Editorial

Dear readers,

The holidays are coming. Outside my window, the sun is breaking through the clouds. After a terribly cold May, a heatwave is coming. Pigeons are trying to make a nest on my tiny balcony. I have tried to chase them away, but they keep coming back and coming back every now and then and bring small twigs. I don't know what will come of it. Maybe in June, the pigeon will lay eggs and the little ones will appear.

In the past, sending a word via carrier pigeons was a form of communication. They supposedly travelled as far as 2,000 kilometres to deliver important messages. A message delivered by a pigeon could decide the outcome of a battle or even an entire war. Nowadays, contacts between countries are quite easy. Not only do we have telephones and the Internet, but we can also reach most places quite easily, either by train or plane.

I remember my first holiday trip to a summer camp. It took place in Nałęczów, near my hometown of Puławy. Later, I caught the travel bug as a member of a folklore group. My first visit to the Netherlands in 1995 motivated me to learn English. Today, travel is quite common among young people. Sports camps, summer language programmes, and sightseeing trips are all popular. They shape a young person's sense of duty, expand their horizons, and give them a chance to make beautiful friendships.

Encouraging young people to travel is an excellent idea. Not only can they compare what life is like in another country, but they can also draw from the cultural and linguistic richness of our world. In this issue, you will read articles about many trips. Our authors demonstrate their appreciation for both trips to nearby places and exotic journeys to the ends of the world. The issue will also include an extensive travel report by the principal Hanna Buśkiewicz-Piskorska. I would like to thank her for a very personal and interesting story about the many places important for her.

The summer issue of Gazeta Monneta also makes me reflect on the importance of rest in our lives. Recently, during a nice chat, I said that I love my job, but I also love the time after work during which I recharge my batteries. Often, both students and teachers forget how important rest, time for reflection, and regaining strength are for us. Often the best ideas come to me when I am walking through a beautiful museum somewhere in northern Spain or strolling in the nearby Royal Łazienki Park. With bated breath, students tell me about their trips and excursions during which they met an interesting person or got to know a new place. Let's remember how important the balance between rest, learning, and work is for us. Holidays are a time to regenerate and distance yourself from your everyday responsibilities, but they are also a source of inspiration and a boost of energy for the coming months. I wish all students, teachers and parents as many inspiring trips as possible, full of rest, interesting places, and good people. Take the Gazeta Monneta with you, full of interesting, holiday stories!

 Aleksander Jarnicki

Editor-in-Chief of the Gazeta Monneta