Poland Vs. Canada

Hey all you lovely people,

It has been over a month since I have been here in Poznan and it's still really hard to believe. Things are going pretty well. Real dental classes start this coming Monday and i am looking forward to being busy again. I have had some trouble with the deans office concerning my exemptions for year 1 of the program but we are currently looking into it and I have a meeting this Monday to figure it out. I have been going to the gym quite a bit and finished the first part of my polish class this past Thursday. I have also been trying some different foods at the grocery store. I have become a lot more bold in my eating habits since moving here and having, I realized its time to expand my horizons and try some new things.....The experiment has been questionable at best thus far.

I want to dedicate this post to the major differences I have noticed between Poland and Canada since being here. For those that read this blog and have been here in Poland longer than I have, please correct me of inaccuracies and feel free to add to my list.

1. The first and most salient difference that has affected me the most has been the driving habits. People here in Poznan drive like they are late for their daughters wedding. Walking to class I have almost been hit like 3 or 4 times, while I was in a cross walk. Its just ridiculous how reckless they drive. People in Canada drive with courtesy and pedestrians have the right of way at all times. I love and appreciate Canada so much more because of this.

2. The food. Maybe it is because I'm not used to the food here and I have a bias toward Canadian food but I really dislike a lot of the food here. Keep in mind I have discovered a lot of really good new foods here, but for the most part I dislike it here. The best example I can give is a Twix bar (Chocolate with caramel and cookie inside, no not coconut). One of my favorite chocolate bars in Canada and when I came to Poznan and saw they sold them I was overjoyed. I got home and had one, it was awful. It tasted more salty and the chocolate tasted of a lesser quality. Its tough to explain but it just wasn't the same rich goodness as in Canada :).

3. The people. This is probably me being captain obvious but the people are polar opposite. People here in Poznan rarely say excuse me (przepraszam). If I'm walking on the sidewalk (the sidewalks are only narrow) people will take up the middle of the path making it almost impossible to pass those slow walking people (arrrg thats my pet peave, slow walkers). Most people here do speak enough English to get by but if you find someone who doesn't speak any English I've noticed that they don't even try to talk to you. Like i go up to most people and say "English?" and like I said most of the time I get a positive answer but if the person doesn't speak English they say "No" and turn away or not help you at all. Did anyone pick up on the fact that in this example I just gave the person who says they cannot speak English actually responds in English with "No"? A lot of times people do speak English but they just say they don't. This may be because they feel their English is poor and are self conscious to speak, but it also may be because they just don't want to bother helping you. I haven't decided if i should attribute the experience to the latter or the former.

4. Bars/ Clubs. Poland is wayyyyyyyyyyyyy better than Canada in this department. There is essentially no closing time for bars or clubs here. If people are still dancing and the place is busy it stays open. I have heard some people staying out till 6 in the morning. I obviously am incapable of staying out that late and drinking but my point is that the option is there if I want it.

5. Stores operating hours. Poland again wins in this department. Places are always open here it seems. On Sundays malls are open till 9 as well as grocery stores. It is really much more convenient here I find.

6. Prices of things. This one gets kind of confusing. A lot of things are cheaper here in Poland but certain products are much more expensive here. For example, an iphone here costs about $900 Canadian dollars, but a mens tailored suit (brand name) is only ~$150.00. Services are cheaper here as well. A good haircut is only 8-9 dollars and cabs (if the driver isn't ripping you off) are cheaper.

I am sure there is more and I'm missing things but these are the ones that stand out for sure.

I am really starting to miss home but I'm hanging in there. Miss you Mom, Dad, Lauren and Pat more than you guys can imagine.

Wish me luck for starting classes tomorrow and stay tuned to this blog because I am going to try and start being more creative, I'm thinking next week I might do a top 10 or something. Anyway bye for now. Sending Love to my family!

P.S. Sorry I have no good pictures this week. If some come along I will post them I promise. Here is one pic from a club I went to last night. It is awesome! Probably my favorite club so far in Poznan, Blueberry Bar:

The Days Go By

Hey all,

Just so people know, there is a follow by email thing I added to my blog its right here on the right-----------------------------------------------------------> All you have to do is put in your email and every time I update the blog it will send you an email. No spam, just a notification. Also, I saw the counter for the number of people that have read this blog, 545 views....not bad. Thanks for reading.

Missed a week of not blogging, but really not a whole lot new on my end. Polish is my only obligation right now and its coming along. Basic words and phrases are alright, except when i say them I have a terrible Canadian dialect so its easy to tell I'm foreign. I had my first Polish test last week and got a 95% so I'm getting it a little bit. We have another Polish test coming up this Tuesday so I'm currently studying for that.

I joined a gym here in Poznan so I could be a little bit active. The place is called platinum and it is actually really cool. The guys that run the place are really cool and make you feel like your a part of something. I am going 4-5 times a week and just lifting weights......very light weights obviously. I'm hoping by the time these 4-5 years of school are done I will have a little bit of muscle on me.

