Well, Well Warsaw

Hang onto your czapkas folks, this is going to be a long post! It's been almost three weeks since I first posted about the Polish adventures of Peter, Jessa, and Rosie. Back in that first post they had just touched down in Warsaw. So much has happened since then, and as you might guess from Rosie's smiling face, it's all good stuff. So, here we go!

There have been a lot of firsts for them in these past three weeks. One of the first firsts was a trip to a hypermarket. A hypermarket is just a large supermarket that also sells household goods and clothes, similar to a Super Target. For an experienced shopper like Rosie this probably isn't such a big deal. Nevertheless, it's a rite of passage and Rosie has checked it off her list!

Another first: pierogis for dinner at a Warsaw cafe! 

Still another first: Rosie (and Jessa's) first time at a Polish music class for toddlers.

Sightseeing: check! This is the entrance to Wilanow Palace, which is in the part of town called Wilanow.  I'm sure no one reading this is into Warsaw geography, but Wilanow is about halfway between Old Town/downtown (which is north) and the school where Peter teaches (south of the city limits).

Another first: Old Town. Jessa's in front of the Zygmunt Column, honoring the guy who was king in the years around 1600. In addition to being the simultaneous king of Poland and Sweden, Zygmunt is known for moving the Polish capital from Krakow to Warsaw in 1596. 

Rosie slept through her first viewing of one of the mermaid statues, depicting the symbol of Warsaw. 

Peter returned to work and here he is with the other teachers at the American School of Warsaw. His first week was new teacher orientation. His second week was teacher orientation. And in his third week school started. Tomorrow starts the second week of school.

There's been more of an old home week vibe than I think Peter expected. He's run into staff who were at the school when our kids went to school there 20 years ago. Here he is with Mary's 4th grade teacher, Mr. Benson.

This is Mary and Mr. Benson, back in the day. Halloween circa 2002 was a time when it was within the bounds of political correctness to dress up as a fat tourist, and Steve Irwin was alive so it was also okay to dress up as him. 

But never mind all that. Rosie would like to introduce you to her new neighborhood. One of the first things Peter and Jessa got done when they arrived was to find an apartment. They moved in on their first weekend in town. They seem to really like it so far, including the neighborhood. Their apartment building has a cafe on the ground floor with a patio, as shown by Rosie.

Jessa and Rosie have been exploring. They live close to some parks, and Rosie approves of the sandboxes.

Rosie's also been putting into practice her Philly girl public transportation skills. She rides the bus (above) and the subway. This weekend they got bikes and as soon as her seat arrives she's going to put on her stylish pink helmet and start riding.

But first, in this post of firsts, Rosie would like you all to know that she is now a master of the piergoi and she heartily endorses this national culinary treasure.

We're so happy that the first few weeks of this great adventure have been a success. Getting to Warsaw was a huge undertaking that took a ton of work and emotional energy. Moving there was a monumental change not only for the humans but for the cats too. (No pix though I hear the cats are doing great.)  But never mind what I have to say - these smiling faces say it all.