Poland: August 31. Zielona Gora

This morning we drove to the open air museum at Ochla, also known as a skansen (a word we learned in Polish language class). This skansen showcases traditional rural architecture and crafts of the Lubusz region. We had a guided tour with Joanna translating to English for people like me, who don't exactly have a grasp on the Polish language.

We started at the looms. There were traditional Polish rugs and wall hangings, all hand loomed and sewn together up the middle.

In the overhead were paper flowers, another traditionsal Polish craft, which Dorena teaches in Connecticut.

The first house we  visited was from 1675, painstakingly deconstructed and reconstructed here. It was the home of a shoemaker, and holds all of the equipment and furnishings from the original building that served as both home and shoe shop. We marveled at the live thatch roofs on the older buildings (1600s).

We enjoyed the winery from the 1700s. There was an entire farm reconstructed from the Kobielewa family farm of 1803.

I was starting to suffer asthma from being in all the old buildings so I took a break outside with Dorena, and talked with Alekandra and Krystian.

We all went into the schoolhouse, which had living quarters attached. Our nauzycielka Aleksandra took the teacher's desk, as is fitting, and the rest of us were the students.

We got back in the van and went to a nearby harvest festival. We were on our own for lunch and had to order in Polish! There were many food booths and vendors. A live band was playing 1980s American rock music.

We returned to Zielona Gora to the Muzeum Ziemi Lubuskej, an art museum. There were exhibits covering art through the ages, from the 1500s to modern times.

We came back to the hotel, cleaned up, and walked to the local winery. Here we are: Dorena, Jeff and Veronica; Aleksandra and Joanna; me, Anne, Elaine, Maureen and Kris; Liz and Rick. (Rick's wife Barb didn't come to the wine tasting)

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