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Published: July 19th 2010
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July 18 - Am getting tired of being so hot and sticky that my arm sticks to the plastic tablecloth as I type this blog. Apparently tomorrow will be cooler if I can make it to Gdansk. Today I got up early to have breakfast, finish packing and hit the day trip. Turns out I could do it without being crazy quiet because all the other seven people were already out of the room by 6:45. The four guys had a 3:30am bus to catch, and in the true spirit of being a young, idiotic boy, they first spread their belongings all over the room for several days and then proceeded to pack them up at 2:30am. Earplugs helped a lot. I don't know where the others went, except for a guy who sleeps in the common room since it is somewhat cooler. I had a classic breakfast - yougurt and ramen noodles (separately), checked my email, and then finished getting ready. I caught the 8:35am train to a small town, if it is even a town, called Paneriai, where there is a memorial for the Jews from Vinius that were killed during the Holocaust. They killed about 3/4 of the
Jewish population here, and buried and burned the bodies in Paneriai, where the killings were also performed. When I got off the train, I had to cross three sets of tracks like a hillbilly just to get to the "station". From there, I had to walk about a kilometer to the site, which is in the woods. It was a pleasant stroll around, as no one else was there. At all. Yet, I was looking into mass graves pits, so the pleasantness was quite a bit reduced when you thought about why you were there. It didn't take very long, and then I went back to the station to see if I could make the next train. Yes, I could but it was an hour in coming. So I just sat in the shade and relaxed.
From Paneriai, I took another train to Trakai, a town with a fantasyland type castle on a lake. Actually, the town itself has lakes all around, on all sides. I could barely stay awake on the train, and then opened my eyes to a stop with th word "trakai" but it was preceded by another word. I was wondering if I should get
off, but it's a popular place and no one else got off, so I figured it was the outskirts. Luckily I was right. When we got to the real Trakai, I walked through the town with a fresh coke that was hard to drink before it got warm. I saw some churches and some old wooden buildings, and then I sat by the water and had some of the snacks I brought. Afterwards I continued onwards toward the castle. You have to cross two bridges to get there. It was in ruins for many years and then was restored in that last century, back to it's former glory. It houses a large museum, which gives you a chance to move through the castle as you move from exhibit to exhibit. I spent about an hour looking around and taking pictures. Then I decided to head back into town, especially as I saw there was a thunderstorm coming. As I was walking the winds picked up noticeably and I decided I better get to the bus station as soon as possible, since it was closer than the train. But it was a mini bus and seemed crowded, so I ran over
to the train station (the train was leaving five minutes later than the bus). I managed to buy a ticket and get on just in time. And then it started to pour! So lucky! The ride was uneventful, and I tried not to doze too much.
Back in town I used the internet and tried to see if my friend Rachel was available for a late lunch/early dinner, but it turns out she was stuck in class all day. She has a function now and then perhaps I will see her before leaving this evening. Instead, I went to have some dinner and get some snacks for the long ride to Gdansk. My (hopefully air condioned) bus leaves at 9pm and arrives in Warsaw at 6am (after a time change back an hour). Then I'd like to hop a train to Gdansk straightaway. I've booked a hostel there for three nights, and I am hoping it is a quietish one. I'm getting to the point where I would really really like to stay in my own room for a change, and am beginning to look into possibilties. I think Poland will have some affordable options, but I am still
so cheap that it might not matter. 😊
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steve schweitzer
non-member comment
hi
Jen, You are clearly one of the best travel-addicted people I've ever known, much moreso than me (we met in Arrica, Chile, 2006). Is there anyplace you haven't been yet? I went to Tonga for 1st time last Dec, and hope to return to Bali (3rd time) this year. Wishing you good travels and empty hostels. Steve