Day Camp and Sightseeing

Day 3 at Warsaw Day Camp

Dzien dobry!  Good day!  Last night was awesome.  We went on the city search and saw many things.  Paula and I were in a group with Isabella and Paulina who are 2 Polish girls that are in an English Club here with Ben.  There were 3 groups of people that split up and we were all given a list of 6 things/places to find in Warsaw.  We also had to answer questions about each place.  It was fun.  It was very interesting talking with the 2 Polish girls.  I asked what Polish people think of Americans and they said that most of them are fascinated by us.  Paulina talked about the “American Dream” and about our TV shows.  She said that I had very dark skin and they said that I looked like I was from Holland and that was strange to me.  Anyway, we went to Pizza Hut last night with them and we had a good time.  Today at camp I was in charge of recreation.  It was fun today as we played with water balloons.  Although at the end one of the boys helping thought it would be funny to soak me with a bucket of water.  Ugh.  So my shoes are wet and my clothes.  I sat my shoes outside to dry in the sun and changed clothes.  I went to take a nap during the afternoon and was woken up by thunder and loud rain.  I jumped up and realized my shoes were outside!!  I ran downstairs to grab them and they were not there.  One of the girls told me that the boys had hidden them.  So I am trying to find them and Matilda said they put them on the window sills outside.  Luckily, they were not wet!  So their devious plan actually helped me out.  J  Tonight we invited all the children and their families back to celebrate Our Independence Day with us.  We grilled out and then played games.  The parents played with their children as well.  After that we had a “Barn Dance”.  They loved it!!  We all enjoyed it.  It was a huge success.  I am so thankful for this opportunity and love seeing what God is doing in this community.  One of the parents thanked me for coming and sharing with them.  This has really been a great experience.  I need to go to sleep now.  It is almost 10:30 pm here but it just feels like 7.  I just can’t get used to it.  Only 2 more days of Camp left.  Praying that it will continue to be successful and God will continue to work through us.  Dobranoc! Good night!

Oh, I did learn how to count to ten!  Jeden, Dwa, Trzy, Cztery, Piec, Szesc, Siedem, Osiem, Dziewiec, Dziesiec!

Czesc!

Czesc!  Hi!  This is day 2 of the Day Camp for kids in Warsaw.  I am loving it here and enjoying every minute.  I taught my Bible Story today and it went really well.  The kids participated and had great responses.  We have had close to 50 kids come and participate as well as some parents.  I was in charge of recreation/sports yesterday and will continue to do that the rest of the week.  I have really enjoyed learning the language here.  Although it is the hardest thing I have ever tried to learn.  They said that Polish is the 3^rd hardest language behind Chinese and another form of Chinese.  I will have to agree.  The Polish people here have been teaching me and helping me and they say that I am doing well.  I will only be here a week, but I love a challenge and this language is fascinating.  Jak sie masz?  How are you?  Dobrze. Fine.  The thing that it hard is that their letters say different sounds than ours.  For example, J says y and w says v.  They don’t have a q.  Anyway, I have learned how to say 4 colors so far and want to learn to count to 10 as well.  Red=Czerwony  Blue=niebieski  Yellow=Zolty and Green=Zielony.  We had a chance to talk to one of the Baptist Ministers here and also a Polish guy who has recently been saved.  You cannot believe the way things are over here.  Baptists or Evangelicals are viewed as a cult here.  Majority of people are Polish Catholic.  They believe they are saved by the church and not by the grace of God.  The older generations believe it is a sin to even go to another church.  They know nothing about having a relationship with Christ.  They don’t even understand the concept.  They believe you go to church and to mass and you are saved.  The people are scared and fear the priest.  People don’t read the Bible at home.  Some believe that only the Catholic Priest can read it.  Also, the Catholics only read and know the New Testament.  The missionaries and the ministers of the Baptist Church over here are praying for a change in their country.  This camp has been a great way to show this community that we are not a cult and show them the love of Jesus and that you can have a relationship with Him.  The children are learning about Jesus’ miracles, His life, and what He did/does for us.  Pray that we will begin to break down walls and be able to reach some of these people. 

Tonight we are going on a City Search or a Hunt.  We are breaking up into groups and we have a list of 6 places/things we must find.  I am excited and I think it will be fun.  It’s nap time for me again.  I do think that I am finally starting to feel normal again!  The time change was very hard, but it is getting better.  Oh, FYI, Polish food is…….ummmmm…….strange.  I have had a few good things, but for the most part it is different.  More to come later.  Dowidzenia!  Goodbye! 

Warsaw Day 2

Loved Day Camp today with the kids!  I have really enjoyed learning their language, but I have to admit it is extremely hard.  Tomorrow I am teaching a lesson to the kids on "Jesus Feeds the 5,000."  I am a little nervous because, while I am a teacher, I have never taught a lesson to people who couldn't understand me!  IT will be harder because I obviously have to wait for our translator.  So please pray that all goes well tomorrow.  Tonight we went into the city and did a little sightseeing.  We saw a few palaces and the National Soccer Stadium where the EURO cup took place.  We went to a roof top garden and got to see a wonderful view of the city.  It was a lot of fun.  While I have been here I have ridden 5 different types of transportation.  A train, tram, bus, metro, and car.  And trust me, they are all very different.  I have never seen so many people before and a city so busy and loud.  It is very interesting to just sit and watch people.  We are doing a "City Search" game tomorrow with an English Club from Poland.  I have really enjoyed getting to know the Polish workers in our group.  They are nice and are very helpful.  :)  I'll let you know more tomorrow.  So far, it's been a great trip!

Poland

I have made it to Poland and I am tired.  I lost a night of sleep on the flight over here and now I am 7 hours ahead in time.  So, it is 7 in the morning at home, but it is 2 in the afternoon here.  Big adjustment.  I hope by tomorrow I will be caught up.  It is very different here in Warsaw.  First, this city is huge. Close to 4 million people I believe.  Second, I cannot understand a word anyone says or read what anything says.  It is frustrating.  I have a new respect for people that come to America and can't speak our language.  Polish people dress very differently than we do.  It's hard to explain, but it is very eccentric is most cases.  Warsaw's city symbol is a mermaid.  She has a shield for protection and a sword to fight off any attackers.  There is a giant mermaid statue in the middle of the city.  Or as they call it, the "centrum."  The sun comes up around 4:00 a.m. and sets around 10:00 p.m.  It is wild.  They seem to love ice cream here.  I promise you there is an ice cream shop/store on every block.  They love Coke Zero here and they have it in every restaurant, which of course, makes me very happy.  :)  We are going to start the children's camp tomorrow and we will do it through Friday.  Going to take a nap now to try to catch up!