A quick post from Lech Wałęsa’s Gdansk.

I’m sure that my personal list of places I want to experience live is longer than most folks. I can’t back that statement up with any scientific stats, but it might be true for most visual artists. Inspiration comes from all kinds of sources, and for me, travel is certainly my preferred fountainhead.

I’ve wanted to visit Gdansk ever since hearing about Lech Wałęsa, famous for his political activism and the Solidarity movement he founded in the Polish city’s sprawling shipyard. I vividly remember being almost as intrigued by the industrial scenery shown on television and in newspapers as I was by his formidable success at ushering in a new era in Poland and eventually, the entire Eastern Bloc.

Yesterday was my 59th birthday. A year shy of an arguably more significant milestone. Since SAS screwed up our plans to celebrate my birthday with a few days in Tromsø, true to our ability to always figure out a good “Plan B”, Charlotte and I flew to Gdansk instead. It’s my second trip to Poland (I was in Krakow last year) and I am really enjoying each new visit to this country. Gdansk seems to be a thriving place with a young, energetic population and a ton of inspiring visual experiences.