Kabaty Las

I live next to this extremely beautiful forest.  You can see it from my window.  To get from my apartment to the forest it's a quick walk.  (Similar to the distance of my home in Layton to the Elementary School I attended.  Or half the distance from Temple Square to the Gateway).  I love living so close to the forest.  C'est magnifique.  

 This forest reminds me a lot of the sacred grove.  It is so beautiful and so peaceful.  You can hear birds singing and little animals scurrying their way up the tree.  This morning, on my run through the forest, I noticed a wood-pecker working away at a nearby tree.

This forest is very large.  (I'm sure that the signs posted outside the forest tell how large it actually is, but I can't read them).  The forest is broken up into 31 sections and I've explored 11 of them.  There are lots of different paths to take and the trees have painted on them bikes with a Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or Black stripe below it.  Michal was telling me that the color indicates the level of difficulty for bikers.  He "thinks" (but can't remember) that Blue or Green is the easiest.

 At the end of the forest, there is a clearing where families can get together and have a BBQ or just relax.

The forest also has these very unique shelters that are scattered all throughout.  I find them very interesting.

A few days a month, I am asked to substitute at the American School of Warsaw in the math department.  The bus ride home is about 45-60 minutes (depending on transfers, na zadanie, and catching the bus on time).  Or, I can walk home through the forest and it takes me about 60 minutes.  One day I just missed the bus, and instead of waiting 20 minutes for another one to arrive - I decided to hike through the forest.  I had my camera with me, and I casually strolled through taking lots of pictures.  While it took me about 90 minutes to get home - I really felt peaceful from my walk.  Since then, I've decided to take advantage of this forest more often.  It's great to get away from all the cars and noise and stroll through the greenery.

During the winter you will find countless cross-country skiers who come here and make their way through the forest on their way home from work.  (It cuts their commute time in half, plus they get a great work-out!) However, I'm glad that it's finally turning into Summer here and that I can make this stroll a daily routine.

Grocery Shopping in Poland

So, I just got back from the Grocery Store, and after standing in front of all the cheeses for about 20 minutes wondering which one was feta.  I felt a small victory when I came home and opened my cheese and was surprised that I picked out the right kind.  To me, this was a small victory because when I first came to the grocery store alone, I stood in front of the cake mixes looking for a yellow cake mix for about 45 minutes.  

Since the first few weeks I arrived, grocery shopping has gotten easier... 

BUT...

I have also noticed that things here are VERY different than in America.  For this reason, earlier this month I marched over to the grocery store to document all my difference findings.  Here are some of the most unusual things that I came across.

Number One

I was so shocked the first time that I saw a lady come up to the lettuce or cauliflower and start ripping off leaves and throwing them into the garbage can.  I couldn't believe it.  Unacceptable.  Right?  Well... in Poland, it is perfectly find to rip off the wilted leaves off of a head of lettuce and throw them away. It is also normal to pick up a head of cauliflower and throw away the green leaves at the base of it so that you only have the white head remaining.  I had no idea.  Each time that I have purchased these items, I guess I overpaid for my unnecessary "leaves" that I could have thrown away.  Who knew?

Number Two

I have circled (in Red) the actual number of cake mixes that can be located in the grocery store. Not very many you might say?  Well, that's true, cakes here aren't popular.  If you want a cake, you go buy it at a bakery - duh?  Cakes here also aren't very sweet.  Any cake you make yourself pretty much tastes like a watered down version of Sponge (Angel Food) Cake.

Number Three

Is Utah really the Jell-O capital of the world?  I think not.  This is what I have termed, "the Jell-O aisle". I have done a terrible job - but - I have circled all the packages of jello on the right picture above.  This county LOVES it's jello.  No joke.  Every single time I've been invited to Michal's Mom's house for dinner - we've had Jello.  Now, this is not a bad thing.  She does amazing things with the Jello and it tastes absolutely divine.  But next time you make a joke about Utah & its jello - just think twice.

Number Four

 In Poland there is a whole aisle for flour.  I tried to get a picture of the same brand - but failed - but the point I am trying to show above is that each flour is "ground" different.  There is "typ 500", "typ 450", "typ 650" & "typ 550" pictured above.  

