Warsaw 1991 #5of5

As luck would have it, as a replay of 1985, in 1991 we were joined in the Warsaw campground by a bus load of students from Western Europe, who had just returned from a 10 day visit in the Soviet Union. This is another of the bus-camping tours we have seen every year in Europe — a large tour bus pulling a trailer that contains a kitchen, tents and supplies. In 1985 we were told, “… … are we ever glad to get out of that country.” This year, these people had a different experience. They really enjoyed themselves, felt they learned a lot, and said the Soviet people, while suffering all kinds of deficiencies and scarcities, were hopeful, helpful, and hospitable.

But a sign of big problems to come, perhaps: At the Soviet/Polish border there was a two-week-long line of people waiting to clear border formalities. They had little food (except what they brought with them), crude sanitation facilities, nothing to do except creep ahead a few yards each day, and hope to get into Poland, which they consider heaven compared to where they are leaving. Other travelers crossed the border in another line, that took only about two hours.

We have seen Soviet automobiles with belongings piled high on the roof, traveling through Poland. It reminds us of pictures we have seen of the Okies going to California in the 1930’s! We were told these people are good workers, and in just a couple of weeks in Poland, they earn as much as in several months at home.

Most of the young people on the bus tour were from western Europe, but there were two rather wealthy young ladies, one from Marin County near San Francisco, and the other from Wellesley, near Boston. One man indicated these ladies didn’t take too well to this “rough” style of living, such as the communal toilet and shower facilities, so they took advantage of some rental cabins in Warsaw’s campground.

Next door was another student group traveling in a “Top Deck” bus, an old double decked London bus with bunks (including a secluded “passion pit”), kitchen, and all facilities needed to accommodate a hardy bunch for a tour of Europe.

We have seen a “Top Deck” bus a dozen times, and a tour bus with a trailer, in a dozen cities in many countries. They are usually filled with college age people, but several times the bus was filled with adults. But we sure have never seen one that provided the convenience and privacy of our RV.