1980s – Exploring Generations

Coffee and Solidarity in Poland

In the spring of 1988, I arrived in Poznan, Poland for a semester abroad. I had participated in an eight-week summer program in Poznan, but I wanted to move beyond the structured program designed for foreign students. I wanted a real semester-abroad experience, to know what everyday student life felt like: attending classes at theContinueContinue reading “Coffee and Solidarity in Poland”

Chicken Pox in Warsaw

In the summer of 1987, I studied as an American college student in Poznan, Poland. I was in a group of about 10 American students. We lived in the dorm with Polish students. One of the Polish students had a three-year-old boy who loved visiting our room. He was especially fascinated with my makeup. DoorsContinueContinue reading “Chicken Pox in Warsaw”

English Lessons in a Polish Suburb

The atmosphere was quiet, as I waded through calf-deep snow toward a little apartment on the outskirts of Poznan, Poland. The light through the windows was inviting. This kind of winter was new to me, a Florida girl. The night sky was a deeper blue, as the moonlight reflected off the snow. After spending theContinueContinue reading “English Lessons in a Polish Suburb”

A Passport, a Piccolo, and a Summer I’ll Never Forget

In 1982, I was in 10th grade at Winter Park High School. Back then, high school in Florida started with 10th grade. I played flute and piccolo in the band. The annual district solo and ensemble music contest was a big deal, and I had experienced that scene for two years in junior high. InContinueContinue reading “A Passport, a Piccolo, and a Summer I’ll Never Forget”

View from a Glass Box: Transit through Sweden 1988

In my senior year of college, I did a semester abroad at Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza in Poznan, Poland. It was January to June 1988, about a year and a half before the Berlin Wall fell. The new wave of uprisings in Poland had just started. It was a rough time and place for thisContinueContinue reading “View from a Glass Box: Transit through Sweden 1988”