Krakow

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After going the wrong way because of roadwork's, we arrived in Krakow. The hotel was in a narrow street with double tram rails taking up most of the road. Cars parked on both side. We managed to squeeze in between cars but sticking out. We were searching where to go, here came the tram, ding ding ,he actually chased us through the street. Found a way to make a U-turn. We came out of that okay. Now for parking. We found it. A car wide next to the Hotel. Finally we had the car parked. Everything was close by so no need to use the car. The Hotel is close to the old city. Krakow was not bombed as much as Warsaw, we find it remind us of Paris with it's building style. Except the price of dinner, you can eat well for $20. including a large beer. We took a golf buggy to go to Schindlers factory. Again the photos will tell the story. But seeing actual photos of laughing German soldiers, cutting the beards and hair of Jews is horrifying. Next day we went to Auschwitz and Birkenau. It is an hour's drive away from Krakow. It was established in 1940 for Polish political prisoners. The Nazis used it for prisoners of war from lots of nationalities. Also Jews. The Gate to the camp has a slogan: Arbeit macht frei. Means work brings freedom. About 1.5 million of Jews and among others Russians and Gypsies died or were gassed or hanged here. There is a pit filled with ashes of Jews. The Nazis tried to destroy the evidence towards the end of the war but enough was left for evidence. Again photos will tell the story. It is a huge complex, it makes you quiet walking here. The old and Mothers with children went straight to the gas chambers after arriving. What a horrible legacy. It certainly affected us.

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