High School December
Merry Christmas
“Christmas time, mistletoe and wine…”
December: Where to go?
Sports: Casillas missing the world cup
an idea for a Christmas gift: Candle Wax Tarts
Christmas interview: US vs. Mexico
TEDx – my experience
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Table of contents
3 “Christmas time, mistletoe and
8
wine…” 10 5
an idea for a Christmas gift:
Sports: Casillas missing the
world cup
Candle Wax Tarts 6
December: Where to go?
12 TEDx – my experience
Christmas interview: US vs.
Mexico
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“Christmas time, mistletoe and wine…” Those colorful lights, bells, holiday advertisements in shops, music on the radio and… excitement in the air! Yes guys, this is it. We can feel Christmas is just around the corner. Again! And obviously, the season is opened with special ad, as well as “Last Christmas” song, which makes your heart beat a little bit faster while hearing it for the first time since last holidays. It makes you a little bit irritated too, when you hear it for the second and for the umpteen time…But while your irritation continues, Wham’s masterpiece becomes kind of an international sign saying that the holiday atmosphere is officially around and it’s not going to leave you for a looong time, together with the sound of jingle bells. Like it or not, the “Christmas madness” has started :) In my class people prepared the list for “Secret Santa Clause” a bit more than a month before the actual event. That’s how big their excitement is ! And to tell you the truth, I’m always very pleased myself when I see those new street decorations and think of warm, peaceful atmosphere with lots of food and Christmas carols. It makes my mind travel in time and imagine those moments in the nearest future spent with classic and amazing books like “Love Story” , fluffy blankets and the smell of green Christmas trees. It all feels a bit like a fairy tale with a shred of magic in it. This magical moment lasts for a while and then…Christmas Eve is coming closer, which equals = bigger, common madness everywhere. Crowded shops, people dressed up as Santa Clauses on every street corner and children screaming in the desperate act of last request for this newly advertised toy in TV. What supposed to be joyous, warm and peaceful time of the year uniting everyone, suddenly changes in a total setback - Christmas Paradox :) For me, this Christmas Paradox is an exact definition of family holidays. It always make me laugh how all the values are upside down. Suddenly, I don’t feel like living in this snowy, cold Christmas atmosphere, but like in one of those hot and sunny holiday destinations.My crazy house is buzzing with preparations 3
and quarrels about what kind of tablecloth is better or which plates should we use. With family members shouting at each other you feel just like in those Greek, noisy families, ready to have their own way.
moment when they forget about all their quarrels, hug and wish each other merry Christmas. …Right after that they come back to quarreling again, making me laugh and giving me funny and remarkable time we spend together.
And then…here it comes, this beautiful
I swear to God, my most hilarious memories come from Christmas. I could start with my grandmother’s obsession to put on a Christmas tree all kinds of existing decorations, and my grandfather’s obsession to hide them so she wouldn’t be able to use as many as she would like. I have a bunch of stories like this, many of which are even funnier.
“Last Christmas” will be played on the radio and how big crowd will be waiting for me on the train. I know we all have those kinds of something that makes Christmas time an extraordinary moment in the whole year which is worth waiting for. That Christmas spirit , maybe a little bit spoiled by commercials or maybe a little bit more special thanks to it, stays always the same – positive, full of hope, joy and happiness. That’s why:
That’s just one of the things making my Christmas special. This little something can’t ever be spoiled, no matter how many times
Merry Christmas!
Kasia Skoneczna
Recommendations for the Christmas break: TO WATCH
TO READ
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Idea for a present: Candle Wax Tarts I’m no Christmas fanatic. Pumpkin lattes, Christmas songs and winter skating don’t make my heart go a little bit faster. But there’s this one thing that does – BUYING PRESENTS. I’m the kind of person that enjoys buying presents more than receiving them, which I guess is generally a good thing. It is most certainly not good for my bank account, but as Jan Twardowski said “Let us hurry to love people they depart so quickly”, so to make people I love happy, money is a thing I’m willing to sacrifice. Which is why I gladly decided to start my Christmas-present-hunting in November as my very own Christmas treat to myself. If you still need to buy presents for the people you care about but you are stuck and out of ideas – I’m here to help you.
