8/31/13

This morning I had to wake up at 7:30 in order to pack my suitcase. Levi, Grace, and Ashley (NY) were still asleep in my room. As I packed I realized that I made new friendships that will last forever. An exchange students’ bond is unbreakable. No one understands what we go through, how we feel, and how amazing of a person it takes to go through this long year. I love my friends! I’ve only known them for 10 days but I will always love them.

Eventually everyone woke up around 8 am. Levi carried my extremely heavy suitcase downstairs for me. At the door I hugged Sam, Grace, Ashley, and Levi. I didn’t want to leave them!! We planned on seeing each other again before the Christmas Meeting. Levi said he would ask his host family about hosting an American Thanksgiving. That sounds like an AMAZING idea! So it’s not a good bye for 3 months..it’s a See you soon! Our next meeting is in 2 weeks in Lublin!

On the train ride from hell (6 hours long), I kept thinking about what my Green School will be like tomorrow. Ashley (ME) and Sunny slept the entire train ride while I stayed away. A girl told us that one person should always stay awake on the train because people will steal from you. We agreed to take turns but everyone ended up asleep. So I designated myself to be the lookout.  I couldn’t wait to be at the Lublin station and finally see my new house. So many new changes today.

Stephanie Raquel

8/30/13

This last night with my friends has been a BLAST! I definitely made a lot of memories on my last night at language camp.

I took my final exams- 1 oral exam & 1 written exam. Overall I got a 4+ out of 6. Big thank you to Levi, Ashley, and Grace for studying with me. We each received a certificate for completing the courses at the disco.

Before the exam I sat on the roof with Levi, Grace, Sam, and Ashley. We sat around, ate Nutella from the jar, listened to Levi play guitar, and talked about the memories we made at camp. We are each scared to go to school alone and have to make new friends in a different language. I am so worried about the Green School trip tomorrow because I don’t know anyone. What if they hate me?! I hope I do okay!

After exams, I sat in Ashley’s room and had “girl talk”. (You know…boys liking girls, girls liking boys, being in relationships. Just interesting stuff) Sam also joined us later and we had a good “talk” with her too.—PRIVATE!!

I would say that Ashley, Sam, and I are like to 3 musketeers so far. We are always together, we understand each other, and we have tons of fun together! I feel like I was meant to go to Poland on exchange in order to cross paths with there great girls. I hope the rest of my exchange falls into place like it has so far.

 (Ashley NY, Me NJ, Sam AZ)

At the disco, I danced my butt off with Ashley, Sam, and Grace! Ashley used to dance as a kid just like me so we were having so much fun! Sam jumped around from group to group like she normally does but we don’t mind. One girl was dancing on the table. The Brazilians were dancing in one circle. The Mexicans were intermingling. The Americans were broken into many different groups. The majority of the dance I was just with Ashley. We laughed the whole time and danced to about every song. Ashley and I ended up dancing with PePe halfway through the dance. He is the funniest guy here in Poland from Mexico. By the end of one song we had 5 or 6 girls surrounding PePe! It was such a good time!

But the night wasn’t done yet! Everyone came back to my room and we talked about the dance. Ashley (NY), Sam, Grace, Ashley (ME), and I wanted to sleep on the room to see the sunrise but there was a counselor sitting outside in the hallway. They were scared we would do crazy things on our last night at the hotel together……..which we would. So Levi ran into my room when the lady went to the bathroom. Grace took the new jar of Nutella out of her room and we all just hung out in my room. –There is a new jar of Nutella because Ashley and I went into Caroline and Donni’s room during the dance, saw they had 3 HUGE jars of Nutella unopened on their windowsill, so we swapped our empty one with their full one. We were soo evil but the girls didn’t even notice!– So Sam ended up going back to her room to sleep but then Marek camped out practically in front of my room. Marek decided to check our room a couple times too so Levi had to quickly hide in our tiny closet.

Thank goodness Grace’s room is adjacent to mine so she grabbed more blankets and pillows from her room. Levi ended up getting stuck sleeping in my room because if he left the room Marek would have yelled at all of us. The sleeping arrangement was; me, Ashley (NY) and Grace on my bed; Ashley (ME) on her bed; and Levi on the floor in the middle of the beds.

