A Couple of Photos from Poland I Need to Post Here in Order to Repost them Somewhere Else. . . Carry On!

Here are some photos from our trip to Poland. I had to post them here to be able to post them on another site for a photo contest on up-and-coming travel destinations. And get this. . . I WON! The prize was a cool little camera that essentially replaces the one Davy dropped down the stairs at the castle in the picture. Yay, me!

Here, for posterity, is my entry. . .

When we told friends we were heading to Poland for Christmas/New Years, we got all kinds of reactions. Nobody we know had ever been, which, truly, is a shame. Poland is a beautiful country. It has changed so much since I first visited in 1991, but the generosity and hospitality of the Polish people is unequaled!
This trip we visited the beautiful city of Gdansk, home of the shipyards that were the setting of the Solidarity movement. We found both the city and the surrounding countryside to be more beautiful than we ever expected.






And the food wasn't bad either!


My travel tip? When exchanging money, at least in Poland, you don't always have to accept the posted exchange rate. It's worthwhile to try and negotiate a better rate, or at least a waiver of fees. It doesn't always work, but sometimes it can save you a few bucks (or zloty, or whatever). And that's always good.

And another tip: Don't travel near the Baltic Sea in the dead of winter if you're going to be a sissy about the cold. If you do, pack plenty of wool socks and silk undkies. It's C O L D. But frankly, coming from the mild winters of Texas, a little bit of cold is exactly what we were looking for.

While this next photo is NOT representative of how much we enjoyed our trip, I'm posting it because it's one of my absolute favorites. We like to call it "Why the Czarneckis Left Poland in the First Place."