Daddy's been a bit busy (Jestem bardzo zajety!)

Ain't she a beauty?

Iza on a nice, warm Sunday in October, downtown Warsaw
pic by Matt Kollasch

Greetings from Polska. My god, things have been so insanely crazy since we returned from the states. I wasn't sure if I'd ever get back tot his blog again... but mama and iza are asleep and I'm sipping a bit of my favorite port, as night came too quickly and snow is forecasted tonight or over the weekend. So, what the heck have the Sea/Chi/Mil expats been up to?

Dad quit his job at the end of the year and is officially a stay at home dad (SAHD). I like to call my self the 'manny'. I've never been so busy in my life. It's amazing that this is all that some people want to do with their lives. It is great, but yowza, the insanity/chaos of it all!

Mom jumped back into teaching, full speed ahead with 3 preps/5 classes. The 3rd prep is killing her so we're remedying that next month. Mom is STILL breastfeeding. GO MOM!

Iza is 8.5 months now!
She is fully crawling, well, she drags her right knee (and bruises it all over). She has made it up one step and has fallen down two! She has her 2 bottom teeth and today I saw her top right through her gums... should be 2 weeks or so 'til break through. She has been eating mostly a 'Super Baby Food' diet (by Rugh Yaron). Coolest things she's tried is tahini and mangoes, but she seems allergic to the former. Her favorites are sweets, especially bananas. She's a total shithead at meal times sometimes. It's really hit or miss with avocados.
Iza has said 'da da' a few times to me and 'ba ba' with no reference to anything. She's only screamed 'ma ma'... but never when she's conscious about mom being around :(

Daddy has maintained working with the American school. I helped at a rather intense level with the 9th grade trip to the Jura Krakowska-Czestochowska 'Journey to Adventure'. This was my 4th year helping with this very active trip. I was the sole climber involved and had to maintain the safety of 60 kids and 10 adults in an outdoor rock climbing setting... in pretty wet weather, too. It was stressful but successful. I'm getting paid decently this time, too. Due to the prep and the trip itself, Iza got her first nanny experience with Elzbieta, our cleaning lady. Iza likes her a lot and she seems to eat everything she feeds her... maybe she should come by everyday at lunch!


Dad also got a mini-vacation in 2 weeks ago in the Polish Tatra mountains. Martin, Krzyszek (Kris) and I did/hiked/climbed the ORLA PERĆ (Eagles' Path) http://www.orlaperc.za.pl/galeria.htm for pics... or see my pics from our trip at: http://picasaweb.google.de/pape.martin/OrlaPerc_Jeremy_2007_10
The ladies are Magda, Krzyszek's girlfriend, and Dominika, whom both hiked around a bit while we climbed. The Tatra mountains (Tatry) are quite far from Warsaw, so we took a 6+ hour (fast) train there (and back). Ugh.
The outing was quite nice and the weather held off enough to allow a mix of sun, clouds and light breezes. Krzyszek basically soloed the whole thing and Martin and I stuck together... the slow and steady old men.





The route is basically a 'via ferrata' or 'ironed way', like what we've climbed in Italy and France, but on this one people don't use harnesses and helmets... though I wore my ultralight harness and clipped into one cable at a very scary part... mom and Iza would've been happy with my choice! It wasn't super hard but it did have some very challenging positions and some excellent exposure in places. The views into the high Slovakian Tatras was excellent. Poland really got the raw deal in the border split of these relatively low but very rugged peaks.










One week later I got to back to the Tatras, this time with the ASW Outdoor Adventure Club! Another long train, this time a stay in Krakow, then a bus shuttle to Zakopane got us there. Transit time was shorter but definitely more hectic. And Angie and I had phenomenally bursting bladders on the ride back as we got stuck in Krakow traffic. AARRGGHH!!!

Czarny Staw Gasieicowa lusterka (Black Tarn reflection)

This trip was, in theory, more relaxed but no less strenuous. We were going to do a traverse of the entire Polish mountains via 'easier' trails for a grand tour. We had 13 high school kids, about half of which had never hiked in their lives. Well,... when the mountains came into view, our first pass, Krzyzne, was under snow. Then, during our hike up to the beautiful Murowaniec hut (http://www.murowaniec.e-tatry.pl/index_en.php) we did a day hike in the sleet.

Kids were cold. Back at the hut, forecast was for more snow. And more snow. And then Krzyzne pass had a rescue mission on it... needless to say it was time for a Plan B. Then a kid got sick. Then Plan C. In the end, we stayed 2 nights at this hut, did some nice dayhikes nearby in case the kid needed evac, ate decently well, smuggled some hot mulled wine by the kids... yum, and all seemed to have a good time and none seemed put off of ever hiking again.

