Polish officials shoot at German cruise ship?
Every now and then a news story seems so improbable, that we double-check it's not April Fool's Day! So here you are...
The details vary dramatically depending on whether you read the Polish or the German press, but it seems that a mountain was made of a molehill last month involving the German passenger ship, Adler Dania, in or just off the Polish Baltic seaport of Swinoujscie. There may even have been shots fired by the Polish officials at the German ship!
The dispute arose over the German ship selling duty-free Polish cigarettes and alcohol to the predominately German passengers on board the ship. The Polish customs officials boarded the liner in the German port of Heringsdorf prior to the ship's arrival in the Polish port. The Adler captain's account of the incident has the Polish demanding to inspect the ship's alcohol and cigarette supplies and his deciding to turn around the ship while still in German waters to avoid having the goods confiscated (which has happened before). He alleges that the Polish Coast Guard fired warning shots to try to prevent the ship from leaving.
The Polish account has the ship docking in Swinoujscie and departing so suddenly, to evade inspection, that the Polish officials were not allowed to disembark. Reuters News Service even reported that kidnapping charges were filed against the German ship line.
Short Baltic Sea cruises from Germany to Poland have become popular since Poland joined the EU in 2004. Some 500,000 passengers take these cruises each year.
None of this really affects American cruise passengers, but it does make for fascinating reading.
The details vary dramatically depending on whether you read the Polish or the German press, but it seems that a mountain was made of a molehill last month involving the German passenger ship, Adler Dania, in or just off the Polish Baltic seaport of Swinoujscie. There may even have been shots fired by the Polish officials at the German ship!
The dispute arose over the German ship selling duty-free Polish cigarettes and alcohol to the predominately German passengers on board the ship. The Polish customs officials boarded the liner in the German port of Heringsdorf prior to the ship's arrival in the Polish port. The Adler captain's account of the incident has the Polish demanding to inspect the ship's alcohol and cigarette supplies and his deciding to turn around the ship while still in German waters to avoid having the goods confiscated (which has happened before). He alleges that the Polish Coast Guard fired warning shots to try to prevent the ship from leaving.
The Polish account has the ship docking in Swinoujscie and departing so suddenly, to evade inspection, that the Polish officials were not allowed to disembark. Reuters News Service even reported that kidnapping charges were filed against the German ship line.
Short Baltic Sea cruises from Germany to Poland have become popular since Poland joined the EU in 2004. Some 500,000 passengers take these cruises each year.
None of this really affects American cruise passengers, but it does make for fascinating reading.
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