Today is a national holiday for Poland, celebrating the three wise men giving gifts to Mary and Joseph for baby Jesus. This year is also special because Poland is celebrating 100years of independence.

We were informed the night before that breakfast would be served at 10am. Of course we came down the stairs to a beautiful table set with a wide selection of meats, cheeses, bread and accompaniments. Scrambled eggs were also being cooked. We were not allowed to lift a finger as we were provided with first class service. Once finished, we were driven to one the 12 churches in Lubin for the 11:30am mass. Irene was worried that the the roof may cave in as she arrived but Pavel assured her that the churches in Lubin were Irene-proof and had very strong walls. The church was full, the altar was heavy with priests and the service was conducted in Polish. The children’s choir was quite beautiful.

After mass the crowd was organised into teams: blue, red and green to represent each wise man. We were given cardboard crowns as part of the blue team. As we lined up with the crowd, there was lots of chanting and singing around us. People and children were dressed up in capes and there were horse drawn carriages that led each group. The procession commenced and we walked along the streets stopping at various “stations” where there were performances recreating particular events in Polish history. The atmosphere was vibrant and the whole village seemed to be participating in the event. Anna and Milena were dressed as angels in the last performance and Honorata would have been on stage playing music with Piotr but unfortunately she was at home very ill.

The parade finished in the new stadium. It was crowded with people singing carols and enjoying the festivities. This lasted for about an hour.

Back to Elsżbieta’s place, where another feast was being prepared by Jacek and Evalenka. This time the whole family would be joining us, 20 people in total, with the exception of poor Honorata. Anna and Damien arrived with little Kacper, who was thoroughly entertained by Irene’s antics (and will remember her as a baba jaga). Entree was chicken soup with noodles followed by platters of meat including schnitzel, chicken thighs stuffed with mince, meat balls with cheese and beef roulade. Accompaniments included sauerkraut, klusky (dumplings), potatoes and various salads. To drink was cherry juice, grapefruit juice, water……and vodka.

Our entertainment tonight was in the form of games. We played Jenga, Dobble and another game of number strategy, in teams, called Rummikub. The language differences were insignificant as we played together, and laughter filled most of the night. Goodbyes were said as various family members departed and Irene and Teresa sensibly went to bed at around midnight. Those who remained sat up playing games until 2am, with Amadeusz ensuring that he and Michele finished every last drop of vodka.

What a special day to share with the family, experiencing traditions that we would not have the chance to experience in Australia. Another fantastic visit with this beautiful family, we will be sad to say goodbye tomorrow. But alas, more traveling must be had. Dobranoc!