Poland 4

Sunday we were scheduled to be in Slupsk for Julia's baptism and we needed to stop in Szczecin to do a little laundry and get our stuff needed for the next few days. From Szczecin it is about a three hour drive to Slupsk. (this is the town where Agnieszka's parents live)
We were to meet at Agnieszka's parents house for dinner but on our way there Damian's dads car broke down. Here's what happened.

We were traveling in two cars because there was so many of us. Adrian, Damian, myself and my girls were in one car and in the other car was Damian's parents, Agnieszka and Julia. We were almost there when the water pump on his dad's car stopped work and caused the car to over heat. We were a little bit ahead of them and had to turn around and go back. They decided to have Agnieszka and Julia get in the car with the girls and I while Damian, Adrian and his parents stayed with the car and waited for help. We drove the rest of the way there stopping only to feed Julia. Agnieszka's cousin made it to the car and towed it and the people to the rest of the way. After eating dinner we went to the hotel to settle in for the night. The room was so small and there was a wedding party going on down stairs with extremely loud music until 3 a.m. Needless to say we didn't get much sleep.
The next morning we got up early, ate breakfast, got ready, and headed out in the rain to the church. After the two hour church service they baptised Julia and made Damian her god father.

Afterward we all went to Agnieszka's sisters cafe for dinner, conversation and drinks. The dinner was awesome! The food just keep coming, then cake and ice cream and then more food. The girls had a great time running around and playing in the rain.

Damian and I all dressed up in our new suits.

After several hours of stuffing our faces we drove the 3 hour trip back to Szczecin. Still being 1 car short Damian's parents rode the train back.

Poland 3

Our next adventure was a 5 day stay at the Palac Maciejewo. It is an old Palace in a small village about 2 hours outside of Szczecin. This Palace was built some time around 1899 and belonged to the Flemming Family. Here is the link if you are interested in finding out an more history or information on this Palace: www.palacmaciejewo.pl/ (After you open the link, if you look in the left hand corner you will see a German flag and a British flag, click on the British flag and it will be in English)

We took Damian's parents and brothers dogs with us (which are not allowed in the Palace) so we stayed in the hunting lodge in the back. It had 3 bed rooms and a living area with a small kitchen.

Here is a picture of the dinning room inside the Palace. The food was pretty good and because we stayed 5 days we got to try every thing on the menu.

Here are the girls sitting on the sofa in the den.

There was a play area outside for the kids with a slide, swings and a sandbox. There was also a ping pong table, pool table and a swimming pool but unfortunately the swimming pool was broken until the last night. I had a really bad stomach ache that night and did not go with them but I was told that the water was freezing.

We had a whole lot of time to do nothing so we played a little badminton and volleyball went mushroom hunting in the woods and fed the birds. There was a bird house with pigeons, ducks and peacocks which the girls loved, they would take the left over bread from our meals and feed it to the birds.

On one of the days we walked to the small village to get ice cream and some supplies to cook the mushrooms we found. On our way back a wasp thought that it would share Aniela's ice cream with her and stung her on the eye in the process. Yep, my poor baby is allergic to bees. Her little eye was so swollen and red. It looked like some one punched her. We waited 2 day and it still did not get any better so we drove the the closest town to get some calcium. I was amazed how fast it worked! By the next day it was almost back to normal, it was still a little red and puffy but by the end of that day you could not even tell any thing had happened.

Areya and Babcia (Grandma) went for a walk and picked some wildflowers. They brought me back some and made a head band out of the rest.

The Palace had it's very own lake at the bottom of the hill. Damian, his dad and brother and Areya and I all went fishing. While we were there Damian and Areya got in a little treasure hunting and we tried our luck at fishing. Areya was amazing and catch several, where as me not so amazing, I only caught one. Damian's dad was pulling them out left and right and I was just sitting there with nothing. Our poles were right next to each other and still he would get one and me?........... nothing. It was so frustrating that I gave up and played a little pirate with Areya.

