Almost 6 months now....

Wow, has time flown by.  I only realized late last week that I have been in Poland for almost 6 months now (March 15 will be 6 months exactly).  And things have gone largely as I thought they might.  My goal for the first 6 months was mostly just to settle in, feel comfortable with daily life, try and learn some Polish, and generally feel confident enough in my new environment to branch out more and try even more new things.

I haven't learned as much Polish as I hoped.  I'm just now getting to point where a few phrases and words are coming naturally.  And my vocabulary is not even close to what I hoped.  But I'm at least starting to feel like I'm making a bit of progress and not just drowning in a sea of new sounds and concepts.

I've slowly explored more the city than just the area between work and where I live, and am looking forward to  Spring and Summer when I should be able to get on my bike and explore even more of Poznań.  And as the weather warms up, I hope to finally begin travelling more in Europe.  There is still a lot to try and experience in Poznań, but I feel like I have a better idea of things that will appeal to me and where things are.  And again, to not be so overwhelmed with the differences and total lack of knowledge.

In general, the Poles that I met have been very nice and welcoming.  My co-workers are great.  And the few other expats I've bumped into have been nice to chat to.  I'm doing a bit more socializing, but my normal working hours (usually 11am or Noon to 7-8pm) do mean that I really don't do much during the week.

Among the few downsides so far:

• My winter allergies seem significantly worse here than they are in California.
• The selection of fruits and vegetables is a lot less than what you get in California.  It does make you realize how spoiled we are there with nearly year-round access to almost any fruit or vegetable you like.
• I have not been able to find a chiropractor anywhere near me that speaks English, so I haven't been to a chiropractor since I left.  The only chiropractor I have located is about 45-60 minutes away (by a combo of tram and bus) and when I called, no one spoke English.
• Living in an apartment has all the downsides I expected and remembered.  :)
• I haven't found a decent massage therapist yet either.

But honestly, all of those are relatively minor taken in the greater scheme of things.  So I can't really complain.  I just hope the rest of my stay continues to get even better.  

Have a wonderful weekend!