Poland

Poland.

What can you say about Poland? The picture that many people have is that of a cold, hard, and unforgiving place existing only in shades of grey; a sad old black and white film that made it off the big screen and onto the map. The last thousand years haven't exactly been kind to Poland. They've been invaded, conquered, re-invaded, conquered, re-invaded, Nazi's, Holocaust, Soviet Bloc, and so on (and that's just the last 200 or so years). More recently their President was killed in a plane crash, but due to the rumblings of one aforementioned Icelandic Volcano a large majority of world leaders were prevented from attending. Now unseasonal rains have caused quite massive flooding in the south and west of the country. Does this place ever catch a break?

We arrived here a day late, and were greeted by what can best be described as weather resembling a typical wet Arkansas winter day. Rain, cold, wind - all the main players had tuned up a wonderful symphony intended to lower our spirits and dampen our plans. Sounds Polish right?

Well, even this abysmal weather couldn't hide what's really here. Poland is quickly transforming into one of the best places in Europe. They've always been a proud people - you'd have to be to survive as long as they have and endure the troubles they've seen. This pride has carried them from one empire's footstool to another into a nation who is finally in charge of it's own destiny.

Krakow is a perfect example of this. Years behind the Iron Curtain took a toll on this beautiful city, casting a dark shadow over one of the former jewels of the old Polish Kingdom. One gentleman we talked to in a Restaurant in the Kazimierz (Jewish) district told us about the old days when the Soviet control was more than obvious, and how the city has transformed from just another dot on the map filled with large block housing, Polski Fiats and streets littered with garbage to the Cultural Capitol of Poland. The famous Jagiellonian University (ever hear of Copernicus?) has resumed it's former glory and the Polish Flag once again flies over Wawel Castle, finally bringing rest to the former Kings and Queens interred within. There's still the occasional Polski Fiat (which still has a love/hate relationship with the locals), but instead of trash the streets are lined with flowers and trees and shops of every kind. The people sometimes look to have a cold exterior but might be the friendliest I've ever been around. They just need to be reminded that it's OK to smile.

I've loved every minute of my time here. Some of the students complain about the weather. One lady we met said it wouldn't be Poland if things were perfect. I suspect that she's right. Our apartment should have told me - I was expecting a utilitarian room. What was I thinking? I'm in Poland - it had to be much, much better.