First week of last year of medical school– done!

It’s that time of year again, for the last time! Returning to Gdansk always feels like waking up from a long dream, and finding myself back where I started. Back to the university hospital, back to ordering “kawa z mlekiem” during coffee breaks, back to smiling politely/blankly when strangers say words at me (because Polish is hard, and I still struggle to understand small talk that doesn’t involve medical symptoms).

Some things are different. I have a new studio apartment, which feels more like home with every day– though I still wish I could share it with my special someone. On the bright side, since I have no one to talk to at home, I am becoming an even more voracious consumer of audiobooks and podcasts! Tragically, I no longer have a dishwasher but I do have this quirky little kitchen cabinet which is actually hiding a dish drying rack.

The biggest difference of all, though, is that THIS IS MY SIXTH AND LAST YEAR OF MEDICAL SCHOOL! It seems unbelievable that these 6 years in Gdansk are starting to end. Yet, it also feels like it’s about time!

Five years ago, I thought six years seemed like forever. Knowing that this is my last year in Poland suddenly makes this adventure feel much more finite. I’m viewing things through a different lens, a bit more sentimental than before. One year from now, the everyday life here will already be a memory– waiting for the tram, asking the pani for the keys to the szatnia, finding a wall or a windowsill to lean against in the outpatient clinic, seeing churches everywhere.

The first day of class felt a lot like deja vu. I were at the Kliniczna hospital starting a dermatology elective. It felt like I had been there just a moment ago, yet it also took a couple hours to get used to being a foreign medical student again. Soon enough, my group and I found a familiar routine and etiquette. It is a role in which we have years of experience, after all!

I’m glad to be spending more time in dermatology, as skin changes will show up in every medical specialty and I still struggle to differentiate them. We get to practice taking punch biopsies of the skin, examining nevi (moles) through the dermatoscope, and observing the details which distinguish one red rash from another.

With final exams in all of obstetrics/gynecology, surgery, psychiatry, pediatrics, and internal medicine, we have a lot of hard work ahead of us this year. There are also a lot of things to enjoy and appreciate along the way.

As of today, there are 269 days until graduation; I’m feeling motivated, energized, and ready to dive in. Bring it on!

Sunrise on the way to class. Feeling grateful to still be seeing the sun in the morning before winter darkness takes over!

Cats, cats, cats. Can you spot five cats?

Waiting for the tram

At the dermatology department

Along the walk home

My Summer in Photos– too many things to write!

Sometimes life brings phases that are so jam-packed with impressions and experiences that it is almost overwhelming, albeit in a good way. For instance, one year ago I was in Detroit at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan for a really cool internship. I got to see how an American hospital works, learn about lots of interesting pediatrics cases, and work with some really inspiring residents and attending doctors. It was so intensely enriching that it took me a while to process everything I had taken in! I hardly knew how to talk about it, though it was a great experience and I really loved it.

Similarly, this summer has been like a movie montage of exciting new experiences– my memory shows me a series of images with different locations, people, and activities, each seeming to happen right after the other. After resting at my parents’ house in BC for a couple weeks, I’ve now had time to take a breath and reflect on all the awesome things I’ve gotten to take part of this summer. And it has indeed been a fantastic summer! I can’t even begin to describe it all, so I will share the stories in pictures.

 

II am so proud of my boyfriend who graduated as a medical doctor in June! In this photo, the graduating class of 2017 is taking the Hippocratic Oath. I was honoured to be invited to hold a speech at the ceremony, and it was really special to be a part of this important day with my boyfriend. Crazy to think that in just one more year, I will also be graduating with my MD!

In June and July I got a taste of what my career could look like a year from now. I worked as a läkarassistent at a Swedish vårdcentral– basically like a junior doctor at a family medicine clinic. There were plenty of challenges to keep me busy here, from learning all the medical terms in Swedish, to learning how to apply my medical knowledge in practical situations. I interviewed and examined patients, ordered lab tests, wrote referrals, and discussed treatment plans (thankfully, all with the support of some really inspiring family doctors who acted as my mentors). I even made my first diagnosis!

 

At the end of June, I took a weekend to fly back to Gdansk from Sweden so I could move into my new apartment. Now my life is in boxes in my new place, ready to be unpacked when I arrive back in Gdansk in the autumn! This photo is taken in Gdansk old town, not actually near my apartment but picturesque nonetheless.

