a definitely plan except a McDonald's McFlurry and making our way out to the Intemann's house for team worship by 5 o'clock. (I should add that, for Amber and I, to have a plan as loose as that is pretty "wild and crazy". We felt like real adventurers!) Our first stop was the McFlurry (we needed energy of course!), then we headed over to a park to sit in the sun for a while. It was absolutely wonderful. And, believe it or not, I didn't even get burned! (At the beginning of every summer, I inevitably labor under the delusion that I can sit outside in the sun for endless hours without SPF 522 sunscreen and walk away with a golden glow. Heck, in reality I'm doing good to be able to walk at that point!)

Anyhoo, after soaking up some rays for a while, we started on our journey out to the Intemann's. Just to put it in perspective, we usually have to take a 25 minute bus ride to get out there. I'm guessing that, from the park, it was about a 4 mile walk. It was great. Here are some of the shots from along the way.

This is the view from where we were sitting at the park. I don't know if you can tell or not, but it's a sandbox. Not quite the beach, but it was the closest we could get on short notice =)

This is in front of one of the post offices in the city. Every spring, they spell out "Olsztyn" in flowers and make the city symbol with flowers as well.

As we walked we came upon a circus! Circuses and carnivals frequently pop up on random corners here throughout the spring and summer. And this was literally a travelling big top circus! They just roll into town, throw up the tent, and...well, do whatever you do at a circus in Europe. We saw some elephants as we walked by. And, when we were on the return trip (on the bus this time!) there was NO sign that there had ever been a circus there. Everything was gone...well, except for the smell, according to Ala who lives nearby.

Birthday '08...Part 1

How can you go wrong with a Birthday Week??? That's right, I had a birthday week this past week and it was great. Here are a few hi-lights from the festivities:

On Saturday the 2nd, we had a birthday party for Sean, Lydia and me, as all of our birthdays are in May. Sean and Lydia celebrated a significant birthday milestone (I won't say which one, but I will say that we used black plates and napkins) which is why they're wearing these ridiculous glasses. I promise they don't really look like this! And, I got to wear the princess crown since Sean and Lydia had fun glasses to wear. I had to take it off because it was giving me a headache. Apparently I'm not meant to be a princess. Bummer.
On Thursday, we met with Ania and Alina (the two new girls we've been meeting with for about a month) and, through Facebook, they knew that it was my birthday, so they brought me a gift! How sweet are these girls?! They brought me a cute coffee mug and a beautiful candle holder with some scented tea lights. They are really wonderful and it's been great getting to know them.
On Friday, the Big Day, we were planning to meet with Nina and Ala for a bit. Amber and I were in our kitchen, getting things ready, when we thought we heard laughter out in the stairwell. I peaked out the peep hole and didn't see anything. Then, a few minutes later, the doorbell rang, and there were Nina and Ala with this cake, with candles lit, singing the Polish version of "Happy Birthday"!!!! Again, how sweet are these girls?!?! I was truly shocked and overwhelmed with just how blessed I am to have met these girls a year ago. This was definitely a memory of Poland that I will never forget.
And, might I add, they baked a pretty stinkin' delicious cake! They said it was their first attempt and they had to call Nina's mom for directions, but I would say it was a success! The top of the cake said "Sto lat", which means " 100 years", as a blessing or wish for 100 years of life. I took this picture of the inside of the cake so you can see the different layers. There was a layer of a creamy filling, then a layer of forest fruit jam. It was delicious!And, on Friday evening, Amber, Patsy, Alethea and I headed uptown for dinner, then went back to Patsy's flat for cake, ice cream, and coffee. We had a great time just talking and laughing and enjoying some good food. I really appreciate and am grateful for these ladies. They really made my birthday a special day.

I also got many birthday cards and wishes, which truly do help so much, being so far away from home. And, of course, I got to talk to my mom and dad and got a package from them which is pretty much like Lake Erie in a box. I will work on a post about that one soon =)