About Us
Eastline is a tour operator that specializes in travel to Central and Eastern Europe. After 13 years of experience and a host of local stalwart contacts, we at Eastline considers ourselves to be at the forefront of providing the traveler a unique insight into former East Bloc countries, its peoples, cultures, arts, cuisines, its tumultuous and fascinating histories and last but not least, current issues.
Travel lets people break out of everyday obligtations, it alters our state of awareness, opens us up for new experiences and lets us notice details of life in another place that generally go unnoticed at home. Suddently fleeting pedestrians become intricate character studies, the color and shape of public transport tickets are analyzed in view of cultural stereotypes or the courting habits of couples are held in anthropological light. Everything around us becomes an object of study and demands curious comparison, bringing a complexity of issues into perspective, both in the country we are visiting and at home. On how a visit to a hairsalon in another country (in this case in Berlin, Germany) can turn into an entertaining ethnologic excursion, read the submission by .... for an DAAD essay contest. It is simply a delightful read, which makes exaclty this point.
Our goals as a travel agent are manifold and apply to the the traveler as much as they do to the host. We feel that we have been successful in our endeavour if both feel as though they have been enriched by the mutual encounter. Taking our function as a travel agent very seriously, we do not only per definitionem organize transactions between a minimum of two other parties, but the word agency is also used to indicate action that produces a result. By traveling to other places we not only expand our knowledge of these places, but also have the opportunity to gain invaluable knowledge on three different levels: about the self, about the place and about the state of the world in general. Thus, travel can also function as a valuable educational tool.
The idea that travel can be educational and influence and even transform a persons viewpoint, may it be poltitically, socially, culturally, professionally or just positively, is an important aspect of our work. It is our aim to remove the visitor from the conventional touristic vacuum in order to meet and interact with the local population and get a glimpse behind the scenes. This glimpse can include meetings with representatives of social or non-governmental organizations, local government officials, professors, journalists, artists and schoolchildren. Depending on what your personal or even professional interests are, our local contacts will arrange meetings with relevant representatives. Just recently a professor of law traveled to Odessa in order to follow the roots of his family. While there he met with members and the dean of the local law department and since he was a widely published author in his country of origin, he also gave a presentation to the students. The traveler will return with a better idea of what the place is really like, with a deeper understanding of current political and social issues and hopefully also with new contacts and friendships, just as our law professor did.
However, we do not only want to stimulate the intellectual senses. Each country and region has a rich culinary tradition we would like to introduce you to. One way to indulge in local specialties would be at restaurants that have been hand-picked by our local resources and staff. Another way to experience regional cuisines would be to take a step into the kitchen and let a local chef teach the secrets of preparing for example pierogi in Krakow, knedlik in Prague or pelmeni in St. Petersburg. Experience the culture hands-on and taste its treasures.
Be sure to inform us of venues you have enjoyed or, god forbid, of venues you did not. We would be glad to pass on your recommendation and share any other information you might find usefull for other travelers.
