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that Arbeit sign
see text for detailWarning – some visual or other content in this post may cause concern to some– the A* word in title does warn you….
This is written on 7 July in the mid-afternoon sitting at my comfortable 4 star hotel desk, and I don’t really care about dashing around this no doubt wonderful city right at the minute. Mostly cos there are still 6 ½ hrs of daylight anyway and I am not scheduling any important museums etc, that I know of anyway, cos I haven’t really done any reading etc. Does this sound like travel fatigue? Yes, 37 days on the road and a city change almost every 2nd night usually means you can almost barely remember where you have been. There is also physical tiredness of a certain lack of sleep – late nite blogging for youse often means that many times I have had to set an alarm to get up for the hotel breakfast before 10am – here at the Pod Rosa (Under the Rose) its 10.30am last call which is more civilized.
Philosophy aside, what of Krakow have I seen? Getting here from Olomouc on 5 July required a train change at Katowice (PL), and ironically
I am going back thru there, along with other places I have already been, to get to Budapest tomorrow night! The main thing about that train trip was that somewhere I managed to lose my wallet! That’s enough detail for most of you! Anyway cards all cancelled etc and ‘emergency’ 4th (?!) credit card in zippered bottom of big pack + ATM card came out – so still cashed up and solvent and only a few days to go (in Estonia in 09 this happened at the start of 6 weeks and EVERYthing went so had to get my bro to Western Union me twice – this is relatively scot-free then). So that was the 5th July done and dusted.
6 July was truly dreadful continuing wet weather. As the forecast for the following day 7th (which is in fact fine, sunny and warm) decided that probably the best thing to do was do an Auschwitz tour (as you do when the weather is cr@p). Fortunately after late breakfast, there was an English speaking tour available at 12 noon, as well as normal 9.30am, well and truly missed. Cash only to the hotel ( about $43 for 6 hr
some Auschwitz ashes
found by the Soviets - otherwise scattered or in the river trip) so had to go down the street to get some Polish cash which I probably needed anyway, although as only here for 3 days hoping to do everything on credit. Auschwitz, as named by Germans (or in Polish Oswiecim) is not close – about 78km away so not a short trip there. Which happened in a minibus with 2 Spanish & Polish friends (who spoke to each other in English) and a thick (accent) Scottie painter/decorator from Dundee with his 2 bonnie lads of 15/16 – his wife is Polish and they were spending 2 weeks here in Poland mostly visiting family. I had fortunately been able to borrow a brolly from the hotel, which naturally I did not then need and had to carry it around for 3 hrs. We joined up with another group who we had to wait for – so it was about 2pm before we set off with our English-speaking Polish guide. Almost immediately under the famous “Arbeit macht frei” ironwork sign – now a copy as the original was stolen in Dec. 2009 and found broken up in the woods or something. The original may therefore never make it back up there, as
the selection
see text for detail just too valuable, and will probably end up behind bullet-proof glass in a case somewhere.
I will not attempt to recount this whole 2 hour experience at Auschwitz which is itself quite gruelling, apart from the content of what you see. So just a few things. Women’s hair was shaved – the Nazis had 7 tonnes of human hair there as a result to use in other “products”. The whole thing was ruthlessly organised naturally. Although I have included a picture of an inmate, this virtually only happened for non-Jewish, who were simply sent direct to extermination and not documented at all really. See the “selection” pic at the railway siding – women and children on the left, men on the right. The Nazi “doctor” decided in one second whether you were going to die straightaway or be used for forced labour. We then went the 3km to Birkenau. They also had a large factory/chemical plant at Auschwitz2-Birkenau, which was the most ruthlessly efficient of the 2 camps. It occupied 128 ha!! -which is just huge. All the timber barracks (there were about 150 total – with up to 800 people in each) were taken down by the Soviets
spent ZyklonB cans
6 or 7 used per chamber as they wanted the wood – only a few have been preserved. So after all this back at the hotel at 6.30pm.
Having seen hardly anything of the Old Quarter (still haven’t really – just chillin’) went out for dinner. Having read some descriptions in the In Your Pocket guide ended up at Wierzynek, just off the main square. This opened in 1364 with quite a party – attended by 5 kings and 9 princes! And subsequently has hosted de Gaulle, Bush, Castro, not to mention Kate Moss (isn’t she anorexic or something?? – what was the point?). So naturally Mr Mink had to give it a try. Prices did not seem that bad – but I think I am still doing the sums in Czech! It cost 250Zl which is about $85 so rather more than above average – at least 2-3 times normal rates in Krakow. Anyway the food – entrée of asparagus with a little pile of chopped up tartare tomato and salmon. Quite light – with a glass of Hungarian reisling. Then the saddle of roe deer with juniper berry sauce – and a couple of pierogi (dumplings) and some potato mash. With this a
glass of Hungarian red Egri whatever. And a nice dessert of a plum and chocolate cake with some sorbet. And a glass of Tokaj No.4 Hungarian sweet white (instead of that blighted coffee).
7 July (today) had breakfast then thought I had better organise onward progress to Budapest. Train times told me about 11 hours - and double/triple train changes – if during the day. The trouble is the Tatra mountains of Slovakia are in between so the trains tend to go backwards (for me anyway – thru places in Czech I have been, not to mention Bratislava again) in a large southwestern circuit. So decided that as not yet done a night sleeper, one more “adventure” to try. Leaves here at 21.57 and into Budapest at 08.35 – hopefully with no train changes. But I think the carriages get hooked up and undone at a couple of middle of the night places, hopefully not with me having to run around in my jammies (not). A site tells me that this is 625km/10h38m journey. By contrast the overnight bus from here (sold out anyway – arrives at unsociable 6am!) is only 395km/7h30m – I assume it goes over the
he had a name
not a number (not likely Jewish then) Taras direct. So that is sorted and I have all tomorrow to run around here, like I am (not) right now. I did however replace my wallet with the campest thing ever (see snap) – ideal purse for a 14 year old girl – a High School Musical 3 thing which did however cost only 5Zl (about $1.80). It works for the short term but might raise eyebrows in those snooty restaurants Mr Mink tends to frequent!
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