Le Convenience d'Wroclaw

Le Convenience d'Wroclaw

Being of a simple nature and rather easily pleased, I must admit to finding Wroclaw far superior in terms of convenience to that of UNC Greensboro. With all due respect to my colleague's remarks in an earlier post, I have found this city simpler than Greensboro. However, as the disclaimers say, "Actual product may vary." In this case, Wroclawian experiences may (and do) vary. From the moment I landed in Wroclaw's Copernicus Airport, it has simply been one convenience after another with just a few exceptions.

After acquiring my suitcase from baggage claim, the very first thing I did was walk over to the Bankomat, or ATM, in order to withdraw some Polish money to handle initial Wroclawian expenses. I slid my debit card in the slot, and was immediately presented with Polish, English, and German language choices on the screen, thereby beginning to evidence convenience. I will readily admit that in the last month or so I have used ATMs in Deutsch multiple times simply because it is enjoyable to use my second language. The last two ATM transactions, though, I have actually completed in Polish. 

As mentioned in my original post, the first full day I was in Poland I went to the international office at the main university building in order to check-in, get my student ID, and various other small details. Well, this trip to the international office took less than ten minutes, and that included my wait time. In fact, the four or five times I've been to the office when I had any sort of question, including when I took Leigha and Kelsey there to get them some help, I have always received attention above and beyond the call of duty in such an expedient manner that I have spent only ten minutes or so of my time on the entire thing. I have my doubts as to whether many schools in the United States would be able to match such administrative efficiency. 

This next point is perhaps the most significant one that would fall under the header of varied Wroclawian experiences. For me, the slate of classes I have wound up taking are all located in the same room of the same building of the Rynek, making it absurdly easy to attend my classes and make it to the next one on time. However, from what I have found out, that sort of luck is rare here, so take it with a grain of salt. 

In line with that element of convenience, the prawo, or Law, building that my classes are situated in also has a small cafeteria-like restaurant on the first floor with decently cheap prices. Granted, the Bryan School of Business at UNCG is possessed of its own cafeteria-like area, but last I checked, nothing that I termed 'real food' was to be found there. However, the food in this small restaurant is quite sufficient at passing my inspection and includes traditional Polish food in addition to more mainstream dishes such as French fries and lasagne. I have eaten many a meal at this place so far this semester and will continue my patronage.

Another convenience would be Hala Targowa, the one-stop-shop that is the tram stop closest to the main university building and subsequently my prawo building. Hala Targowa means 'covered market' and within its distinctive doors are many vendors selling meats, produce, flowers, baked goods, clothes, alcohol, souvenirs, kitchen products, et al. I actually bought my wrist watch there whilst showing Kelsey and Leigha around town. This market provides a location right at my stop to go back to Olowek, allowing me to shop without going out of my way at all. Moreover, the market is decidedly Polish, certainly a benefit in terms of my learning the culture. 

Decidedly in the realm of conveience lies the proximity of the Rynek to Hala Targowa and my classes - the Rynek being where many of Wroclaw's most famous churches and buildings reside. Additionally, housed within the Rynek are dozens and dozens of eateries along with shops of all sorts. There was a Polish bookstore I walked into where I used my German with the proprietor in order to search for a book, which alas was not there. Quick access to the largest mall in the city, Galeria Dominikanska, can also be had at this locale. Right by the Rynek, incidentally, is the Cathedral of St. Mary Magedelene, from high atop which the picture accompanying this post is taken. On the left hand side of the photo you can see two skyscrapers in the clouds, the one on the right of those is Olowek. 

Okay, so the convenience of downtown/the Rynek has been covered, but what about at our place of residence? How convenient IS Olowek? For the answer to that question, the best place to start is simply with the dorm rooms themselves. As a former Moore-Strong resident, one of UNCG's fairly newer dorms, I have to say I would much rather pit my living conditions here in Olowek against those of Moore-Strong, with no hard feelings towards fellow MSers. In Olowek, we are given two-bedroom one-bath (shower) kitchenette flats with a small foyer. These two bedrooms house two people to a room, for a total of four people sharing the rooms. Just a quick visual guess puts the room to be larger than Moore-Strong rooms. Not only are the rooms a bit more robust, but each bedroom has its own balcony, unlike the few communal balconies at Moore-Strong that are locked most of the time due to the immaturity of some residents. These balconies prove invaluable for contacting people while your roommate is asleep, or for merely enjoying the silent fall of snow or the distinctly mute fall of rain. 

