Firstly, I just wanted to share with you some photos of when my auntie and her kids came over to see us in Germany, before we went over to Poland for Christmas. It's been great having them around, and my cousins were very satisfied with the Basecamp facilities, especially the pool table and the gym. We also went to see Reichstag for the first time, from the inside, so that was very good. I'd definitely recommend seeing it if/when you're in Berlin. It looks wicked inside and you also get a really nice view of the whole city. In the evening, we went to a new German restaurant, called Augustiner am Gendarmenmarkt. It was sooo good! The downside was that there was not so much option there for vegetarians, but the service and food in general was amazing.
CHRISTMAS, CHRISTMAS, CHRISTMAS...
I've been waiting this whole year for this amazing festive period, and for some strange reason it didn't feel the same this year. Like I was so happy to be in Poland with my family, trying some Uszka and Pierogi (Polish traditional Christmas food) but I think a part of me was missing UK so much. I think without even realising it, it must have been so obvious on my face because literally for the past few days, everyone's been asking me 'what's wrong', 'why do you look so upset'. I'm convinced that a part of me was still in UK, there with my mum :( Genuinely, I can't stop thinking about going back home for a bit. After months of not wanting or even planning it, it's finally getting to me.. Feeling really homesick. Another thing that I've noticed this year, was the fact that the past few days didn't even feel like Christmas. I don't know if it's because I'm getting old, or because I'm so far from home. If you are going to be doing a year abroad placement, I definitely recommend going back home for Christmas, or before if you're not planning to. Everyone around kept telling me, that I'm making a mistake and once Christmas starts, I'm going to really miss home, but I was stupid enough to think that it wouldn't get to me. And the fact that I'm not actually going home anytime soon, as I've got a lot of things planned for January and Feb, it's really getting me down. Hopefully, this will change when we go to Zakopane (Polish city with mountains) for New Years Eve. I'm really looking forward to that, and I'm so glad that Lee is going to be there with me. That he has been there for this whole time. I don't know what I would do with myself if he wasn't!! :(
Right, end of the negativity! Like I've mentioned above, in a few days we are going to Zakopane, which hopefully will be a good experience, and I can show you all some pictures, of this beautiful beautiful city!
On top of that, I've actually been doing quite a few things here in Poland to keep myself busy and get my mind of all this negativity. In Poland, we don't celebrate Christmas so much on the Christmas Day. The celebration takes place on Christmas Eve, so since early hours in the morning I was cooking food with my grandma, making sure that the place looks nice and clean. Christmas Day we went over to my aunties house, that prepared some very delicious food. In Poland, you are not really suppose to eat any meat on Christmas Eve, or anything in the day in general. You're suppose to wait until the meal later on in the evening, but we don't really stick to that tradition. We just don't really eat so much in the day, especially meat! Christmas Day is when you're actually allowed to eat some meat. Most people normally try all sorts of meat for breakfast, due to the fact that there is so many different types of them. Oh and I also forgot to mention, the beetroot soup! And the beetroot horseradish, that we eat on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. It is soo good, even if it doesn't sound nice <3
On Boxing Day, I went to a small city called Bystrzyca, that I use to go to with my family as a kid. There is a lake and lots of beautiful trees and forests around it. It brought back some good memories, from my childhood summers. We use to stay in this cottage house and spend the whole day at this lake with my cousins. So it was nice to go back there, even if it was only for a bit. I was a bit surprised though that not so many people was around. I mean I suppose it was still the Christmas period and everyone was probably at home celebrating. In addition to that, the weather has not been so great here in Poland. But that place use to be packed all the time, so it was a bit of a shock to see it being so abandoned.
Other than that, I also went to visit my sister in Brzeg (another city close to Wroclaw). I think Lee was pleased to finally see it for the first time, even though it's so small and there's not so much to do there, he has heard so much about it. I also saw my best friend, my cousin and my nephew, that has grown so much now since the last time I've seen him <3 <3
Lastly I want to wish you all a late merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I hope that you're all positive about 2018 and what the new year will bring and that all your new year resolutions will come true! 2017 was definitely full of surprises for me, like moving to another country. I never thought I would have the chance to do that again. Let's hope 2018 is even better! And that I will finally speak German fluently.
Thank you for reading my post, MR.x
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