Honey, I'm home!

It's so good to be home for Christmas :)
I was so lucky to get a flight home, as I was waiting for my plane almost every other flight around me was cancelled. I got home with only a 2 hour delay to greet my parents at the airport with tears of happiness :D
Although my house is beyond FREEZING (although we've just had a log fire installed into my room - SO cosy)
it's so GREAT to spend time with my sisters (my best friends) parents and friends :D
I've decided to make Pawels present, its going to take a while but I think its cute to have something with sentimental value! <3
Im even going to church in the morning with Lily, Lyds and my grandma! We always sit in the back row and giggle the whole way through :)
Im so excited for tomorrow, I havent seen my grandparents for 5 months, Im meeting friends for drinks on boxing day and pawels coming over a week tommorrow! I miss him so much already and it's only been 3 days! Aw!

Merry Christmas!

Album I'm listening to at the moment:

LOUD - Rihanna

I really LOVE this!

I find I have it on constantly on my tram journeys to and from Polish lessons and shopping trips.

There's only one song on it I don't like (cheers) but seriously, every song is so catchy and feel-good. Awesome :D

Best songs:

♥Fading

♥Complicated

♥Raining men (Nicki Minaj is so cool!)

♥Only girl

♥Love the way you lie (Part 2)

general update.

I have been in Warsaw for four months now! 
It's gone pretty quick and I'm going home in 11 days for Christmas :D Im really excited to see all my friends and my family for two weeks :) Pawel is coming over from the 1st (probably very hung over) until the 6th and we're getting the same flight back.
My teaching course is going really well. Everyone on the course is really nice and I've found another British girl there, which is great :D Teaching is getting less and less nerve wrecking but I'm not the type to get really nervous about standing in front of people.
My first 3 months of Polish lessons are coming to an end, we only have three lessons left and we have decided to end them in style by going straight from our lesson to the bar (at 11 am!) so... we'll see how that plays out! 
I have been really undecided about whether or not I want to continue onto the next trimester of lessons, as I found the first trimester REALLY hard. I can't believe how hard Polish is. Over the years I have taken Welsh, English, French, Spanish and Italian and Polish is hands down the most difficult. A million times. It's just SO different from English in every way possible. But there's no rush to learn it. I've started to be able pick up on conversations and get the gist of what's going on, which is really useful. 
I have made two great friends on the Polish course, although my friend from Korea is going back home after Christmas :(
Even though it's only been four months, I can feel myself changing and growing more independent and aware of myself, which can only be a positive thing. 
Pawel is doing really well in his fashion course. He came home yesterday with two tickets to his mentors (who is quite famous in Poland) fashion show on Tuesday and I'm going with him :D Exciting!
It's still snowing here. The snow is so much heavier than it is in Britain, I feel like I have been living at a ski resort for the past two weeks! I have to dress in about  a hundred layers to just step outside. It's pretty impossible to wake up at 6:30 am these days, as its pitch black outside and SO cold! I do love the snow though.
 I remember the days at high school where, if there was the slightest whisper of the word 'snow,' everyone would be sent home. I thought it was crazy to see the school children heading off to school with the snow over their knee caps! 
I am ashamed to say the first two things I noticed once I was in Poland were:
* Where are all the fat people? ( Hardly anyone here is fat!)
* I can't believe people work so hard for everything.


Other changes to me since Poland:
* Tea with NO milk or sugar (hardcore!)
* Black coffee (or gingerbread latte, unfortunately with soya milk!)
* No hesitation to hop on trams, metros, buses or trains alone without being 100% sure where I'm going or if its even the right tram/bus etc.
* My fashion style
* My independence

Omg, I went to see the Lanvin collection at H&M and seriously loved all of the dresses. Unfortunately, the prices are really high, around £200 for a dress :( a beaaaautiful dress though!

This was the main dress that caught my eye

but the whole collection is amazing!  Every piece is really striking and colourful but I hate that it's so expensive! :(

I just don't understand why Lanvin wants to torture us by putting such a sexy, GORGEOUS and unaffordable line in H&M, a modestly priced high street shop and a place I can't escape!
Well, Pawel is looking for a christmas present...

