In this absorbing and delightful memoir, Lawrence Siddall takes the reader to Poland where he taught English in a high school as a Peace Corps volunteer from 1997 to 1999 following his retirement. He calls it his late-life adventure. At sixty-seven he was one of only 450 senior Peace Corps volunteers out of 6,500 worldwide at that time. With an eye for detail he vividly describes the challenges he faces in the classroom, his struggle to learn Polish, his initial feelings of isolation in adjusting to a new culture, and the close friends he eventually makes. He has since returned to Poland twice.

     Siddall also weaves flashbacks into his narrative, including an amazing 11,000-mile overland trek from Europe to India in 1956. Traveling with a friend in a VW Beetle. and later meeting up with RAF Captain Peter Townsend, former suitor of Princess Margaret, their route takes them through the Middle East at a time of political instability, making for a risky venture. With the events of that time still reverberating today, Siddall’s keen observations are as relevant now as they were then.