Happy New Year from Poland!

Celebrating 2023 in Poland

I can’t believe we are in the new year! I began the new year enjoying watching the fireworks with some of my friends and the following morning my family arrived in Poland. We enjoyed a wonderful week visiting Krakow. We had great weather all but one day and visited most of the sights to see in the city. Our first afternoon was spent exploring the castle in Krakow followed by a relaxing night at home. The next day we relaxed and did some sightseeing in the old city square. We also spend a day at the Krakow salt mines, a day visiting the Schindler’s factory, and a full day visiting the mountains in Zakopane. My favorite say was definitely our time in the mountains. We started the day visiting the wooden village followed by a trip up the mountains for lunch. After we came down and did some shopping, we stopped to try some traditional polish cheese and drinks. And we ended the long day with a visit to the Polish hot springs, which was definitely a unique experience. My family ended their trip back to Palowice before heading back to Pennsylvania.

There have been a few major changes in the last month. I moved again to live with my friends which is a much better situation and I will be able to stay here until the end of my trip. I also have been able to find a car and learned how to drive a manual with the help of some friends. This has helped me feel much more independent as I officially pass the 6-month mark of my time here.

Teaching continues to be challenging but also a wonderful experience. The kids are eager to learn as we have begun to learn more vocabulary at the start of the new year. They love singing our English songs and throughout the day you can hear them as the kids work on their projects. It has been snowing off and on for the last week and the weather has been grey since the middle of January. I’m anxiously looking forward to spring, the warmer weather, and more adventures I look forward to going on.