I'm still waiting for the verdict from the deans office concerning my request to be admitted into the second year of the DDS program. I am suppose to meet with the dean this week but given the progress on this issue so far I am skeptical of this meeting. Real classes start on September 26th so a decision needs to be made, and it needs to be made fast. I will keep the status of this up to date here on the blog. Keep your fingers crossed.

In other news, I'm starting to become more familiar with Poznan. I have been to every mall (I think) and checked out a couple markets, I've even been to the zoo. I'm starting to look into trips for our break between classes in February. My dream has always been to snowboard in the Swiss Alps so I started looking into resorts in Switzerland. A round trip from Poznan and back is only 150 bucks Canadian. Lift tickets are the most expensive thing, 7 days of riding is about 350 bucks. Accomodations are cheap if it is split between a couple people. So I'm hoping I can get something set in stone in the near future. Snowboarding in the swiss alps.....Tough life eh.

I only have one picture this time around so sorry for the lack of photos. This one was taken when our polish class went to the zoo. These are all dental students in the photo. See if you can spot where I am....It's pretty tough (Sarcasm). Photo credit goes to Markus.

Na Zdrowie to New Friends and People Reading my Blog

Since I have some time on my hands given I'm only taking one class a day I will try to squeeze in my weekly blog. It was brought to my attention that a surprising amount of people (excluding my family members) have been reading this blog anonymously. I think there is a follow button somewhere on this page so please, don't be shy, and follow this. It gives me a reason to actually type up some stuff on here :).

I'm devoting the bulk of this blog to new friends I met here in Poznan. Hopefully this will smooth the bitterness of not mentioning you guys in my earlier blog hahaha. Shout outs to the following people (this goes in no particular order):
John, Annsley and Lilly, thank you guys for being my first friends in Poznan. These kats invited me over to their place the second night I was in the city. We had beers, perogies and made a great friendship I really value. You guys made a foreign city a lot more bearable to me. You guys rock my socks!
Shout out to Monica. Met through John and Anns. Very influential in helping me acquire the taste for wine and finally having a good breakfast. Please remember to shut the front door (it's not that funny :) ).
Shout out to Shay. Had a great dinner at your place with friends. Your hospitality is unmatched my friend. Looking forward to more hang outs and hilarious discussions. Cheers.
Shout out to Kayla. Saw me at my worst but helped me so much in actually coming to Poland. I would not have made it here without you so thank you for the copious amounts of help. You rock. Oh and Ikea was an absolute nightmare so thank you X's a million for helping me there. Mad Props!
Shout out to the British connection of Thomas and Arnold. You guys are hilarious and I wish I had your accents. Hopefully you escape dorms alive and I hope we will be in some classes together. Cheerio gents! (I think thats how the British say it right?)
Shout out to Markus. I swear that before Polish is done I will get a date with you know who. I can't be denied.....I'm Canadian!
Shout out to Sebastian. A young man that has your back. Poland is less sketchy if you're walking with this guy. Stop sweating so much!! (Jokes)
Shout out to Matt our tour guide. Gave a wicked tour and hooked a brother up with internet in the library.
Small shout out to Justyna and your cousin. The small shout out is because you make fun of my charming Canadian Dialect!!! Good night drinking Wine!
Lastly, Shout out to Kev. Thank you for getting me to come here. It has been unreal so far and I really think this is the right decision for me. Big thanks.
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So this past week I have been studying Polish and trying to grasp it the best I can, rearranging the apartment, shopping, banking, looking into stay cards and health insurance and setting up meetings with faculty. I'm still managing to get my weekly dose of entourage and Americas got Talent so I'm rather happy about that. I found an online stream of ESPN to watch in the morning while having my honey nut cheerios so also quite happy about that. Speaking of ESPN, I almost forgot the most important Shout out. Shout out to the Boston Red Sox, the boys are in a tough fight for first in the AL east so my thoughts are with the team everyday. (When the playoffs start I fully intend on watching the games at 3am here BTW)

Everything is great here in Poznan. To my family, I miss you guys so much. I am definitely looking forward to coming home for Christmas and seeing all your beautiful faces again. I will make you guys proud I promise. Know that everything is going great and that I'll be home soon. Love from overseas!

Thats all i have this week. Thanks gang. Oh and Picture credit goes to Anns and John.

The pretty girls of PUMS

First step to acquire the taste of wine

I Have Arrived

Well it was quite the experience getting to where I am now. I left Saint John on Monday August 22nd. My flight from Saint John to Toronto was delayed 2 hours due to mechanical problems with the plane. Regardless, I landed in TO at about 6:00 their time. As I entered the baggage area I was greeted by two of my close friends Johnathan Whelly and Kevin Klin. I gave them hugs and said my hellos and then I was jumped from behind (typical) by another dear friend Keegan Whelly. As we all started talking I turned behind me and walking up towards our group was my old roommate and closest friend David A. MacDonald. My friends set their plan up really well and it was great to see all of them before embarking on this crazy journey.

