LAST DAY together

Who would think you could sleep on a bus with so little leg room??

The next picture should show that all was right with the world when we came across nice dogs in the town square. Here Cory is having a word with the dog to make sure he's good. :)

The next picture should be of Larry "Sweet Feet" Kalantari learning the Polka.

Followed by the professionals doing the Polka.

Our view from a cafe on the square. One picture is of Laura, Riley, Sweet Feet, Cory, Josh and me. Another shot is of me, Sweet Feet and Cory and the other is of Laura, Sweet Feet and Cory.

We then saw a bunch of kids build a human tower. You really needed to see this in person to fully appreciate it!

Hopefully the next shot is of Cory helping Larry pick out some art. This is followed by an excellent "jump shot" by Cory. I am just wondering if she did that at the beginning of the week would she have gotten much higher :)

One picture is of Cory and me killing time while Larry shops. The next picture (maybe) is Josh getting his tail kicked again by a girl - this time though it was a bendy girl of many faces called "Laura".

And the final "night cap" crew as it were.

So, it is now the last day. When I thought about coming back to Krakow for a final day of R&R and a team dinner, I thought it would be pretty anti-climactic. I thought I would feel like all I really wanted to be was at home. It turned out how I felt was I wanted to be home, but I wanted these folks in Dallas too!

Sunday morning we got to "sleep in" as the bus wasn't coming for us until 9 AM. For me, sleep has been highly overrated on this week :) I was awake bright and early to just spend some quiet time reflecting on the trip. I thought about how two pivitol people on this team were last minute additions when two team members had to drop out. I believe this team with these people were brought together for a reason and I marvel at that thought.

We loaded up the bus and settled into our 2 hour ride back ot Krakow. There were some tired soldiers on the bus ride back. We returned to our hotel - seemed like we just left and at the same time seemed like it had been forever since we'd been there.

The group split up and went out to explore. Some went to the Shindler museum, some napped and some of us went to shop a little and walk around Town Square. We got to town Square and realized a big festival was going on. When we arrived a big orchestra was playing Polka music. There was a big circle of professional dancers and another big circle of local Polka dancers. Larry, aka "Sweet Feet" did his best to learn the dance steps, but alas, was never invited into the circle. Better luck next time Sweet Feet.

The sun was now out and it was a gorgeous day. Me, Cory, Larry and Laura decided to grab a bite to eat at one of the patio restaurants on the town square so we could continue to watch the festivities. Josh and Riley joined us as we just relaxed, talked and took in the sights for nearly 3 hours. I don't think there was a more perfect way to wind down the trip. The sun warming my skin, the friendships warming my soul.

We decided to head back to the hotel to drop of some stuff in the rooms and then try to find some local artist work for Larry's house. Cory, Larry and I set out through the park on our new quest. The park had some really pretty scenery and some scenery I would desperately like to erase from my mind.

We found the area where the local artists display their work. Larry found a couple of colorful pieces which were really cool. While he shopped, Cory worked on her jump shot - as you can see above. I was impressed with the height she got after the week of physical work she did.

We headed back to the hotel to chill a little and try to nap. Thankfully, Cory had a book of puzzles I could work on. Unfortunately, at this point in the week my neurons were barely firing so I gave up the ghost on the logic questions and focussed on the 'Word Find' puzzles - MUCH easier!! I am sure the Mensa Club will be calling me any day now.

We got cleaned up and the team headed out to walk to dinner. Cory's sweet NASCAR glasses were looking pretty good to those of us who had left our sunglasses in the room! Apparently, I had used all my brain power on the puzzles and couldn't remember my glasses!

We ended up at an Italian restaurant. Several of us were excited over the better wine selection and the menu was excellent too. The food and the wine were terrific. Each person then took a turn sharing their reflections on the week - thank you Karen for starting that!! It was a perfect way to end up the trip!

A few of us stayed back at the restaurant to talk and finish the wine - hey, someone had to do it!! We talked more, but mostly listened to Riley and Josh impart their "wisdom"....sure, that's what we'll call it....onto Patrick - Karen, cover your ears!! Again, we found ourselves laughing even more.

At last it was time to go to the hotel and face the inevitable goodbyes. I am not going to go into too much detail here other than to say the following. Most of you reading this blog know that I am not one to show too much emotion or shed many tears. However, this was different and the tears flowed. How blessed am I to have been able to take part in a trip such as this where after only one week my heart would be touched so deeply by these amazing people. God has always given me exactly what I needed, exactly when I needed it and this time was no exception!

