Polish Adventures

In front of the old cloth market

Dzien dobry from Poland! Hope everyone is doing well. These past couple of days have been great. We have been exploring the city of Krakow as well as taking a step outside of the city to see two awesome sights. Hit the jump to see where we went, what we did, and how we liked it.
Let's first start off where we left off from the previous entry. So we took a night train from Prague to Krakow, Poland. This was our first ever night train and it wasn't too bad (well... it's better than sleeping in an uncomfortable chair for 7 hours). We lucked out and actually had a room for ourselves to sleep in so we didn't have to worry about other people snoring or rummaging through our stuff. I slept a little bit on the train, and Melissa said that she only got about 2 or 3 hours of sleep.


When we arrived in Krakow it was early in the morning and we had time to kill before we could check into our hostel so we decided to go and check out Oscar Schindler's factory/museum. This was definitely something Melissa and I were both interested in and what was best of all it's FREE on Mondays! (Something we always try to take advantage of).


The factory/museum wasn't exactly what we had expected. We were expecting more of the actual history of the factory as well as the people who worked in it. However, it was more of an overview of the history of the war in Krakow. There were some little areas that showed interviews of the people who worked in Oscar Schindler's factory but not as much as we would have liked. Overall, the museum was okay. It could have been much better. (Museum Rating - B)

Yummy Pirogies!

After our little trip to the museum, we got settled into our room and than we were off to explore the city of Krakow. The city itself is pretty. The area we are staying in is walking distance from the town square and on the way to it is a nice park and little shops and restaurants. The square itself is really big and since Easter is around the corner there was an Easter Market with kiosks selling jewelry, Krakow souvenirs, Easter Egg souvenirs, and most importantly food (kielbasa, and pirogies! yummy!) We decided this day to try the pirogies. Both Melissa and I had the potato and cheese, and meat pirogies. However, I also had the meat and cabbage pirogy, and Melissa had a Spinach one. They were all pretty good but we both agreed that the best one was the potato and cheese one.

Wawel

After walking around town square we headed to Wawel Castle and walked around its castle grounds. The outside of the castle is really beautiful. It’s located on top of a hill overlooking a river. There is a castle courtyard with cherry blossom trees and a cathedral which contains the royal crypt. Melissa and I walked around these areas and then headed down towards the riverside and headed into the Jewish Quarters where we would have a Seder in the JCC of Krakow!

The Seder was to start at 8:30 so we headed into the JCC around 8 o’clock to make sure we would get a seat. Prior to the Seder I expected there to be a good little group of people for a nice little Seder. No, not the case at all. As soon as we walked into the building there must have been over 10 long tables and another 2 or 3 smaller tables set. Over 100 plus people were at this Seder! People from all over the world. We befriended some people from Florida, and San Francisco, and I was trying to practice my Polish with a girl next to me. The Seder itself was nice but took waaay to long. They were inefficiently trying to speak in Polish and translate in English. We only stayed for the first half of the Seder. It was already almost midnight by the time we left. In total, the Seder was a good experience and I am glad I got a chance to be a part of it.

"Work Will Set You Free" sign, Auschwitz

Birkenau

The next morning we woke up early and took a bus to Auschwitz. It took about an hour and a half to get there. When we got there, it was required that we take a tour. At first I was excited to do it. However, our tour guide was awful! First of all, she had a very thick accent and it was hard to understand her. Second, she kept rushing us to keep moving on. Lastly, there was no emotion at all from her. Usually when you have a good tour guide they are lively and tell interesting stories. Not this woman. It almost sounded like she was reading from a script. Very sucky. Melissa and I decided to leave the tour and do the rest on our own. I’m glad that we did because there were some areas that our guide didn’t take us to that we went to see. The first part of the trip takes you through Auschwitz I. This was the first concentration camp that was established and is not too big. However, the second part of the trip brings you to Birkenau. This was the famous camp that was shown in the movie Schindler’s List and it is HUGE. That is the first thing you notice when you first see the camp. The sheer size of the place feels like it just keeps going. We didn’t even see the whole camp. Most of the barracks, gas chambers, and crematoriums were destroyed by the Germans to try and cover up what they were doing but there are some barracks that were recreated, and the gas chamber and crematorium in Auschwitz I was left. The whole time we were there I kept trying to picture myself in the victim’s position. I can’t even fathom how terrified they must have been. Towards the back of the camp is a monument built by the Soviets that resembles a bunch of graves and a chimney with a plaque that states “Forever let this place be a cry of despair and a warning to humanity, where the Nazis murdered about one and a half million men, women, and children, mainly Jews from various countries of Europe.” This is a very powerful place and we are glad to have gotten the chance to experience it firsthand.

Church in the salt mines, made out of salt!

Today, we took a short bus ride to the Wieliczka (Ve-leech-ka) Salt Mines. We heard mixed reviews about this place but we wanted to see what it was like for ourselves. I am so glad that we checked this place out. It is so awesome! The place starts out taking you down 3 kilometers to the first level of the mine. The tour takes you through the history and processes of what the miners did. There is also an amazing chapel inside the mine that was design by three miners who worked there. The pictures of this place don’t do it justice. It truly is something that you must see for yourself. Just walking through the tunnels of the mine was something we never experienced and will never forget.

salt mines

Tonight we are taking a night train to Budapest. I hope we get a room for ourselves again but I wouln’t be surprised if we don’t. Till next time!

-Orry and Melissa