The Tatras are gorgeous...
it really is a bummer they're so hard to reach from Warsaw!

So... our days may be numbered here. Jill is starting a new job search, just testing the waters to see if anyone is interested in a K-8 teacher with 2 dependents. We'll be looking at either more mountainous regions, more sunshine or more friendly locals ;-)
Give us a ring if you hear of any jobs on the south island of NZ!
So the clock may be ticking here if you want to get on over for a visit to Polska with free lodging and a guide who can translate the complex (and long!) menus!

Hope everyone is well and again, so sorry for the long, long delay in updating this blog. I'd put up more pics of Iza but my HD is full :(
Here's one I could find, though, from Kris Cummings during our time in Seattle this summer.
Iza has a lot more hair now, two teeth and is a good bit thinner since she's so mobile now!

Cheers/Czessc!

Turtle Power!

Duze bambina and the Bzura river

Iza's gotten strong enough to hold her own bottle at 4 months... but only for a few seconds as it's hard for her to concentrate

And everyone got to visit school for the PTO Spring Fair... which was held inside due to crappy weather :( But everyone loved Iza and her huge cheeks!

And Daddy got to co-run his last Outdoor Adventure Club trip on Sunday... a slow river kayaking trip on the Bzura river, NW of Warsaw, where the largest WWII battle took place as the Poles fought hard to protect Warsaw from the quickly advancing Nazis from the west and north. It was a nice trip and I got to share my yak with Angie, my Biology cohort, and a well-seasoned paddler. Fortunately, the rain held off and we got to enjoy the rich greens and the occasional aggressive cow as we paddled towards the Wisla (Vistula) river.

Spring Break-Madrid, Espana!

Hola!

Iza's first (international!) flight... Warsaw to Amsterdam, Amsterdam to Madrid, then reverse! She only cried on the first landing then rode the others smoothly except for a small tummy ached on the last flight. She's a natural traveler!

We got to visit with Karen, Jill's former principal, now working in Madrid. She said so many times, "She's such a good baby!"
We know
:)


Basillica de Alumeda 18 and 19C


Dark interior of the lower level... we went in the wrong entrance and I wondered why there were so many pillars with such a low ceiling... we found the main entrance another day.. pics to come


'Wrong entrance' door knocker
I love the metal weave


The skinniest, fittest and fiercest bulldog I've ever seen


old, crooked doorway


Plaza Major's main frescoed allegorical facade


detail


me 'n the babe bjornin' it


we found a great, cheaper shopping district (mostly to wholesalers) south of Plaza Major... and some wonderful mannequins!


this is not a mannequin, but still wonderful!


Finally keeping her eyes open while in the baby bjorn... so she got to see some of Madrid, too.


Caffe Spanish style



One of the umpteen impressive cathedral ceilings we saw


more to come later...

Adios!

Totally Critical Mass

Angie and Cosi on Nowy Swiat

Every last Friday of every month of the year, bicyclists across the globe get out for a 'fun' protest bike ride during rush hour in most cities on our planet. This is Angie, Cosi and I doing just that in Warszawa

The riders depart at 6 PM from Castle Square (Plac Zamkowy), with police escorts and about 2 to 3 dozen support riders (flag bearers, traffic controllers, first-aiders and thumpin' music providers :)




This ride turned out to be a 'Mall Shopper Stopper' ride, as we linked every major mall from the city center out west to the newish Factory outlet mall. However, if the serious shoppers were out... they probably were already in the malls and were still in there as we came riding by!
Cosi was using her apartment/city bike, a nice, little compact model that got lots of looks-kind of like a Bike Friday model.

We had at least 3,000 to 4,000 riders... maybe the next will be the biggest!

See you on the road!

Patty came for a visit!

After a delayed start...and jumbled and bumbled flights, Patty finally made it to Warsaw!
After meeting and holding Iza, she suddenly had this overpowering urge to have another baby... a girl again, no less ;-)


Jill's still on maternity leave and Patty came during her spring break. The burly girls got to spend lots of quality time together and Patty didn't mind at all helping with Iza!


The ladies headed south to Krakow, joining Iza and Patty on their first European train ride (Iza was great, of course ;-) Here they are touching the massive bell for good luck in the Wawel Cathedral, though I'm not sure if Iza made the reach!


Spring has fully sprung in Warsaw. I took a day off from work and Patty, Jill and I did a tour of Warsaw by bike. First stop was Wilanow Palace, which if you compare to earlier photos on this site, they've refurbished and repainted it to such an amazing state. Plus it looks even prettier with all the magnolias in bloom.





In Lazienki Park the peacocks were out struttin' their stuff on the first sunny day in a week or two.