What I have recently discovered on one of my many shopping excursions are CANDLE WAXES. If you, just like me, knew nothing about them, then I’m informing you of their existence and assuring you they will make a lovely and not-too-pricey Christmas gift. What you should do is buy a special ceramic warmer for as little as 19 zł and then choose the preferred wax tarts to melt them inside (each costs 6 zł). The vast range of smells made by Yankee Candle differ every season, which basically means that each year smells come and smells go (I used to have a “red velvet cupcake” candle aka my favorite candle in the whole world and just when I finished off a big jar and was excited to buy another, the company decided to abort it and replace it with a new smell). The thing that makes wax melts different from ordinary candles is that you can mix and match the melts making a customized smell just for yourself. I’ve been using them for a couple of weeks now and I
must say that it’s the most creative and economical way to keep the lovely smell in your room. Right now I am absolutely loving the mixture of “Pineapple Cilantro” and “Merry Marshmallow”. In Poland you can find them in swiatzapachow.pl, which also has a store in the very center of Warsaw (Central Railway Station, shop 27), and it actually turns out cheaper than buying them on international websites. You can come there, sniff and chat with the seller who will most probably take out his special bacon and popcorn candles and ask if you want to smell them. Come and give them a try, maybe you’ll like them enough to buy some as gifts! What I also like about the waxes, is that you can make a small gesture of giving a wax tart to a person you’re close with without any special occasion. It’s such a small thing to do, but it can instantly make that person’s day a little bit better! Hania Sagan 5
American Christmas vs. Mexican Christmas “I wouldn’t say I exactly have expectations for . my Polish Christmas except that there is snow. But I just want my Christmas here to be warmhearted and fun!”
“ I really want to feel good, enjoy Christmas atmosphere, eat yummy food and see what the traditional Polish Christmas looks like!”
1. How does Christmas look in your country? How many days does it last and what do you do during them? My typical Christmas starts basically the day after Thanksgiving where a lot of people participate in Black Friday shopping. We also set up our Christmas tree and decorate the outside of our house with Christmas lights and ornaments. I personally drink a lot of eggnog because I love it. My family also has bonfires and invites friends over. I normally go to my grandmother’s and bake Christmas cookies. The day before Christmas (Christmas Eve) I am allowed to open one gift. On Christmas morning I drive to my grandparents and that is where I eat Christmas dinner. So officially Christmas starts on 16th with “Pasadas” and lasts till 24th of December. It’s a Mexican tradition influenced by the Church dating back to when the Spanish arrived in Mexico. It explained the story of Jesus to the native people. During these days people celebrate the birth of Jesus with music, singing and breaking pinntas filled with candies whose 7 tips represent 7 deadly sins. On the streets people put up nativity scenes. On the 24th of December families gather for Christmas Dinner. Then they spend the night together and wait for Santa. In the morning everybody gets presents.
2. When do you start feeling Christmas atmosphere in your area? The Christmas atmosphere in my town starts right after Thanksgiving Day which is the last Thursday of every November. People start putting up trees and lights and that’s when most Christmas carols start coming on the radio. About the 10th of December
3. What’s your favorite Christmas memory? My favorite Christmas memory is when a few days before Christmas I got my French bulldog, Tug. My favorite Christmas was when my 2 families joined and everybody who is important for me was there.
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4. What’s your funniest Christmas family tradition? My family’s Christmas tradition would be playing games like White Elephant and Secret Santa. White Elephant is a game where every family member brings a random gift, wrapped. Then we all put the gifts in the middle of the room and each person draws a number out of a hat. Number one has to pick a present from the pile at random and they open the gift and it's theirs. Number two gets to either trade with number one and steal their gift or they get to pick a new gift! And so on and so forth! The last number gets to look at all the gifts around the room and steal someone's gift causing them to pick the last gift from the pile... Or the last person can pick the remaining gift! Also, every year we make Christmas cookies. It’s not only my family’s tradition but we sing a lullaby for Jesus and my grandfather hides money and presents around the house for everybody to find them.
5. Do you help your family with preparing Christmas dishes and decorations? I help prepare Christmas dinner with my family but normally everyone is assigned a dish from family and they bring it to my grandma’s for everyone. I usually help with preparing the meal for Christmas Eve.
6. Are there any traditional dishes served on Christmas Eve at your home? The typical Christmas dinner consist of stuffing, turkey, roll, ham, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes with marshmallows, and there are always a few random dishes that my family brings like quiche (spinach pie). We always drink sweet tea because I live in the South. A typical Christmas dinner in my family consist of turkey, turrones,baccalo and a Christmas salad.
