During our two weeks at camp, we had several holidays to celebrate. These days had classes in the morning and then themed activities in the afternoon, followed by campfires, discos, performances and more.
Halloween:
The first holiday was Halloween! All the American staff decorated the cafeteria with spiders and skull streamers while some others crafted a Haunted House in one of the school building’s basement. We dug through a box of costumes as well, distributing them amongst ourselves.
Our activities included witch broom racing, candy corn relays and spider web mazes. The high-school music teaching assistant (in a blow-up sumo-wrestler suit) and I taught Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” dance to everyone in the courtyard. The students (remember their mad dancing skills?) picked up on the movements fast.
American Day:
For American Day, I thought I was fine wearing a white sweatshirt and blue jeans with a few red, white, and blue bead necklaces around my neck. When I went to breakfast, the students had gone all out, wearing more red white and blue then we, the American staff, managed to put up in the cafeteria for decorations. One girl in particular painted tiny white stars in white nail-polish all over her body. As the day went on, more and more white stars appeared on her fellow classmates, eventually we got some too.
I helped with the three-legged race activity. The students partnered up had to tie their two legs between themselves together and attempt to walk to the finish line. I didn’t consider the strength of yarn versus the energetic and determined racers while I passed it out. As soon as we counted down to go, a loud moan erupted from the starting line as everyone’s string broke right away.
For dinner we were served hot dogs. The delicious surprise continued as we discovered that Polish hotdog buns are a baguette-shaped bread with a hole in the middle with the hotdog slid inside (to my Polish readers, American hotdog buns are usually sliced open with the hotdog placed inside). Think of how a corndog looks. But it was very good. The bun was toasted, and it was perfect for dipping, much easier to eat this way I think.
At the campfire that night, the students performed their presentations about various states (one group spelled out California with their bodies) and then we made two hundred to three hundred s’mores for everyone to have. Somehow, I could totally have a S’more right now. I’m still not tired of them, especially when Milka chocolate is involved over Hershey’s (all the American staff packed bags of marshmallows to bring with us to Europe.)
At the staff campfire later that night, we roasted kielbasa among a mound of wonderful dishes and grilled meat. A treasured jar of mustard was passed around in circles.
Polish Day:
Two days after American Day, Polish Day was celebrated. For morning breakfast, we were welcomed to the cafeteria all decorated in red and white with a big white sign saying, “Taste the Polish Day!” Lunch served pierogis and other kinds of dumplings. Out in the courtyard, chairs were set up for the American staff to sit and watch the students’ performances. Many had flowers in their hair or on their clothes. Polish flags and red and white ribbon decorated everything. The columns around the courtyard had boughs from trees tied to them with ribbons.
The students then had four stations of activities for us to complete. We had quizzes on geography, Polish history and government, Polish tongue twisters and a food taste test. At the taste testing, a beautiful spread of food was set up with potatoes, pate, a variety of sausages, cheeses, bread and much more that I did not recognize. We were blindfolded to try and guess what food they fed us. This made me incredibly nervous because it reminded me of my family where food would—with no doubt—would be put in your face. But the students were very careful as I was given potatoes and sausage but when I couldn’t guess what was on the sausage, they gave me a spoonful of horseradish on accident. I heard my roommate panic, telling them not to give me a whole spoonful. Luckily, it was the weakest horseradish I have ever encountered.
After the taste testing, the students gave us bread spread with lard and meat and more. Then a band came out to play, there was another disco and we ended our night around the campfire as the red and white paper hearts hung in the moonlight.
Comments