Poland day one

Where better to start than at the beginning? This was both the United States and my second year of participation in the Knights of Malta International Camp for the Disabled. The camp, in a different country every summer, brings disabled young adults (from age 18 onwards) from about 20 different countries together for a week entirely dedicated to them. Our guests this year were Justin, a Downs Syndrome boy from the LA area, and Raquel, a Honduran who lost her leg from an infection following a gun wound.

I met them both, and Mark, our team leader, at LAX, and we traveled first to Chicago, then to Krakow. It was an interesting trip- Justin talked almost constantly through the entire trip, and Raquel only spoke Spanish... My Spanish is still seriously limited, but with the help of el dictionario and the Spanish I do know, we managed quite well. Thank God for Spain though. She could talk to them and they would actually understand her! None of this *Michelle (the other American helper) and I look blankly at Raquel, then just as blankly at each other and say "did you understand that?"* There's nothing quite like having someone talk to you in a foreign language to make you feel like a complete idiot! *sigh*

Our arrival at Krakow airport was rather hair-raising. The plane was rocking back and forth for the last minute or so, literally until we touched down. The whole plane broke into applause as we taxied along the Polish runway. The Krakow airport, has something like three planes, and you actually have to go down the steps onto the tarmac, then take a bus over to the terminal. It was quite charming. What was even more charming was that as we stepped down off the plane, Michal, one of the Polish volunteers was there to meet us. I love the Knights of Malta. They're always there when you need them.

The rest of the day was fairly uneventful- I ran into a number of friends from last year after we got to Piekary, and spent quite a bit of the afternoon with Raquel on a rock, wishing I knew where I was staying so I could take a shower, and instead going over Spanish and English numbers with her. Eventually we found out where we were staying, I took a delicious shower, went to Mass (in Polish, English, Latin, Spanish, etc.) then headed over for dinner.

The food was... interesting. We calculated that something like nineteen out of the twenty-three meals had some form of pig at them. That first dinner consisted of bread, butter, ham, cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers and jam. And the reason I remember this so well is because that is exactly what we had the next morning for breakfast, and at most meals... They Polish informed us, very seriously, that they sometimes vary the ham. I think we saw at least four different kinds.

After dinner, we headed over to the first disco of the 2006 camp! I danced with most of my favorite people, and enjoyed myself until about one o'clock when I decided it would be a good idea to go to bed. *snore*

Poland: A Prequel

I'm back!

I've actually been back since Sunday, but the three times I've tried to post something have been interupted by irate library workers, irate internet connections, or just irate-ness. Anyway, here I am.

In order to avoid following in last years footsteps (in other words, not telling anyone about what I did in Germany), I've decided to post early and often of my trip. For starters, check out the camp website: www.camp2006.pl. It will give you some idea of what was going on.

And now, I go to clean the kitchen. We finally have the internet at our house, which means I will not frequent the Ojai library as often. And you might actually get something informative out of me (although that's asking a lot).

I miss you all, so please keep in touch.