Trip to Poland available for local residents
From left are Jack Samuels, Dr. William Fronczek and Dave Motak. They will host a tour of Poland from Sept. 10-24.
The group’s first vintage trolley excursion was to Prague, Czech Republic, in 2013. The offering proved so popular with guests, another vintage trolley excursion will be taken to Gdansk, Poland, this year.
Dave Motak likes to strive for the seemingly impossible.
In 2014, the artist and former special events director organized a tour of eastern and southern Poland and the city of Lwow. Of all the sightseeing and cultural experiences, the highlight was attending the National Harvest Festival – “Dozynki Prezydenckie” – as guests of Bronislaw Komorowski and Anna Komorowska, then-president and first lady of Poland, for which Motak’s group had access to a special VIP area during the festivities.
“I was able to finesse personal invitations from the president,” said Motak, a resident of Bethel Park. “A lot of travel agents can be risk-averse, which I understand, because they have to have consistent quality, tried and true. For me, that’s kind of boring. I’m able to make personal connections and with our reputation, I can push the envelope a little bit.”
During a 2014 trip to the National Harvest Festival, travelers with Dave Motak were treated as guests of Bronislaw Komorowski, center, and Anna Komorowska, left, then-president and first lady of Poland.
Motak, retired Peters Township opthalmologist Dr. William Fronczek and former Peters Township school supervisor Jack Samuels are planning another one-of-a-kind tour of Poland in September, for which Motak already has special adventures in place.
The group will be among the last riders of the historic Wolsztyn Steam Locomotive and be joined by an astronomer for an evening of stargazing from the castle where Copernicus once studied the skies.
“No other tour does that,” said Motak. “That’s the kind of things we try to do.”
Motak is a szopka artist who creates elaborate sets from wood, cardboard and colored foil paper. The art form originated in the 1800s in Cracow, Poland. Motak is a frequent traveler of the country.
Fronczek and Samuels, volunteers with the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Arden, will lead excursions for transportation enthusiasts and Motak will lead the cultural agenda.
About 17 people who have previously traveled with Motak and Samuels are already signed up for the “Panorama of Poland – Trains, Trolleys and Tradition” tour that takes place Sept. 10-24.
Motak said a group of about 30 is ideal.
“People who are transportation buffs can do their thing, and others can do other things,” he said. “This way, those who are traveling with spouses will have cultural activities, shopping and sight-seeing.”
Motak and Fronczek share an interest in Polish culture and have both served as board members of the Polish Cultural Council.
Photos courtesy of Malopolska Scenic Railway
Photos courtesy of Malopolska Scenic Railway
Photos courtesy of Malopolska Scenic Railway
Folk musicians will provide traditional entertainment for tour participants during an excursion on the Malopolska Scenic Railway in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains.
Poland offers a unique travel experience, said Motak, with a rich heritage as well as modern offerings.
“Poland is booming now,” he said. “It’s become a very modern country. It’s a neat place to visit.”
While it is changing rapidly, Poland has also retained its rich folk culture, traditional cuisine and many time-honored symbols of its proud history.
“As Poland modernizes,” Fronczek said in a release, “the Poles have also carefully preserved key elements of their former transportation systems that are now showcased in special heritage parks and featured in excursions in the Polish countryside. As a result, Poland now offers some of the most significant collections of operating vintage train and trolley vehicles in the world.”
Fronczek added that, although Poland is acquiring a strong reputation as one of the best places to travel in Europe, its rich vintage transportation offerings are only now being discovered.
“Our tour is probably the first one to showcase this aspect of the Polish tourist scene, while still offering plenty of the usual cultural attractions,” he said.
The trip includes city tours of Warsaw, Torun Poznan, Krakow and Gdansk on the Baltic Coast.
Guests will have the opportunity to ride Poland’s new Pendolino high speed train from Warsaw to Malbork Castle, one of the largest Medieval fortifications in Europe. Other excursions include a cruise on the historic 1844 Elblag Canal, amber shopping, a city tour aboard a vintage trolley in Gdansk, and a concert in Oliwa Cathedral.
In 2014, tour members were treated to a traditional raft ride on the Dunajec River in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains. This year’s tour will feature a scenic steam rail excursion also in the Carpathian foothills.
Motak and Samuels have been organizing small group tours to Poland and Central Europe since 2004.
About six weeks before the tour, Motak will host a dinner to allow travelers to meet.
For more information on the tour, visit www.janddtours.net.