Helping old ladies and an invitation to Brussels

Last Sunday we were invited to enjoy some stampot, a traditional Dutch food, with our Dutch friends. It turned into a very multinational potluck that was a lot of fun. Our Italian friend was kind enough to make a variation of tiramisu without coffee or alcohol so we could enjoy that too. I brought a peach cobbler to bring a taste of America. Paul quickly made friends with the young daughter of our friend from Finland.



When she first arrived, I told Paul to go say hello to her. He went over, didn't say a word and instead just gave her a kiss. Already starting to pick up chicks at age 3.

Wednesday I was on a bus with a driver who was hitting his brakes a lot harder than normal. I was sitting down reading a textbook when he hit the brakes hard. An older woman was walking down the aisle and wasn't holding on to anything at that particularly inopportune moment. I saw her falling in my peripheral vision and reacted quickly enough to catch her before she fell. I figured that move is worth helping three old women across the street in karma. It seemed like it was going to be a good day.


Sure enough later that evening I got some very good news. It turns out that the Polish Fulbright Commission has selected me to travel to Brussels to attend a Seminar on the European Union. It will be hosted by the Belgium Fulbright Commission at the end of February. I had applied back in October. During the course of the seminar, I will get to see the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, visit the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament in Brussels, and see SHAPE (Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, AKA NATO headquarters) in Mons. There will also be many discussions on issues facing the EU and NATO. I am looking forward to getting to travel to Western Europe and meet more incredible people. What an exciting opportunity this will be.

Friday we had our mid-year Fulbright meeting in Warsaw. Many of our group had to travel a long way. For me it was quite convenient since we live here in the city.



We had a very nice lunch at a nearby restaurant afterward. Annika and Paul were able to go with me. However, Paul fell asleep right after his pumpkin creme soup, slept through the main course, and woke up in time for apple strudel.



On Saturday I was at the main University of Warsaw library and I noticed this large plaque for the first time:



I thought it was pretty cool that there was a marker for Senator Fulbright, whose program has made it possible for me to experience Poland.

It was a very busy and enjoyable week. I am learning a lot and gaining a wider perspective every day.

Learning Polish and three-year-old (in)sanity

Sometimes I get so involved in my routine that I forget I'm in a European capital.

Then I look at a street sign and see three embassies nearby.

I've been spending a lot of time learning Polish, and the grammar is beginning to make sense to me. If I can take my time, I can usually figure out what case to use, for example. If I have a chance to rehearse in my mind what I'm going to say, it usually comes out properly. The other day I was at an office supply store. There were a number of things I had not been able to find elsewhere so I had to ask the clerk some questions. I was able to clearly communicate with good pronunciation (at least to my ear). The clerk was impressed, and said, "You speak Polish very well." Then I had to go off my rehearsed script to try to answer her follow-up questions, and suddenly I couldn't communicate anymore. I thought it was ironic that right after someone complimented my Polish I lost the ability to speak it ;).

I try to just go with the flow when I can't understand something. Today I was doing some grocery shopping. As I was entering the building, I saw an older man approaching. He wasn't right behind me, but I waited for him anyway and held the door. I didn't really think about it. Anyway after he got inside he put his arm around me and then said something I didn't understand at all. I caught rodzice (parents) in there somewhere, but that was all. So, from the context, I can guess what he might be saying, but I don't really know. He was obviously pleased. I think at this point what I need mostly is just lots more practice and a wider vocabulary.

Thanksgiving came and went. I wasn't feeling well on the actual day. We ended up celebrating it on Sunday with our friend Doug. Since our fridge is so tiny I figured a turkey would be a little much for us so I roasted a duck instead. It was nice to carry on an American tradition on this side of the pond.

Speaking of traditions, my family always sets up the Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. Often for us that was a bigger holiday than Thanksgiving itself. We kept that up here. Paul was very excited to set up the Christmas tree and had a very hard time waiting for me to get home from my service project that morning (I was continuing the work on the roof I spoke about last time).



