<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?><oembed><version><![CDATA[1.0]]></version><provider_name><![CDATA[Sithy Things]]></provider_name><provider_url><![CDATA[https://aggiesprite.wordpress.com]]></provider_url><author_name><![CDATA[LC Aggie Sith]]></author_name><author_url><![CDATA[https://aggiesprite.wordpress.com/author/aggiesprite/]]></author_url><title><![CDATA[Near and Far]]></title><type><![CDATA[link]]></type><html><![CDATA[<p>A while back, my friend <a href="http://xbradtc.wordpress.com/">Roamy</a> suggested places we&#8217;ve been as a topic for the blog, and it got me to thinking. It&#8217;s tough to beat being raised in a tropical island, you know. This is the river in back of my elementary school:</p>
<p><a href="https://aggiesprite.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/jayuya-river.png"><img data-attachment-id="444" data-permalink="https://aggiesprite.wordpress.com/2011/08/19/near-and-far/jayuya-river/" data-orig-file="https://aggiesprite.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/jayuya-river.png" data-orig-size="451,337" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}" data-image-title="jayuya river" data-image-description="" data-medium-file="https://aggiesprite.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/jayuya-river.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://aggiesprite.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/jayuya-river.png?w=451" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-444" title="jayuya river" src="https://aggiesprite.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/jayuya-river.png?w=451&#038;h=337" alt="" width="451" height="337" srcset="https://aggiesprite.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/jayuya-river.png 451w, https://aggiesprite.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/jayuya-river.png?w=150&amp;h=112 150w, https://aggiesprite.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/jayuya-river.png?w=300&amp;h=224 300w" sizes="(max-width: 451px) 100vw, 451px" /></a></p>
<p>The schoolrooms were a converted cockfighting arena (true story), but the view was totally worth it! Growing up in Puerto Rico, I had the chance to see beaches, desert, rainforest, mountains, valleys, rivers, lakes, all in the span of a <em>day</em>. It was wonderful.</p>
<p>Now that I am an Army wife, I get to see other places. Stationed in Europe, we got to see Germany, Luxembourg, Poland, Crete, France, Austria, and Italy. Personally, I had no desire to see Holland or Belgium. But I did wish to see Spain, and where my relatives came from. Still, I got to see a lot, and if I had to pick my favorite of all, I would have to say Poland.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img title="boleslawiec" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Boleslawiec_marketplace_in_winter.JPG" alt="" width="464" height="348" /></p>
<p>It was like a page from a fairytale. And in that fairytale, the bad guys had been vanquished. I hope I get the chance to go back, and drink some Żubrówka, eat pierogies, and hear wonderful stories about Boleslawiec.</p>
<p>And what places would y&#8217;all like to visit?</p>
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