Krakow, Poland, Part One

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On Thursday, we checked out of our Katowice hotel and headed to Krakow. We got aride from Adam, another work collegue. He had got us to Krakow in record time, driving 160 km/hr when he could.

It was dinnertime for us when we arrived so we sought out Momo, a Tibetan and Indian restaurant in the formerly Jewish Kazimierz neighborhood across the Vistula River from our hotel. We were in heavan! The food was very good and it was spicy! That made us happy since Polish food, at least what we have eaten so far has been quite bland. I had some momos which are steamed Tibetan dumplings stuffed with vegetables. Anant had the thali special. The chai was fantastic and I would go back there just for that! Speaking of food, we have seen several "milk Bars". These are
leftovers from the communist era when the government subsidized cheap meals for the people. The government still does just that but apparently the fare available today is much tastier.

On Friday, Anant commuted to and from work in Katowice with another collegue. I spent the day walking around. Our hotel is located across the river from the former Jewish district (Kazimierz)in an area known as Podgorze. Podgorze was made into a walled Jewish ghetto by the Nazis during the war. Before WWII, about 65,000 Jews lived in Krakow. Today, there are only about 200. Just a half mile from the hotel stands the vacant building which was Oskar Schindler's factory. Anyone who has seen the Holocaust movie, Schindler's List, will recognize this name of a Krakow businessman who tried hard to save the lives of his Jewish workers. Portions of the movie were actually filmed here. The building is near a high-rise apartment complex and some shops and if it were not labelled, could be easily missed.

Tommorrow's agenda includes Old Town, Wawel Castle and the Main Market Square of Krakow.... and possibly a trip to the Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi death camp located about an hour's drive from here. We still have to decide if we want to visit or not. Its a required visit for Poland's school children and the ones we spoke to about it all said it was a deeply troubling place to visit.

We have only one day left to spend in Krakow as we will be taking the night train south to Budapest, Hungary on Saturday night. Aye, what to do? Well, we'll certainly let you know what we decide......

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Photos

Kazimierz
The former Jewish district of Krakow called Kazimierz.

Vistula River
The Vistula River looking from Podgorze to Kazimierz.

Schindler factory
The Oskar Schindler factory building, now empty.