I haven't touched dairy since

AUGUST!


and there is barely any difference in the red marks under my eyes :( I'm doubting if it's actually worth giving up dairy if the difference on my face is going to be so minute.
I'm booking a blood test this week to finally find out if dairy is all I'm allergic to. I have a feeling it wheat to but seriously don't think I could handle giving up both!
I've had these marks on and off for a year now and I am looking forward to finally getting to the bottom of it. It wouldn't be half as bad if the red marks were on my legs or arms or something but one bite of something Im allergic to and BAM! the evidence is there on my face for all to see!

♥

• I moved to Warsaw (Poland) 3 months ago to live with my boyfriend, Pawel Pyzik :)
• I am in love with him (this will embarrass him!) :D
• I have the best family in the world, seriously :) My sisters are the best people I know!
• I have a 2:1 BA degree in music and creative writing, which I'm proud of
• I like to sing and play piano. I love the accordion and want to learn guitar and cello
• Placebo are my favourite band EVER
• I am a little socially awkward but I'm working on it
• I have a published piece of writing :)
• I am currently studying Polish (which I'm finding really hard but fun) and doing a CELTA course so I'm pretty busy but it'll be worth it
• I automatically rub my hands together like crazy when I'm excited about something, which my family make fun of all the time!
• I LOVE animals! :)
• I could spend all day in Sephora! 
• I love clothes shopping but feel really guilty as soon as I buy something! Im scared for my money to run out as I don't have a job yet because I can't speak Polish
• I have watched every Gavin and Stacey episode!
• I want to visit: Croatia, Maldives, Greece, Chilie, Brazil, Jamaica, China and Russia before I die
• My favorite films are Amelie, Corpse bride, Pans Labyrinth, Edward scissorhands, Howls moving castle Twilight and the Harry potters (geek I know)
• I am one karate belt away from black!
• I'm scared of frogs! For no reason!
• I don't take life too seriously
• I am at home in the water! :D I'm like a fish!
• I have been lactose intolerant for the past year! Its AWFUL!

Teaching!

I taught my first ever native English speaking lesson today!
I won't lie, I had been dreading it for weeks BUT it wasn't half as scary as I had imagined!
Everyone on both of my courses (English native speaker and Polish) are really nice and I am making friends from all over the world through doing this :D
I get to teach the time next week which I'm actually looking forward to!
I slept about eleven hours last night - Pawel thirteen!!!! I just don't think I could survive this course without all that sleep! It's EIGHT HOURS!! (Plus then it takes at least an hour to get home) but it's worth it knowing at the end of it in March, I'll hopefully be able to snag a well-paid job :D

CUTE THINGS!

omgosh I just found a website with the cutest things for the house ever!

(how cool!)

and I found some other not so house-things... but I Love them anyway! :)

I  l o v e this :D

                                            ( Pretty!)

It may seem a mere coincidence that I stumble upon such cool things just when Pawel starts his new job ;) we'll see how it goes!

P.S-  When asked by his mum what he would like for his Christmas present, Pawel replied 'a plane ticket to Wales' ... cuuute! :D
P.P.S- He's going to kill me after reading this!  <3

So far today I have:

* Woke up half an hour late for Polish lesson
* Had a bad hair day
* Got on the wrong tram, making me even later for my lesson but I didn't get too lost :)
* Ran like crazy for 2 miles down the street to the lesson
* Only arrived 10 mins late (not bad)
* Almost got run over by a silly, silly man
* Had my first taste of Thai food.. in a box :D - yummy!
* Ate waaay too much Thai food so I could barely move :)
* Tripped walking back home in-front of everyone
* Freaked out about my teaching course tomorrow (Im nervous!)

It's only 1pm so.. I'm going to sleep until Pawel comes home :D

My first All Saints day

is so different here than it is back in Britain.
It's taken really seriously and although I was a bit sad at first when I found I wouldn't get to dress up for it, I think I prefer Halloween here.
People spend November 1st (all saints day) with their families and then going to graveyards with flowers and candles and decorating the beautifully carved stones of their relatives and people they loved.  I honestly haven't seen anything as beautiful as the graveyards on all saints day. Everyone seems way more respectful than in Britain.