This morning Carmen and I went down to meet our usual early breakfast crew - Bill, Sheri and Tim. Cory was also at breakfast which was a great surpise since she has typically been part of the 3rd wave :) Carmen and I had a taxi coming around 9 so i ran to the town center for a couple last errands before our taxi arrived to take us to the airport.

As I try to mentally prepare myelf to re-enter the real world again, my mind keeps drifting back to the previous week - for example, the infamous "cheating scandal" during the Polish history exam and the ensuing battle. My bruises are still healing!! :) There were just so many laughs this week, whether it was Carmen using a KIWI expression that sent me and Larry into a tizzy, Patrick throwing out a key line or phrase, or Riley and Josh showing us a video, I laughed until my side hurt!

To the team members reading this blog, know that you have made a permanent impression on my heart. I am glad several of you are in my territory and I know I will see you again. For others, the trip may have ended, but the friendship has just begun - even if you live in a state I do not cover for work! Thank you all for making this a week I will not forget!

Over and out until the next GV Trip!!

Saturday - last day of building

Let's see how these pictures show up on the blog. The first picture should be of Josh, Laura, Riley, Larry, me and Cory. You guys rock! Larry, so glad you decided to come on this trip at the last minute.

The next picture (I think) is of the boys giving me a "sexy pose" for the camera followed by a "muscle shot". I am sure the boys will be getting calls from Men's Fitness should they come across this blog, ha ha.

Here are Karen W (Toolie), Laura, Josh and Karen M working on leveling the foundation of the patio so we can then set rocks on top, then sand, then bricks. You could say this is a group of level headed individuals. :)

Carmen hauls a load of rocks that I swear weigh more than she does. The gal can do some heavy labor!!! I guess they build 'em stronger in New Zealand.

Karen and her pic axe - don't ever get between them!

Laura above with her certificate for having more "photo faces" then anyone.......no wait, it was a certificate of appreciation from Habitat. :)

Here a couple of the Habitat home owners - getting a couple of the units we were building - talked to us about what our participation meant to them.

Sheri REALLY enjoyed the wine at dinner Saturday night!!! ha ha. Thanks for being a sport for the picture. Sheri, it was like manna from Heaven that night :) Patrick, did I actually catch you smiling in a picture??? :)

Last day, bittersweet to say the least. It has been a great week of building, and an even better week of friendship and comeraderie. We went right back to leveling the foundation for the back patios. Today was a bit more challenging as it had rained a lot yesterday and last night. WOW sand and dirt can get heavy when wet. A crew of us worked outside digging, hauling rocks, sand and mixing concrete. I have to add that when we were digging, we often encountered huge rocks, bricks and tree roots. The soil also wasn't just dirt, it was clay - HARD clay. I would like to personally thank the individual who invented the pic axe!! I can also say that I have seen both Karen and Cory swing one of those things and I would never want to get on their bad side! I think I know what I can get each for birthday presents! I was going to say that I would love to have either on my softball team, but then Cory and I took turns throwing the rocks we dug out at a target we drew on an old door. I won't say her aim was bad, it must have just been a REALLY strong cross wind! ha ha. Karen you were busy working so I am not sure of your aim, but my money's on you.

Meanwhile Sherrie was working had shoveling rocks into the wheel barrels for Carmen and Larry to bring back to the patios. After the right amount of rocks were laid down, we had to cover the rocks with sand - more shoveling and schlepping. All I want to know is WHY did we wait until the last half of the LAST day to realize we could open up a short cut in the fence so we didn't have to haul the wheel barrels of sand, rocks, 120 lb cement blocks UP HILL for 5 days?????!!!!!! Riley, thank you for coming up with the new route....even if it was a few days late. We'll forgive you because of your sleep deprivation.

The upstairs crew continued to plaster their hearts out. This is so much more involved then I ever imagined. Cinder blocks are not the easiest material to prep and plaster over!

That night we went to dinner with our local host, Adam, and his wife Rhonda - who is from Dallas. They have been together 27 years. The stories they have are amazing. Rhonda shared stories about what it was like under Marshall Law - try to buy meat, etc that was rationed. Sometimes I think I take the liberties we have in the US for granted. It was such a treat to hear from these folks who have experieced so much in their lifetimes.

