The answer is yes, generally. If the surrogate mother is a non-US citizen, the US state Department looks at the biological connection between the baby and the non-surrogate parents. That is, the parents that conceived the baby with egg and seed. Only then can you get a CRBA or a Consular Report of Birth Abroad of an American Citizen. Also at the end of this post I have a good resource to follow through with so read everything to know the facts and the law.

Your baby will be a US citizen if the following is done and approved

The biological connection of the parents determine citizenship of the baby

It is all about the connection and genetic line.

However, a big qualifier is the United States State department looks at each case on a case by case basis. Further, if you are unsure talk to an immigration lawyer or someone who specializes in Surrogate mother. However, the general rule is the blood connection between the baby and the parents.

• DNA testing will be the fastest way to determine the citizenship of the child.

• Jus sanguinis – applies to most European countries but the USA has an allowance for babies born abroad.
• Jus soli – would apply if the child was born on US soil.

The reason the genetic test is so important is fertility clinics switch genetic material when convention is not viable and often people do not know about it and it is not reported on any documents.

However, this also begs another question. Can the child born in lets say Europe or South America for example, acquire the citizenship of the country they were born to a surrogate mother? Generally no. However, if the surrogate mother were to put her name on the paper as the mother in the foreign country and not mention surrogate then in theory yes as they government agencies would assume that is the birth mother.

• Obtaining dual citizenship would complicate the issues of citizenship for the genetic mother-child relationship. Therefore I do not recommend it. I would say if someone was clever they could do it, but I question the legality of it.

Is DNA testing required in the case of a surrogate baby? Not always, if the official paperwork is in place and the US State department can base the case off of official paperwork, but I would say universally a DNA case is needed.

What if the child can not get confirmed a citizen? The birth parents could adopt the child and bring it into the USA with a more complicated process. But I can not imagine a case that would be the case. The first goal is to get the child confirmed as an US citizen, this is different from applying for naturalization. Remember the citizen parent has to fulfill the normal requirements of Consular Report of Birth Abroad of an American Citizen, which including living in he USA a certain number of years. Further, there are requires for both father and mother that are subtly different in cases of citizenship and wedlock factors.

Does the above mentioned rule apply to other countries as well in case of citizenship and surrogate parents? Although this is new ground for the legal system, cases are being established were the above mentioned procedure, that is a case by case look at the biological connection is the general rule in most countries arround the world.

Do I personally feel surrogate births are ethical? I believe all life is sacred and how can any baby be a wrong? I believe that parents who do this for fertility reasons have a real desire to have children. However, adoption can also be a consideration. As a catholic maybe I should be more opposed to it, but I love being a parent and parenthood and do not want to deny someone who, you decide but ask me if you have moral issues.

Why an international surrogate mother?

• If you are looking for a surrogate I recommend a surrogate from another country because the pay or compensation is less (money and economics is a reality we are restrained by).
• The mothers living in another country are often living in a clean air more natural environment away from WiFi and electromagnetic fields and impurities in the diet.
• I would choose the environment as the number one factor, a good diet, natural and rich in DHA and or supplements as prescribe by a doctor.

Further resources about International surrogacy and citizenship of the baby

Is a baby born of a surrogate mother a citizen?

Ask me any questions you are unclear on the relationship, pregnancy, artificial insemination or arrangement.

Getting an American immigration visa or green card is next to impossible if you are not a famous scientist or a successful athlete and you do not have millions in your bank account, either. If you are just an average guy, you have a tiny chance of getting it. Unless you get married, in which case you win the golden ticket.

Ellis island when foreigners were welcome

I am not saying that you should get married to a U.S. citizen just to get a visa – this could have worked in 1960’s, but today it is hard if you think you can beat the system today. The USCIS will be watching you and if it is fake, the way they are checking now, in the department of homeland security it will not end good. Be sure they will find out and ship you back to where you came from. It is not worth it, because your legal entry to the States will be banned. And that is not good for anyone.