According to Wikipedia:

"the different available flour varieties are labeled according to the ash mass ("mineral content") that remains after a sample is incinerated in a laboratory oven. This is an easily verified indicator for the fraction of the whole grain remains in the flour, because the mineral content of the starchy endosperm is much lower than that of the outer parts of the grain. Flour made from all parts of the grain (extraction rate: 100%) leaves about 2 g ash or more per 100 g dry flour. Plain white flour (extraction rate: 50–60%) leaves only about 0.4 g."

So basically, you have lots of different four types to choose from.  I've tried about 8 different kinds so far, and depending on what you make - it really makes a difference.  I've also noticed that certain kinds have a better elasticity than others (for pie crusts, pierogi shells, etc.). But it's not something that you would see at a typical supermarket in America.

Number Five

Pickles!  Poles love their pickles.  The left picture shows that nearly half to 2/3 of the aisle in the store is taken up by pickles.  I have tried purchasing pickles several times - but every time they taste really rotten.  Michal doesn't like them either.  He told me that if you want to get "good" pickles, you have to get them from the "bins" located in the produce section.  So, hence, the picture on the right is a "bin" which contains pickles.  I'm sorry, but I just can't bring myself to reach in there and pull out a pickle.  I just can't help but think of all the germs and the aroma that will rush out of the "bin" once I open it up.  I've decided that if Michal wants pickles - then he can get them himself.

Number Six & Seven

Another thing that Poles love is their juice.  When you go to a restaurant you have more options for juice than soda pop.  The picture above shows that one whole aisle (both sides) is completely stocked full of juice. You name a juice you want.  They have it here.  They even have ones that we've never even heard of in the United States.  Juices like: Kaktus (Cactus), Black Currant, Witamina (Vitamin Juice - of which there are like 18 different kinds that have different ingredients).  And there are different types too.  There is 100% Sok (Juice) or Nektar (Nectar).  The Nectar just means that it's not 100% - Michal explained it to me.  He said there was some law passed that the juice companies had to let customers know whether or not their juice was 100% juice - or a concentrate - or other additives.  So to distinguish them they had to put Nektar on the juices that weren't 100%.

Also, I wanted to include a little shout out to my shopping cart.  Isn't it the cutest.  Every single grocery store that I have been to here in Poland (and Europe) has been different.  At first it's hard to get used to, but I really like the shopping cards here because you pick the size for how much you want to buy... once the cart is full - you are done shopping.  It's a good way to save $ on your shopping bill.

Number Eight

Dairy.  On the Left this aisle contains yogurt (the whole left side) and the right side is a combination of: more yogurt, natural yogurt, and sour cream.  Speaking of sour cream... let me elaborate on the sour cream in this country.  I love it! In America - if you are lucky - you get three types of sour cream: Regular, Reduced-Fat, and Fat-free.  However, in this country you can choose what type you want.  The sour cream is labeled with a percentage of fat.  So out of 100g (which no one ever eats anyway in one setting) - how much of it is fat?  Here are the types I've tried so far - 10%, 12%, 16%, 18% - but it increased in increments of 2% all the way up to 34% (I think).  10% is really watery - 12% is my favorite.  It is creamy and just perfect.

The picture on the left is the back side of this aisle which contains only cheese.  There are literally hundreds of different types of cheeses to choose from.  For a cheese lover, this place is heaven.  

Notice that I didn't talk include all dairy items - well - it's because there is a whole extra aisle (that I didn't get a picture of) which has butter and other dairy.  Milk isn't in the refrigerated section (more on that later).

Number Nine

When you go to the supermarket and ask for your meat to be sliced, sometimes it takes forever - or there may be quite a long line.  In Poland, everything is already sliced and you can either order by: weight - or - slices.  To be honest, this particular novelty of "not waiting" for my meat to be sliced, doesn't truly appeal to me.  I prefer the American version of waiting.  It grosses me out a little too much to see all these nasty sliced meats next to each other.

 Number Ten & Eleven

Eggs & Milk. Not much to say here other than - it's not refrigerated.  Period.  And... Eggs come in all sorts of different sizes and size containers.  You can buy 4 eggs, 6 eggs, 8 eggs, 10 eggs, 15 eggs, 20 eggs, and 25 eggs - all in sizes of Extra Small, Small, Medium, Large, and Extra Large.  And same goes for the Milk.  You can buy anywhere from 250 mL to 3L of milk ranging from 0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, 2.0%, etc.  So there are more options than just "skim", "one percent", "two percent", and "whole" in this country.