7. Without what wouldn’t you feel it’s Christmas? For me, there wouldn’t be Christmas atmosphere if I didn’t have a Christmas tree, Christmas lights and Christmas carols. There wouldn’t be Christmas without Christmas lights, Pasadas and fireworks.
Interviewed by: Ola Szulowska & Agnieszka Chomiak Answered by: Kaely Banks & Sebastian Gomez Peña 7
and
The Labyrinth of Light
It’s official – winter has come to town. To put it delicately - I quite despise winter. But even for grumpy winter haters such as myself it can be bearable and maybe even quite nice, as long as we have cozy coffee shops where we can snuggle in and catch up with friends or just enjoy a pleasant evening by ourselves with a cup of “winter special” tea in one hand and a great book in the other. Here are two of my favorites for this season’s in-town chill-out spots.
The first one is kind of a spontaneous rediscovery which, to be honest, I’m extremely happy about. Last year, around this time, I decided to check out MiTo but wasn’t quite impressed by it. Everything changed when two weeks ago I had to wait around for a couple of hours in the area of “Polytechnic Subway” and decided that popping into MiTo café for a warm tea, even though I knew I didn’t like the shop, was a far better idea than freezing myself to death in sub-zero weather conditions outside. Lesson learnt – don’t trust first impressions, they may be deceiving. My second impression was unquestionably different than the first one. First things first – right in there, I drank one of the best teas I have ever tasted in my life, which actually says a lot as I’m a bit of a tea fanatic. The second thing I loved about this place was that it is an
excellent coffee shop, a bookstore, a newsstand and an art gallery in one. As I said, it’s absolutely perfect for a wintery evening, when instead of moving around town to get to different places, we can just have everything in one. Coming for a cup of amazing (!) tea – which is served in the biggest mugs I have seen in my life- we can enjoy the newest issue of Vogue, a book (even in English!) of our choice, such as The Silver Linings Playbook, The Perks of Being a Wallflower or Lost in Translation, or brilliant modern art pieces that are scattered all around the place. A huge bonus is that you can easily borrow an iPhone charger – it may seem bizarre, but for extreme iPhone users, such as myself, who have ruined their battery life due to many concussions or contact with water, it can be a life-saver. Loved and HIGHLY recommended.
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Sometimes, when first impressions are good, they just stay good forever. That was the case with “Niezłe Ziółko”, a fairly newly opened shop right across the street from our beloved La Vanille on Krucza Street. The biggest advantage of this place is their menu, which tastes absolutely out of this world. “Niezłe Ziółko” is one of those places, where you know that whatever you order, it’s going to taste amazing. Whether it’s green (healthy!) cocktails, teas, coffees or exclusive bottled drinks like yerba mate or pink lemonades – it’s always a good choice. As we come to think
that it just can’t get any better – it does. They serve hot meals and different soups every day, which I swear to God are alarmingly delicious. “Pumpkin Crème Soup with sour cream” and “Broccoli Crème Soup with a hint of mint” have easily made their way onto my “Things To Die For” list. A bonus, which I particularly love about this place, is a cutesy little second floor with a giant cozy sofa, where you can spend hours enjoying drinks, food and chilling out with friends. Again – adored and recommended with all my heart.
For slightly tougher souls who don’t mind the cold of winter and the wetness of snow all that much there’s something I would highly suggest, even though it has not (yet!) been tested by me. I’ve been planning to go there for so long and I definitely will be going there before the start of Christmas break but for now, the information from the web will have to suffice.
public view every day of the week from 4 pm to 9 pm (as a student you pay 3 zł, on Thursdays admittance is free) and will last till the 15th of March. It is placed within the Wilanów Palace so it’s far from our school, but I believe it’s really worth the trouble. Arrange a family evening with some nice dinner in your favorite restaurant and a post dinner walk in “The Labyrinth of Light” or simply take your friends for a fun evening stroll. It also seems like a perfect place for a nice little romantic preChristmas date … A cherry on top would be taking a polaroid camera, which I can imagine, will result in amazing pictures and memories you’ll never forget.