As you can see, we got a very small tree, but it's big enough to give us some holiday spirit and get Paul excited.

It's been cold enough that Paul hasn't gotten out as much as he would like. A three-year-old that gets cooped up for too long starts to go a little crazy, but we do what we can to restore his sanity.



Amazon UK brought us a gift for Paul. It was supposed to be a Christmas present but I couldn't bring myself to make him wait. It's a great way for me to spend time with him; there's nothing quite like attacking a castle with alien spaceships with Daddy. Building stuff with blocks like this was one of my very favorite things to do as a child, and I still remember all the best designs for spaceships from my childhood.



And when Paul goes really crazy, we just make him a killer robot and turn him loose to wreak havoc on our humble abode.

Conferences and Rooftop Service

Another very busy week.


We live on the first floor of our building (effectively three stories up over a business) so our view isn't that great. This week I went up to the top of our building to take some pictures so you can see the area in which we live.


You can see a little greenspace in both these pictures. Right in the middle of the city, there is an area set aside for small private garden plots. This is a common practice here. This next shot is from the top of my building looking down at the plot next to us:


On Monday the Fulbright Commission sponsored an Education USA event:


I got to meet some interesting professors, and then I was on a panel with other Fulbrighters to answer questions about American universities from Polish students considering study abroad. An enjoyable time with some great catered Polish food.

On Wednesday, Dr. Benjamin Barber, an American political theorist and Harvard PhD, came to give a lecture hosted by the Faculty of Political Science and Journalism at the University of Warsaw. The lecture was called "The Power of Money and the Crisis in Democracy: From Greece to the Occupy Wall." It was a very interesting lecture, and at the end he took time for questions. He had talked a lot about the economic crisis of the United States, and so I asked him if he thought we should have let the banks that had made irresponsible decisions fail so that the banks that had been more conservative in their lending practices could take a greater market share and the bad banks be forced out of the business.

His response was very interesting. He commented on how some of the banks were so big that if they were to fail, there would be systemic consequences (an argument I've heard many times before). But then he said something I did not expect. "You've heard of the expression, 'too big to fail.' Well if a business is too big to fail, it is too big to exist." His point was that regulators should be more aggressive in preventing such businesses from getting so big in the first place, so that the competitive market can do its job to ensure efficiency without the systemic issues we had discussed.


After the lecture, I got to ask him some additional questions. It was great to get to meet him. Some of his writings have been required reading in a lot of my courses and he is a gifted speaker.

Lately it's been a little too cold for me to feel very much like taking Paul out to the playground, and when he goes too long without getting out he gets a little stir crazy in our small apartment.


Lucky for us the Galeria Mokotów is heated. I took Paul with me and let him wander, staring at the animals at the pet store and the fountain. That seemed to give him some sanity back.


My Polish professor recently told me that the building that we've been meeting in is a former nobleman's palace. This photo above is a shot of the entrance. Lots of detailed carvings are in the woodwork inside as well.

Saturday morning I went with some members of my church to help on a service project. The home of an older man in our congregation had been severely damaged by fire. The building was originally a small factory for airplane parts that had been built in the 1920s. Our job was to remove what was left of the previous roof and get the new roof frame into place.


This picture is of Brother Leitner, the man we were helping, hanging from one of the very heavy frames:


It was very hard work and my muscles have yet to forgive me for putting them through it. Still, it was a great opportunity for Christlike service to our fellow man. I believe we are all created in the image of God, and when we seek opportunities to serve other people, we are forming our character in the image of God as well. We got all the frames up to the top of the building and we are hoping to finish the rest of the roof this coming week.

Polish Independence Day and Kampinoski Park

This week was a lot of fun. Friday was Polish Independence Day. One of my Polish teachers told me there would be a big event with a parade, with uniforms from many historical periods.



We knew it was going to be cold, so we got all eskimoed before we left.

We went down to the square by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. There was a huge crowd, and we weren't able to get close enough to see very well. There were a few speeches. I couldn't understand everything but I was able to follow the general ideas they were speaking about.