Another advantage to having these kitchenettes per flat is that they are much easier to maintain - Moore-Strong has a single communal kitchen for over 300 residents, and as such, I always ignored the fact we had a kitchen, since when I went near it I needed a gas mask connected to a tank of pure oxygen stolen from an intergalactic Molly Maid just to be able to survive. If anyone has ever read War of the Worlds or seen the Tom Cruise movie of the same name but not the same quality, one will know that the aliens could not survive in our atmosphere/environs - all we needed to do was send those aliens to Moore-Strong's kitchen, and much loss of life (and a bad movie) could have been averted. 

But I digress from the point of convenience, it is true. Therefore, I shall return to discussing my thesis. The foyer is perfect for leaving those shoes and coats covered with snow or rain. In Moore-Strong, those items just have to be brought in the room regardless of their overall condition. Even the bathroom is also rather convenient, as in Moore-Strong you either share communal restrooms or lives in a suite with people who do not clean up after themselves, speaking only from my personal experience and the experiences of those I know who resided within said suites. 

Following that, we now have a place for classes, a place for exploring, a place to sleep and live, but I have yet to discuss intrinsic and inherent functions of life - eating and drinking - not that kind, the kind that actually hydrates and replenishes. Situated within a 30-second walk from Olowek, if even that, are a gas station convenience store, a McDonald's, a bakery, a grocery store, a Pizzeria that serves the so-far best pizza in the city, a smaller, more specialized market, and two tram/bus stops. If I left Moore-Strong and walked for 30 seconds I would reach absolutely nothing of value to replenishing my vitality. Perhaps in 90 seconds or so, one would reach The Caf, but as we veterans of said establishment know, how much does The Caf really do towards replenishing vitality? 

If that is not enough convenience to you, within the breadth of one song on your mp3 player, Sony PSP, or any other kind of audio device, you can arrive at Pasaz Grunwaldzski, my favorite mall in Wroclaw. This mall even has a larger grocery store on the bottom floor if you cannot find what you are looking for in the two right next to Olowek. The mall also has a movie theatre for entertainment purposes. Lastly, if one cared to listen to just over one song, perhaps long enough to hear one's favorite introductory pattern to a song, one would arrive at Biedronka, which is right across the street from the Pasaz. Biedronka is essentially a budget grocery store, providing many products at less than half the price of the markets right next to Olowek. Indeed, the first time I perused the aisles there, I bought 20 zloty worth of food and drink - at the market next to Olowek I had spent 47 zloty on the same amount of food and the same type of food. For me, Wroclaw has been a city that has proven to cater to the majority of the whims I have thought of since arriving. 

Location: Wroclaw / Setting: First 24 Hours / Date: 19.02.2009

Please allow me to introduce myself and provide a slight bit of background as to who I am and why I am here in Wroclaw before I relate the events of my first full day in Poland. My name is Robert Gilbert, and the story of how I wound up at UNCG would take a little while to recount, and would perhaps be beyond the scope of this blog's subject matter. Feel free to email me if you would like to learn more. At UNCG, I am a double-major in English and International Business with a minor in German. I would also be considered a second-semester freshman for all intents and purposes. I work for The Carolinian so some of you may recognize my name - I covered varied Spartan athletics for the duration of the fall semester and will continue upon my return to Greensboro in the fall. I also am one of the inaugural members of the Honors Ambassadors program at the Lloyd International Honors College. It was at the LIHC's welcome dinner for fall semester 2008 that I heard part of an announcement mentioning the Honors Abroad in Central and Eastern Europe program. It stuck in my head, and I continued thinking about it. The application deadline was some four or five days after the dinner, so I did not have much time to make my decision. I finally decided to apply for this study abroad program, and be a relatively rare second-semester freshman international student. 

My reasons for applying were varied, but some of the most central were related to the fact that I intend to go through law school in the states and become an international business lawyer. I felt that in the long run, the more cultures I saw, the better I would be able to approach my career. This program would guarantee my being able to see at least three different countries and their respective cultures within the course of the semester. I chose Poland over Estonia due to several minor reasons - the Catholic presence in Poland, the Germanic history of Wroclaw, the proximity to other European countries, et cetera. 