We eventually fell asleep at 1:30am and when we planned to get up at 5am to see the sunrise, we all just rolled over in our beds when the alarm went off. No one was getting up to walk up the stairs to the roof. It wasn’t the best sleep but honestly I was sooo glad I got to be with my friends all day and night.

Stephanie Raquel

8/29/13

It is sadly my last day in language camp! Tomorrow we have final exams to test us on whether we remember what we learned over the past week.

After the Polish classes and gym class, we played Urban Games. This is where we split into teams, walk through the entire Bydgoszcz, and take pictures with statues and buildings. Marek was the leader of my group and he is the head of the language camp. We walked maybe about 10 miles around the whole entire city! My feet are exhausted!! By the end of the hunt it was dark and Marek said there were many drunk people walking around town so it would be safer to just go back to the hotel. Marek also bought our team Polish Ice Cream!! That was soooo nice of him! I will dream about that milky/creamy ice cream for awhile!

Back at the hotel on the roof, Levi played guitar and sang us a song. It was so amazing! Levi kept saying he isn’t a good singer but he is much better then the average person. It was a relaxing end to an exhausting day.

Stephanie Raquel

8/28/13

Today marks the day that I have been in Poland for 1 whole week. If you think about it…I have about 40 weeks left in Poland. 1 week down and about 40 to go.

The exchange students went to this dinosaur museum. We walked through this forest and in between the trees are sculptures of the different dinosaurs. I walked with Sam, Levi, Grace, and Ashley. They are becoming my good friends and I always hang out with them. At the museum we took tons of pictures with these scary/creepy animals. I can’t wait to make a photo album to show all these crazy adventures.

After the museum I had supper with my friends and a few new people like Colton from Canada and Grace from Minnesota. I really have a good time with them!! After; Grace, Sam, Alyssa, Ashley (ME), Ashley (NY), Levi, and I sat on the roof. We had a really nice conversation about our future goals. We each explained why we each chose to be on exchange, how we joined this exchange through Rotary, why they chose Poland, and what is next for them after the exchange. I feel as though I understand everyone better which makes better friendships with each of them.

 I told everyone that these twinkly lights on the roof are a symbol of the stars. The lights are easily in reach for each of us meaning we all will achieve our dreams and goals in life after this exchange. We are incredible people for deciding to leave our familiar worlds in order to be on exchange. This year will be completely unforgettable for us.

Stephanie Raquel

8/26/13

Today was my first boring day in Poland. I learned numbers, face features, and family members in Polish. The lessons weren’t exciting at all.

The boat ride was the most exciting thing I did all day..but not all days can be as glamorous as the next.

I didn’t really have friends on the boat so I sat alone and just looked out the window. The exchange students were broken into 2 groups and my friend Ashley was on the other boat. Sam and Grace are my friends but they were running around taking pictures with the other kids. At the end of the tour I took a picture with the Captain’s hat and the Captain of the boat.

That’s it for my exciting day.

Stephanie Raquel

8/25/13

Today has been a truly exhausting day. The lack of sleep is finally catching up to me. It is about 8 pm and all the kids are watching a popular polish comedy movie downstairs but I am laying in my bed already. After polish lessons I went to take a nap for a total of 1 hour. I keep getting upset and being unable to think properly because I lack a good amount of sleep. I also dramatically get irritated by little things that I would normally never get mad about. A little bit of music while I write and a good night rest is definitely going to do my body justice. 

These days are starting to feel like years as they pass. Ashley (ME) is my roommate, super beyond sweet, and she is helping me get through these rough days of homesickness. She said for the first few weeks that the days feel like years but when April finally rolls around, the months will feel like days. I know this is sad to say but sometimes I can’t wait for my exchange to zip by. It would be nice to hug my mom and dad right now. My exchange should be better once I make friends in Lublin and become closer to my host family. I already texted my host dad calling him Dad! My host sister doesn’t seem too bad over an email, I hope we hit it off once we meet in person. 

I should try to go to sleep before all the exchanges students come up and make a bunch of noise. Kind of sad but sleep is going to make me feel a lot better about this exchange. Plus sleep makes the days go by faster!

