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I nearly went with a comedic title here, like "How Many Aarons Does it Take to Screw in a Lightbulb?" (we are in Poland) or with something more directly regarding the camp at Auschwitz that was the real reason for our visit here, but didn't think either was approporate for this particular entry. We did have a wonderful time in Krakow, a city know for being lively and fun and active, although we never really did got out and party. It is also a town where this history is evident and all around, as it was not destroyed during WWII, unlike much of the rest of the country. While Auschwitz was our main reason (and likely the prime cause of many others), the city is worth a visit on its own.
Monday, May 26th:
Well the nicest thing from the ride to Warsaw was the absolute spaciousness and comfort of the seats on the train; I slept like a baby. The problem, though, was that we were very, very late into our connection in Warsaw and had to not only wait for the train to come, but had to get the reservation we bought in Berlin changed. This was much
easier said than done, as there is apparently a way to convince them that because their train was late they should simply honor it (we bumped into another American traveling to did manage to do this and save the 3 Euro), but I don’t speak Polish and both Aaron and I just wanted to get it all straightened out. The three of us wandered around for about 20 minutes downstairs in the food area of the station trying to find the one booker who spoke English, and then got directed around wrong a few times before being pointed upstairs. I did screw up with Aaron’s booking, though. I was ahead of him in line and just told him to get the reservation at the next teller window. So while I ended up with a correct reservation to Krakow, Aaron had somehow managed to buy a whole new ticket and reservation. So I had to go back and show the woman that he already had a ticket (I just decided to cut the line to do this, but that is pretty much par for the course in former socialist countries) and he got the refund.
This train was more typical of
Eastern Europe, with the 8 numbered seats on 2 opposing benches in a cabin with about 6 or 7 such cabins per train car. Aaron and I were not in the same one, but just 1 apart, so after the very boring (and significantly less comfortable) ride to Krakow, we had no trouble disembarking together.
Once in Krakow, we trammed it to the Stranger Hostel and checked in. Not only is this place highly recommended, but it is owned by Josh Bennett’s buddy, Mike Foltz, so it was free for us. I had set the 2 nights here up with Foltz and his guys in town (he is back in the states, so we never got a chance to say “thanks” in person) and was definitely looking forward to the place. So we got ourselves set and I went to check the internet and make some friends, while Aaron took a nap and then chatted up some girls on his own. Some good people in the hostel and rumor was that some of the Irish guys staying here were playing in the bar downstairs, so we decided to check it out after dinner, which ended up being a place that
was a bit in the touristy area but cheap and Georgian food. We both thought it was a hit, and went back to check out the acts. The stuff was real good, mostly along a funny or comedically angry at women vein, but good. After that we both just ended up going back to the room and crashing.
Tuesday, May 27th:
Breakfast and then off to a square near the train station to get tickets for a guided tour and bus ride to Auschwitz-Birkenau this morning. This was really the reason I had wanted to go to Krakow, and I am very glad I went, thought to be honest Auschwitz was not exactly what I had hoped or expected it to be for me.
We did a guided tour, which included transport to, from and from Auschwitz I to Auschwitz II-Birkenau. That part was a plus of the tour, but the negative was that it meant that we moved at the pace of the tour guide, which was very heavy on the Auschwitz I camp, which is now the museum and where they had housed Polish and other groups destined for a slow death by over-working in very permanent
brick buildings. The tour was, however, very light on the Birkenau part, which is simply the death camp and housing for Jews they deemed fit to die by being starved and over-worked in wooden shanties 8 to a bed, but left as-is without any museum pieces of commentary. I understand why the guide spent so much of the time in the museum, as it gives the images of the murders committed there and that is where the piles and piles of shoes and glasses and prosthetic legs and suitcases, but for someone like me who has studied a lot on the Holocaust and has been to the museums in DC, NYC, Dallas and Yad Vashem, it feel as bit sterile and distant. This is not to say that the place does not have the authenticity, as you do walk under the “Arbeit Macht Frei” (“Work Will Make You Free”) at the main entrance and this was certainly an integral part of the death camp, and I am sure that for someone not as intimately familiar with the history of the place or the campaign against the Jews as I it would have tremendous power. I felt that the Birkenau camp
was much more powerful. It was the ruins of the camp where my people were held until they could be worked to death, and it has much more of the feel and aura of the history and pain of the place. This is where the overcrowded, insinuated, decrepit barracks and the disgusting, cramped, less-than-basic latrines are. Here you can walk around the remnants of the buildings and see the train tracks that come in through the guard building straight to the camp’s unloading dock where people were sorted into who should be worked to death and who should be gassed with the Zyklon B then and there. This place is, for me at least, much, much more powerful than the museum.
After the camp, Aaron and I both needed a bit to digest it and think, so we headed back into the town square when the bus got us back to grab something light for lunch. I suppose the experience should have affected me more, but having studied this stuff so much on the place, spending so little time at the part I really thought was better, and the fact that I have lost 2 grandmothers on this trip, I
Big head
Statue in the city center of Krakowwas pretty much as much on an even keel as before.
