Highlight of my Easter Break (25.-27. March)

Wow, for once in a long time, I can post something that just happened yesterday, instead of 1 month ago . . . I'm about caught up! The miracles never cease!

Things have gotten quite busy and somewhat chaotic. The main issue is future plans. Since the story is very much on-going, I'll share everything once the next step is clear(er).

So remember the friends I went to visit in Germany? I've been begging them to come and visit me almost since I left--but especially for now, Easter break. What's better than having a 6-day break (Thurs. - Tues.)? Friends to spend at least part of it with!

They just happened to surprise me.

First, Olga is pregnant! Congrats to the new parents!

However, the doctor said she had to stay at home for 2 weeks. I found this out sometime last week. So doing the math, I understood they weren't able to come and visit during Easter break. I was actually really sad about that.

Second, on the Wednesday night before Easter (after I finished teaching for the day, and when my break started), Daniil skype-calls me to tell me they were coming sometime Friday early evening.

I was shocked.

I had already given up on the idea of them coming. I even started looking at places where I could go for break (only to realize that financially, I couldn't really afford to go anywhere). I was shocked, but very happy and excited! I even told Danielle (who stayed during the break too) and we came up with ideas as to what to do and what food to prepare.

Come Friday evening, Danielle and I were waiting for my friends. In short, their GPS guided them through fields to get from Szczecin to Kołobrzeg. They couldn't go any faster than 30 or 40 km per hour. I think they said they only saw 4 cars in the last 30 minutes, but plenty of deer, rabbits, and other woodland creatures (they were probably wondering what these Germans were doing driving through their fields!). Hence, they arrived about an hour later.

Welcome to Poland!

Dinner and catching-up were the activities on Friday night. Then off to bed to recover and be ready for Sabbath at church.

***

Sabbath morning was spent at church. Afterwards, we had quite the banquet at home. Daniil, Olga, Andrej, Mateusz, Marcin, Danielle, and I were the happy partakers of said banquet. The feast consisted of soup, salad, pierogies, and a wonderful blueberry cake. Compliments to Danielle for her successful culinary experiments. We were all very happy--and stuffed--guinea pigs.

What to do after a wonderful meal? Go for a walk to and on the beach!

Unless you have bread, they won't come to you.

The fun couple taking in the Baltic coast.

Mateusz, photographer-in-training

I guess it was enough.

After a good walk on a foggy coast, we made it back home to change into our volleyball gear. Olga had enough and was ready to fall asleep almost immediately. So, Daniil was able to come, play, and witness the range of madness one can experience at volleyball. Too bad we couldn't take any pictures.

***

Easter Sunday was greeted with a Southern-style breakfast of biscuits, gravy, and scrambled eggs, with the addition of a fruit salad (so we could say we had something healthy). Again, Danielle had out-done herself. The fruit salad was mostly Olga's masterpiece. Daniil and I gave the highest compliment we could ever give cooks--stuff ourselves joyfully.

Stomachs full, we were ready to go to the empty beach.

What?! You decided to return to Germany by sea?!

Ok, bye.

Ah, you're taking her with you.

Seems like she prefers to drive than swim back.

Now to help keep him balanced.

Alright, they're both ready to take on whatever is next.

How about a green cyclist?

Did I mention that it's a good 40-min. walk from my place to the empty beach? Just one-way? Since they were such good sports and walked there and back without complaining, they deserve something for their efforts . . .

Olga conveniently didn't want hers.

All packed and ready to go.

And they left.

I honestly felt like crying after they left. I really love this couple.

Boy, that child is going to have really crazy, yet great parents.

They tagged me. Now I need to visit them. Not sure when that'll happen.

Danielle's Surprise Birthday Party, by Anja (16. March)

We three girls, Anja, Danielle, and I, get along very well. We've been living together for 5-6 months now, and we haven't had any problems. Wonderful, right?

Well, Danielle just happened to have her birthday this past Monday. There was only 1 problem: Anja wasn't going to be here to celebrate it with her/us. So she decided to do something special for Danielle before she left to Germany the next day.

