Can't Bear The Air

The day we got back from Boston I ran out later in the afternoon to buy some groceries. I didn't really notice it at our house, but when I stepped out of my car at the store (that is only a couple of miles away) I was knocked over by the horrible smell of the air.  It was so bad that my eyes were slightly watering and my throat was burning . Ugh, it was so easy to forget about the pollution during the spring and the summer, but here it was again in full force. Maybe it bothered me more because I had just gotten off the plane from the beautiful weather in Boston. When I was in the US every time I went outside for a walk I made sure to inhale the fresh air - I guess I never appreciated it before, but now wherever we go I always notice how clean the air is. The pollution here starts around late October, and unfortunately doesn't let up until sometime in April, more on the late side if I remember correctly. It's such a shame, because we really love this city but the pollution has gotten unbearable! I've been saying since we moved here that I was going to buy a bunch of air purifiers for the house, but I never knew which ones were the best, and every time I researched anything it brought me to US websites and I wouldn't be able to use it them because of the electrical conversion. Not to mention they probably wouldn't even ship to Poland. Last summer when we were home I went to see an Occupational and Environmental doctor to talk to her about it, because I am really worried about the effects of the pollution on us. She did some bloodwork to look for toxin levels (everything was normal) and she gave me the names of some air purifiers that were highly rated by Consumer Reports. I have also been accumulating information on the best house plants to keep the indoor air clean. So my next project is to get these air purifiers ordered (and they are not cheap), and then to head out to the garden store and try to see if they have the plants I want. There is a forum on Facebook called Krakow Expats and the discussion lately has been about the pollution. Here is some of the information that was shared.

http://www.krakowpost.com/6285/2015/11/krakows-air-quality-among-the-worst-in-the-world

http://sputniknews.com/europe/20150609/1023126610.html

I have an app on my phone that gives the pollution readings hourly, the safe level is 50 ug/m3. The other night measured 323!! It has also caused huge disruptions at the airport, with all the morning and evening flights being cancelled or re-routed to different airports because of low visibility. As I mentioned earlier, we just booked our trip to Brussels for Thanksgiving weekend and the only direct flight option was on Ryan Air at 9 am. I refused to book it because it's too risky at that time of the morning, and as most of you know I despise Ryan Air -for many reason, but the main one being that they made us wait all day in the airport a few years ago when we were trying to get to Dublin before Christmas. All the other airlines immediately cancelled their flights because of the fog, or rerouted them through different airports. But not us, we had to sit in the airport for at least 10 hours before they finally gave in and bused us to a different airport (after we had made our decision to leave and re-book our tickets). Grrr, I still get angry thinking about it.  Anyway, we ended up booking our flights on Lufthansa at 10:45 with connections through Frankfurt, I am still a little nervous about the morning hour but at least if there is a delay Lufthansa won't hold us hostage in the airport all day (we hope).

The smog from our window early one morning

After a few days of the unbearable air, some winds came in and blew it all away. The sun was shining and the air was nice and clean. After hiding in the house for a few days (and asking the school to keep the kids in at recess), we made sure to take a hike through the forest (Ava was at a birthday party).

Here's to hoping maybe the winter smog won't be so bad this year....And wherever you are, make sure you go outside, breathe in the fresh air and be thankful for it!!