Number Twelve 

The cashiers get to sit down on the job.  How great is that?  I never ever wanted to work at a grocery story checking people out because I knew that it would just kill to be on my feet for 8 hours at a time.  But, on the flip side, they don't help you bag your groceries at all.  They sit and watch you.  It's extremely awkward.  And if you are being slow (because, maybe you bought A LOT of things) they just try to rush you and tell you that you need to hurry so they can ring up the next customer.  Really???  And its true, they wont start ringing up the next customer until you are finished packing away all your items.  Super inefficient.

Overall, I can't complain - we live right across the street from a MAJOR supermarket (equivalent of Wal-Mart in America).  It's convenient - and they have what we need.  Michal refuses to let me buy my meats at "TESCO" or any large grocery store.  He says that we HAVE to buy them from the local butcher - otherwise it's not "fresh" and doesn't taste as good.  So... all my grocery shopping gets done at TESCO minus my bread and my meats.  Each time I go to the grocery store, I try harder and harder to talk to someone in Polish - but today I failed.  Apparently because I spent more than 100 zloty (like $30) I got to choose between free tomatoes and a free bunch of grapes.  I had no idea what she said and the nicest young gal who was standing behind me in line, jumped in and explained to me in English what was going on.  What do you think I chose?  Of course - Grapes!  Just another added bonus of my unique shopping experiences here in Poland.

Wrocław

Since we've moved to Poland, Michal & I have been out to visit his mom in Wroclaw every month.  I've just been a behind and haven't had the chance to blog about it yet.

Our first visit was the second weekend of March 2012.

March 10

It was much too cold to walk around the first day we were there, so instead we went on a "driving tour" throughout the city.  We jumped into this tiny European Car and set off.  Michal misses driving and I can't tell if he is hugging the car or displaying how tiny the car is in comparison to his arm-span.  You be the judge.

Here are some of my most interesting finds:

Along the highways/freeways in Wroclaw there are these weird airplane-wing-shaped protrusions that stick out from the siding of the railing.  At first I thought it was some sort of ingenious design meant to make the highways look more fashionable.  But instead I realized that these "airplane wings" actually display to the drivers where there is an emergency exit.  Red indicates that there is a door that you can use to leave the highway.  And I haven't made any connections with the green ones yet... but I'm still working on it.

Another interesting find are these innovative stop-lights.  In America, you pull up to a red light.  You wait.  You wait.  You wait.  And then - you get distracted.  You start thinking of all the things that need to get done... like: picking up the garbage around your feet, filing your nails, making a phone call, taking a sip of your diet-coke... and then the light turns green and you are rudely awakened from your daydream - or productivity of cleaning your car - by a car horn directly behind you letting you (ahem) "politely" know that the light has changed color.  Well, alas, in Wroclaw - they have made your driving more efficient by carefully displaying how much time is left in your light.  This way - you can be productive - and put on your mascara while waiting for the light to turn green.  And you know exactly how much time you have.  It gets better!  It also displays how long of a green light you have left also.  No more trying to run red lights or wondering if you'll make it through.  These little counters tell you exactly when the lights will change from Green to Red, and vica-versa.  I know that the numbers above don't match - but the 66 seconds reflects the drivers going straight - the 68: those turning right (and I couldn't get the number for those turning left).  I think that this is so clever. I loved it!  I can't wait for it to make an appearance in the United States.

My favorite find of the day:

This is the Market Hall. It wasn't destroyed in the 1945 warfare and still retains the old architectural feeling inside.  It was renovated in 1980-1983, but since then has become the most important trade place in the city.  We got there right before it was to close - so the hall is pretty empty and I was able to snap as many pictures as I wanted without people "getting in the way."

I love this place because it is bursting with color, the aroma is incredible, and the people are friendly.  Plus, you can find some of the most delicious treats and interesting gadgets.  Every time that we've been to Wroclaw since, we've gotten there too late in the day and it's already closed.  But this place is always on my "wish-list" of items to see every-time I come to Wroclaw.

March 11
Today we decided to go exploring the Rynek while the rain stopped (which it stopped for about 8 minutes).  Michal invited Gosia Hazlenut (Laskowska) to come along so that we could take some amazing jumping pictures.  It ended up being super wet and we didn't want to get the camera ruined, so we only got a few good ones in.