I'm not sure I'm organised enough for this!

CELTA!

I had my first lesson of the 20 week course on sat. I have to say I was a little bit intimidated by all the smart, professional looking Polish women. Although I think they're only a few years older than me, they have all had a lot of teaching experience and know what they're talking about. (I didn't even know what a lesson plan was!) 
Every one was dressed smartly and I turned up in my lumberjack shirt and fluffy boots! But I smiled a lot and nodded like I knew what was going on!
The course is EIGHT HOURS every Saturday until April and it's going to take a lot of dedication and organisation but I can handle it. I already received a lifetime of homework for next Saturday and actually have to teach my first lesson to about 8 elementary level Polish adults for twenty minutes, whilst being watched by other Celta students and our lecturers! ARGH! 
It doesn't help that I'm shy! Being shy is something I'm definitely going to have to get over, it actually gets on my nerves how socially awkward I can be! I'm definitely improving though :)
My Polish lessons are going well. Our course is really intensive which means it can be hard to keep up but we are covering a lot quickly. I can't wait until I can speak enough to get a job and am able to talk to everyone properly. The language barrier is definitely still an issue but is slowly falling down.
All these lessons and lectures mean I have to get up 6 am four times a week and take the tram and buses into Warsaw centre but I have to say I enjoy my ten minute walk down the beautiful street, watching all the business men and women running for buses and  the autumny feel of the city. I love autumn the most.
Pawel and I are going to a party tonight and we both have to be up 6 am for classes                      - should be interesting! :)

I can't stop listening to...

T a y l o r  S w i f t!


I wasn't a big fan at first, when all I had heard was 'Love Story' but once I gave her album a listen I couldn't stop! Her songs are so well written and honest and I can relate to a lot of the 'lovey dovey' things she writes about, being the overemotional romantic type myself  =)
Her songs are guaranteed to make me feel happier and smile, plus they are ridiculously catchy. 
I'm going to learn the guitar and try to teach myself some of the songs!

Plus, she is GORGEOUS and has the best hair E V E R!

C y n d i  L a u p e r!

I have rediscovered Cyndi Lauper - the heroine of my childhood!

I can remember having her tape and dancing around to it non stop in my room when I was about 6-7, knowing every word and harmony! I used to LOVE her, and it's been so fun listening to the songs I used to obsess over! 

My favourite song of hers: I drove all night!
<3 


Other bands I'm listening to:


Kate Bush
Radiohead
Placebo
Harry Nilsson
Beirut
Bombay Bicycle Club
Grizzly Bear
The Kills
Interpol
Lykke Li
Muse
Reuben
The Shirelles
Sinead O'Connor
Soulwax 

Yummy!

Omg! I absentmindedly bought a bottle of this today and I have to say it's probably the nicest cold drink I've ever had! I don't know if they sell it in Britain but if you see it somewhere, you should really try it! Yuuuuumy! :)

Nestea Green Tea with Strawberry and Aloe Vera <3

This song haunts me!

I just think it is SO beautiful!

Click here to hear it

I have learnt it on the piano! So simple yet spellbinding! :) <3

My Native Speaker course starts on Sat and

I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT GRAMMAR!




As usual, I've managed to leave my 'month of doing nothing but learning English grammar so i won't look like a complete failure to the rest of the class' plan to the very last minute. As in, i have two days (yes, including today) to learn everything about the language :S
It's not like I haven't tried. I've sat and read and read about it but as I find it incredibly boring ( does anyone actually find it fascinating?) the words just haven't sunk into my brain and I find myself completely wasting my time in trying to do so.
I've taken to creating posters and sticking them up around my room in a desperate attempt to learn them quickly! 
I know all this will be worth it in the end, as a native speaker job in Poland is a great way to get a lot of money. I imagine it could actually be quite fun too, if I knew what I was talking about! 
I have no choice but to turn up on Saturday anyway and give it a go.
As we speak/write I have my nose in a child's Spelling and Grammar book I've had since I was about nine (and this is the first time I have actually attempted to read it!)

