november, 1976
Saturday, November 20th, 1976
M.S. Bronislaw Lachowicz
Port A
Wilmington, North Carolina
M.S. Bronislaw Lachowicz
Port A
Wilmington, North Carolina
We flew to Wilmington, North Carolina from Gloria's parents' home in Montgomery, Alabama on November 19th, stayed in a motel that night, and then took a taxi to the dock where our Polish Ocean Lines freighter was being loaded with containers. Click on our passenger ticket (above on the right) to see how much the voyage cost for both of us (and a mistake on the ticket about who the second passenger was). Notice that the ticket lists Gdynia (Gdansk, Poland) as the ship's destination, but we disembarked at Rotterdam.
Gloria's diary says that we ate lunch at Woolworth's before we boarded the ship, but then: "Immediately we were ushered into the dining room for lunch. Protesting that we weren't hungry was futile, and soon we found ourselves stuffing down dill soup, breaded pork, boiled potatoes, red cabbage salad, some sort of pudding, and, finally, an apple."
Gloria's diary says that we ate lunch at Woolworth's before we boarded the ship, but then: "Immediately we were ushered into the dining room for lunch. Protesting that we weren't hungry was futile, and soon we found ourselves stuffing down dill soup, breaded pork, boiled potatoes, red cabbage salad, some sort of pudding, and, finally, an apple."
During this first meal we met Richard (Ryszard Zuchowski), one of our stewards, who "...talked a lot through our first dessert since we were alone in the dining room. All we were certain he said was that our ship was named after a Polish WWII hero, a major who was finally killed by a land mine."
Gloria's diary says that Richard "...informed us of our schedule: wake-up knock at 7:30am, breakfast at 8:00, lunch (the main meal) at 12:00, tea at 3:00, dinner at 5:30, and open pantry thereafter."
Gloria's diary says that Richard "...informed us of our schedule: wake-up knock at 7:30am, breakfast at 8:00, lunch (the main meal) at 12:00, tea at 3:00, dinner at 5:30, and open pantry thereafter."
"So far we know our cargo to include frozen french fries, tobacco, linens, fiber of some sort, and one crate of radioactive cobalt."
"Our double-berth cabin is nice and surprisingly roomy. Since our cabin number is 301, I imagine we are about 35 feet above sea level."
"We have a great radio in our cabin, complete with four channels -- Dlugie, Srednie, Krotkie, and Ultrakrotkie -- reaching all the major cities in Europe. BBC radio just informed us that America was discovered by an Irishman."
"We departed Wilmington via the Cape Fear River at 8:30pm, and entered the Atlantic Ocean a little past 10:30pm."
"Our double-berth cabin is nice and surprisingly roomy. Since our cabin number is 301, I imagine we are about 35 feet above sea level."
"We have a great radio in our cabin, complete with four channels -- Dlugie, Srednie, Krotkie, and Ultrakrotkie -- reaching all the major cities in Europe. BBC radio just informed us that America was discovered by an Irishman."
"We departed Wilmington via the Cape Fear River at 8:30pm, and entered the Atlantic Ocean a little past 10:30pm."
At tea time we met three of our ten fellow passengers: "John Griffin, from Seattle, who plans to hitch from Rotterdam to Egypt via France, Spain, and Morocco. Ray and Vivian Menaker, retired school teachers from Haines, Alaska, who will visit their daughter and son-in-law in northern England."
"We met our Captain, Andrzej Karlo (that's Andrew), at lunch on Sunday, and I liked him right off. We were being served chicken and I heard him tell Ray and Vivian that if one was uncertain of the day of the week one would always know Sunday, for in Poland only chicken is served on that day. His laugh is an easy and infectious one, and in some ways he reminded me of my brother Andrew. Although only 41, he's a veteran of 20 years on the oceans of the world."
"Monday the sea began to toss us from side to side. It's incredibly warm and sunny outside, but the sea is rough. The hundreds of trailer-sized freight containers prolong the tilt and lean. Sleeping was difficult -- every muscle rigid against tumbling out of bed. I slept from dawn until 2:00pm Tuesday. The ship was slowed to 6 knots in order to secure some drums of pig intestines below decks -- destination: Polish sausage. Now we're back to 23 knots and more and severe sidewards rolls."
"We met our Captain, Andrzej Karlo (that's Andrew), at lunch on Sunday, and I liked him right off. We were being served chicken and I heard him tell Ray and Vivian that if one was uncertain of the day of the week one would always know Sunday, for in Poland only chicken is served on that day. His laugh is an easy and infectious one, and in some ways he reminded me of my brother Andrew. Although only 41, he's a veteran of 20 years on the oceans of the world."
