Awesome Thing About Living in Europe #13

Awesome Thing About Living in Europe #13:  Quiet Mornings

Our mornings in Warsaw are very quiet and we have really come to enjoy this peaceful time of day.  Due to the 6-7 hour time difference (depending on where you are in the states) most everyone that we talk to in the States is not awake for the day until at least 12:30 pm Warsaw time.  This means that the mornings are quiet ones.  Even my email inbox is quiet....of course that makes sense for personal emails, but commercial/retailer emails don't get sent out until the morning US time as well.  While one of our favorite parts of our day is talking to those that we love in the states, it is nice to know that we have our mornings all to ourselves.  Charlie and I visit the parks, catch up on emails, run errands and grab cofee along with anything else that has to be done that day. 

I think the best part of this is that the time is truly quiet and there isn't really a high likelihood of anyone calling.  This is quite a change from the states, where as soon as you wake up in the morning you could be getting a phone call and emails are piling into your inbox.  Just another small thing that has helped us learn to slow down and enjoy living! 

On a side note, we have more visitors arriving today!  My Aunt Irene and her boyfriend, Ken arrive this evening.  We are excited to have them in Warsaw for the next week!!

Status Quo

I was talking to my mom the other day and she asked how we were doing, to which I replied, "Everything here is status quo." 

Such a simple statement said without much thought.  But as I started to give it some thought I came to the realization how nice it is to finally be able to say that "Life in Warsaw is status quo."  We have fallen into a routine, know our way around, and can even speak more than a little Polish.  We have firmly established our life here now.  Status quo feels good! 

And, according to the experts this is about the right timing for our "status quo" arrival -- we have now been living in Warsaw for six and a half months.  We truly cannot believe it!  The time has flown by and it seems like only yesterday the three of us (of course we include Charlie) were off for our new adventure.  Now, don't get me wrong we are still learning and experiencing new things every day.  Just yesterday I was trying to find baking powder in the grocery store.  Try asking for that one to a grocery store employee in broken Polish.  Thank goodness for my blackberry and google translate.  And, then I come to discover that baking powder in Poland is sold in a packet (not a canister) and sits in the jello and pudding section (not the baking section).  It's these little experiences that have gotten us to our "status quo" and it feels good. 

We can now take you to Charlie's favorite park, direct you to the bank with the best exchange rate, complete a transaction at the post office in Polish, find you a good bottle of wine in our neighborhood, take you to the best outdoor beer garden, send you for the best pedicure in our area and more!  There is a sense of comfort and a lot more confidence that comes with this...and we'll take it! 

So, "How are the Sullivan's you ask?"  We are great...everything in Warsaw is status quo!