Coming back home, after teaching in Koszalin, Anja had prepared for Danielle a cake that she made herself. Considering that baking anything in our oven is pure guess-work, Anja's cake was an impressive success!

Vanilla cake with vanilla creme icing and mandarins

Cinnamon sprinkled on the mandarins gave it a nice kick.

Surprise!

Divided cake.

My piece of cake. It was gone very quickly!

So, this was Anja's surprise for Danielle, since she wouldn't be here to celebrate her birthday on the actual day.

Long live friendship.

Tea Time for Women's Day (8. March)

Apparently, this is a holiday that was pretty big during the communist times. Why do I say this? I've never heard of this holiday before, until last year when I went to a Cuban church. They were passing out flowers for the men to give the special women in their lives. I asked my dad, and he said, "It's a communist thing."
Knowing what my dad thinks of communism and everything associated with it, I didn't need to ask anything more.

It's still a bit of a big (yet not-so big) deal here in Poland, even though Poland hasn't been communist for about 20 years.

So the 3 younger native English teachers/SMs (Student Missionaries) decided to hold a "tea party" for the ladies of the church, in order to celebrate Women's Day on the Sunday (6. March) right before. Here's how it kinda looked:

We're going in . . .

Photo-area set-up, with self-timer and props

Tea, anyone?

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine . . .

Hand-made decorations of cloth and origami dress & hearts

1 such origami dress, made the the hostesses themselves.

The snack/refreshments table, with the window to the kitchen.

There's something poetic about a rose and a candle.

Some of the ladies

2 very happy ladies

So no one forgets what this is.

LOTS of this went on, plus so much more . . .

Then, on the actual Women's Day, us three girls were surprised by a visit from our director--who brought a bouquet of flowers to each of us!

I must say, this was an absolute first for me.

Said bouquet in my room

Close-up

Too bad the flowers already died. Seriously, sending plants to me are like sentencing them to death. Poor plants.

Sunday walk along the beach (28. Feb.)

The Sunday after my friend left back to Sweden, I was feeling kinda lonely.

I decided to take a walk along the (touristy) beach, but go another way I've never been before: beyond the Ultra Marine Hotel.

Oh, the end of the beach--like the end of the internet.

Not really, it continues, but rocky instead of sandy.

Looking back at "the end of the (sandy) beach"

Can you see the lighthouse?

Bike/walking trail along the Baltic coast

Little experiment . . .

. . . and another . . .

. . . and the last.

Friend's visit that made me think it was Winter Break again (18.-22. Feb.)

Seriously, I'm not exaggerating with the title.

One of my best friends came down for a long-weekend visit. Just the thought that she's willing to leave her native and beautiful Sweden to come and see me, makes me honored.

We had a really good time catching up as I showed her around this city that's become my home.

"Hey there, you like my feathers?"

Jump jump!

Jump higher!

Ah, how could my friend miss the opportunity of witnessing the madness we call volleyball?!
She played a bit. Then I gave her my camera to take a few shots of us playing. Here are some of my favorites:

My turn to serve.

I love how these guys concentrate so much on the ball.

My boss about the serve the air out of that ball.

In mid-action.

It just looks funny in still motion.

Wait, that ball is ours, isn't it?

I'm calming someone down, Tom's on his phone, and the other team is resolving a dispute.

How many different ways can you look at a ball?

The moment when you realize it was yours.

Got it.

Whoa, don't fall on Leya!

Wait, what happened?

What should we do on Sunday? Go to a beach then to a cafe and fatten ourselves up, of course!

Really nice café with the taste of Greater Poland.

Our hot chocolates and respective cakes. So healthy, right?

It was truly great having my friend over. There were other things we did, places I showed her, friends we video-skyped with, and plenty of food that we ate.
These were just the better/best pictures from my camera. If she gives me permission, I might show some of her pictures as well.

For the few friends I have on this European continent (and other continents for that matter), you don't know what you're missing out on . . . why not come up and let me show you around? As you can see, I respect privacy and will not share everything--unless you give me permission.
This is just the tip of the ice-berg . . .