Simple Living with Wanda Urbanska

Wanda's Diary Entries

Saturday, February 25, 2006

Another generous woman whom Frank, Henry and I had the privilege of spending time with on our recent mini-sabbatical to Central and Eastern Europe is Aldona Wos. Aldona Wos is a wife, mother, and physician by training who happens to be the American Ambassador to Estonia. Greensboro, North Carolina is her home. We were introduced a number of years ago by a friend who knew of our mutual interest in Poland.

Ambassador Wos was born in Poland in the 1950s, the daughter of Paul Wos, a remarkable World War II survivor who saved Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto and has been recognized in Israel for his heroism. A Roman Catholic, he was a survivor of the Flossenberg Concentration Camp in Weiden, Germany. Paul Wos and his family came to America when his daughter and son were still in school. His enterprising nature, quick mind and large heart enabled him to excel in the real estate business in the United States.

When Frank and I decided to go to Poland, Frank asked me to pick out a special place in which to celebrate my birthday on January 17. And on the spur of the moment, I selected Estonia. I was intrigued by that former “Baltic Republic,” now a free, thriving nation with 1.4 million inhabitants. I’d heard about the ancient port city of Tallinn, which is one of the best-preserved medieval cities in Central Europe and increasingly a tourist destination. I’d heard about the fabulous flower arrangements in that country, and the native crafts. But probably most of all, I wanted to see Aldona—Ambassador Wos—and see the magic she was spinning in a new country.

Sure enough, Ambassador Wos was delighted to hear of our visit and, like my cousin in Warsaw, Monika Malcher, she went the extra mile to extend hospitality to us. She invited us to dinner at her residence our first night in Tallinn. It was Henry’s first experience (and ours!) eating dinner at an Ambassador’s residence and certainly his first dining on a week night dressed in a coat and tie; it was his first time being entertained before dinner by the Ambassador’s talented twin 10-year-olds, who played selections for us on their grand piano, fittingly enough, an “Estonia” brand piano.

On the morning of the 17th, Ambassador Wos arranged for me to appear on “Good Day Estonia,” to talk about “Simple Living” among other subjects. It was the first time I’d ever given an interview, having to speak in sound bites and wait for a translator to give her version before moving on. That same day, we shot footage in Tallinn, dined with the Ambassador twice, and had the privilege of interviewing the Prime Minister of Estonia, Andrus Antsip, at his office. His English was excellent and his hospitality second to none.

When we returned home, I went to F. Rees, the singular men’s clothier on Main Street in Mount Airy, and proprietor Gene Rees helped me select a tie for the Prime Minister, as a thank you for his graciousness. Now, as we tune into the Olympics on television, I watch with pride not only the American and Polish teams, but also the Estonians, who have brought home (at present) three gold medals. Not bad for a country of 1.4 million!