• Marriage visa – However, if you happen to be in love with an US citizen who you intend to marry, it is a different story. I got my wife a Visa for the USA and I can help you if you have any questions. The first thing is go to the US embassy website and download form I-130 and follow the instructions. You need photos, all primary documents like birth and marriage and medical history and job history. But really the visa is about something else, you guessed it, the green stuff, money.
• The only one real requirement to get someone a visa for the USA –  you have to worry about is you need 1.5 times the poverty rate of US based income. That is you have to show US income for about six months to prove you can provide for your family. If you are in the military or teach English abroad do not assume this to be so easy. It has to be US based income.

Becoming a legal US resident is a process of filling out forms and a lot of people get turned down. The reason people do not meet the requirements is ‘money’. In my opinion this is not fair, it is not democracy. It is anti family. But those are the rules and arguing with embassy staff will not get you anywhere.

• You can read about my respect for US government system and workers here: -> www.political-economy.com/us-foreign-service-jobs-embassy-workers/

I know what they really, they want to see a high level of income. Having a degree and a job is always a good thing and increases your chances as it makes you look serious and like you could support yourself and your family without access to public funds, but US based income is that they want.

The USA has all these names and abbreviations for the forms and requirements in this process which foreign service workers know, and it rolls off their tongues, but the process comes down to money. The whole application process is about one thousand dollars and you need to be making about 30,000 dollars a year for a year, in the USA before you can bring your family over. That is it. They of course have to believe you are in love and married for love not a visa, but that is secondary in my opinion.

How to get a K1 visa to at least get your fiance into the USA to get married

This is a fiance visa and you have to get married within six months of entering.

1. Your American spouse has to fill out the I-129 F form at the USCIS office in the district they belong to. This cannot be done at the embassy outside the country. Your kids under the age of 21 can get a visa as well if they are included in the petition.
2. Wait for the petition to get approved by the National Visa Center. This might take anywhere from 2 to 4 weeks for most cases and no longer than 90 days. It is then sent to your home country’s embassy or consulate. You can check on its status on USCIS website.
3. The embassy will send you a letter with further instructions and a list of documents that you need to provide, including the affidavit of support. Take an extra copy of any document or form that you use. Fill out the IV- F04 form and send it back to them. Soon after that they will set an appointment for your interview. Make sure you bring all the papers from the list to your interview. They also require you to bring any personal items that will prove your relationship with your fiancé, such as pictures, letters or plane tickets, if you traveled somewhere together. The more you collect, the better, but try to choose the most significant ones if you have a big pile of them.
4. You need a medical check up and some vaccinations, those cannot be done at the doctor’s office of your choice. You will get specific instructions in the letter. Bring the papers to your interview as well.
5. It costs $350 to apply for the visa, you can pay it on the day of your interview or earlier, whatever is more convenient for you. The currency can be US dollars or the local currency, depending on the policy of your embassy or consulate. Keep the receipt, as you will have to present it to the interviewer.

The interview

You will most likely be surprised by how smooth it goes. People think this is the most important thing, it means little, money is the most important thing. You just wait in a big room and in front of the window like the Post office they ask you some questions. Everyone I know that has been down that road said it is a lot less ‘scary’ than they thought it would be. The questions you will be more than likely asked include: how long you have known each other, can you speak English, what do you do for a living, etc. If you ever applied for any kind of visa you will be familiar with some of these.

Here are some of my other posts about visa’s and citizenship:

• Citizenship by marriage
• baby born in a foreign country
• Buying a Citizenship
• How to be a dual citizen
• EU citizenship
• Marry a Polish citizen
• Living in Europe
• Polish EU visa requirement
• How to get a Visa to the USA for your husband or wife

If you have questions about the US spousal visa or K1 visa just ask, I got my wife one.

