Lech Kaczynski vs The Volcano

I just want to take a few minutes to spell out exactly what's going on in Poland.

1.  This funeral is a big deal.  Officials are expecting a ton of people to attend...over 40,000 on the Market Square alone.  Krakow's airport has been closed.  Trains and buses are not running in or out of the city tomorrow.  Obama's coming.  The street that will take the procession from the church on the square to Wawel Cathedral (where the Kaczynskis will be buried) has been decked out in red and white flowers, black flags and Polish flags with black ribbons.  Everything is shutting down.  There are so many people, and the candles and flowers at makeshift memorials keep growing with each day.

2.  Volcanoes are no fun.  They spew lava and ash and disrupt travel plans.  As of right now, France and Poland have closed their airports.  I (am supposed to) fly out of Gdansk on Tuesday.  So far, my flight is still on, and I'm holding out hope that everything will have cleared up by then. I really don't want to have to take a bus or train home.  In long-term speaking, I fly through Iceland on the way back home to the States.  So this volcano, Aalkfjsdlfsldkfj, or whatever its name is, can stop spewing its ash any day now.