Continuing with the theme of the previous post, RTVE published a documentary where they interviewed 12 Spanish families resident in Germany, Poland and Finland and asked them of their experiences in what has been described as the coldest winter in northern Europe in years.  Funnily enough, one of the families they chose are good friends of mine.

You can watch it (in Spanish) in their website here.

I watched this Polish movie on TV last night, that deals with the time of the Soviet military presence in Poland and their impact on the lives of 4 people.  While I will not divulge the plot, it was very dramatic but what really caught my eye was the political and historical background of the whole movie, from the 60′s to the present day.

I was very fortunate to have watched two Eurobasket quarterfinals in Poland (Russia-Serbia & Spain-France).  Spain especially impressed me with their fast handling of the ball, tough defense and great offensive mobility.  This Spanish team has 4 players in the professional leage of North America (soon to be 5) and it shows.  No wonder the “ÑBA” won the championship in the end.

Quite a different story from the Olypic games in Barcelona in 1992, where the Spanish star Jofresa went to ask the American team for their autographs after their game if memory serves me right.

Mexican telenovela in Polish TV

Originally uploaded by Chiva Congelado

It’s 7 a.m. in Kraków, I turn on the TV and what do I see? A Mexican telenovela called Rebelde, which has spawned its own plastic pop group and of which I’ve written (and bumped into) before.

Scary way to wake up.

Last week I visited Kraków and Katowice in Poland on a business trip (photos here).  I had a little bit of time to walk through the old city of John Paul II’s hometown and was very impressed.  Kraków was the old capital of Poland, and as such has plenty of ancient architecture, majestic churces and even a castle, making it a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Given that another place I seriously want to visit is also nearby, it warrants another visit for leisure.

I was not that impressed with Katowice on first sight, but noticed that buildings that look drab on the outside may have completely renovated and rather pleasant interiors.  On  a few ocassions I remembered and missed some of my Polish friends and wondered what they’re up to.

This city is so unashamedly multicultural that you can very easily travel from “Portugal” to “Turkey” to “Poland” to “Congo” by just walking a couple of blocks. Some people complain that this city has no soul: I’d say it has many.

Kuva1493

We never notice it, but one way or another we live thorugh history, we are making history ourselves. I started thinking about it when, in a class about Political Environment of Business, I sat next to a Polish exchange student. We talked a little bit about his childhood experiences “behind the iron curtain” and it all was a little eery. I’ve had that discussion before with friends from Latvia, Germany and Estonia.

Then we come to family history. My family has witnessed first hand such events in Mexican history such as the Revolution, the Cristero War, hyperinflation and devaluations and the 2000 and 2006 presidential elections.

We don’t truly notice what is going on until it is past behind us.