Last times

Hello people.

 

I decided to make the last big post in English, so everybody who wishes to read this, can. Its for Germans, Polish, Estonians and all my other international friends. 

So. I am back in Germany and not just since yesterday but already since over a month. This is kind of incredible. I still remember the last stressful day so well. And now it is all over.

But ill try to write about the last days in chronological order.
___

 

Last Swing Event 

My year in Kraków is for me strongly connected to Lindy Hop and Swing in General. My weekly dance classes brought me so much joy, I knew every "Swing Party Place" and almost all Swing dancers. It introduced me to this new world of fun, creativity and musicality and I am so grateful for this. Due to my Swing dancing I was once more and until now the last time in Warsaw, where the Warsaw Lindy Exchange took place. It was good as always and hopefully not my last time there!

Now I just hope that I can continue swinging in Germany. Somehow I have the feeling that its harder to get connected, but maybe I am just too spoiled from the active and well connected lindy hop scene in Kraków and Poland in general.

 

 Gdansk 

My last travel destination was Gdansk where I went with my two German flatmates. It was amazing! We were there just for three days or so and slept at another volunteers house not far away from the seaside. The weather was a little cold to swim (but we were still hopping inside), but for exploring the wonderful city, the weather was just perfect! We were walking around, having cocktails and just enjoying ourselves. On one day I went alone to Malbork, which is a big fortress not so far away from Gdansk and it was also a great experience!

Really succeeded travel !

 

 Polish exam

 When I was sitting in Malbork, waiting for the train back to Gdansk, I got an email - which said that I had passed the B2-Polish exam!!! I was so surprised and happy, because I really had tried to get used to the thought of not passing the exam...really, it was such a great feeling and I am so happy that I did not waste 80 Euros for nothing. Now I am still waiting for the certificate, which  I will probably pin on my wall or so cause I am so proud of it :D.

 Visits

In my last two weeks I still got visited 2 times. First my Estonian family came over and with really bad weather we explored the city. It was just so confusing to switch between Polish and Estonian and German but in the end of their visit I managed it quite well. Good brain training for sure...also I got visited by a German friend on my last weekend and we also had a great, but short time together. 
 

 

 

Last days in kindergarten 

I tried to enjoy my last days and hours with the children as much as possible. But I knew from the beginning that it would be really hard to say goodbye to them. Somehow I think that I had a too good relationship to them. I mean, some of them I would really name friends which may seem a little strange, as they are just around six years old but still somehow I feel like this. We have talked and laughed and cuddled so much during the nine month, 5 days a week that it was really hard for me to bid farewell. When I was hugging the kids for the last time, I often had to cry a lot which was a little bit embarrassing as a lot of them did not really understand why I am crying. But some did and the little girl which I taught German at her home even cried too . Than I got a lot of presents, as flowers, books and sweets and yeah, it was a really emotional, hard but also beautiful week for me.

Anyway, I plan to come back in November for some days and than I want to visit the school in which the majority of the children will go. Oh my god, I'm already now looking forward to that day...

Filip - Little Casanova already has had 2 girlfriends in his short life!

Lena and Mikolaj in their selfmade shirts,
 which was like the last project I did with them.

Wiktoria and Oliwia, the girls I taught German at their home .

 

Asia. A girl who constantly tried to climb on my back. Called her monkey :D.

Mateusz

Przemek

Wojtek

Martyna (her mother told me , please pay attention
to the colours of the flowers ...not bad :D )

 

 So, now as I am back already for over a month  of course I try to reflect these 9 month that I spent in Poland. And I can say, I don't regret at all, that I went to Poland and nowhere else. It's a country which surprised me positively a lot and which is totally underestimated in Germany in my opinion. It's cities are so beautiful and not crowded with tourists, the people are so warm and the language actually really pretty if you are brave enough to get oneself into it.

Here in Berlin and in Germany in general I hear Polish, now that I got so used to it sound, so often on the streets and it's like hearing German abroad, I just hear it in a second when someone in my surrounding is speaking it and can't stop listening to it. I really miss being in Poland. I miss this beautiful, amazing Kraków, where always something was going on and which just had the perfect size. I miss our great shared flat, where we got so used to each other and you where never alone. I miss speaking Polish, really really much. Learning all the time  new words and getting more fluent with every day. However the most I miss my kids in the kindergarten, which where so happy every morning when I came into the room, which I watched grow up und get better in so many things and which taught me Polish so willingly.

I learned a lot in these 9 month. About children and how to handle them, I learned that already 6 year old kids have such a huge character and just want to be loved,  I learned a new language, I learned how to share a room and live together with people from different nations and I learned to feel myself as an European. I have already lived in 3 different European countries so far and met soooo many people from almost all European nations, I really feel like I catched the sense of the European feeling now.

Well, I am already now pretty sure, that I will live in another country for a longer time again, as I just can't get enough from this enriching and great experience!

But first I will start my studies this October and am really looking forward to this. Maybe I will write another post about Poland and Kraków in general (like differences to Germany and so one), but if not this will be the last post until my next adventure abroad.

Thank you all for reading!

 Pa

Anna

 

To my flatmates:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Man I miss you.