A Weekend in Poland

Auschwitz - Friday May 1, 2015 

It's not the kind place most people would choose to spend their birthday weekend, but Krakow, Poland is where Jay wanted to go for his. We had an extra day off during the first weekend in May because of Ukrainian Labor Day, so it was the best time for us to go. Actually, Krakow is a beautiful city and the drive through the Polish countryside was lovely.  Unfortunately, it's just the history that surrounds this part of Poland which makes it feel, in part, like a sad place.

The Auschwitz Concentration Camp

 

The entrance to the Auschwitz

An artistic replica of the prisoners in striped uniforms (pajamas)

The fences around the perimeter of Auschwitz

 

The Birkenau Camp

It was a rainy day, which seemed very fitting for this sort of tour, yet Nature provided a lush, green backdrop, dotted with colorful spring flowers, to an otherwise grim and sorrowful landscape littered with the remnants of what happened here.

After leaving Auschwitz, we travelled to one of Poland's most visited and most famous attractions, The Wieliczka Salt Mines.

 

On the way, we passed this monument dedicated to the Jewish prisoners who were buried on this mound.  The memorial is called Torn-Out Hearts "

"Designed by Witold Cęckiewicz and unveiled in 1964 on the site of Płaszów's second mass execution pit, this monolithic memorial depicts five figures (representing the five countries of Płaszów's victims) with heads bent under the weight of the massive stone block from which they're carved and a horizontal crack across their chests, symbolising their abruptly ended lives. The large Polish inscription across the back of the monument reads, 'To the memory of the martyrs murdered by the Nazi perpetrators of genocide in the years 1943-45'." (from In Your Pocket Essential City Guides)

 

The mine is so deep and the pockets of salt which have been mined are so massive that all kinds of underground rooms, churches, restaurants, and even a hotel and spa have been created in the spaces.

Amazing!

The mine is a World Heritage site



A dining room for special events

Old Town Krakow- Saturday May 2-3, 2015

The rest of the weekend was spent in Krakow, mostly in and around Old Town Square, which was where our hotel was located.

 



 Hotel Starry

 Our hotel had an underground pool and spa.  Jay was treated to a massage for his birthday.

 The entrance to a flower shop

 A Wedding Horse and Carriage

 A cute little café tucked away between the old buildings

 Our school director and his wife were also in Krakow for the weekend, so we met later for dinner.  The guys ordered steak which came sizzling on a hot stone so they had to wear bibs!

 I had wild boar filet with mashed cauliflower, spinach, and pumpkin puree.  It was perfect. 

 A picture of former Ukrainian prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, signing the guestbook at the restaurant.

 The moon over Krakow

We ended the evening with our own horse and carriage ride.

We  had to get up early on Sunday morning to fly from Krakow to Warsaw, where we made our connecting flight back to Kiev.  It was a memorable weekend.

Kyiv International School PTO Gala Event

 

Saturday Night - April 25, 2015

The KIS Parent-Teacher Organization hosted a Gala to celebrate the school year and raise funds to help purchase items for the school.  It was held at the Radisson Blu in downtown Kiev.  It was well attended, the food was delicious, the music was great, and it seemed like everyone was having a good time.  Many items were donated for a silent auction which was open for most of the evening.  At 10 pm the winning bids were announced.  I walked away with a vase from Romania and two nights for two at the Radisson Blu in Istanbul!!!  At the time, I didn't know that we would be returning to The States at the end of this school year.  So I'm keeping the vase and looking for someone to buy the gift certificate.  Anyone planning a trip to Istanbul?

Our own KIS Korean boy band, "Kimchi on the Vodu" was one of the bands to play during the evening.  They were great!

There was a champagne reception before dinner.  I actually went to a Ukrainian salon to get my hair done for this special occasion.  I didn't even do that for my high school proms or my wedding!

The Directors' Wives



A good time was had by all.

The place looked elegant...

and our KIS PTO moms looked beautiful !



The Week Before Spring Break

March 30 - April 3, 2015  The Week Before Spring Break...

In The Guidance Office

The week before our Spring Break was the final week of university notifications for our seniors at Kyiv International School.  Many of them had already been accepted to some great schools, but those students who had applied to Ivy League schools in the U.S. and other schools with very selective admissions requirements were still waiting.  As their guidance counselor, I celebrate the acceptances and sympathize with the disappointments. Overall, I am very excited about the opportunities the Class of 2015 has in front of them.  They still have a couple of weeks to make their final decisions, and for some of them, this process is more painstaking than waiting for the universities to respond!  Sometimes, too many choices is not necessarily a good thing.

SAMPLES OF MY GUIDANCE OFFICE BULLETIN BOARD:







 



THE WINDOW OUTSIDE OF THE SECONDARY OFFICE:

THE MARKS ON MY OFFICE DOOR FRAME WHERE I MEASURED THE SENIORS FOR CAPS AND GOWNS:

At Mr. Richard's Birthday Party



 Mr. Richard is a fifth grade teacher at KIS.  He threw himself a "Spirit of 76" birthday party for, you guessed it, his 76th birthday!!

This is just one of many pictures taken with women at his side while he was cutting the cake.  Yes, there were men at the party, too.

Learning to Decorate Ukrainian Easter Eggs

After school on the Friday afternoon before spring break started there was an egg painting class offered at school.  Those of us who paid a small fee to attend were guided by a couple dressed in traditional costume on the technique of decorating eggs Ukrainian style.  It is a tedious process involving heat and wax and a steady hand.  I wasn't unhappy with my result, but I am planning to try it again next year and I hope to see some improvement.