This is the closest book I could find to the one I have here, as it is probably ancient. Although my book is way cooler as it has pictures on the front and everything!

If you love me ...

Oh my gosh! Seriously, I've found what I want for christmas  my birthday ASAP!
I don't know how long they've been out for but I have just come across the YSL rings! They have to be the most beautiful pieces of jewellery I have ever seen in my life!
There is one in particular I have my eye on, but of course the cost is holding me back! (£123)

SOOOooo beautiful!

Too much time on my hands!

Whilst waiting for my Polish lessons and Native teaching course to being and with Pawel in University of Fashion design 4 days a week, I am finding myself with plenty of time to myself. I know I should enjoy all this spare time as, come next week when my Polish lessons begin I bet I will be praying for a bit more free time.
I braved the outdoors alone, in an attempt to take the bus and tram into the city centre to go shopping and I actually didn't get lost! I am finding I can understand Polish much more than I can write or speak it. In fact, I don't really have a clue on Polish spellings but that can wait.
I have found myself filling my notebook with lists. Random to-do lists, what I want to buy lists, names I like ( I am NOT thinking of having a baby anytime soon, I just think it's fun!) story ideas and a goals list. Whether I'll actually complete any of these lists is another matter, it just fills in the time!                              I am also following beauty vlogs and channels on the 'how to and style' youtube channels. The two in particular being :  'queenbeeuty' and 'beautycrush.'  ( I love them!) It's actually got me thinking I would like to get onto a beauty course? Perhaps make up for stage and screen, like making zombies and other monsters, although I know it would take a lot of experience and know how and I would probably have to start with a typical beauty course. I think it would be fun and interesting. There is a beauty school in Warsaw so maybe I will do a course after finishing my Polish lessons around July time. 


 I know what you are thinking .. 'GET A LIFE LOREN!' But hey, it beats reading up on English grammar for my teaching course!  :)

Microgynon 30

Those hellish little yellow pills.

For a year and a half I had been taking these pills, unaware of the consequences I faced everyday due to them.

I knew my personality had changed, darkened. I had no energy and wouldn't want to go out with friends. I felt heavy and lifeless and felt myself uncontrollably being bitter and bitchy to everyone I loved and cared about. I wasted the last year of my Uni life being miserable (although part of that was due to being stuck in Crewe!) and I couldn't pinpoint a valid reason.

Of course, my boyfriend got the worst of it. My ridiculous ups and downs, energy spouts and sleepy spells, he could tell I wasn't myself and always asked if there was anything he could do to help, to which I would snap 'no.'
It was Pawel who suggested trying to stop using Microgynon (the contraceptive pill) and of course I stopped using it straight away. After a week I had noticed a huge difference in my temperament and really my entire personality. I became myself again, happier, carefree and much more full of life. I was lighter and relaxed, my weight stopped fluctuating and I looked forward to life again . 

I can't believe I had let myself suffer the dreadful side effects of the pill for so long, letting it change who I was and almost sacrificing the relationships I have. Nothing is worth that. I swear I am never going to touch those pills again and I am throwing the 10 months stash I have left in the bin! 

:O

I have always read ELLE magazine. Its pages are filled with things I am interested in : Fashion, Make up, Health and interesting photography. One magazine can take a whole week for me to digest everything properly, I especially love the make up pages near the end of the magazine. I love how it can transform a face, the textures and colours. Although I don't wear much make up myself,  I love to look at the pictures all the same. I was one of those children who broke into their mothers make up bag, swirling the glittery 1990's colours all over my face and thinking the lipstick smears on my cheek and eyeliner on my lips made me look so grown up and cool!
Anyway, to get back to the point, I was craving an issue of ELLE the other day and actually managed to find some ..in ENGLISH!  Ah, I was so excited.. until I noticed the price! It was priced as 37 Zl! Which is around £8.50! As if! It is usually £3.40 ish and although that is still very expensive for a magazine, I just couldn't justify spending that much on a magazine fix! I'll just have to remember to stock up when I go home for christmas in 3 months!

first month here!