"Monday the sea began to toss us from side to side. It's incredibly warm and sunny outside, but the sea is rough. The hundreds of trailer-sized freight containers prolong the tilt and lean. Sleeping was difficult -- every muscle rigid against tumbling out of bed. I slept from dawn until 2:00pm Tuesday. The ship was slowed to 6 knots in order to secure some drums of pig intestines below decks -- destination: Polish sausage. Now we're back to 23 knots and more and severe sidewards rolls."
"Sunday night was the 'Captain's Dinner', a welcome-aboard feast and get-together. Five food courses plus Polish vodka, mineral water, red wine, brandy, and coffee...after which we all stumbled upstairs to the passenger lounge, on the captain's suggestion, for smokes, dancing, and more drinks."
"I studied the various maps questioning and discussing ocean currents, swells, storms, and weather forecasts with Ray and Heinrich, who was in the employ of the Polish Ocean Line (PLO)...as an investigator of ships' noises and vibrations. After we exhausted our vocabularies on that subject, a distinguished self-called senior citizen came over to me and introduced herself as Angeline. We'd been exchanging glances and smiles at each meal, so I was glad for a chance to talk to her. We discussed where we were from and where we were going: she immigrated to New York from Poland in 1941, has been retired 15 years from her factory seamstress job, and is going to visit relatives in Krakow for a few months."
"I studied the various maps questioning and discussing ocean currents, swells, storms, and weather forecasts with Ray and Heinrich, who was in the employ of the Polish Ocean Line (PLO)...as an investigator of ships' noises and vibrations. After we exhausted our vocabularies on that subject, a distinguished self-called senior citizen came over to me and introduced herself as Angeline. We'd been exchanging glances and smiles at each meal, so I was glad for a chance to talk to her. We discussed where we were from and where we were going: she immigrated to New York from Poland in 1941, has been retired 15 years from her factory seamstress job, and is going to visit relatives in Krakow for a few months."
"Last night after supper Russ and I were joined in the passenger lounge by John, Angeline, and Yolanta. Angeline and John talked politics awhile until the Captain, Jan, and Heinrich arrived. The Captain located a Polish guitar for Russ, and soon we found ourselves trying to recall and sing 'international songs'. The evening's favorite was certainly Sixteen Tons, which we sang as many times. John, bolstered by the Johnny Walker Red scotch our captain was dispensing, stole the show with his multi-versed Irish, Australian, and American ballads. He was in grand form. Russ worked wonders accompanying John's never-before-heard songs. I enjoyed Polish beer and pretzels as we sang the night away."
"This morning John missed his first meal of the voyage, and the second, and the third. He managed to come to dinner, however, and since tonight is the last night at sea, we had our farewell Captain's Dinner. It is also our first anniversary. Russ and I walked into the dining room and found a gift and card sitting on our table...anniversary gifts from our captain...and what a surprise."
"This morning John missed his first meal of the voyage, and the second, and the third. He managed to come to dinner, however, and since tonight is the last night at sea, we had our farewell Captain's Dinner. It is also our first anniversary. Russ and I walked into the dining room and found a gift and card sitting on our table...anniversary gifts from our captain...and what a surprise."
"Our dinner was another culinary delight, and when we had finished we all waddled up to the passenger lounge. More surprises! A wonderfully decorated cake, champagne, a potted plant of chrysanthemums, and Russ had successfully secreted from Montgomery across the Atlantic a piece of our wedding cake and two of our wedding napkins. Cameras flashed, toasts were made, we talked, we laughed, and brought the guitar out to sing Sixteen Tons a dozen more times. It was a very good night."
Throughout our eight day trip across the Atlantic the weather was warmer than we'd expected for late November, and we had plenty of time to roam the decks with some of the other passengers. At one point Captain Karlo took us up to the bridge and showed us the ship's radar. In her diary Gloria listed the cost of a few items available aboard ship:
Polish beer: 15 cents per bottle
Polish pepsi: 18 cents per bottle
Marlboro cigarettes: $2.50 per carton
Johnny Walker scotch: $3.50 per quart
Here's an excerpt of a letter I wrote to my mother, dated 12/2/76...
The weather on the ocean was much better than we expected -- so good one day I even took my deck chair out and basked in the sun while reading. I never got around to taking even one Dramamine pill, though the ship did tend to roll back and forth, which made sleeping a little difficult sometimes.
