October Days in Poland

We are enjoying the absolutely beautiful changes that the fall season brings...we walk through this park daily...it is near the US ambassador's home .... which is just above our neighborhood.

A few weeks ago we traveled an hour on Sunday to view a few sessions of General Conference. We took a tram and on the way home we enjoyed looking at the street sites. Above is a very old church...on a very busy intersection in Warsaw. Though old it is really quite lovely.

We also saw old abandoned buildings...there are a number of these...and instead of tearing them down...new and beautiful buildings are often erected right next to the old ones. During the tram ride we also noticed many beautiful trees...but it was not easy to get good pictures from inside the tram.

While leaving the Wolska Chapel (the only LDS chapel in Poland) we noticed the grove of trees nearby and the beautiful colors that were changing the look of the grove.

Since General Conference begins in the evening in Poland, we enjoyed the last 60 degree weather weekend outside as much as possible. I wanted to take Mark on the route I usually take walking to my language class and on the way we found a new Mexican restaurant.

We tried eating outside but it was to cool for our liking and later went inside.

What is so different about this picture is that for weeks and weeks this street has been filled with umbrellas, tables and chairs for people to sit while eating. There are a number of restaurants here. I meander though all the outdoor table getting to and from my class. We found out that there is law that as of Oct. 1st (which was this day) that all outdoor tables, umbrellas, etc. have to be put away or else the business is given a hefty fine. This restaurant was obviously late in complying with the law this year. And some ignore it because they make enough money from outdoor service to more than offset the fine. We have loved eating outside and thought this was quite a strange law, thinking "what if there is another beautiful weekend?" But I guess the Polish people know their weather...as this was the last weekend with temperatures over 60 degrees...probably for 5-6 months!

A large sign was being raised while we were outside. Large signs cover the businesses and apartments all over the city and these advertisements can be seen often. I often wondered what the people living inside think when their windows become covered? As you can see though, you can see through the signs. The signs often cover the entire length of a building or nearly the height of one also.

One of Mark's co-workers Agnieszka...lives nearby. We called her and she joined us for lunch and we had a wonderful visit. Mark had a split vegetable cream soup before his entree and I enjoyed delicous chicken quesidillas!

Agnieszka treated us to some warm freshly baked waffle cones...nothing inside...just a cone but they were warm, crispy and fun to eat.

A street market was going on while we walked the streets (I took Mark on a mini tour of the area I toured while he was home in the US)...while there we ran into Mark's boss Carl (the one in shorts). It was fun to run into people we knew in this busy big city on a Saturday afternoon.

Last Sunday (Oct. 8) we started dressing differently for work, church and activities... we are wearing layers now (notice the gloves, scarf and hat). I was told the people here say they dress like onions...in layers...and that is so true!

All of the women wear scarves...it is quite unusual to see someone without a scarf...lucky for me I have a couple and I have been wearing the wonderful scarf that my talented niece Jenny made for me....love it!

This past Wednesday I went on an all day IWG (International Women's Group) trip...there were 30 women and we traveled by bus to see the birthplace of Chopin (above) and the Nieborow Palace. We traveled 50 K to Chopin's birthplace about a little over an hour away.
This is the first monument ever created in Poland to honor their wonderful composer Chopin.

My favorite part of this place (Zelazowa Wola) was walking throughout the grounds and gardens and listening to Chopin music playing. It was absolutely beautiful here...the air was cool (in the 40's) but with the sun shining it felt great! Since I did not grow up where the leaves change colors in abundance...nor have I lived anywhere where I see the colors like I see here in Poland, I do not grow tired of their beauty!

We rode another 45-50 min. and came to the Nieborow Palace. It is a Baroque palace in the town of Nieborow. It was built in the late 1600's and has had numerous owners over the years...it has a wonderful history and even the public can stay in certain room of this palace.

This was one of my favorite rooms...love the colors and decor...I don't think today's guests stay here though.

I also loved the library...it housed thousands of books and one of the very oldest in all of Poland...published in the 16th century.

We enjoyed walking these gardens and grounds also...we found a beautiful plot of pansies growing!

Love the autumn season here in Poland...our travels to these two sites gave me another opportunity to see the countryside...I have clearly seen that Poland is a very beautiful country!