I have to say, my first month here has really flown by.  I'm still as foreign as ever but I have got a placement at the native speaking course and yesterday I enrolled into a Polish school, so hopefully it won't be long until I can say a bit more than 'thank you' or 'socks!'
Pawel is currently on his fashion design course which has him gone four times a week, so I am determined to use this new found time to write! I am actually finding it hard to write without a deadline, so I have decided to set personal deadlines to hopefully help get myself moving. As I have recently been spending my time exploring the depths of my wardrobe somehow hoping to stumble across a brand new expensive item I had totally forgot I had bought or watching every film to be found in our room, despite the language being totally incomprehensible! . . HELP!
I am going to learn how to use the public transport so I can take the bus and trams into the city centre and go exploring or simply find a pretty café, where I can just go and take my new little laptop and write a story :)


Its a nuisance being in such a pretty city with pretty shops (the Zara shops here are my favourite) and me being so silly with money. Seriously, I have bought quite a lot. Shopping gives such a buzz and the second I walk out of the shops, bags in hand, I suddenly feel awful for spending money! I swear when I come home for christmas, I'll be looking like this.. 

Interview!

Before coming to Poland, I applied for a CELTA teaching course in Warsaw where I can learn how to teach and looks great on my CV.  Unfortunately I sent the CV and pre course test to the wrong address and wouldn't be able to get onto the intensive course I wanted as the places fill up quickly (only 4-5 people get onto the course each term.)
About half an hour ago I had a phone call from the company, saying they have just received my application form and would like to interview me on Saturday for the part time course - every Saturday for FIVE months!!  Of course it came as a massive surprise as I hadn't applied for their October course but hey, I'm not going to turn it down!
So this is going to be my first interview... ever!  :O
So the next two days are going to be spent with my nose in between my copy of 'grammar and punctuation for dummies' as I have to say my grammar is pretty rusty, but I'm so glad somethings turned up :D

Room Tour!

Pawel redecorated his bedroom just before I came  to make some room for all my junk! and... it is awesome :D

Seriously, I'm really impressed!

 Wait.. I'll show you some pictures ( I was going to make a video of it but.. I felt ridiculous! :p )

Okay..

Here's our little reading corner! (Note the 'invisible shelves' Pawel was smug about! ;) 

It's the comfiest chair EVER by the way :D

Of course we have a Huge wardrobe for all our stuff (it's full to the brim already and you'll notice that my side (the right, well ... it's the left in this picture) is a tad untidy at the moment ;) 

We are already fighting over the clothes hangers!

Our floor is all cosy sheep and cowskins! and I bought some super cool fairy lights which have little birds and diamonds and hearts etc.. which are currently by the bin.. illuminating the messy corner!

 :/  

Pawel made those little seat cushion ball things and the table for the tv :D

Here you can see the balcony looking out onto the street! :)

 This bed is GINORMOUS!

I could sleep in this bed and not even know Pawel was in there too! (Although he still manages to completely hog the entire thing and I end up crammed against the wall, elbow in my face and loud snores down my ear!)

So yeah, I LOVE  this room :D

:D I'm finally here!

  

Warsaw 

My new home! <3

What a change from Llangollen!! but what a wonderful change :)

Before moving here, I never imagined how drastic a change life would be from my cosy little welsh village.

The food, fashion, city life, religion and mannerisms are a lifetime away from my norm, yet I am having so much fun trying to figure everything out :D

It's such a beautiful city!  ( I want to will live in that little yellow house at the top :D)

I feel quite the European strolling along the cobbled streets mid day and taking the time to sit outside to drink a coffee :)

It hasn't quite sunk in yet that I actually live in this massiveeee city, and I wonder how long it will take for this house to feel like a home.

I have made a little To- Do list:

* Send off CV for English teaching jobs

* Enrol for Polish school

* Advertise for private English lessons

* Start another short story

* LEARN POLISH!

* Make lots of friends!

* Find a way to resist spending any more money on clothes before I run out!

* GET A JOB!

               Hmm, not too bad! ...