They had two stewards to look after twelve passengers, so we were well cared for, and the food was good and plentiful -- maybe a little too plentiful as far as the boiled potatoes were concerned. Passengers included a guy my age from Seattle, who we played a lot of cards with; a man and woman who were retired school teachers from Alaska going to visit their daughter in England; a lady from New York who was born in Poland and going back to visit; a man who had been working for the Hungarian embassy in DC and his wife; and three men and a woman who actually worked for the Polish Line, but weren't part of the crew.
The captain spoke surprisingly good English, and just about any other language you might want to converse in. The day before we got to Rotterdam was, of course, our anniversary, and somebody had told these people to give us a surprise party, which they did. Since it was the night before we were to reach port, it was the Captain's Farewell dinner anyway, but then after that great meal we all went up to the passengers' lounge, and they had a cake and flowers and champagne and a present waiting for us (the present was a book on sightseeing in Amsterdam).
We couldn't imagine that they'd be carrying all this stuff on board just on the chance an occasion might arise, and the captain later told us one of our mothers had called ahead and alerted them so they could get the stuff before they left Wilmington. He wasn't sure, however, which mother it was, and we were hoping you might be able to shed some light on this great mystery. Whoever was behind this sneaky scheme should be greatly thanked...
Polish beer: 15 cents per bottle
Polish pepsi: 18 cents per bottle
Marlboro cigarettes: $2.50 per carton
Johnny Walker scotch: $3.50 per quart
Here's an excerpt of a letter I wrote to my mother, dated 12/2/76...
The weather on the ocean was much better than we expected -- so good one day I even took my deck chair out and basked in the sun while reading. I never got around to taking even one Dramamine pill, though the ship did tend to roll back and forth, which made sleeping a little difficult sometimes.
They had two stewards to look after twelve passengers, so we were well cared for, and the food was good and plentiful -- maybe a little too plentiful as far as the boiled potatoes were concerned. Passengers included a guy my age from Seattle, who we played a lot of cards with; a man and woman who were retired school teachers from Alaska going to visit their daughter in England; a lady from New York who was born in Poland and going back to visit; a man who had been working for the Hungarian embassy in DC and his wife; and three men and a woman who actually worked for the Polish Line, but weren't part of the crew.
The captain spoke surprisingly good English, and just about any other language you might want to converse in. The day before we got to Rotterdam was, of course, our anniversary, and somebody had told these people to give us a surprise party, which they did. Since it was the night before we were to reach port, it was the Captain's Farewell dinner anyway, but then after that great meal we all went up to the passengers' lounge, and they had a cake and flowers and champagne and a present waiting for us (the present was a book on sightseeing in Amsterdam).
We couldn't imagine that they'd be carrying all this stuff on board just on the chance an occasion might arise, and the captain later told us one of our mothers had called ahead and alerted them so they could get the stuff before they left Wilmington. He wasn't sure, however, which mother it was, and we were hoping you might be able to shed some light on this great mystery. Whoever was behind this sneaky scheme should be greatly thanked...
Polish Ocean Lines' NYC office was in the World Trade Center, but it was closed in 1999 after they filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
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We arrived in Rotterdam on November 29th. Gloria's diary says, "After saying farewell to our fellow passengers, Captain, and stewards (whom we gave $5 each), John, Russ, and I headed towards downtown Rotterdam in search of a bank and the train station."
"Our plans had been altered somewhat -- we were going to sail to Gydnia and proceed to Warsaw in order to visit Russ' friend K. Musial, but received a letter from him before departing in which he said he was working in Sweden and wouldn't return to Poland until after Christmas. We decided then to head for Borken from Rotterdam to visit Russ' old college roommate and friend, Jim and Linda Gross."
"Shortly we were saying goodbye to John as the train hauled us away on the first leg of our journey on the mainland. We changed trains successfully at Utrecht, Arnhem, and Emmerich, but Gelsenkirchen proved more difficult. In order to get to Borken we had to change train stations. We boarded the correct straßenbahn, but soon realized we didn't know where to get off. But after an hour and help from the conductor we managed to get off at the right place. It was a tiny station with no one around. Still, we went outside and waited for a train. Strangely, one chugged up, and in another hour we were knocking on Jim and Linda's door."
"Shortly we were saying goodbye to John as the train hauled us away on the first leg of our journey on the mainland. We changed trains successfully at Utrecht, Arnhem, and Emmerich, but Gelsenkirchen proved more difficult. In order to get to Borken we had to change train stations. We boarded the correct straßenbahn, but soon realized we didn't know where to get off. But after an hour and help from the conductor we managed to get off at the right place. It was a tiny station with no one around. Still, we went outside and waited for a train. Strangely, one chugged up, and in another hour we were knocking on Jim and Linda's door."