My process of actually physically leaving the United States and arriving at my destination was perhaps one of the most complicated, drawn-out procedures intrinsic to such activity. Some know the issues I went through attaining my passport, blood-type for insurance purposes, and the multiple departure date changes incurred as a result of the aforementioned problems. It eventually entered the realm of farcical happening, and I reached the point mentally where I could only laugh at each subsequent occurrence, watching the size of my bank accounts dwindle daily. 

After initially deciding to arrive in Wroclaw on 6 February 2009, I did not actually step foot in Poland until 19 February 2009. I flew from London via LOT Polish Airlines, with a connection in Warsaw. My first reaction to Poland, specifically Frederic Chopin Airport in Warsaw, was that of bemusement tempered with understanding of the reasoning behind Polish concepts. The Polish airports have a state of security that would put American and London airports to shame, the London airports being the closest to those of Poland. Unlike in America, the Poles have security checkpoints when you disembark your plane at your destination or layover in addition to the standard security protocols before your initial departure. I also observed that Frederic Chopin Airport has chain link fence in the terminals all the way to the ceiling, a rough guess of which would be circa 125 feet high at its apex. There are also a large number of Polish flights that bus passengers from the gate to the airplane, or the airplane to the gate. Moreover, as in London, there are guards patrolling heavily armed with assault rifles, sidearms, and other accoutrements. To digress for a moment, I will say that London's guards were slightly more impressive, as they carried Heckler und Koch G36 assault rifles, pistols, and at least two other kinds of weaponry. That said, England is able to spend more money on their equipment as opposed to the Poles. Lastly, another interesting point about both Polish airports I was in is that the security checkpoints required that you open your laptop, which has never happened to me at any other airport. 

I transferred to Wroclaw's Copernicus Airport, landing at roughly 16:45 CET. For those in the eastern time zone, that would be 10:45am. It was snowing lightly and the presence of a few inches of the lovely white flakes was already on the ground, thusly making my first impression of Wroclaw about as good as it possibly could be. Again, those of you who know me know that I am in my element in what would be frigid temperatures for others, and especially snow, and by snow I mean serious snow, not North Carolina snow. Thusly, arriving in Wroclaw with snow both on the ground and in the air was as if Wroclaw had rolled out the welcome wagon on a red, velvet carpeted road. Speaking of the welcome wagon, my ride from Copernicus Airport to Olowek, one of many student dormitories in this city, was late. I waited roughly 30 minutes and had decided if it were another ten minutes and no one showed, I was taking a taxi and doing it myself. 

Well, about two minutes later, my ride showed up, and my first solo adventure in Wroclaw was delayed. The two students who picked me up provided me with some basic information, and helped me check-in at Olowek. I met my roommate, a Turkish man, who has been perhaps the best roommate someone could possibly have. Shortly thereafter, I went out with Mandy and others to Pasaz Grunwaldski, the mall I have spent many an afternoon at and will spend many more at during the remainder of the semester. 

I had already unpacked, having left over half of my stuff and nearly 2/3 of my clothes in London due to yet another issue on the way to this country. Mandy and company purchased ice cream, but I held off, going the route of pizza instead. To date, I have yet to discover good pizza, but I have already obtained a promise from a friend back in the States to buy me real pizza when I return. 

I then went back to Olowek, chatted with my roommate for awhile, and went to bed. The next morning I went to the last session of the two-week Polish intensive language course I had missed completely. After that class period, I went to the Foreign Office of the university to pick up my student ID, my February stipend, and check-in with Urszula Broda, my contact in Poland throughout my entire application process to Wroclaw University. 

After completing these orders of business, I took the tram back to Olowek, but after awhile went back to Pasaz Grunwaldski. I spent awhile shopping, making various purchases of an electric and electronic nature to enhance my flat's capabilities. I had picked up several Polish phrases already and have since learned a relatively decent conversational amount, and am sure I will learn more on the fly throughout the duration of this semester. Later, I returned to the dormitory, and went to bed early. I am uncertain if my first day were typical of stereotypical first days in foriegn countries, but I will state that I was never nervous about my ability to handle being abroad. It has merely gotten to be an even easier transition over my first fifteen days in this country. Please feel free to comment or email me with questions, and I will get back in touch with you as soon as possible.