The first day out on our cruise to Cuba was a sea day. It was October 23, a week from Halloween, and Halloween hi-jinx were in full swing aboard. The Atrium was decorated throughout the cruise with a pumpkin admiral and other seasonal items. At Noon activities got underway out on deck. An assistant cruise director donned a witch’s hat as MC. A passenger pumpkin carving contest led things off. Afterward, a member of the galley staff showed how a professional carved a pumpkin. (Similar to an ice carving demonstration.) Finally, there was the Mummy Wrap contest and dance to Monster Mash. In the afternoon the first of two orientation lectures on Cuba led by Heidi was held. Heidi Siefkas had travelled to Cuba several times and written a book, Cubicle to Cuba about her experiences ... read more

Morning sightseeing saw us boarding he coach for a drive out to the Novy Port and Westerplatte sections, at the mouth of the Vistula (Wisła) River, Here, the river that unites Poland north to south empties into the Baltic Sea. It was at the Weserplatte on 1 September 1939 that Germany began its invasion of Poland. Although Danzig was considered a free city, support for Germany ran high. Poland had earlier established military transit depot on the Westerplatte and this facility was besieged for seven days. Shipbuilding has been a major Gdasńk industry since 1856. The current Gdasńk Shipyard traces its history to the Kaiserliche Werft Danzig that built ships and submarines for the Imperial German Navy. After World War II, it was known as the Lenin Shipyard. It was here in 1980 that workers went ... read more

This morning in Toruń was a walking tour of the old town. As I mentioned, Toruń was Monika's home, so she was an excellent guide. The group again assembled at the Monastery Gate. The plaza between the gate and the river is Naval School Square (Skwer Oficerskiej Szkoły Marynarki Wojennej). (The Polish naval academy was located in Toruń in 1921-1938 and housed in the barracks that is now the Hotel Bulwar.) Upon entering the gate this time, we turned to the left. Now we were on the inside of the city wall we passed walking from the hotel. The Leaning Tower at a corner of the city wall leans out over the hotel parking lot. Inside the wall it takes the form of a four story residential building. Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543) was born in Toruń and ... read more

Monika, our Collette tour courier, hastened the group along as we prepared to leave Wrocław for Torruń. We would be stopping for lunch at Poznań, but we must make haste getting there and arrive before noon. She would not say why. En route we made a hurried rest stop at a travel plaza near Lipnow. A curiosity here were the statues of European Bison placed in an adjacent field. I'm not sure why there were placed here, but will note that the European Bison is Poland's national animal. In the event, to coach reached Poznań at 11:30. Plenty of time for us to our way to the Market Square, Stary Rynek. The secret was revealed. We were here to see the Town Hall clock in operation. The automaton clock on the Ratusz tower performs at Noon ... read more

Today began with a morning sightseeing tour of Wrocław with a local guide. The group boarded our motorcoach over on Nowy Świat, along the Odra River. (Coaches are not allowed along Kiełbaśnicza where the hotel was located. I liked that name--Kielbasa Street!) The coach drove us over to the Exhibition Grounds. The Wrocław Exhibition Grounds opened in 1911 in a then far eastern part of the city. The centerpiece is still the Centennial Hall (Hala Stulecia, originally Jahrhunderthalle). (The centennial was that of the proclamation by Frederick William III of Prussia for the Prussian people to resist Napoleon.) The modernist exhibition hall designed by architect Max Berg and opened in 1913 was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2006. It still looks like a modern round sports arena, or something one might encounter at Epcot. ... read more