I wrote the following back in June, but didn't want to publish it to the web without pictures. This was also the first time I had done any driving in Poland, beyond commandeering my boss's car for a quick trip to the clinic. I'm sure that Aldona's sister's (gramatically correct?) car still bears impressions from my white-knuckle death grip on the steering wheel.
The road that leads from Warsaw to Minsk and onto Moscow is like taking the traffic from a typical U.S. interstate and putting it onto a two lane rural highway. There are a lot of goods that need to be moved from Western Europe into Russia. Throw in the fact that in the last 10 years the average Pole has acquired the income to purchase a vehicle and you have the ingredients for disaster, er, I mean, adventure.
When passing the endless parade of lorries (read: hulking trucks that can squash a tiny Peugot) it's necessary to straddle the centerline as oncoming traffic drifts to the shoulder to avoid the impending collision. How I ended up driving is another story unto itself. Okay, pretend you have traveled back to the second week in June:
Last weekend was certainly a great way to spend my last few days in Poland before heading back home. One of my friends from couchsurfing.com, Aldona, invited me to be her guest at a wedding in the town of Białystok. This is the largest city in northeastern Poland near the Belarussian border. It's also home to the medical school where Aldona studied before moving to Warsaw for her apprenticeship.
The wedding was held in Białystok Cathedral, an impressive gothic structure in the center of the city. The church was half full at the beginning of the ceremony but by the time mass had ended, it was filled with old folks queuing up for Saturday evening mass. They would just shuffle down the center aisle disregarding the fact that there was a wedding going on around them.
After pledging their lives to each other, the bride and groom waited in the reception line to receive flowers from everybody who attended the ceremony. Flowers are a big thing here, and seem to have an attachment to every tradition. I'm guessing that Poland is one of the biggest consumers of flora in all of Europe.
To the reception we went, where the happy couple kicked it all off by consuming shots of vodka and breaking the glasses in the street. This certainly foreshadowed the rest of the night for me, as it seemed for every four place settings, there was a bottle of the local spirit, Palace.
The evening was a culinary gauntlet of soups, salads, meats, and confections. Oh, and did I mention the vodka? There is a delicate line one walks when mixing this much food with the obligatory excess of alcohol. In no way do I endorse this practice but when in Poland, you must adapt to the culture. But a few rules must be strictly adhered to:
1. No mixing, this means no beer or wine of any sort.
2. Only drink when a toast is made, which means about every 15 minutes.
3. Drink plenty of juice, which is also provided in ample quantities.
4. Eat, eat, and eat some more! When that 7th course is served around midnight, there's no point in watching your waistline. Just loosen the belt a notch and dive in.
5. Never underestimate the effect of exercise on your metabolism. Translation: Dance your ass off! The band was hired to play for 12 hours, until 6:00 AM. Amazing stamina!
Okay, now return to present day August and wipe the sweat from your brow. Summer's almost over for all of us. Only 10 more days of freedom for this guy, but I'm filling them up with visitors. I recently had my sixth grade teacher, Doris Kolodji,her husband and three kids make a visit to Poland. What a cool experience to be 21 years removed from her class and have the pleasure of hosting her traveling circus. I will include some pics in a future update.
Thanks for reading! And hello to JoAnne Guillaume in Duluth, MN!
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