I can not believe the number of Americans that have skepticism about the EU. I even had one of my friends say, who knows in the future the US could have an armed conflict with the EU. Right, I can see British troops landing in Boston. People say the EU is socialist or a dictatorship or it is not a country so who cares. There are so many fears and closed minds about the European Union. It makes me ashamed sometimes to be an American. Some Americans are so into conspiracy theories, rather than look objectively at issues. Therefore, I thought I would write a post to set the facts straight. I am an American and EU citizen. If you love America you will love the EU because the ideal are the same, democracy and freedom and promotion of the common good.

This is the area I live in Krakow, Poland. From my perspective Europe and the European Union is peaceful and nice.

Why the EU is good

• Peaceful – When nations trade together they make peace not war. Think about European and world history. Think about the armed conflict where so many people have suffered. The history of the European Union was started out of the a cooperation of the steel and coal industries in Europe in the 1950s between France and Germany with the specific purpose of preventing war by cooperation. Is there any thing bad about this?
• The European Union donates money to charity – The EU give more money than any other organization or nation to charity. Think about Haiti, an US neighbor, the EU gave many times more.
• Free movement of labor – Imagine the USA where residents of Connecticut could not work in New York without a work visa? What a ridiculous mess and extension of bureaucracy this would be. As an EU citizen you can work anywhere and both entrepreneurs benefit as well as workers. If I am an entrepreneur, I have a greater selection of talented workers to choose from as a business owner or more companies to choose from.
• Free movement of capital – Trade barriers and tariffs and restrictions to opening businesses are not good for anyone. If you want to know what works for people to become rich and happy, reduce the restrictions of government trade. The EU is a large free and open market.
• Rich European countries help the poor – Is there anything wrong about this? Many of the Eastern European countries that had communism holding them back and did not benefit from the Marshall plan, now can have a fair chance to develop. I see new trams, educational projects, art funding many nice things coming to countries that really suffered under communism.
• EU promotes good ethical values – It promotes culture, helps the poor, protects the environment. It promotes humanistic value, while respecting religions.
• The EU is fun -  With an EU citizenship you can live and travel anywhere. I could vacation in Sweden or spend the winter in Greece. I think a free exchange of culture and tourist makes people happy. Don’t you like to travel without visa restrictions and applications and fees? I do.
• EU accepts many languages – In the USA there are people that feel that English should be the official language. Why? What if someday 90% of the people are Spanish. A democracy represents the people not empowers a status quo. I like hearing different languages, it is fun, hearing just English all the time get boring.

Why the EU is bad?

• It might become too powerful – It could grow to be too big and become like the USA or Ancient Rome, a huge centralized bureaucracy. Right now it is more a confederation. However, so could any company, country or organization that does not mean people should participate in a community. It is expanding even outside of Europe, but it would not be bad to have the EU as a large government. It is a peaceful, free organization.
• The EU is socialist – I am basically a libertarian. I believe small government is the best government. But the EU is not socialist. It is a parliamentary lose government that tries to help poor regions of Europe develop just like the USA does or any nation does that cares about its citizens. Offering free education to its citizens is not exactly socialist, the USA does this to 18 so what is wrong with extending this to 21?
• The EU is anti-religion – I am religious, I live in the EU and I do see their focus on humanistic values and it does not promote the Christian religion, but the same is in the USA.

How the USA and the EU are different

• In the USA there is a greater emphasis on individual liberty, in the EU there is a greater emphasis on the common good.
• The USA has a strong president, a mini king so to speak, effective for war and fast changes. Europe is parliamentary, more power is in the hands of the elected representatives, effective for minority opinions.
• The USA is a country, the EU is not a country but an agreement between countries. Why does that matter? What matters is that a government whether a national government or a governing body ensure peace and promotes good.

You can see that from my post I am very pro EU. If you think about all the war and hurt that was in Europe in the past 100 years I think citizens of the world would be very wise to support a community that represents democracy, free trade and labor movement and gives an inordinate amount to charity and development of poor regions.