The gang was pretty well spent so we ended up back in one of the hotel rooms with about 6 of us just sitting around talking, telling stories and watching what could be one of the funniest video clips I have seen - thank you Josh and Riley for sharing!! Did I mention there was a lot of laughter on this trip??? Tomorrow we're off to Krakow for some R&R in the afternoon and final team dinner.

More to follow.....

day of digging and plaster

Who knows what order these picture will show up, but you will see Michal with the tool belt we all signed and gave him at dinner. Another picture is just one example of the laughter on this trip. Patrick never disappointed with his one-liners he could throw out there. Don't fall for that sweet inocent look :)

The night time pictures are of Josh and Cory and the other one is of Laura and Michal - Michal was our local site leader. The next picture shows Cory trying to convice us that you CAN dig to the other side of the earth - the girl can throw a shovel and pick axe. There is a picture of Laura showing off the fruits of her labor after leveling the patio. Laura wasn't content doing one job, she also spent part of her time plastering. The picture on the balcony is of Cory and me. The next picture should be of Larry and his power concrete saw. Next is a picture of Larry and Karen during one of our breaks. One picture shows why I have renamed the well know Abba song in honor of Cory and Karne and have renamed it "Digging Queens". It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it.

Lastly, I actually got Carmen to stop working long enough to get her to give me a thumbs up picture. The woman is unstoppable!!!

So, here is the story of the day. Today's duties involved more plastering and LOTS of digging. It was great doing the physical labor as I think we all needed a break from the heavy emotional day the day before. Everyone was right back to work.

The worksite supervisior must have been off his meds today because he gave Larry control of the concrete power saw - Larry was quite excited....boys and their toys! I decided I would help him by holding the concrete block down as he cut. Those of you who know I am a little prone to injury may be questioning my judgement, but I know it wouldn't be the first time you did that. After his first attempt at cutting the stone, we decided to lay the stone in the ground before Damian, our site leader, could come by to inspect his work. No harm no foul. As the day went on, Larry mastered the technique of cutting cement.

Meanwhile a group was busy preparing the dry cement which meant bring wheel barrels full of sand up the hill and back into the work site to be mixed with the bags of cements.

We had our plaster masters working away upstairs. I was only up there a brief time, but am convinced that during the upcoming winter cold season I will still be sneezing out plaster dust!! I was quite happy I had been outside playing in the dirt.

That night we went out for our group for dinner and Michal joined us which was great. We had all signed a tool belt for him and presented it to him after dinner. As you can see by the above pictures, laughter was again a big part of the evening!!

We left dinner and went out for our night cap where yes, there was A LOT more laughter involved and a few beverages. Later on we stopped into one of the other clubs

where we met a man from Turkey - we really had no idea what he was saying or talking about other that "Turkey love America. George Bush, no. Barrack, yes." There were several other hand gestures involved and just too hard to translate into this blog. I will say that the man's eyebrows could have doubled as a hair piece they were so long.

Well that's it for the day. More to follow.....

Auschwitz day

To the right is the sign that the prisoners saw as they entered the camp "Work Will Set You Free"

Above, Cory places a stone of rememberance at the spot were so many were shot to death. Below left show how staggering the numbers were. Below right is one of the many suitcases that were gathered from the prisoners as they entered the camp.

Then there is the team on the tour and lastly a look of the bleak surroundings the prisoners faced.

Quite a heavy day today. We toured the Auschwitz concentration camps. Even though we have studied this in school and I have been to Dachau, this tour was something that just has to be experienced. It was surreal, moving and disturbing all at the same time. I have trouble even typing the words to explain this day - those of you who know me best know I am never at a loss for words, but at this time I am. The tour seemed to have an effect on each person in the group. However, two of our group are Jewish and as I watched them, understandably this had an even greater impact on them. It hurt to see them affected so much more by the experiece. As hard as this all was to see, I think it important that we remember this aweful event from the past. We must not forget that this happened. We have world events today that although don't match the numbers, represent the some of the same evil that the concentration camps did. Although, I don't think ANYTHING compares to the inhumane treatment that these people received. They were de-humanized from day 1. Everything done seemed to have an underlying tone of psychological torture. As our group talked about this we all had a really hard time wrapping our brain around the fact that this many people could be that evil. Needless to say, it was a very quiet bus ride on the way back to the hotel. We will be ready for physical exhaustion tomorrow more than the emotional exhaustion of today. Didn't think we could bond more than we already had on this trip, but conversations after the tour proved that we could. What a day.

