I Meet the Other Fulbrighters

Well, I just spent 2 quick days in Warsaw.

Warsaw is a great city with about 4 million people. However, it is very, very crowded. I have been here before. I love the city, but kind of glad I was not assigned to live here. Too big and busy. It will be great to visit frequently however. Warsaw is a great combination of a cosmopolitan city with tremendous history.

All the Fulbright Scholars gathered in Warsaw for the last two days to get a formal orientation. We first went to the US Embassy and heard from their diplomatic staff. Of the many memorable presentations, one was from the Embassy Security Officer. He just arrived at the American Polish embassy after being the Security officer at the American Embassy in Iraq. What a change!

Secondly, we were hosted at the US Ambassador to Poland’s (Victor Ashe) house for lunch. He was a very nice gentleman. He is a Bush appointee and been here for 5 years. He is leaving Poland in 10 days, to “retire” (which to me means- Obama is putting his own person here). The new Ambassador has not been appointed yet. I will get to meet him or her in May.

It is a very eclectic group of persons in the Fulbright group. There are about six or seven “professors” here. They call us either Senior Lecturers or Senior Researchers (I am the former) and we are afforded the basic status of a Professor with all its perks and pay. The rest of the group are students on Fulbright scholarships to either do graduate research or to be teaching assistants.

There are twice as many students as professors. Those students get the short end of the stick (in my opinion), they don’t get near the pay or perks or status as us “Seniors”. But I guess as American grad students- they are used to that. Some of the students just graduated with their Bachelor’s Degree in May and are using the prestigious Fulbright scholarship year to beef up their application to get into a good grad school. Obviously all the Fulbright students are top notch, ambitious and really impressive.

Although we are a diverse group- all are tremendously nice and a pleasure to chat with. I enjoy their company, stories and views of the world (I think every possible view of the world is represented). I am the only economist or management person in the entire group. Most are from the humanities (history, arts, communications, literature). I have had two very nice meals with groups of people.

There are three of us “Seniors” who have brought or are bringing families with children. Mine by far are the oldest. The other two Dads have smaller kids. One has 2 kids, and one has 4 kids, including a 3 month old. A few others brought their spouse. However, most of the students (as you would expect) are single. One Prof brought her dog-cute.

We will all be spending the next 10 days together. 2 days in Warsaw and now we are on a bus to the city of Poznan for the next 8 days. We then get back together in December for a day, and again in May. The Fulbrighters are stationed all over Poland at different Universities and Institutes.

More from Poznan…. where I will be some place long enough to catch my breath. Since my arrival in Poland, I have not spent 48 hours in the same place. The adventure (at least for me) is now at full speed. Just waiting for the family to complete the perfect picture.