Pure Dead Brilliant!

Who would have thought that the advertising slogan of Prestwick Airport at 6.30am on a chilly Saturday morning was an indication of things to come?! For many reasons the last ten days have been quite life changing - so much fun and laughs, but also some serious times too. There’s so much to tell that I am going to have to split it into a couple of posts rather than overload on info in one go. And let’s face it, the next eight weeks of supply teaching is unlikely to provide huge amounts of bloggable content – although I spose you never know ;)

We (the team – Cindy, Malcolm, Robert, Lenny, Michael, Teenie and myself) flew to Warsaw in Poland on Saturday 3rd – and after a very late lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe (brand name #1) we (the under 42’s this time - M, T, L and me) decided that we would have a wander around the centre of Warsaw and explore. I think the others were slightly concerned about us as it was a) minus 14 b) snowing and c) none of us had been there before. However, I had a guide book and a map so was game for getting us back to the hotel safely later on. (I knew my Irene Sinclair school trip training would come in useful some day – and surely three other adults isn’t as much responsibility as 40 twelve and thirteen year olds?!)

It seemed that there were Christmas lights everywhere – bearing in mind that the Orthodox Christmas isn’t celebrated til the 7th Jan. With the snow falling and lights there was a kind of ethereal glow everywhere which was beautiful. We headed towards the Old Town area, stopping every now and again for me to read some info out of the guide book about the churches and statues we passed - who said I wasn't useful to have around lol. During the Second World War, much of Warsaw was destroyed by German bombs – they have done an amazing job though of rebuilding lots in the same style as before. The Market Square is really pretty. After a welcome stop at a wee coffee shop for refreshments we started off for the hotel. We came across the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on the way back in the middle of a park, and were lucky to witness the changing of the guards there – I always find war memorials quite moving and this was no different.

Sunday morning we got up and went to Pawiak. During WW2 it was used as a Gestapo prison where many Jews were interrogated, tortured or shot. Others were shipped on to concentration camps like Auschwitz. The museum which stands in the same place commemorates those who lost their lives and tells some of their stories which are beyond belief. It’s hard to comprehend the evil that some humans will inflict on their fellow man.

Then it was time for our four hour journey across the border to Belarus in a minibus. We had been warned not to laugh or smile at any of the five checkpoints, as the officials/soldiers could make us wait indefinitely. Some previous teams coming out had been held up for FIVE hours! We were praying this did not happen to us as the outside temperature by the time we got there was minus 23C. It’s a wonder I didn’t get deported actually – when the soldier was checking the passport photos he called out our names to match us with the passport. When he got to mine I involuntarily smiled at him – DUH. Our border crossing took an amazing 50 minutes and we didn’t even need to get out of the bus – hurrah and thank God. We were staying with families in Grodno for the few nights we were there and although they didn’t speak much English (and I spoke no Russian), I found that silly sign language was my best bet for making myself understood. It was hard not to do sound effects too though – think hairdryer or brushing your teeth....

PS just a quick house update - we now have an offer subject to survey which is just wonderful. Thanks for all the prayers and positive thoughts etc - hoping it'll soon be in the bag :)