First  off EU citizenship from any country is a privilege.  It is not something that is to be taken lightly. It is only for those who have a sincere interest in contributing to the nation they are living and working in. Usually this is reserved for people who have a historical connection or association with the country. My family for example live in Poland since the beginning of the nation. The only reason they left was Poland was partitioned and war was breaking out. After the war they wanted to come back for re-nationalization. However, the politics were too difficult, and so it was I who was repatriated.

I have written a post on how to get a EU citizenship, this is a good starting point. However, beyond that if you have any questions please ask. The following was my story.

10 Steps to EU citizenship

1. Family tree – My first step was  in Excel create a detailed family tree. Use birth, marriage etc dates and locations. Be detailed but readable. Mine was on one page. It does not have to be a work of art, but it does have to be factual and clear to an ordinary person.
2. Original documents - Try to collect as much information as you can from original documents. You can get US birth certificates etc no problem. They even have on the form a question why you need it, you can check off dual citizenship. US municipalities get these requests often.  Get your parents and anyone else you can also. Collect all US documents then focus on foreign documents. The Polish government in Warsaw had my grandparents records from 1900 even thought they were from and area which is today Ukraine. I went to the local church priest and found documents. I basically built a case of original documents that supported my family tree. Paper is everything. Before I live in Europe I paid someone, he tried to rip me off I got my money back, when I threatened to sue the middle man. There are many honest people that can help in local countries. I prefer to do things myself.
3. I got applications from the embassy -  I let the foriegn consulate represntive guide me, as well as talked to the people who worked there to the right government offices to go to. They will tell you what you need.
4. Legal help – I considered a lawyer but by the time I talked to one I knew more than they did.
5. EU visa – My first step was a visa. From there I was in the system. I got this based on the right of blood. Jus sanguinis – You are who you are.
6. Dual citizenship – Unless you want a Ukrainian citizenship, you can keep your US citizenship for almost any country in Europe in the European Union or not. Countries do no care if you are a dual citizenship as long as you obey the laws of the country your in. You are a citizen of that country only, where you are and can not go crying to the USA for help if you get into legal trouble.
7. Buying a citizenship – You can basically buy a Russian citizenship legally if you have the cash to set up a business, but it is not the way to go. A CIS citizenship is not as good as a EU citizenship. Buying an EU citizenship is not possible.
8. Getting official translations – Putting your doucments into the language you need is a moot point, there are a lot of official translators.
9. The citizenship application - When you apply, write from your heart, you have to personally write a strong case of why you want to be a citizen.  It can not be for frivolous reasons, like it is cool.  Write how you have a historical connection that goes way back. Write what is true and honest. That you have an interest in the culture and the language and the people. If possible you would like to add to the society someday. Be sincere and into the country you are trying to get a citizenship for.
10. The EU government – Be patient. It may take years but is worth the wait. Remember every coutry in this Union is an individual country and where you apply is important not the Union as a whole. Your passport will come from one of the member countries.

You can read more about the European Union citizenship on their home page.  Or better yet as a question to a real person, me. If you have any questions regarding citizenship or even questions like citizenship of babies born in a foreign country,  or marriage and citizenship questions, please ask.  I am not an expert but I can tell you based on my personal experiences.

I am not talking about countries to learn a language, you can learn a language anywhere.  I am talking about where to study a language, literally. Where is are the soles of your feet when you are studying.

Living in Poland I am amazed how well Polish people speak languages. Maybe it is because their language is so complex, but more likely they believe in the hard way. They believe in studying for years and hours a day. Americans and Brits just want the easy way. To speak the a language without work. I know I am an American. These are the places I see people here doing translations and having their nose in the dictionary and cramming vocabulary lists. If you see language learning not something you do in class or school but rather everyday anywhere than this might help your experience.

