Easter Holidays

    The school where I work is currently closed for a couple different spring holidays, so I am in the middle of two full weeks of time off work. This time has been exactly what I needed to begin to feel really settled in to life here in Poland and also to reconnect with close friends I met back in 2012. The first several days of my holiday were spent near and in the city of Opole in the south of Poland, where I lived my first time here. I am still so incredibly grateful to have been able to spend time with good friends and in familiar places. In a lot of ways, I felt like I was able to go "home" for Easter and it was such a blessing.
     I've decided to share my holiday time through the photographs I've captured thus far. Enjoy!
     On Easter Sunday, a good friend of mine Anna, her brother, niece and myself went for a long walk in the forest near their family's home in a small village outside of Opole.
The weather was perfect and we had so much fun!
    

Take a look at this big funky tree! How cool is this?

      On Monday, Anna and I enjoyed a slow morning, breakfast and cake with her parents and then took off for an afternoon at Moszna Castle. This was one of my favorite places I was able to visit in 2012 and so, actually getting to visit this place again was surreal and awesome and wonderful. The day was perfect to sit in the sun, read and just be still before God, so that is exactly what we did all afternoon.

Horse stables on the castle grounds.

      After a few days at Anna's house, I was able to stay in the city with another good friend of mine, Ola. Tuesday we took advantage of another beautiful day and went for a visit to the zoo. We had so much fun looking at and talking to the animals. The animals seemed to enjoy acting quite smug and aloof towards us. So basically, everyone was happy and content.

"Come at me, bro" is the only statement I have to make regarding this photo.

      The little city of Opole is absolutely lovely in every way. I just love this place and I really do feel at home here. There are so many ways to volunteer and connect with the community there. I was so excited and grateful to spend Easter morning at the local Christian church, to be a part of the Easter breakfast, and really just to say "hello" to some of my very favorite people. There are so many locals I missed seeing this time, but hopefully will see again in the future. Opole is a place I look forward to going back to as often as possible.

The best place in the city to sit inside with a good book and watch the town bustling around outside.

      On Thursday, I returned to Warsaw via a very long train ride. Don't get me wrong, I think trains are great, but seven hours on a train requires some new ideas for making the time pass. During this last ride, I decided to stick my head out the window and take a couple shots of the countryside.

      This upcoming week is still open and free before work begins again on the 5th of May. I am looking forward to hopefully getting out and exploring this city a bit more. If you are among the people praying for my time here, I do have one request for this week. I am in the process of looking for a church in Warsaw with which to connect and serve. So far, I have tried two places, but I am just praying for peace and guidance from the Holy Spirit on exactly where God has set for me to be during this time. Thank you, so very much to everyone who has been praying, emailing, texting or writing. All your support and communications make this transition time feel much more calm and peace-filled.

The Palace of Culture and Science in the center of Warsaw