Stephanie Raquel 

8/24/13

Today was a very eventful day. I went to Biskupin and Torun. Biskupin was extremely interesting because it was Poland’s first settlement. The settlement was different compared to settlements in USA because of their available resources. The wood floors bent my ankle in half! Ouch! The sticks on the roof were thick layers of straw. There was a replica of the settlement next to where it originally stood. We played games like tug of war. USA lost against Brazil and Mexico. It was pretty pathetic for us. I bought 2 postcards at the gift shop and a nice leather key chain to go on my blazer.

Next city we visited was Torun. The city is gorgeous now! In 1938 it held soldiers during World War II. I took tons of pictures of the colorful buildings. There is one building that is leaning and is said to test your morality. I placed my heals against the wall of the building, held my hands out in front of me, and tried to keep my balance…….I fell forward, easily. I felt like I was going to fall forward if I didn’t catch myself. This shows I don’t have good morals. (Sorry Mom and Dad!)

We visited many beautiful streets that were lined with gorgeous buildings. Throughout the tour I took pictures with Sam (AZ) who is so cool and Levi (WA) who is super sweet. I also took pictures with other people throughout the day. I am happy to say I am making lots of friends with the other exchange students.

For dinner we ate at McDonald’s. It cost me 9.90 zl and in US dollars that is $3.30. Everything seems super cheap to me. Divide the amount by 3 and that is the cost in US dollars.

For supper we had a barbecue that was nice. All the exchange students bonded by the camp fire. It was extremely cold tonight that I kept wishing I had my UGGS, sweatpants, and jacket. It felt like October weather here and this is their summer! I don’t think I could survive their summer here!

I finished writing this entry at 2:30 am..not sure I will make it up for stretching in the morning at 7:50 am. I hope I don’t run my body down to the point where I become sick. We will see what happens tomorrow.

Stephanie Raquel

8/23/13

Today was officially my first day in Bydgoszcz, Poland. I woke up at 7:30 am but barely slept all night. I was checking my phone every time to see if my parents called or texted even though I told them to leave me alone. I didn’t cry today though. I am feeling really good today.

At breakfast I asked the other American girls for advice regarding being homesick. A girl named Alyssa from Colorado said,  “Keep your mind busy, stay outside, and surround yourself with people. When you are alone, you tend to over think things which will drive you insane!” —This advice seriously helped me!!

At 10 am we went as a group to the town hall of Bydgoszcz to meet with the mayor. He was nice but didn’t know any English so the Rotaract members had to translate. After the speech we had a tour of the building then went outside for pictures. Thank goodness I brought an American Flag!!!! The other Americans didn’t think to bring one. So out of 20 Americans we had 2 flags.

In gym class we played Polish games but they are similar to American games. Playing hand ball was definitely my favorite game out of them all. There is Polish baseball but without bases, Polish dodge ball but with a queen, and Polish football but called soccer in America. My team, The Green Team, is super awesome! GO GREEN TEAM!

I know this is going to be super gross to read but….after gym I took a well needed shower but there was little to no shampoo. In hotels there is no soap and instead shower gel so showering gel and little shampoo definitely doesn’t get the job done. Throughout my stay in Bydgoszcz I can already tell I won’t smell the best compared to the kids who brought shampoo and soap with them. NOTE: Ask mom to ship me soap and shampoo from home.

I had my first Polish lesson today! I learned how to say, “Mam na imie Stephanie. Jestem z USA!” Meaning “My name is Stephanie. I live in USA.” 

Later, we went to a play at the theater…it was all in Polish so I didn’t understand anything! 5 minutes into the show I got extremely tired. I couldn’t keep my eyes open at all. So I ended up collapsed on my lap for a short nap. It felt really good to sleep. The jet lag really hit me hard like a brick wall to my face! After the show I took pictures with my new friend Ashley! She is from New York and is staying about 10 hours away from me in Gdansk. We are planning on visiting other places in Europe together. She is also on the Green Team which makes it really fun to hang out together. 

After autographs and pictures with the pianist and the other exchange students, we went to the supermarket!! At the store I bought shampoo (thank goodness!!), soap, razors, and chocolate bars. Thank goodness we went to the store! I would have smelled like poop the rest of the time at the camp. Cleaning routines and products are different in Poland. 

At dinner it was really nice talking to the other American girls. They are becoming my home away from home.- My American Sisters! 

