Leaving
Well, I have been living in Poland for over a month and a half now, but this update is just about my first month living in Europe.
I arrived in Poland on August 19th. I spent some of July and August in China and Japan with team Canada and returned home for a week to finish packing my suitcases and say goodbye before I jetted off to Europe. It was a pretty crazy summer.
It was filled with injury, a lot of family time which I loved, and then the opportunity to play for Team Canada, which is always something I cherish so much.
So, when it came time to leave for Poland I kind of had mixed feelings I guess.
Everyone was continuously asking me, “Are you excited, are you excited?”
That’s all I heard all summer when I talked to people, and I understood everyone just wanted to wish me the best, but the more I heard it I realized that maybe I wasn’t so excited. I had loved being able to be at home a lot this summer with my friends and family after being away so much at college for five years.
Sure, I was excited about some aspects but I had nooooo idea what to expect. I was excited to play basketball and excited to make money, but I wasn’t sure how I would like the country, and what living in Europe would be like.
Still, I had to go to and find out for myself, so I packed my three giant suitcases and on I went.
Have you ever flown by yourself? Well, I have plenty of times so that wasn’t new.
Have you ever flown to a new country and everything is in a different language? Luckily, I have travelled to Europe before so that wasn’t new either.
BUT, have you ever moved to a place where you had never met anyone before and never visited before you moved? It sounds pretty crazy right, but that’s exactly what I did when I came to Poland.
I hopped on a plane across the ocean, was picked up by a stranger at the airport and it could’ve easily turned into the movie “Taken.” HAHA just kidding, everyone involved with the team has been super welcoming and I am definitely thankful for that.
It still was nerve-racking when I first arrived and I won’t lie when I say the first week was hard but I only cried once, that’s a gold star for Emily.
When I first arrived me and the other imports were staying in the dorms and I didn’t have a polish phone yet, and the dorms didn’t have wi-fi and it was just all over the place. I spent the first two days sleeping and reading books because I had no phone service.
I was jet-lagged and isolated and I just wanted a damn cheeseburger. That’s when my little meltdown came but it was brief and I picked myself back up and kept going.
Settling In
Things only went up from my first few days in Poland, I started practicing, I got a phone and some Wi-Fi, and filled up my dorm with lots of food. (I also got my cheeseburger.)
From there I started the search for an apartment, and it was super awesome that I got to pick out one I liked. I looked at a few with a manager on the team and then moved in and I LOVE MY APARTMENT.
This is my first time living alone and I really like it so far. I’ve been cooking lots and keeping up with cleaning the place and buying all the stuff I need to make it feel like home. I can’t bring anything back with me to Canada when I leave Poland, so I just bought small things like some bamboo and candles. My apartment came fully furnished and with all the dishes and pots and pans I need. It definitely makes moving in much easier when it’s done that way.
Other than basketball practice, not much has been going on over here. I have gotten out a handful of times to see the city, but on off days I also like to chill and relax by myself. I’m happy that I enjoy alone time because otherwise I think it could get lonely out here, but so far, I haven’t felt that too much. I’m going to try to continue to make myself get out of the house and explore when I have days off. I don’t want to leave this city or country without really experiencing it. I am living here so I might as well take advantage of my geography right now.
Exploring
The places I have been to so far in Poland include a Mexican restaurant, an Italian restaurant, a Polish restaurant and lots of sightseeing. I’ve enjoyed the food, even though Polish food isn’t very unique compared to other countries cuisines. That doesn’t mean it’s bad at all, it just means it’s similar to food I had growing up. It’s meat and potatoes and perogies (I love perogies) and a lot of cabbage and beets, but I hate beets so I’m staying away from those.
I tried sweet perogies for the first time in Poland and it’s a great dessert. I had some with sweet cheese, and strawberries filled perogies as well. A bucket-list item I have is to make homemade perogies just with the traditional cheese and potato filling, so I will see if I can carry out that while I am here this year.
I know malls don’t count as sightseeing but I have been to four of those as well. I swear there are giant malls on every street here. I have tried to stay away because like I said I can’t bring more than three suitcases back home with me, so I’m definitely saving money here in Poland. I don’t go out to eat as much and I don’t shop really at all. All I am buying is food from the grocery store and the occasional meal out. I am going to try to save a lot of money this next year so that I can pay off my car and then have savings leftover to live from next summer and maybe do some traveling. But yeah, there’s lots of malls and I have to try to stay away… mostly.
Gdansk is part of the Tri-cities and I have made it to Sopot and Gdynia for food and sightseeing and they are both super cute spots. They are more modern and younger than Gdansk, but I love the history and buildings in Old Town Gdansk the best by far! One Sunday I went with the other imports and we walked around Old Town all afternoon before eating some perogies. There’s a giant Ferris wheel, a big Gdansk sign and plenty of tourist shops, restaurants and museums in the area. There are also giant beautiful churches and I vow to make my way into them a least once, including the biggest brick Church in all of Europe. I saw the outside of it but didn’t go inside that day.
The edge of downtown is right on the river and there was water taxis and a couple of giant ships that were museums. I would love to check those out. I will probably hit up a few historical places in the coming months, but I want to save some of them for when my mom comes to visit in February. I feel like every time I find somewhere cool I start planning to take her there even though she won’t be here for months.
This is an invitation for whoever wants to come visit!!! I will feed you and you will have a place to stay if you come visit me J
Next Steps
Basketball season is quickly approaching with our first regular season game on October 6th. We will play one game a week on Saturday’s and will face the top teams in the league for our first six games or so. It’s going to be a tough entrance to the top league in Poland, but I’m excited for the opportunity and there is no pressure. We just have to go out there and play as hard as we can, and this team plays HARD.
I’m probably in the best shape of my life now because of how much running we do every day, but I can’t complain because it will really help once season starts. The coach loves hard defense so we spend a lot of the game in a full court press and people are flying around everywhere. I am so impressed with how hard my teammates play and they really give their all on the defensive end.
To win games we are going to have to use that, and also play fast up and down the floor. Our team is young so we can really run and score easy points in transition. The best way to beat a defense or press is to beat it down the floor. I am excited to see what we can do, and I hope we can surprise a couple of teams this year. You never know until you play the game. If you go into a game thinking you’ve lost, then you already have. On the court is always a place I want to believe in myself and trust in my preparation. I’m ready to start my career as a professional and enjoy this next journey.
Thoughts on Poland
So far, so good. The weather has been pretty great and I always love living in a place with four seasons. The basketball has been tough but rewarding, and so far the country is way better than I thought it would be.
Thanks for reading,
With Love,
Emily Potter.
