Day 2 - July 6th - By Mary Kay

Our first BIG day - and it was huge… what is about traveling that every day feels like at least three?!? 

We started on our pre-ordained morning proba in good time - everyone worked their butts off as there was a LOT to do. And, of course many were jet-lagged, but they still were completely focussed on the task at hand. (did we really understand the demands of combining two gropes from different states who really only met up once, months previously?!) Whatever the obstacles, we actually got through the entire morning's program - 3 suites plus extra practices of jazz on the side in a separate space. The "Culture House" was absolutely wonderful to us! Majka Suroz had arranged all the details in advance, and I got every request I'd made: more than one proba room, the stage to work on, mirrors, lost of bottled water (we had several types - "gas"-y and "non-gas"-y being the main differences) After days of rain it was finally hot, so we needed continuos hydration, and we could not have been 

better attended to.  Then, by consensus, we decided to visit 

a second nearby castle ("Zamek"), "Bobolice," saving our afternoon's  proba for a 4-8pm time  slot. Before departing, we were hosted for a pizza lunch in a nearby Myszkow restaurant. The cost? The promise of a group photograph that the owner will hang on his restaurant wall! 

After our driver Robert delivered us, we had a charming tour guide from the castle and thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon's outing. In fact, our tour guide and her friend AND the owner of the castle & his wife (he's a Polish Senator) were in front row seats the following night for our show!! We are - truly - now invited to perform in Bobolice if ever we come back through there. 

We were back at work by 4:30pm and finished the 2nd set of 

dances just after 8pm - in time to say "dobranoc" to all the Culture House staff who waiting for us. We all  walked the 30 minutes home in a lovely sunset, and  arrived back for showers & a change before the night's campfire. What a campfire! Our hostess had not only created a huge, delectable pork roast (with homemade pickles, "smalec", bread, desserts, etc on the side) but also brewed up her secret "Elixer of Love," which was served with the promise that if we silently meditated on our dearest wish just before drinking, it would come true. We're all to report back to her just as soon as it does! (and she's waiting for those reports). 

I personally spent the wee hours sending emails back home and dropped like a log at 3am… can't really say the entices others were up to, but our house was quiet at the end of my day ;-)

-Mary Kay