The week in review

This was a busy and fun week. I learned to use the trains, subways, and trams very well. The buses are still confusing, but I've discovered even the natives have trouble with them, so I don't feel so bad about that.

I acquired some city maps finally and that helps a lot. I actually have an idea about where I am now and that makes going to other places way easier.

I also learned to say my address! Actually I learned both addresses and used a taxi to get home by myself one night. Yay!

On Thursday, I went with my friend Kamila to her sister's house outside of town. It was a very nice "Suburban" area and she had a lovely home. We spent some time with Eva's little boy Josh who is beyond smart. This kid seemed like a tiny grown-up endowed with the wisdom of elderly scholars. His English is pretty good too, for a 6 year old. We worked out a deal to help each other with language. Should be fun, but I hope he is patient with me.

For the weekend, Karolina and I went to her family's country house. It was on the border of Belarus and all the signs were written in Polish and Russian. I have photos I will be adding in a while. The house itself was a turn of the century farm house very far back in the woods. It was so quiet there and at night, it was the darkest place I've ever been. There is no TV or internet or phones there. Well, there is a landline for local calls in case of emergency, but I didn't have any reason to ever find it. It was nice being in this quiet place. The house is heated by a tile stove fueled with wood and coal. Karolina and I were not able to use it correctly to keep it going. But there is a caretaker who lives there and he made sure we didn't freeze to death. We were very thankful for him!

While there, we did some exploring and Karolina told me about the local mushrooms and how to tell if they are poisonous or not. We saw some deer. The deer looked almost exactly like North American White tails, except their tails were almost fan shaped. It was pretty cool seeing that.

The drive there and back was... interesting. It took a few hours on a two-lane road, that apparently has an invisible lane in the middle. People going slower move over and drive on the shoulder and allow others to pass. Passing is tricky because people drive very fast and oncoming traffic has to move to the shoulder as well. But everyone seems to know when to do this. Also, there are no lights on the streets and people bike and walk on these very busy roads. I lost my breathe a time or two.

On the way home, we were pulled over. Karolina got her first ticket, but it could have been much worse. They filmed her making several violations, but only ticketed her for one. When the police asked her if she realized the speed limit was 50 km per hour, she responded, "I thought that was per person." Thankfully, he laughed.