Us four guys went to the Expedia Cafe in the Pearson airport, had a couple drinks and discussed old times. The boys walked me to the international gate where I met the girl I was traveling with, Kayla. I met her and her parents and they were very nice people. I said my goodbyes to my friends and Kayla and I crossed security to head to our international flight. We boarded our plane at 10:10 and we flew from Toronto to Frankfurt. The flight took about 9 hours and was quite possibly one of the worst experiences of my life. The turbulance was terrible and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't sleep a wink. When we got into Frankfurt I was obviously exhausted so I went to a starbucks in the airport and bought a coffee, it was without a doubt the worst coffee I have ever had in my life and I didnt even drink it. It cost like 5 euros too! I ended up sleeping in the airport a little bit and then went to a restaurant and bought a schnizel and potatoes, it was really good!!

After a couple hours we boarded our flight to Poznan and got in at about 6:00 Poznan time. When we got to the airport i was suppose to call my real estate agent who would get me into my apartment, however, my phone wasn't working and i couldn't make any calls. All I knew was that I was suppose to get a taxi from the airport to my address at ul. Wojskowa 8a. So I taxi'd there and the driver dropped me off in front of a gated complex (where my apartment is located). You need a code to get into the complex and clearly I didn't have that. So here I am standing in the middle of a foreign country with all my luggage and no idea what to do. I saw a very attractive blonde girl walk by so I asked her "English?" and she said "a liddle" so I told her my situation. She grabbed me, got me inside the complex and then called the real estate agent from her own phone. She totally hooked me up and it was a great first encounter with a Polish babe.

Anyway, the realestate lady came out of her office, found me and took me up to my place. I was blown away when I entered. It is so big and essentially all brand new. The lady tried to get internet for me so it would be ready when i arrived but there were a few technical difficulties and I was unable to have internet on the first night. Despite that, the first thing I did was go to the grocery store and I picked up a few small things to get me by. I slept very well that night.

The next morning the lady came over and set me up with internet. I spent that morning catching up on things and skyping my parents. Later on I went to Ikea and picked up some things to furnish the apartment. I went there with Kayla the girl I traveled with. To make a long story short, Ikea is now one of my most hated stores in the world. Terrible experience there. I ended up spending ~1400PLN (which is only like 400 CAD) I had all that stuff delivered to my place the next day.

On that next day we had orientation for the freshman bright and early. We had a welcome from the faculty and had tutorials on payments, student visas, health insurance etc. It was a good introduction to the school. They gave us a briefcase and bunch of other stuff too. Super cool

Since then I have been to the grocery store many times, been to a couple malls and went on a city tour. I even went out to a club once reserved for the freshman of the school. I have met a lot of people so far and everyone seems to be really nice. I am struggling with the language barrier a little bit but most people are good and can speak enough English to get by. The city itself is beautiful and it is beyond crazy that i now call this place home. Below are some pictures from the tour of the city I went on:

A Good Bye From The Best Job Ever

Today was my last day of work at the Fredericton Dental Center. It was without a doubt the best job I have ever had. It was so difficult to say goodbye to everyone. I truly love everyone that works there. I was treated so well all summer and it was a tremendous experience. I have such an advantage going into dental school now that I have spent the summer in the largest dental clinic in Atlantic Canada. Whats more, I learned the business of running a dental practice. This is something that is not taught in dental school. I understand the necessary marketing, the people required to run a successful business and how to manage a budget. Really an overall amazing experience. I posted some pictures from my last day below:

Jean- Guy and I

Fance and I

Jen and I

Family Farewell Party

Last night I had my family farewell dinner mom and Dad's house. We had my grandmothers, Aunt Patrica, Aunt Elaine, Aunt Cathy, Uncle David, Uncle Pete, My sister and Pat. Mom hosted a great little party for the family and it was really nice to see everyone one more time before I went away. It is really comforting to know that my whole family is supporting me with this adventure and it definitely gives me the drive and motivation to be successful at being a dentist.We are now down to my last week in Canada and getting more and more nervous as the days go by.

My Nanny Kennedy and I. The thing I'm holding says "Dr. Scott Kennedy" Given to me by my Nanny Walker. I blushed when I got it.

Leading up to the Big Move

Things are crazy right now. Aside form not sleeping at night due to severe anxiety I'm experiencing everything is great (sarcasm). So much stuff is going on. Polish visa, Apartment hunting (includes speaking with real estate agents that i can't understand), plane tickets, loans worth 200K, school starts in 4 days. Everything is just over whelming right now.

I just booked the plane ticket. A round trip cost me 1500 bucks. I have an apple.ca order that is $2500, I have my down payment for tuition and pre-study course which is 2000, I owe my mother 1000 and I have to make the 9000 tuition payment by September 30th. The financial woes continue.

Nerves are building up and the pressure is getting to me. Of the highest importance out of everything is getting exemptions from 1st year courses. This needs to happen in the worst way. I'm told it shouldn't be an issue but I am very adamint that this happens promptly.

Will keep updates in the future. Peace