9/14/13
Exhausted, drained, but loving life. At 8 am we went to the Old Town of Lublin (my town). We saw buildings, the castle, monuments, and the city. I saw one of the most upsetting things though, it was the memorial dedicated to the Jews that died in World War II. There is a lamp positioned next to the bridge and is always lit. The lamp is pathetic because it looks like a regular street light when it really means something significant. There are millions of people that died and I am positive a dinky lamp does not do their painful death justice. It really upsets me.
<<< Monument to honor the Jews that died!
There we went for delicious American ice cream! It of course didn’t taste like American ice cream because it was buttery and icy. Ice cream in America is so beyond better.
Next we stopped at a Heritage Park nearby Lublin that has a huge windmill and old huts. It was kind of boring to just walk around this park, but doing it with my friends actually made it fun. We all joked around and took fun pictures like Colton acting like a duck in the flowers.
Back at the hostel we changed into our Rotary Lublin t-shirts and Rotary blazers. Dinner was chicken and cold salads. I sat with my girls and joked around with the other students like Soffi and Regina from Mexico. The Rotarians also told us about future Euro Tour plans and other trips like Italy Ski trip and London trip. I immediately messaged my parents with dates and prices. I cannot wait to see the rest of the world! There is so much to see and it will be even better with my friends.
Rotary then set up at boat ride for us around the city. We walked around the ferry for 2 hours taking pictures, singing, joking, and eating. We even saw cows standing on the beaches near the river. Ashley made me laugh so hard that I started crying. My lack of sleep also added to the burst of tears. When I am tired, I burst out laughing with a few tears.
In the hostel, it was a lot of fun! Sam, Grace, Ashley, and I drank a little bit of coke with rum. With the lack of sleep, my temper was extremely short. I ended up screaming at Levi for being a bad friend because I didn’t talk to him the whole trip. I ended up saying some crazy things to a few other people. But the talent show was actually really fun. I dressed up as a Miss America pin-up girl because Miss America was originally held in Atlantic City. Another exchange student even camp up to me and told me that I could be the real Miss America. This is a super big compliment! I feel so special!
Ashely (NY) dressed up as the Statue of Liberty, Sam dressed as a cow girl to represent Arizona, Ashley (ME) dressed up as a lobster to represent Maine, and Alyssa (CO) dressed as the, white, Michelle Obama. We held up the American flag behind Alyssa as she sang the National Anthem. She did a really good job. Some of the other Americans also joined in with Alyssa. It made me wish I hadn’t lost my voice from last night.
I had just a blast with my girls that I wish I never had to leave. I love spending time with them. We planned on hanging out again before the Christmas meeting on Dec 13. This girls will definitely be my lifelong friends, as I am to them.
Stephanie Raquel
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