Here are a few lancers at the square.



Here are the cannons they had at the square. They fired them during the ceremonies. It was quite loud and it scared Paul pretty badly.

After a while we walked to Krakowsie Przedmiescie where the parade was running down. Unfortunately, the crowd was so thick I couldn't get very close, and most of these pictures I took with Paul on my shoulders so he could see. I wish we had gotten there early enough to get a better position. The end result was I didn't get any really great pictures.



I imagine it's pretty difficult trying to play an instrument while mounted.




I think these people represent the Home Army that was the main instrument of the Polish Resistance during World War II.



This looks like WWII era. The rest of the pictures I don't know specifically when they are from.







Since I wasn't able to get any really good pictures, I thought I'd share these two, which were taken by Kate Gao, a Chinese journalist that is in my master's program. She clearly has a gift for photography.



I love this dramatic portrait.



I think this picture really captured the spirit of the day.



I saw a lot of police equipped in riot gear as we were leaving. It turns out that some demonstrations got violent so I'm glad they were prepared.



On Saturday I took the young men from our church out to Kampinoski National Park for a hike through the woods. From left to right you have Kai, Jake, me, and Dominik. Dominik is a Polish member who showed us the way into the park. He is preparing to serve a mission for our church.



Poland is very flat, so we found the highest little knoll we could find, climbed a tree, and called it the summit ;).



Naturally I had to join in the fun.



Here is a small memorial at the park. It says something to the effect of "This place was sanctified by the blood of the Poles that were murdered by the Nazis here."



This is a shot of the forest we were walking through.

On Sunday we had a nice surprise:



This is Joselin Riveros and his son. They are from Bogota, Columbia and are in Poland on business. They came to the young men's priesthood lesson, giving me an opportunity to teach and testify of God in Spanish. Haven't done that one in a while. Unfortunately Polish words kept creeping into my Spanish sentences. It was a great Sabbath.

Day of the Dead... in bed.

On October 28th, we had a get to know dinner for the international relations master's students and their families at a nice pizza joint in Mokotów. Here we are:



Halloween isn't really celebrated at all in Poland, but we got ourselves a pumpkin anyway.


Paul had fun making a jack-o-lantern. This pumpkin has already been turned into pumpkin bread and we have lots left over to make other treats.

This past week, on November 1st, was The Day of the Dead, one of the most important Polish holidays where families get together and clean the gravestones of those that have already passed. It meant a long holiday weekend for me. I was hoping to use it to catch up on school, but I ended up getting sick and spending most of it in bed so I didn't get to see much of any of it. If you'd like to read more about it and see some pictures, you can go to the LDS mission president's blog here.

November 2nd is the day where people pray for the souls of those that have died. I was still feeling pretty lousy but I went to class anyway. On my way home I walked past the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.


They were just finishing a memorial service there, with a band and everything.

Hopefully next year I will get to be more involved and see the holiday events for myself. This coming Saturday I will be taking the Scouts out hiking at a national park nearby, so I'm looking forward to that. Hopefully it won't get too cold.

Smartphones, Fulbrighters and a Sermon

Annika had an OB appointment recently, but Paul tends to get bored at the doctor's office. One thing that really keeps him occupied is getting his picture taken. Thank goodness for smartphones.



Thursday I took Paul to a different playground, called Ogród Jordanowski. This one has way more playground equipment than the one we went to before, and its much closer to our apartment, close enough that its pretty much a toss up between whether to walk or take the bus.



Of course Paul went straight to the steering wheel.

Friday night there was a potluck for all of the Warsaw Fulbrighters. Not everyone was able to make it but it was a great evening.



These are some of my Fulbright colleagues. The man in the back, Nathan Wood, is a history professor from the University of Kansas. He was hosting the event. His wife Erin (not in the picture) played her harp for us. It was beautiful.

The shortest route to a happy Paul is to feed him pancakes- and he enjoys watching Mommy make them almost as much as eating them.