Where to study a language

1. Study your lessons on a train – I was on the Train back to Kraków last night and all around me where people, not just students studying English. Really, the woman across from me had her son and she was studying English while he was running around the train. There was a girl next to me doing exercises. Trains are a great relaxing way to travel. No need to drive, just sit and learn vocabulary. If you can strike up a conversation with a foreigner even better. I have taken some long Russian Ukrainian trains before and by the end of the 20 something hour ride you are talking politics etc with your car mates. I do not drink, I just like to talk.
2. Study a language on a subway – We have trams in Krakow and I see people all the time cramming lists and just not students.
3. Learn a language in the bath – One of my favorite places to review dialogues. I take an MP3 player in and just sit back and relax. I though in some magnesium salt or even listen to some foreign language songs. The acoustics are great in the bathroom because it is a small room with water so I do not wear earbugs rather a radio MP3 player.
4. While napping study a language with hypnopedia – Laying on the coach I often simple listen to a repeating loop of language words and phrases. Eventually I fall asleep and some how I think the vocabulary sinks in my brain. I think brainwaves are at a deeper cycle and more receptive to music.
5. Walking and talking a language – I often walk down the street talking to myself in a foreign language, my language I study is Polish, now. People think it is strange to see someone talking to themselves, but do you really care?
6. On a bench or in a park is a peaceful place to learn – Not a library? Well is not a nice park bench more enjoyable in the summer. Besides maybe some pretty girl will come sit next to you and help you.
7. Driving and listening on your way to work to language audio lessons – I have not had a car for years but many people like this approach. I think your brain is in an alpha state and this is a good place to be when trying to absorb new information.
8. On vacation or any restful place or environment - The main resistance to studying a language is stress, doubt and lack of confidence. Why not lay on the beach and read some foreign language romance book. By the end of the short novel you will have learned a lot.
9. Bed is a good place to learn a language – Do not think of this in the wrong way, or you can if you like.
10. Church – Go to foreign language service. I live in Kraków and you can attend mass in about a dozen different languages and read the Bible in any. The service and text are all the same in any language, therefore go to mass in your target language and see how it feels different and let it absorb into your conciousness. Although this should not be your purpose of going.

What are your favorite places to study a language even if you are not in a foreign country? Let me know and the more intresting a place the better.

Why Polish real estate is not ready to recover

It is all about supply and demand. This is what determines prices and nothing else. Cost and value are notions that are through back from Marx’s economic theory that the price of an object was determined by the labor or cost to make it. Modern economic theory says value is subjective and determined only by supply and demand. This applies to housing prices also.

• EU is not only in crisis but the Euro might fall apart, and leave the EU in shell shock for a few years, maybe ten. Countries that were throwing money into the Polish land rush are now fighting to save their own houses and collapse. Ireland, Scotland and England were the main speculators and now their lands are in trouble.
• Supply of housing has increase in Poland based on speculation that there is a huge over capacity of residential and commercial units. Because of the economics of the business cycle plans that were started years back are being completed now and the result is a huge over capacity. Empty lots and luxury appartements can not even be rent. Why would they be?
• Demand is continuing a down. I see large buildings that are brand new, falling apart a little as they have been empty for years. My friends are building new houses themselves in the suburbs rather than living in over priced city flats. Credit has not and will not ease any further. The population is not growing. Unemployment is about 13% which is not the best for a high prices.
  

  Polish house with red roof

  When I get the cash I will most likely build a house in the countryside, cheap. A house designed to my specifications and liking not some builders conceptions (to maximize profits) of a boxy house with small windows and a over sized red rood. I will build my dream home, eco friendly and in American style home. I want Polish people to do the same, that is have their dream home in their idea not someone builders idea and they pay it off with a mortgage for 30 years of hard work. Its very unfair to the people that live here.

I will build some American style house in Poland if I am lucky

Is this all bad? Not at all I am a patriot. I love Poland. However, prices are adjusting to normal levels from inflated highs based on foreign speculation. A unit in a city should be about 2000 Polish złoty a meter, but it is still about 5,500 pln a meter. The average person can not afford real housing because the Polish real estate agents and developers are trying to keep the prices inflated at all costs.

