Another Family Adventure

So.... we are at it again. It seems like every couple of months we get to go somewhere new and experience cool stuff. Graduate school has been awesome (for me especially). Colby has all sorts of opportunities that take us all over and I am loving it. It's hard work but it will be worth it.

In the last year as a family we have been to San Diego, Vancouver, BC, Hawaii, and IF. We've been lucky enough to only have to pay for my flight, so it doesn't hurt our wallet too badly. Now we are in Gliwice, Poland (pronounced like gli-vizza, as in pizza). It will be a 5 week trip so it is by far longer than any other trip we have taken. I am really liking it here even though I can't understand a word and there are very awkward moments.

Gliwice is on the southern border of Poland and very close to the Chech Republic border. Also, Dresden, Germany is only 4 hours away by car. I'm pretty sure I know a little guy that must have been named after that town. :) Anything cool about Gliwice? It is not a tourist town at all. Things seem pretty quiet, although it is a pretty big town (200,000). Streets are very narrow. There is not a highway at all around here, only two lane roads. So driving would be pretty stressful.

Gliwice has a famous wooden radio tower. During WWII, Nazi's staging as Polish people and invaded the radio tower and said hostile stuff about the Nazis, making it look like there was a rebellion against them. So, the Nazis in "defense" took over Poland. Auschwitz is about an hour away.

After the war, it was under communist rule until 1989. I can't believe this was a communist country so little time ago. Things seem really nice here and walking down the streets and looking at the buildings, I wonder what it was like 20 years ago. The people that Colby works with (especially Anna- she's local) lived under communist rule and then she got to see things change. It pretty much blows my mind.

We are living in student housing. It is small. BUT, Calem has his own room and there is a crib in it, so I can't complain too badly. When Anna emailed us and said she had made a reservation here for us, she said the kitchen had a washer in it. I thought cool, that means I can wash clothes, or maybe even a dish washer. NOPE. It must have meant a sink. There is a sink, a hot plate, and a half fridge. We don't have any pots, pans, cooking utinsels or anything like that. Anna was kind enough to bring over eating utinsels. That means we have been eating sandwiches like crazy. And that's about all we have eaten. Oooh except for cereal- I found Nutella filled cereal squares. That has to be the best thing in the entire world.

Wow, this is a long post. I'm guessing it is because the only person I can literally talk to is Colby, who is gone most of the time, and Calem and lets face it, all he says is UH!

Colby and Calem walking on the sidewalk by our home.

This is the student housing behind me.

With no highchair and nowhere to put one, we have gotten good at improvising.