While in the town square, we saw a guy in a beer suit handing out vouchers for free beer, which is always fun. Then we went up and climbed the town hall tower, which was disappointing, as they stop you well short of the top and keep you inside. Then it was back to the hostel, where one of the girls I was talking to yesterday commented that I was in a surprisingly good mood after having come from Auschwitz. I declined to explain the above to her, just saying that since she really didn’t know me or my situation, I would let the comment slide and not take it personally.
Aaron and I were on our own again for dinner, so we headed out to a place suggested by the girl behind the desk at the hostel. Not as cheap, but very good Polish food. We had gone to dinner quite late, and got back a good bit after midnight, bumping into a group of about 6 American students who were on a 3-week trip for their business class through Prague, Krakow and Budapest. They were clearly having
a great time on their trip and were actually very excited to see some other Americans (actually, just the fact that we spoke English was enough for them). Then off to bed, as neither of us was feeling up for really going out and there was nothing doing at the bar downstairs.
Wednesday, May 28th:
After breakfast, officially checking out and leaving our bags at the hostel for the day, Aaron and I headed south to the Jewish Quarter of Krakow. The area itself was actually very cool. Lots of little synagogues and sites hidden around corners and in back alleys, and because the Jewish sites couldn't be as tall or as conspicious as the Christian buildings, they tend to be difficult to find, even when you see them on a map, so you often just stumble on them without really looking for them, or while looking for something else. Unfortunately, most of the actual syangogues we visited were somewhat dissappointing. They were either just museums or Jewish-themed art galleries, all just one room. We were both hoping for someting more along the lines of how churches and cathedrals are open to view as they were made, which gives
you a better understaning of what it was like to worship there, than just a space with blank walls and some museum pieces. It was definitely worth going, as the exhibits were good, but it was not really what we were hoping for. There was also an old cemetary that was wonderful to see. It was typical of the old Jewish cemeteries, as it had all the graves pushed so close together (along with a few famous rabbis), but the best thing about it was one of walls. It was carved in intricate detail with names and imagery. An absolutely beautiful wall.
After the Jewish sites, we found a little market with some vendors selling local stuff. Aaron grabbed some gifts for the family, and I picked up a mezzuzzah for my place in the fall. I bought it cheap off a guy, and ended up talking with the guy standing next to me, and when he found out I was from Texas, he was loving it, and handed me this old-style lighter (the thing was nowhere near being in working order, and had no fuel, but was still kinda cool). That is why I tell people I am from
Texas, not Connecticut - it gets a GREAT reaction every time.
After getting a few little knick-knacks for the Margolis family, we moved along and grabbed a quick bite to eat. Then it was off to the Wawel - the city's castle and palace. This was a nice little-detour, particularly as we first went in the wrong entrance and got to see the courtyard without having to go through security. It turned out that this was not such and advantage, as in doing that, we couldn't get to anywhere else in the palace (cant go through that checkpoint backwards), so we had to walk around and come in the right way. After making that 5min walk, we entered the normal way as the citadel opens up into a beautiful open space with museums and a cathedral near the outside walls. It whole grounds also overlook the city old city on 2 sides and the river on 2 more, making it a beautiful location. I decided I wanted to climb the cathedral tower, and after being assured that it was open, I bought a ticket to go up (neither of us had much cash right then, and Aaron didn't have a
student ID on him) and got to a bell. Not all the way up to the top, but to a bell. Now, to be fair, it was a big bell, and apparently the Polish people have some connection to it, but I was just a bit confused that they were all that excited to see a bell commissioned by King Sigmund (this was from back when Krakow was part of the Hungarian Empire). After that, and the pretty, but unimpressive cathedral nave itself, we went through security and took a tour of the royal apartments. Ok, we didn't really take a tour, we piggy-backed behind a largish group and got their guided tour. Very cool artwork in the apartments, lots of tapestries and paintings, as well as some cool ceilings, one of which was 144 recessed squared which one all had different faces in them (there are about 30 still remaining). After the castle, we did the Dragon's Den. Just a little cave you walk down a spiral staircase to, and then walk out the side of the hill the castle sits on; suppossedly this was the home of Smok, a dragon that terrorized the area by eating sheep, small
children and knights of insufficient fighting ability until being killed by Krak, the founder of the city. The really cool thing is that they built this metal statue of the dragon at the exit of the cave, and it breathes fire.
At this point, we were done with the Wawel and decided to sit down and relax on the hill overlooking the river for a few minutes. Then, we moved along and as it was past 5, all the museums were closed, and we decided to walk around a bit more of the city. We walked around the city square and saw a mini-golf extravaganze. Apparently, the European Seniors' Golf Tour is having a championship in Krakow at the start of June, and they wanted to get people excited and aware of it. So, they had 18 holes of mini-golf and an instructor on the full golf swing, as well as a simulator. After about 5 min with the instructor, where I saw that all of my bad habits had returned, I Aaron and I played some mini-golf - it was close for much of the round, but I pulled away at the end and won. Before we headed out
of town, Aaron was determined to have a bit of Polish vodka, so we made attempt one. The first place we went, a cafe on the square, I had a beer, and Aaron tried to order a vodka and got "Warka" beer. Next, we went to a place underground, also near the square, and grabbed dinner. We did manage to get a shot of vodka and a very nice dinner. Then, it was off to hostel to pick up our bags and to the train station to jump on the train to Bratislava.
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