When travelling, there are certain museums and sights one has to see. Auschwitz - Birkenau is one of these. We actually debated whether our kids should see this historical horror, hesitating because, right now, our children are very optimistic about life. They believe in God and in the goodness of people. War, hatred, even most racism is far removed from their everyday lives, and we didn't want them to be disturbed by the graphic truths this visit would revea...

A breakfast of ham, cheese, freshly prepared corn and tuna salad, various fruits and breads, and coffee and tea greeted us in the morning. The Mondo definitely knows how to treat weary travellers. As we began to walk to the bus stop to catch the minibus to the Wieliczka Salt Mines, the bus pulled up right beside us and we were the first four people on board. The kids chose the last back four seats, of course, and we enjoyed a great ride through winding street...

Into our second month of travelling and no one has killed anyone yet! This morning, we took our time getting ready to leave, visiting with a young couple from Germany. The Hostel Helvetia has been Margaret's favourite so far because the receptionist was friendly, the sights and food markets were close, the kitchen wasn't busy, and everything was really clean and bright. And what she enjoyed most was how friendly it was. We visited with many different people and...

Cloudy, windy, warm, and perfect for walking; Warsaw called and we answered. The hostel had laundry service and a free breakfast, so we left full, after a great meal, and looking forward to smelling better on our return. First, we walked down Krakowski Przedwieceie Street - Margaret obsessed with doing her own walking tour using the hostel's Warsaw in Short. We walked to the Royal Castle and then we wandered back. The kids read out the historical significance...

Oh my goodness. First off, we woke up to pouring rain. Had we stayed in Berlin one extra night, we would have arrived in Malbork to find it totally booked, with the castle closed, and …RAIN!!!! Thank heavens, we skipped the zoo! We had to reserve a place on the train, so we got up early, had breakfast, and got to the station in plenty of time to reserve our seats. We thought we were totally cool. A first train went by and it left incredibly fast. The next train...