We're here!

So after a few minor bumps along the way that kept us wondering if we were actually going to leave when we were supposed to, we set out for our new adventure to Europe. Kim's dad was able to transfer some of his frequent flyer miles to us so we could upgrade to business class. If you've never been on business class before, don't do it. You will never want to fly economy ever again. I knew it would be nice, but I had no idea the kind of pampering they give you. You get to choose from a full menu (I had filet mignon), they bring juices and alcohol around, you get a little pouch with slippers, a sleep mask, toothbrush and toothpaste, mints and some other stuff. You even have your own personal monitor that you can choose from 10 different movie channels. I watched one of them but then pulled out my laptop so Kim and I could watch The Fountain on dvd (amazing movie! unlike anything you've ever seen, I promise). But the best part was the seats. They fully reclined and the footrests went almost straight out so you could basically lie down the entire time. Huge thanks to dad for the upgrade because I can't even imagine how much the 8 hour flight to Frankfurt would've sucked ass if we were squished into economy. And with my luck on airplanes, I definitely would've been seated right next to a rather large and particularly smelly german man who thought his ticket was good for 2 seats and wouldn't give up the armrest or put his damn shoes back on (sorry, still bitter from the trip back from Costa Rica).

We arrive in Warsaw around 2pm and one of Kim's new coworkers picks us up and takes us to our apartment. Wow. Kim said it would be bigger than our condo in VA, but she didn't tell me it would be twice as big. This place is awesome! All wood floors, two bedrooms and an office, big spacious living room, and tons of closet space everywhere. We're on the 11th floor and we have a fantastic balcony that overlooks the courtyard and has a great view of downtown. There's a table and chairs out there so we can have dinner outside whenever we want. We also have a very nice fitness club with a lap pool that was supposedly negotiated into our lease, but we're having trouble activating it. They're supposed to take care of it soon, so hopefully it'll work out. I need to start swimming laps again and getting back into shape.

Kim's coworkers have been great. They've taken us around town and helped us go grocery shopping since our car won't be here for another 2 months or so. We've gone out to dinner a few times with them and even went to see Pirates of the Carribbean sunday night. They all seem like good people who really want to help us out and make the transition easier. Too bad 3 of them are actually on their way out within the next month. Hopefully whoever replaces them will be just as cool. And I'm sure we'll meet more people soon.

*side note* The movie theaters here are sweet. They play the movies in english and the screens are about 50-75% bigger than in the states. The sound is great and the stadium seating is very comfortable. You can drink beer and in some of the upper levels there are couches to relax on. When you buy your ticket, which is about $1.50 cheaper than in VA, you look at the monitor that shows you which seats are still available. Then you pick where you want to sit and that's where you go, so you don't have to worry about finding someplace to sit once you get in the theater. And the best part? It's in a huge 3-story shopping mall that's only a 10 minute walk from home. In fact, I think I may wander on over there in a few minutes to go see Pathfinder (ultra violent viking movie), since it was only in theaters in the states for about a week and I missed it.

The public transportation system is so much better than the US, too. There are buses, the Metro, and the trams. I've only used the tram so far, but it's very easy to get around as long as you know which stops you need. They come every five minutes or so, so you never have to wait long.

The only thing that is a little difficult is the lanuage barrier. Everyone told us that it wouldn't be a problem and that we shouldn't even bother learning Polish since everybody speaks English here. Not true. The younger people all know English well enough that we can converse with them, but none of the older people speak a word of it. So we definitely need to learn Polish. At least the basics, anyways. We're enrolled in the free classes where Kim works, but those don't start for another few weeks. I guess it's a good thing I bought Rosetta Stone, now I just have to remember where the hell I put it.

That about covers it for now. I'm using the computer they have for us in the apartment as part of our welcome kit until all our stuff gets here. I hate PCs, but this will do for now. Right now it's just dial up, which is pretty expensive, but we should have our broadband set up in a month or so. You'll probably see me online alot more once that's taken care of.