We are back from our first trip to Poland to see our future
daughter. What an exciting journey
that we have been on! Here is a
brief summary of our trip:
Saturday, June 9: We flew out to Poland. Our flight sequence took us from
Detroit to Amsterdam, with a 4 hour layover in Amsterdam. We then flew to Warsaw and had a driver
who took us to Lublin, which was a 2.5 hour drive from Warsaw. Our adoption facilitor, Magda, drove
with us. By the time we got to the
hotel, it was around 3 pm on Sunday, June 10. We were very thankful that our flights went smoothly but
were too exhausted to function very effectively! So we crashed quick that night.
Monday, June 11: We had breakfast in the hotel with Magda
and Iza, who works for the adoption center. After breakfast, we went to the foster home to meet our
future daughter. To be protective
of her name, I will refer to her as K.
We took a taxi from the hotel to the home and were there within 10
minutes. When we were let in to
the home, we went upstairs to find K looking out a window. My heart jumped in my throat when I saw
her. She looked more beautiful
than I could have imagined. She
was very shy at first, with 4 strange adults entering the room. We sat on the couch and spent some time
with Magda and Iza asking questions to the foster mom about K’s schedule,
medical history, and likes and dislikes.
My knowledge of the Polish language was so great to have at this point
because I understood all of the questions and answers. At times Magda was translating to my
husband and at other times I would.
K’s foster mom is absolutely amazing. I cannot say enough nice things about her. The home was clean and well kept. The children she is fostering are very
well cared for. K is amazing
too! Eventually she warmed up and
the first person she went to was my husband (Mike).
She only had eyes for him! She
was happy to hang out with us but also overstimulated from all the attention we were
trying to give her. It was
overwhelming and understandably, she had a hard time handling it. We all agreed that she was fighting
exhaustion and excitement at the same time and didn’t know what to do with
herself. We left at bedtime and
came back to the hotel.
Tuesday, June 12: Magda and Iza left in the morning. They wanted me and Mike to have our
space to be able to bond with K.
It was a good idea. K was
much more comfortable with us and having more peace in the house. Just like the previous day, we took a
taxi in the morning to stay with K until naptime. K’s foster mom let us take her in a stroller for walk in the
morning. After returning, K was a
bit cranky so I laid her down, and within a few minutes she was asleep! Mike and I had to fist bump each other
over that one. We left for the
hotel and came back after nap and went on another walk. I learned so much about K and also
about her foster mom, who I think is the second generation Mother Theresa. Once again, knowing Polish is a big
help. We had some great
conversations and she is so nice and funny. I wish I had time to write about all the funny interactions
we had – suffice it to say, she treated us like we were family during our time
in her home and I have come to love her like a “ciocia” (aunt). She is constantly offering us food,
drinks, and even the family dog, who has taken a liking to Mike. I could not compliment her enough. She is so hospitable to us and I am
eternally grateful for how well she has taken care of K in this formative first
year of her life. She truly has a
gift for what she does. At bedtime,
we left for the night. We don’t
have much down time but we did squeeze in time for some souvenirs today so that K will have some tangible memories of her birthplace.
Wednesday, June 13: It was our last day to visit K. We spent the day playing and went for
another walk. At naptime we went
back to the hotel to check out and returned for our final set of time with
K. The time goes very fast in the
home. Besides talking about K’s
routine, we talk about transition during the next trip. We decided the best thing to do is buy
diapers and bottles when we get here.
There is only a certain bottle that K likes so we don’t want to disrupt
that. Also, there is only a
certain pacifier so we will buy that in town as well. She likes to sleep in a sleep sack so we will buy those in
the US and bring them over, along with clothes (we took note of
measurements). We took lots of
pictures! We also left some things
we brought: several toys; a photo album with pictures of our family so K can
get used to seeing our faces and the faces of her brother and sister; a puppy
dog stuffed animal; and a Hallmark recordable storybook that we recorded our
voices on, which she loves. K is
getting even more comfortable and giving us lots of smiles. At 5 pm our driver came to the home to
pick us up. We had to say our
goodbyes and I started crying. K’s
foster mom cried and so did her mom.
There’s 3 Polish women crying and my poor husband didn’t know what to
do! It was hard to leave and not
know when exactly we’d be back. We
drove 2.5 hours back to Warsaw and stayed in the hotel by the airport since we
had an early flight the next day.
Thursday, June 14: We took an early flight from Warsaw to Paris. Then a short layover until flying from
Paris to Detroit. What a whirlwind.
Now, a reflection on things about Poland that I would want other travelers to know – this is my 4th trip to Poland but every time I learn something new.
Now, a reflection on things about Poland that I would want other travelers to know – this is my 4th trip to Poland but every time I learn something new.
·
The food is, in my opinion, is amazing. I think that the pizza is
better than American pizza. It is much less greasy. We discovered kebabs on
this trip, which are delicious. Of
course, there are the Polish favorites that you must try – pierogi, golabki, and nalesniki (crepes). The best foods are the ones served in
someone’s home – jump on that if you get the chance. Try some ice cream!
Polish chocolate is not as good as Hershey but they have a type of fudge
called krowki that is delicious and a great treat to bring home. Polish beer is pretty good too. My husband enjoyed several varieties. Juice is very popular and so is tea and
coffee. If you are a Diet Coke
addict…it is hard to find but there is Coca-Cola Zero and Pepsi Light. You have to hunt it down because not
every restaurant will have it.
Iced tea was a good substitute for me.
·
If you are in a big city and want to fit in,
dress up. Women wear skirts and
not dress pants. These days, if you wear
jeans, wear them with heels or a cute pair of ballet flats. Or you can wear a pair of leggings with
a tunic. If you are a woman, red
hair is popular!
·
Bring an umbrella with you. A travel sized one can fit in your
purse. You never know when it may
rain. If you are from Michigan
like me, weather changes on a dime.
The same goes in Poland.
Also if you are in the Midwest, the weather is very similar in
Poland. Usually a bit cooler than
in Michigan, but pretty much the same.
Dressing in layers can help too, depending on what month it is when you
are here. For us even in June, I
would layer on and off as it was cooler in the morning and evening.
·
Bring a Polish/English dictionary with you to
Poland. Though I know Polish, even
I had my moments of unknown words.
It is helpful to have.
·
Relax.
The pace is much slower in Poland than in the US. People take their time, whether it is
eating, hanging out, or walking down the street. I had a hard time slowing down, but I was glad that I
did. Enjoy it! We loved our time in the city of
Lublin.
