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Poland and Czechia - Mediaeval cities on the way south

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 Torun was the first of the Polish cities with very old city centres, and known as the birthplace of Copernicus - the man who first suggested that the Earth moved around the sun, and paid a heavy price for his heresy. The site was on the other side of the river, so it was a simple matter of walking across it, and straight into the main square - except that the bridge turned out to be about two kilometres long, and we walked it there and back twice. There was a large main square lined with beautiful building facades and restaurants, and a central cathedral. This was was to be repeated in all of the cities we visited. Yes, they were all clean, tidy and very safe. The next stop was Poznan, where we stayed overnight in a carpark, with no problems at all, and an easy short walk into the main square. Again some beautiful facades and civic buildings. Our visit must have coincided with the days all the schools went on day trips, because they were everywhere underfoot. All well behaved thou...
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Poland and Czechia - the Polish Baltic coast

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 Up in the top left corner of Poland is the border town of Swinoujscie, a big working port, ferry terminal and yacht marina.It also makes money from Germans coming over for the much cheaper fuels and foods, and as such eagerly accepts payment in Euros or Zlotys.  The campsite was in the grounds of the marina, and using the marina facilities. The town itself was fine, with that little edge of seediness that ports seem to have, but it was sad to see some grand old houses now basically in ruins The next town along was a surprise. Our initial thoughts on driving through to the site were Blackpool in 1963 - shops selling the standard seaside fare of lilos, buckets and spades, fridge magnets etc etc. The fair was also in town, adding that certain smell of candyfloss... However, at the top of the town, on the beach, it suddenly turned into a more cultured French promenade vibe. Quite pleasant really.  I don't know why I didn't take any photos. Gdansk is a beautiful city, well at...
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Poland and Czechia - Northern Germany

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 We've taken three nights to cross Northern Germany, stopping for the night in Oldenburg, Stade and Wismar. Oldenburg was another university town, full of cycling students, and quite pretty. The site was a small free Stellplatz (Aire) designated for three vans, but actually seven squeezed in - the Germans like living cosily it seems, and the town just a short walk away. Stade was a small town with a nautical feel to it, full of authentic buildings and cobble stones and our first Bierkeller. The pleasant campsite was totally automatic, but instruction on how to use the entry machine were in English. The third town is called Wismar, but I cannot write anything about it. Today is Ascension Day, and absolutely everything, except petrol stations, is closed. There are no buses today, and we didn't fancy an hours walk each way. So today is an admin day in a reasonably pleasant site. Tomorrow we have a long drive to the Polish border, right up in the top left corner to a town called Sw...
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