It was a nice stay at the Palace but on Friday we needed to pack up and go. Sunday we were scheduled to be in Slupsk for Julia's baptism and we needed to stop in Szczecin to do a little laundry and get our stuff needed for the next few days. From Szczecin it is about a three hour drive to Slupsk. (this is the town where Agnieszka's parents live)

The street sign game

Ok here's how to play. Get a piece of paper and number it 1-30, then look at the signs below and make your best guess at what they mean. Some pictures have more then one sign guess both. (there are some duplicates so you get a few freebies)
There are a few rules:
1. No peeking at the answers
2. No using the Internet for help
3. Give it your best try
Then see how many you got right and leave me a comment letting me know how you did.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

How did you do? Below are the answers.

1. Speed limit (70 KMP)

2. No passing

3. Loose gravel

4. Caution

5. Right curve ahead

6. End of city limits

7. Yield

8. No left turns

9. Stop

10. Must turn left

11. Two-directional road

12. Toilet

13. Caution

14. Accidents

15. In 30 meters there is a bump

16. Speed limit

17. No stopping or parking on road

18. Entering the city limits of ___________ (insert city name here)

19. Has the right of way

20. Railroad crossing without barriers

21. Do not enter

22. Roundabout

23. Falling rocks

24. Slippery road

25. Wharf nearby

26. Traffic light ahead

27. Slippery road when wet (Accident)

28. Watch for Pedestrian (Accidents)

29. School crossing

30. Strong winds

Don't forget to let me know how you did and what you think of my little game. Thanks for playing!

Poland 2

We went to visit Damian's cousins in Pyrzyce the village where Ida was born and they live for several years. There is an old wall around the village that was build in the 11th century. Next we walked to a park where an old WWII tank was left. Damian remembers crawling up inside it with his cousins when he was a kid. We also stopped at a old catholic church which had amazing architecture and beautiful stain glass windows.

Here we all are standing in front of the tank. From right to left: Veronica, Michal and their dog. (Damian's cousin and his wife) Damian, Areya, Eva and Aniela (Damian's cousin) Adrian (Damian's brother) and Kuba (Eva's fiance).

On our way home we stopped at the cemetery so that Damian could visit his grandparent's graves. (His grandma died a few years ago and Damian was unable to see her before she passed.)

Just outside the Cemetery there are several shops where you can buy flowers, candles and other tings to decorate the graves. Many of the older people in the village make a daily trip to the cemetery to visit the graveside of their loved ones. I thought this was very neat and a great way to remember the ones who have gone before us.

This picture shows the section of the cemetery where the children are buried. Damian told me that they pay for the plot for a certain amount of time (like 50 years) and then after the time is up if no one continues to pay on that plot they dig up what ever is left (the casket) and the plot is used for someone else.

After the cemetery we headed back to Michal's place for dinner. After dinner was drinks and conversation. Damian's other cousin Roman came over along with some of Veronica's friends. They all had a great time talking and drinking. I watched the girls and did my best to keep them out of trouble. (I have no clue what anyone one was talking about, maybe I should learn so more Polish)

During our visit Areya and the their dog had a little, well lets say disagreement. Areya wanted to pet him and he didn't really want her to so he let her know by biting her on the cheek. The bite was not very big but was kind of deep. She did not get any stitches but probably should have. She now has a little scar that looks like a dimple when she smiles.

When it was time to leave Damian and Adrian had a bit to much to drink so I needed to drive home. Let me tell you how nervous I was about this. The signs are different and the rule are different and I had no clue where I was going. We ended up home safe and sound with no accidents.

Playing catch up

***FYI we are all back safe and sound. It was a very interesting trip and i'm glad to be back.
Sorry I have not updated in a while, it is amazing how much needs to be done after being gone for a month. I think I am pretty close to having it all taken care of so now I have a little time to let you all know more about our trip.***