While in Sweden, we made sure to enjoy the wonderful atmosphere that is the Swedish summer. Swedes really come to life during the summer, with energy and joy and a determination to make the most of the sunshine! It balances out the darkness of wintertime. Here we were taking a dip before a delicious lunch at Skärgårdsvåfflan, which specializes in waffles of all kinds.

We drove down to Skåne one weekend to visit family. This photo was taken in Lund while we were walking around and enjoying this gorgeous summer day!

Hamnen i Nyköping, where there are lots of restaurants and delicious ice cream!

Nyköpings Hamn

I went camping for the second time in my life! It was an absolutely perfect evening. What a delight to roast hot dogs and marshmallows with this glorious view!

 

 

I tried waterskiing for the first time! I managed to get about 10 seconds of success, once I got over my bafflement at the whole situation. I haven’t really worn skis before, neither on snow nor in water. What a strange sport where one straps this awkward floating boards to one’s feet and gets pulled behind a boat. Strange… but really fun! I hope to try again soon!

This lovely summer cottage was the site of several cozy warm nights!

And I went camping for the third time in my life! So far our camping trips have only lasted one night, but I figure it’s a nice way to ease into the outdoor experience. Also, this way we could fit in some camping on the weekends when we were off work.

Another campfire, another beautiful view, this time with the big experiment of using an old-fashioned waffle iron over the campfire! It took a few trial runs but finally, the waffles were a raving success. With whipped cream and blackberry jam, the crackling fire and the stars peeking in between the trees, it was a magical night.

After working in Nyköping, Sweden, I jetted off to Ontario to help my dear friend as a co-maid of honour in her wedding! I was there for two weeks of preparations, including flower shopping at the farmers market in St. Catherines.

Wedding planning is a lot of work, so it was great to take a weekend off before the wedding for a classy bachelorette party.  The other co-maid of honour and I embraced the challenge of organizing and hosting an event in Toronto; we were planning from across the country and from across the Atlantic! Thankfully we had the help some bridesmaids who are Toronto locals. This is a picture of a mural at the hostel where we stayed overnight. We took a sushi-making class, played some (cheesy) fun games, chilled at a jazz bar and had brunch the next morning. It was tons of fun!

The wedding was in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, an area known for its vineyards and wineries. We took a much-deserved afternoon off from wedding planning to go wine tasting. The course we took was called Vino and Cocoa, and I was blown away by the delicious pairings of ice wine and chocolate.

At the vineyard after wine tasting

At the vineyard after wine tasting

This adorable church is where the wedding ceremony took place. It was beautiful and perfect and all our hard work was worth it when we got to celebrate on this incredibly special day!

The wedding reception was held at this charming venue, the Niagara-on-the-Lake Pumphouse Art Gallery. All the preparations paid off when we got to sit back and enjoy the great food, great music, and lots of dancing!

View across the Niagara River, to the historic fort across the border in the US

Adorable wedding centerpieces! Made with succulents grown by the bride and groom, and these Colombian coffee cans which they found while visiting family there (translates to “perfect love”).

Okanagan Lake. In August, back in BC, I helped my cousin move into UBC-Okanagan residence for her first year of study. I realized it had been 7 years since I moved in for my first day of university, at the Vancouver campus of the University of British Columbia. Time flies! My cousin’s moving day was a combination of excitement for her and nostalgia for the thrill of a first day. It feels like I’ve come full circle, now about to begin my last year of university as my cousin begins her first!

Heron at White Rock beach, seen while going for a walk not far from my parents’ neighbourhood.

My mom and I took a day trip to the Sunshine Coast, a beautiful area northwest of Vancouver. It is located on the mainland but can only be reached by ferry. Unfortunately the air was quite smokey from the BC and US wildfires, hence the strange lighting in this photo taken in Gibsons. The camera slightly exaggerated the copper tones of the smokey atmosphere.

Kayaking Sechelt Inlet by the Sunshine Coast. We saw a family of seals (with baby seals!!!) and hundreds of jellyfish, up close!

 

I feel like I’ve just skimmed the surface here of all the experiences I will take from this summer. I’m so grateful that I’ve been a part of it all! Now there are a couple more weeks before school starts and I get to dive back into one… LAST… year… of studying!