My brother in law build a home in the Polish countryside for under 1000 pln a meter. Its beautiful and not far from Krakow, where he works. Granted he did a few things himself but mostly local guys did it for him. A full house done by a builder now is about 2000 pln a meter.

How long will the prices of land and buildings in Poland stay inflated

Price will stay excessively high until they come down to 1/3 the level they are at now. So if a unit costs 6,000 a meter it will have to come to 2,000 a meter. I have seen the same situation in the USA. Prices in Florida and California are cheaper than Poland. These are luxury condos on the beach. I have seen bear markets last 10 or 15 years or never recover. People are fooling themselves if they think they can just wait it out. Take a look around you in Europe what is happening. It might take years if ever.

The good news is only the builders and Polish real estate agents lose. The Polish people will get reasonably price real estate again.

My dream experience

I often dream in the Polish language as I have lived here for a while.  My Polish is good but not perfect. When I dream at a subconscious level I am pretty pleased with myself when I am speaking Polish (although I am not aware it is a dream). Why? Because the native speakers in my dreams always understand what I say perfectly. Further, I understand them perfectly. In my dreams (both literally and figuratively), I am like a native speaker in this foreign language. Both in speaking and comprehension and I never need a dictionary.

However, when I recant a dream dialogue to my wife who is a native speaker she laughs. This is because the native speakers in my dreams were making the same grammatical mistakes that I make when I am awake. I wonder why. It takes the wind out of my sail a little as in my dream world I am equipment and people are charmed by my linguistic skills.

A dream is really a dialogue with yourself. Therefore, there is perfect comprehension of the spoken word.

Some people believe that you can tap into the collective unconsciousness and access information and even language information. For me that is a little more speculative. However, this much can be said. If you are dreaming in a foreign language then you are doing well.

Can you use dreams to learn a foreign language?

Can dreams help you learn a language?

• To remember dreams keep a dream journal by your bed. When you wake up write down all your dreams even in sketch form. When I did this, I could remember several a night in detail and often stream of conciousness one leads into the other.
• As you are drifting to sleep try to suggest to yourself to dream in your foreign language.
• Read up on lucid dreaming and try to use this in language learning.
• During the day start thinking in your foreign language, even change your inner dialogue or create dialogues in your mind in a foreign language.
• The purpose of dreams or day dreams in a foreign language is not a grammar drill, school or exercises, so it does not matter if you are making mistakes. The idea is to get more of your brain online linguistically.
• You are smarter than you think. Intelligence and ability is really teaching the brain to access more of the raw material which is latent and waiting for you to develop.

Let me know your thoughts about day dreams, dreams, lucid or deep or even fantasies in foreign language and your experiences. When does your imagination take you linguistically. Do you think imagination is a connection with a deeper reality? I think conscious cognitive thought is like an iceberg, only about ten percent of the mind is conscious and seen on the surface. The other 90% is something that is largely untapped for its potential.

The hard way to learn a language

When I have a student tell me they are not making progress, I dump them with homework.  I tell them to buy a book and do three chapters of grammar exercises a week and explain the ideas in the exercises to me. I also make them read a book in English and write papers on it. There is no way you will learn a language without learning that the responsibility rests on you. You are the one, not the teacher who is responsible for studying. Study every week for x number of hours and then go to class to practice. If you complain you are not good, ask yourself do you study five hours a day?

For most people they have the will and will take the hard way, but they do not have the time. Therefore it becomes a time management issue.  Even for me I have not time to improve my Polish and I live in Poland. I know I have to go back to the old ways, the hard ways and make time and do it.

The easiest way to learn a language

My wife learned English just by speaking to me. It is an easier way then the above mentioned methods. She never studied English in school and spoke only a few words when we meet. I overloaded her with English until her brain hurt as I love to engage in conversation. Now she is fluent in English. I guess that can be called the easy way to learn a language.