It is called “The Labyrinth of Light” and it’s basically “a light art installation composed of approximately 150 thousand colorful lights arranged in the Wilanów garden on an area of over 1,000 square meters.”. As I said, I haven’t been there, but looking at the pictures taken there – it seems to be an absolutely breathtaking experience. It’s opened for the
Hania Sagan 9
CASILLAS missing WORLD CUP? BETTER BELIEVE IT
If someone had asked who was the best goalkeeper in the world a year ago, I would have answered without a second thought. It was Iker Casillas. Just look at his achievements : fivefold Spanish League's champion, the double winner of Champions League and Euro Cup, the world's champion in 2010, Spain's and Real Madrid's leader for over 10 years. But in the beginning of this year we unexpectedly witnessed a slump in his great form. José Mourinho shook Casillas' deep conviction that he was undeniable No 1 goalkeeper when he controversially picked Antonio Adan ahead of Casillas in a handful of matches in Januray 2013. But the real problems started when Casillas was injured during Copa del Rey clash with Valencia on January 23. Innocuous though it looked at first, the Real Madrit's captain was taken to hospital. "After carrying out initial x-rays at the La Moraleja Sanitas
Hospital it has been confirmed that the footballer Iker Casillas has suffered a fracture at the base of the first metacarpal on his left hand," the statement read. Initially Casillias's absence meant return to the goal for back-up Antonio Adan. However, Mourinho decided to sign for Diego López from Sewilla. It turned out to be a great move, because since then the new goalkeeper has been playing wonderfully.
After a long break, Casillas came back but he found himself warming the bench. In summer, José Mourinho was replaced by Carlo Ancelotti, which seemed to be a ray of hope for Casillias to get back the begone glory. Hope often blinks at a fool, the new
manager continued to put his rival in the Real's goal. But Ancelotti was at least more generous than Mourinho and permitted Casillas to play in Madrid's 10
match against Galatasaray. It marked the return of the Spanish player to the starting lineup to an official game after 238 days (!). However, bad luck seemed not to leave him. Casillas was forced off after just 14 minutes when his friend, Ramos, accidentally bumped into the goalkeeper who came from his line to catch a ball. Fortunately, he "only" bruised his rib. Although he recovered quite quickly, now he finds himself limited to Champions League and Copa del Rey appearances.
independently of his form. But who knows, maybe he is going to change his mind, especially when the Casillas' competitors have recently been giving superb performances of their skills. The first one is Victor Valdes who did not appear for Spain until 2010 World Cup, but is now the second choice for his country. Although he is now temporarily injured, Del Bosque must remember his saved penalties in games against Ajax . Meanwhile, Pepe Reina - the Liverpool goalkeeper on loan in Napoli has also rediscovered his very best form. He produced a stunning show in the win over AC Milan on Sunday, when he became the first goalkeeper to save a Mario Balotelli penalty (the Italian striker had scored all of his previous 22). And there's Diego LĂłpez of course who jumped into Casillas' place in Real Madrid. Why not try in Spain?
His November Champions League performance against Juventus was good— but, with World Cup approaching, does he deserve to go to Brazil in summer 2014 in such a form and a small number of games played ? So far, Del Bosque (Spain's manager) has been inviting Casillas to his team,
So may something that just a year ago was unthinkable become a reality ? Is Casillias, called the best goalkeeper in the Spain's history, going to spend World Cup 2014 sitting on the bench? Well, there are many reasons to think he is. Marcin Nalepa 11
It’s said that TED is a place to give the talk of your life. It proves that carefully prepared presentation can have an astonishing impact. Moreover it’s a great time to listen, open your mind and let yourself be inspired. For me it was an incredible adventure and one of rare opportunities to share my experience, thoughts and ideas with others.
My talk was about following my greatest passion, which is dance. I must admit, it was very personal, hence risky; because: a) I could get too emotional b) there was a risk that people just won’t understand … but it felt so good to let it all out though. I regret nothing and feel satisfied. It was worth to work hard on my speech and attend rehearsal meetings. I learnt how to act on the stage, how to sound convincing enough to gain the audience’s attention. I find it really encouraging. It certainly developed my self – confidence and helped to overcome the stage fright. I think this is why, I am so glad I had a chance to perform. I am looking
I consider myself pretty talkative, yet it was the very first time I took part in that sort of event. At first I felt it’s going to be a piece of a cake, tell the audience my story – not a big deal. However, it was nothing like a multimedia presentation or a debate, which I had had contact with before.
Weronika Płóciennik
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