Here he is all situated and ready for them to hit the pan!

Saturday I got a chance to play Pathfinder with a group of expatriates from the Netherlands, Greece, Italy and Canada. That was a lot of fun and I made some new friends. From what I've seen so far I like it a lot better than the other versions of D&D I've played before.

Sunday I gave a sermon at my church about how important it is for us to share the gospel so that others can enjoy the full blessings of the Atonement of Christ. I gave it in English, and one of the missionaries translated it into Polish for me. At the end I gave my testimony in Polish. Afterwards someone told me that I don't have an American accent; apparently I sound like a Spaniard trying to speak Polish ;).

It still takes me a minute to switch linguistic tracks. One of the members of my congregation is from Mozambique, and although he speaks good English, we always speak Portuguese (because we can). He came up and said something to me in Portuguese, and then I was about to answer in Polish. I caught myself, but it still took a second to force my brain back to Portuguese. All in all it was another great week to be in Poland.

A brief visit to Old Town

Something I forgot to put on last week's entry was about this film:


I saw 1920: Bitwa Warszawska (The Battle of Warsaw) on the 6th of October at the Kino Femina. They had a special screening with English subtitles so I took advantage of it. I ran into a man from the embassy staff (I had met him at the Ambassador's residence) at the screening. Small world. The movie theater had assigned seating. I'm told that's common in both Poland and Russia. It seemed to overuse slow motion effects but overall I thought it was very interesting. The movie is about the Polish-Soviet War. This war ended in a Polish victory that prevented the Red Army from overrunning Europe for twenty years. I thought it used the 3d medium quite well, and the acting and costumes were very good. I was expecting it to be a vehemently anti-Russian film, but the makers of the movie went out of their way to include some sympathetic Russian Cossacks that were also fighting the Communists. Overall, I enjoyed it and thought it was very well done.

This week we had a few more new arrivals to my graduate program, from the Ukraine, Lithuania, Moldova, Laos, and Russia, giving us an even more diverse group of students.

The pleasantly warm fall weather seems to be ending, and winter is definitely on the way. It was good we had already gotten ourselves equipped for the cold. Here we are on the way to church this morning, waiting for the tram:



We were a little late getting out. Getting Paul all layered up takes longer than we are used to, and district conference is on the north side of the city, much further than where we usually go. I got to sing in the choir today. It was a great meeting.

On Saturday morning, my friend Doug Pew and I took the young men from our church out to see Old Town Warsaw. It was a little cold to be out playing the tourist, but we had a good time anyway.


This is a shot of a big square in Old Town. Old Town was completely destroyed by the Germans after the Warsaw Uprising, and was completely rebuilt after the war to look as much like it did before as possible. I think they did a pretty good job. They reused as many of the bricks from the rubble as they could.



This is the Royal Castle, where the Polish kings lived.



This is a statue of a mermaid in the market square. The mermaid is a symbol of Warsaw, and this statue is from 1855.



This is a monument to Jan Kiliński, a leader of a failed insurrection in 1794 against the Prussians and Russians during the second partition of Poland.



Globalization is alive and well in Warsaw. In the midst of this historic district you can enjoy a Subway sandwich.



In the square, there was an old man feeding the birds. These birds have no fear of people at all, as you can see.

But what was really cool was when he would throw his bread into the air, and all the birds would fly off at once:



And here he threw the bread in my direction:





This is a statue of Nike, erected as a monument to the World War II heroes of Poland. It is on Solidarity Avenue near Old Town.

I wish I had had more time to actually go into some of the museums, but we got started a little late. I will have to return when I can take my time to see the inside of more of these places. This week I met a Polish teacher who wants to learn English, so we are trading language lessons. It's a little painful trying to communicate but I'm sure it will help me. Between that, my private lessons, my Polonicum class, Pimsleur and Rosetta Stone I hope I can pick the language up quickly. I'm trying to have as many different tools available as possible. I am convinced that there is no one magic bullet to master a language, but that a variety of tools taken together is much more effective.