More to follow.....

dinner Wed night

To the right is the gang at the team dinner Wed. night.

Above, I am joined by Karen W and Cory as we attempt to make a dent in the beer tower. Man that's a lot of beer :) Glad we had the guys to help out.

Far left is Laura, Riley, Cory, Larry and Josh. To the immediate left is Karen looking mighty thirsty.

Lower picture is of Cory and Riley.

Well, after a long day's work it was time to go out on the town for a little R&R. We knew we could sleep in Thursday morning as we weren't leaving for Auschwitz until 1. We had another great dinner. Karen, as you can see above, developed quite a thirst :) Dinner was again excellent. Scott decided that perhaps we needed a night off from any games - the competition had gotten a little bit fierce :) So, with it being an open night the gang headed to Town Square. We found a great little patio bar and ordered a few beers. What showed up were these Towers of Beer - 3 liters per tower. Although are table could not keep pace with the college kids table, we did manage to finish our tower....eventually. The night was once again filled with some great conversations, stories and laughter - lots of laughter. It's a good thing we had all that laughter, because we knew Thursday would be the tour of Auschwitz and it would be a different story.

More to follow.....

Wednesday build

By now you should realize that the following descriptions may not line up with the photos. My new friend in pic above. To the right is one tired crew and the end of the day. Below that is Cory, Riley, Laura and Josh up on the balcony of one of the apartments.

Below, Carmen, Toolie and Larry work on setting the cement blocks for the patio.

Above is a picure of Karen and her son Patrick. Great kid and hard worker - AND you really can get him to smile for a picture! :)

Break time! Above is Patrick, Karen, Sherie and Cory

Pictures from the morning work site.

Today 3 of us, me, Karen and Larry, went with Adam, our local host coordinator, to a little town just east of Gliwice. We were prepping a room for the team next week who will be coming in to level the floor. Why does the floor have to be leveled you ask? Well, first a little background on this location. It has been a place for homeless woman to come and live while they get back on their feet. Much of the town is built on a coal mine. Because of all the mining, all the buildings are sagging as the ground gives more and more. Most houses have big steel braces on the side to keep them from collapsing. The building we were working on had a floor that was easily 6 inches lower in the corner than another part of the room. Our job was to move ALL the ....let's call it 'furniture' since 'crap' is a little too strong. Much of it was still usable. I will say that there was one table and set of chairs made from what HAS to be the HEAVIEST wood in the world!!!!! After we cleared the room, we swept up the floor and then had to take up all the linolium. We got the job knocked out and it was nice to see the finished product. What is most impressive about this task is that they assigned 3 Type A personalities to a single project and it still got done on time and no one came to blows with another. It really was a great morning and getting to listen to Adam's stories made the experience even richer.....so, what about those tables...THANK YOU Karen!!!

We headed back to the main site with the team for lunch and the afternoon work. This afternoon some worked on more plastor and plastor prep, some worked on the patio and some of us made dry concrete to be used for the patio cement blocks.

I must tell you that Poland has been good for my self esteem. Working on this site with us are several Polish guys that are part of a work crew. Yesterday I was asked twice by one of them and once by another to have a smoke break with them - I don't know, perhaps that has a different meaning than it does in the states - and sense they were only speaking Polish and were standing around smoking and gesturing me over I had to assume that is what they meant :) One of them in particular has apparently taken a shine to me as he came by several times this afternoon to say hi. He keeps talking to me - I guess he assumes that I am going to all of a sudden be able to speak Polish. I have resorted to the old 'smile and laugh' method of conversing with someone when you have no idea what they are saying. By the end of the day, he came up and gave me his phone number. Our team had a good chuckle from that - reflecting on the fact he doesn't speak English and I don't speak Polish, I am not sure what was going to be accomplished by giving me his number. I mean if I did call him, he wouldn't be able to see me smile and laugh when I couldn't understand him. Just my luck, I finally have a guy ask me for my number and give me his and there is NO chance anything can ever come from it! Oh well, like I said good for the self esteem.

More to follow.