Newsletter, Part 3

I have renewed hope that the Christmas newsletters may still appear- a letter I mailed on Dec 18 was finally received in the US this week. So, calculating a six-week delivery time, you may see the newsletter around the second week of February! The solution to the puzzle in the letter is in a Jan 20 post so scroll down. Keep your fingers crossed but don't let all this anticipation overly increase your expectations like mine were for Indiana Jones 4!

Ambassador Ashe Farewell (oops! Extension)

US Ambassador to Poland Victor Ashe and his wife Joan were in the midst of plans to return to the US- packers had been scheduled and their calendar was full of farewell events. At the last minute they received a request from the new administration to remain in Poland until President Obama could nominate a new ambassador. The Ashes graciously accepted and this Farewell party was renamed as as Extension party.

Here are Tim and I, Gen. Bender (Wing Commander Ramstein AB), Scott and Wendy Wallace (Scott works with Tim). Gen Bender was in Warsaw to accompany a C-130 with toys and clothing for Polish orphans donated by the Kaiserslautern military community.

Polish Funeral

Today we attended the funeral of the mother of our Polish teacher (Kasia grew up in Poland but hasn't lived there since she married a man from the Netherlands, who now works for the World Bank in DC, where she taught us- whew!). There was a Catholic mass inside this beautiful old church (no heat!). Every inside surface was painted in lovely, faded colors and some simply decorated Christmas trees were still around the altar. Two elderly priests performed the mass and cemetery staff served as pall bearers.

After the mass, we followed the coffin to the burial plot. It's a huge cemetery so the walk was about 3/4 mile. At the site, the priest performed a shorter service and then cemetery staff placed the coffin into the hole, filled it with dirt, and then replaced the marble cover. Guests covered the "tomb" with flowers they had brought and then we moved through a receiving line of the immediate family. After that, people slowly drifted away. I don't know if there was any kind of gathering following the burial.

All the grave sites were heavily decorated with ornate flower arrangements, most of which were fresh. Endless rows of side-by-side miniature tombs covered with flowers and candles and it always looks like this; Polish families are very attentive to deceased relatives.
There are always flower shops and open stalls outside the entrances of cemeteries that provide the typical arrangements.

MIA Christmas Newsletters

Apparently all our Christmas newsletters are missing or lost. We mailed them two weeks ago but so far, none have reached their destination. Possibly, they were misdirected into the diplomatic pouch rather than the military mail system which means they will eventually show up. My impression is that the pouch is a slower process. If the letters are still missing after three weeks, then we'll just email a copy to everyone and attach the photo we had printed. What an annoyance.

Yes We Can!

The kids and I cheered and toasted the new president, watching the swearing-in ceremony live on AFN (Armed Forces Network, the military satellite channels that bring us American programming). We are on the third floor which has the guest room, play room, and all my sewing (you can get a tiny peek at Ryan and Lisa's wedding quilt over Katy's shoulder). Tim was watching the ceremony at the ambassador's residence but I wanted to view it from home where I could celebrate with unhindered enthusiasm (AMB Ashe is a good friend of George Bush).
[Please note that the horrendously ugly green couch is not ours; it belongs to the office furniture pool.]

Annette Hits Another Home Run!

This year the Kielkopfs gave us another great family present for Christmas- a cocoa maker! Kyle has become the master cocoa chef, creating pot after pot of frothy hot chocolate. Last year they gave us Apples to Apples which is still our favorite game. So here's our salute to Annette- we are drinking cocoa while we play Apples to Apples on a cold, dreary winter night in Poland- thanks Annette!

Poland: A Country of Contrasts

Tim and I were on our way home from a walk, about two miles away from the house, when we stopped to take a picture of the "cute," old-fashion mound of hay in the yard of a tiny, decrepit, brick house. As Tim was taking the picture I was struck by the incongruousness of the factory directly across the street with its large complex of rail lines and mountains of paving materials. I realized that we were standing between old, agricultural Poland and new, manufacturing, infra-structure building Poland. While the giant grocery chains from France and England sell food from around the world, the small neighborhood shops and outdoor markets sell only local produce. The roads range from narrow cobblestones to multi-lane highways and the cars, from communist era miniature Fiats to Mercedes and Hummers. Downtown is a mixture of buildings from Stalin, The Hard Rock Cafe, and Times Square style JumboTrons. The older generation dresses nicely every time they leave the house and the teens dress in the international uniform of jeans, t-shirts, and sweat shirts. Older gentlemen kiss the hand of a woman when introduced while the younger generation is talking on cell phones and listening to ipods (these are just beginning to take off here). So much is going on here that it's an exciting place to be. We are fascinated by the juxtaposition that is old and new Poland and curious to see what will survive the changes.

Newsletter Puzzle Solution

Here are the answers to the puzzle. If you haven't received our Christmas newsletter yet then this may be confusing; be patient. Thanks for playing!

Across
5. Tim is chief of ODC, the Office of Defense Cooperation. His office acts as the link between the US and Polish militaries. Poland is buying and being gifted a lot of new equipment to update their military so the office is pretty busy.

6. Michael enjoyed swimming at the school's indoor pool.

8. We arrived in Warsaw just in time for the embassy Fourth of July party.

9. The kids attend the American School of Warsaw (ASW).

10. Katy played soccer.

12. Fifth grade band offers only wind and percussion instruments so Michael has been learning the xylophone. He still has his violin and is continuing that as well.

13. Ryan is engaged to Lisa Manglass and they will be married in August.

15. Kyle and Ryan both play the violin.

16. Tim and I ran only one race this year, the Polish Independence Day 10K in November.

Down
1. Kyle ran cross country this fall and competed in a meet in Prague.

2. Kyle has begun playing the guitar and now prefers it to the violin.

3. The condition of the roads is the worst thing about Poland; minimal highways and lots of surface decay.

4. Katy is in her second year of flute.

7. Michael went against the crowd and correctly predicted that the Patriots would break their winning streak and lose the Superbowl. His prize was no chores for a week and breakfast in bed.

11. Ryan moved to Colorado last summer. He continues working for GameTap via telecommuting.

14. We lived at the Intercontinental for five weeks but it was no hardship!

I hope you enjoyed this year's remake of the typical Christmas newsletter; we are already working on ideas for next year!

Installation Time By Michael Burke

I started to install World of Warcraft on dad's computer. I thought it would take 20 minutes to install but think again, it would take... 18 HOURS!! Dad and I started to install the game at exactly 9:50 p.m and it's now 2:25 p.m the next day. 1 more percent and it finishes!

A Work in Progress

Not to worry- we are doing a Christmas newsletter this year. We were slowed down by a combination of over scheduling and apathy but they are now nearly done and we hope to have them in the mail on Wednesday. Thanks for your patience!

Hard Rock Cafe

Last night we went to the Hard Rock Cafe for a special performance by Thom Shepherd (http://www.thomshepherd.com/Thom_Shepherd/Home.html). He was in Warsaw for an Armed Forces concert that was open to the public. This is a country band that has written some well-known songs.

The entire band was friendly and personable, chatting with and signing autographs for everyone. Kyle was impressed by the violinist.

Tim, Katy, and Kyle talk with Thom Shepherd.

The Palace of Culture and Science, across the street from the Hard Rock Cafe, decorated with Christmas lights.

When we left the restaurant, snow was falling heavily and the city looked charming and peaceful. This morning there was four inches of snow on the ground and Tim is now outside shoveling the sidewalks (city ordinance).