Dobranoc! = Good night! 

Stephanie Raquel 

(Stephanie NJ, Ashley NY, Megan TX)

8/22/13

It is my first night in Poland. I had my fair share of tears already. I didn’t sleep at all on the plane rides. I am exhausted but my body doesn’t even know it. 

I’ve been dreaming about this day for 4 years! I hear other exchange students’ stories about the time they stepped off the plane to finally meet their host families. I was hoping it wouldn’t be a horrible first meeting and this is how it went:  After I got my luggage in Warsaw, it took me about 15 minutes to finally build up the courage to walk out of the exit towards town. My biggest fear was for me to go outside and end up standing there for hours with my luggage just waiting. I was freaking out that maybe they forgot about me. But when I finally walked through the doors, I was overwhelmed by a huge crowd of people. Everyone was waiting for someone who also just got off a plane. I walked down the roped off aisle and saw my host dad walk up to me with a sign that read “STEPHANIE”. I said, “Yea! That’s me!” We both had huge smiles that went from ear to ear. My host dad stuttered and eventually said, “Hi, I’m Darek.” We shook hands then walked over to my host mom. She gave me a huge hug and a kiss on each cheek. She said, “Hello! Do you have to use the bathroom? Are you thirsty or hungry?” I was fine. All my nerves went away in that very instant. 

At lunch I tried multiple traditional Polish dishes. There was a spicy soup that was extremely delicious! There was an egg/sausage soup in a bread bowl that wasn’t so good. There were potato/cheese perogies that were also delicious! Then there were meat/cabbage perogies that weren’t so good. NOTE: Tap water is gross!!!

On the 2 hour car ride to the language camp, I mainly slept the whole way. I was plenty exhausted. My host dad now calls me “Stephula” just like my mother back at home. I have to get used to calling him “Dad/Tata” also. We have one thing in common, we both listen to Michael Buble! 

So tonight I made the decision not to talk to my parents for a few weeks unless I really need to talk to them. (I’m tearing up right now just thinking about it.) It upsets me too much to hear their voices because I keep reminding myself I won’t be with them for a year. 

Anyways, my roommate Ashley is super sweet! She is a junior in high school from Maine, USA. We will be living in the same town, Lublin, together. We will be each others’ support system for the next 10 months. Thank goodness!! She is going through a rough stage of homesickness as well. 

REMEMBER STEPHANIE: I know you would love to go home now but you will regret it later in life. It will be the biggest regret of your life. Seeing the world through this opportunity is something not many people ever do. You might be freaking out about the 10 months ahead but it will fly! You can do this!!

Stephanie Raquel 

8/21/13

I am sitting on the plane right now heading to Poland. Last night I had a very emotional time saying “See you soon” to Rachel, Adrian, Yasmeen, and Sarah La. I cried like a baby in their arms. It used to be so easy thinking about leaving my home for a year and living in a new country but when it comes down to it…I hate the idea! I don’t want to leave my friends and family. Everyone asked me for the past week if I am excited but how can I be excited?! I am terrified to go to a new place, alone. I don’t know the language, I don’t know anyone, and I have to be independent for the year. There is nothing to be excited about! No one will ever know how I feel..except for other exchange students. 

While I was waiting in the airport for my flight, I met a girl that was tall with red hair. She was an exchange student in the USA from Germany about 4 years ago. She was extremely comforting because we went through the gates together and talked about how Europe isn’t actually that scary. She said the kids know at least a little English and the airports also have English signs. I have a layover in Germany for 2 hours. As soon as I get to Poland on Thursday, I have to go straight to a language camp. I don’t think I am nervous about meeting the other exchange students. I am nervous about how tired I will be and about finding my host family in the airport. Everyone keeps saying everything will be fine so I really hope they are right!

I cried a lot when I first got on the plane but I reassured myself: “This year will fly by faster then you want it to go. You will be able to see the entire world before any of your friends or family. No one is as lucky as you! You’ve wanted this since freshman year of high school. Your dreams are finally a reality. For the most part, Stephanie, stay strong but sometimes it is okay to cry.”

We arrive in Frankfort, Germany in 5 hours. I should sleep but I’m not even tired. I just want to be at home right now. I am going to try my best to sleep though. 

Stephanie Raquel (International Traveler)