 I know I already posted this picture, but I love it!  Michal is so excited to be showing me around his hometown.  I feel like this picture captures the essence of who Michal is.  My nickname for him is: Maly Chopczek - which translated means "little boy."  Michal is such a kid at heart.  He is enough for me to keep track of - right now.

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Our second visit to Wroclaw was Easter Weekend.

April 7:

Michal wanted me to participate in a totally traditional Polish Easter.  So we took part of Święconka.  This is where you take your Easter Basket to be blessed by the priest at the local Catholic Church.  

Traditionally you include your breakfast that you are going to have the next day on Easter. But (for sure) you make sure that the things that are included are eaten on Easter morning.  Our baskets had just Eggs, Bread, & Salt.  The foods in the baskets have a symbolic meaning and most baskets contain: 

* Eggs - symbolizing the life of Christ & his resurrection

* Bread - which is symbolic of Jesus (feeding the 5,000, bread of life, etc.)

* Lamb - also a representation of Christ

* Salt - indicates "purification

* Horseradish - symbolizes the bitter sacrifice of Jesus Christ

* Ham - symbol of great joy and abundance

Some of the Baskets are really "decked-out" and have butter in the shape of a lamb... and it is very important that the basket is decorated carefully.  They have intricate linens and laces and ALL of the baskets contain sprigs of Boxwood (an Easter evergreen) which embellish the basket for aesthetic reasons.

Here you can see all the other people in attendance with their baskets as well. When the "service" of blessing the baskets ended.  I tried to beat the rush out the door to capture the masses of people leaving, but I got there a tad to late.  At least I got Michal in the picture!

Now, once the baskets are blessed the food can't be eaten until Easter morning.

April 8

Michal, his mom, & I all went to Church and mingled afterwards with a few of Michal's friends he grew up with.  It was good to see them.  After church, we were all exhausted and took naps, but instead I went snooping through old photo albums of Michal - and look at what picture I found!  It's a picture of him with Elder Holland.  Isn't Michal just the cutest little missionary ever. (Correct answer is Yes).

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Our latest trip to Wroclaw was this past weekend.
May 12
Michal's best buddy, Brad, was in town and he really wanted to go and see him.  Brad is getting married in June & Michal probably won't be able to get time off work to fly out for his wedding - so it was a MUST for us to go and congratulate Brad on his engagement.  Brad was (one of) Michal's best-men at our wedding.  Brad also conducted our Ring Ceremony (in Polish) and stood in our wedding line next to Michal's mom to translate everything for her into Polish.  Brad & Michal go way back and it was fun to see them goofing around and spending time together.

Brad & Adam picked us up from the train station and while we were waiting for Brad's Finance to get ready, we decided to walk the Rynek.  But they were having this whole outdoor "show" of Polish Military.  It wasn't something we were expecting - but we got a good show while we were waiting.

Afterwards we headed to a Branch "Grill" (for some reason the word Barbeque never gets translated to "grill"... so if they are saying it in English or Polish - it comes out as "grill").

 I love Michal's branch in Wroclaw.  They are the friendliest bunch of people.  They always make you feel so welcome and are so excited to see you join in on any of their festivities.  They have the hardest working Missionaries and the strongest members.  I feel right at home every time I go there.

This is Brad & his fiancee & me with Ola (Alexandra).

And this is my best picture of the day of Adam creating bubbles (bąbelki) for his little boy.

This picture turned out great!

 Before going to Michal's moms house for dinner... we decided to "spoil" our dinner and have some "spaghetti Ice-cream".  Ever since going to Wroclaw for the first time over 2 years ago, Michal has been telling me about "spaghetti" ice-cream... but we haven't ever had it.  Well... I'm glad that Brad came along because we changed that!

It's not really Spaghetti, but it comes out looking like Spaghetti.  Plus, the way that they garnish the ice-cream and "top-it-off" it could fool you for real spaghetti Ice-cream.  Brooke & I shared a vanilla with Berries & the boys had Hazelnut with nuts and chocolate.  Brooke & I were jealous - the boys' was better than ours!

We finished off the day by eating a delicious dinner and singing happy birthday to Michal (in both Polish & English).  Michal was in Heaven because he got to spend time with his best friends.  I love seeing him so happy and it was so worth the money just so that he got to hang out with the old gang.