King Sigusmund III Vasa high up on the pillar in Plac Zamkowy

Enjoying quiche and coffee at Kafka coffee house

Thanks for visiting, Patty, it was great having you here in Polska!

Kiitos, Finland!

"Finland, Finland, Finland... the country where I want to be,..." Monty Python

As leader of the ASW Outdoor Adventure Club, I got to go to Finland for our Winter Trip for 5 days!

(written on the snow, can you tell how?)

Along with 3 other teachers, we took 15 spirited kids and ran them into the dirt, uh, rather snow every day until late. These kids were exposed to a variety of outdoor activities and experiences, almost all of them for the first time: cross country skiing, snow shoeing, the true Finnish Sauna Experience, complete with temps nearly as high as 100 C and running and jumping into a hole in a frozen over lake, dog sledding, water fall ice climbing, watching the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), star gazing, and, yes, they even got to eat reindeer meat!

We first flew into Helsinki, Finland's capital on the semi-frozen Baltic Sea. We had some time between flights so we checked out the city, including seeing some of Alvar Aalto's architectural works:


Another 1 hour flight north brough us to Kuusamo and a bus shuttle to the Oivanki Outdoor Education Centre.


It's one of 10 state run youth centers that offer great services for youth groups at a great price, which includes full board, use of snowhoes, sauna, fantastic housing and play and meeting rooms. First day was XC-skiing and snowshoeing:

(Super Schwartz)

We even did some sunset and night skiing, too.

(Simon (Swedish) 'n Sarah (USA)

And afterwards we all did the sauna thing. Shower first, then sit in the 90-100 C sauna for 20 minutes, then put your sandals on, head outside in the frigid night air and head down the slippery steps to the hole in the lake and take the plunge! We got every teenage boy to do it the first night, and every girl tried it the next!

Here's a very weird, spooky shot of Schwartz coming out. Notice the 2 ghosts' faces on either side of him and the bright light? I think this is an award winning photo:

So I was one of the last ones to jump in since I was the photographer of the bunch. I or somebody noticed that the sky above was a bit green... so after I took my little ice swim, I stood outside for fifteen minutes in sub-zero temps photographing the Aurora Borealis.

It was awesome! And no one else was willing to stay out to watch them shimmer slowly in the night. Fortunately, me and all my outdoor epic experience came in handy. I was huddled in a ball while keeping my camera resting against the deck railing to steady the camera, which retained what little body heat I had left. However, after 15 minutes or so of shooting, I stood up and my head had 'frozen' itself at the angle I was holding it and I could tell my core temp had dropped considerably. I began to shiver violently. So, the show was ending and I hobbled up the slippery stairs, back in to the cold showers and somewhat hurriedly brought my core temp back up before I re-entered the sauna with the boys (guys and gals sauna seperately in Finland). I was easily at the second stage of hypothermia by the time I was back in the sauna... and thankfully no kid on the trip came close to my misery ;-)

The next day was full of more fun activities and perfect weather.

First up was dog sledding!

This is Susi, the owner of the dog sled farm. His season runs from October to May, usually. He has 140 dogs, mostly Alaskan and Siberian Huskies, but we saw a lot of muts, too.

One of my new Finnish friends

Next on the agenda:

Ice Climbing!

We took the kids to a 20 meter cliff with a guide agency. Lori was the main guide and they told me about a few other places in the region with some good ice climbing... just in case I return here some day for some climbing and skiing :)

The climbing was pretty easy, for the sun was out and the ice was soft. What made it most difficult was one set of tools they had us use were ANCIENT! They were easily from the 70s-short, straight shafts, bashed-in picks and crappy leashes. Mine actually eroded while climbing!

This was definitely a 'first' for every kid on the trip. There were all shocked at how much 'easier' it was compared to rock climbing! It's nice with ice tools in that you can 'create' your next hold. (What little they know what it's like to climb the ice when it's really hard ice and not slush ;-)
Kudos to them all for gettin' on it!

The last day was an epic one. We cross country skied about 20 kilometers. We had a rolly course and stopped about half way to cook our own lunch on the uber-quiet Trangia alcohol stoves.

(Matt and Dong Hun enjoying their meals)

When we headed to the airport in Kuusamo to head back home, it'd turned out we were there WAY too early. So Ken, Beth and Brooks geared up to make the most of it and got in one last ski session in. They also nearly missed their flight... going for a loop trip around a lake that was bigger than they thought ;-)

It was my first school trip abroad, and I think I'll forever be spoiled by it. Every teacher was amazed at how smoothly the trip went and how good the kids were. Of course, we got to partake in all the activities, too :)

Thanks ASW!