If you are trying to learn a language on your own I would recommend tools to make it easier:

• Make your own language flashcards and carry them with you. I have a box of several thousand words and phrases.
• Download audio mp3s and use them. There are many places to go, such as the gutenburg.org.  I am starting a free site with audio mp3s for language learning www.mp3languagelearning.com  – If you send me files I can use them on the site.
• If you religious read the entire Bible in your target language. By the time you finish you will speak the language
• Buy a grammar book and do every exercises in the book and outline the rules
• Practice with native speakers, that alone will help, if you are somewhere in the middle of Kansas try Internet chats.

I have notices women love to do grammar and book work while guys prefer conversation, ironically.  Both are effective, but to work both need overload and work. This is why I believe in the hard way to learn a language.  I think there are easy ways to learn a language, but you have to take those methods and apply them with will and determination. And again the easiest way to learn a language is fall in love.

Please consider the exhibit below. It is only one word, but contains many forms.

This is clearly the most difficult language to learn

What are you kidding me? There are like over 100 forms, you can count them. This is one Polish word. It is the word ‘to read’. Every word in Polish must agree with the other words in the sentence, therefore, there are almost an infinite number of combinations in one sentence.

The pronunciation is very hard and people in this central European country speak very soft.  I would say to learn the Polish language it is equivalent to learning several other European languages. This especially goes for English speakers.

The language can be studied and spoken but only if you have the right attitude.  The right attitude is, you do not have to speak it perfectly to communicate, rather focus on vocabulary and you have to be patient.

Please add your comments about or your experiences with language learning and what you think are the determinate criteria for learning and language and the factors that make any language  hard or easy to learn.

Many people ask me why I live in Europe?  Why do you live where you do? If it is because you were born in your country, wrong answer.

When you are 96 years old are you going to look back on your life and say you wish you had more adventures? I live in Krakow, Poland but was born in the US. I am not saying everything everyday is wonderful and super terrific, however, it is beautiful. Life in American is easy, life in Eastern Europe is beautiful. What do you want an easy life or a beautiful life?

I think if you ever get the chance to live abroad do it. I live in Europe because living in Europe in general I can experience so many things that I can not in the United States.

Day in the life of some expats in Europe

First here are some photos of what I did today living in Europe (sorry I left my good camera at home, maybe next time). I guarentee on a Tuesday afternoon in the USA you were not doing the same.

Life in Europe is beautiful

I know there are Middle Age fairs in the USA and reenactors etc. I know the USA has history, but Poland and espcially Krakow where I live has so much history, almost everyday I step out my door and there is something new. If you not in Krakow you feel like your missing something.

This is what it is like to life in Europe. What are you doing today?

Further in the USA everyone, myself included is so programmed to be a career warrior that smelling the roses means taking your laptop to Starbucks from time to time. No way. This is not my idea of living my life. people in Poland and in Europe in general take time to smell real roses and gather a few rose buds while they are at it.  Perhaps it will change but Europe is an interesting place to live.

Life is fun living abroad

I think the split in European and American thinking came from the enlightenment. America took the pragmatic approach while Europe the Romantic lifestyle.

Sometimes you have to fight to survive as an Expat living in Eastern Europe

I am American and like all of us we for formatted like a hard disk to succeed and win, especially in business or on our Resume.  In Europe it is quite OK to be poor.  However, it is not OK if you do not take your two months of vacation in the summer.

Live a life of adventure

Life here also has a mystical side.

Life is a mysterious and beautiful when you are living the life you want

I hope you enjoyed some of these photos I took of the Medieval fair in Krakow I went to yesterday.

If you think living in Europe is about going to the pub and sitting in cafes you are wrong. If you think your life is about working for your resume , career or for your company you are lost. Companies will change you one way. Living in Europe will change you in another way. If you can ever pull yourself away from the Matrix and live as an abroad as an expat do it.  Sometimes my days are harder than in the USA. But other days like when I stepped outside my door and spent the afternoon walking through living history, life is beautiful.  The choice is yours. You can take the blue pill or the red pill. What choice are you making  in your life?