Poland

Yesterday morning, we got off our sleeper train in Krakow at just past 6 in the morning, to another cold and dark day. Between the funeral preparations in Krakow for the president after tragedy last week in Katyn and then our visit to the Auschwitz concentration, it was a more somber experience than some of our other trips. However, it was an interesting time to be there, and we still enjoyed getting to know Krakow, a surprisingly beautiful city.

We had some time to kill before getting picked up by our tour guide for Auschwitz, so we wandered around the city for a few hours. It was definitely the earliest we’ve been awake and exploring! The old town is centered around the Rynek Glowny, the main marketplace, which is the largest in Europe at over 10 acres. Everything in Old Town is relatively close together, which makes it easy to explore by foot. Unsurprisingly, the square was pretty empty at 7 am, but they were setting up a large stage for the funeral that will take place tomorrow. Everywhere we looked, we saw Polish flags flying with a black ribbon attached.

Cold and tired, we were happy to climb into our van that would be taking us to Auschwitz, which is just over an hour drive from Krakow. On the way, we watched a chilling video about the camp, shot by a Soviet officer while liberating the remaining prisoners in January, 1945. For anyone who has the chance to go, I highly suggest visiting Auschwitz- while it was not a fun day, it was a very moving experience, and something I think everyone should see. Auschwitz was the largest of the German concentration camps, as it was actually made up of three- Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II-Birkenau, and Auschwitz III- Monotwitz, in addition to many satellite camps nearby. While it is difficult to put an exact number of people who were murdered there because those that were sent to the gas chambers immediately were never recorded, but it is estimated that over 1 million people lost their lives at Auschwitz, 90% of whom were Jews.

We started at Auschwitz I, the original camp. To enter, we had to pass under the same gate as the prisoners were forced to, which has the now notorious slogan on it “Arbeit Macht Freid”- Work will set you free. This camp has significant brick infrastructure, as it had been a Polish military base before the Germans occupied Poland. The outside of the camp looks very similar to how it did during the Holocaust, but many of the rooms indoors have been turned into museums, each block conveying a different purpose, but all conveying horror. Visitors aren’t allowed to take pictures inside.

The living conditions were hard to comprehend. We saw the bunks that prisoners were forced to sleep on, many people on a wooden bed. The hygienic conditions were terrible- just holes in the ground, that sometimes up to hundreds of people had only ten minutes to share. Some buildings showed the original torture (starvation, suffocation) cells, while others had hallways lined with pictures of the victims. The building that affected me the most though was the one with all the possessions of the victims, because even though they represented just a fraction of the total number, the amount was hard to wrap my head around. Because the Jews thought they were being relocated to start their lives in a new place, the families brought as many possessions with them as possible. One room showed all the suitcases, another all the shoes.

One was full of just hair- 35,000 victims worth of long hair, now grey from the chemicals they were murdered with and from the passage of time.

Our final stop at Auschwitz 1 was the gas chamber. While most of the gas chambers (2-5) were at Auschwitz II-Birkenau, the first is the only one left standing- the SS officers destroyed the rest when the Soviets were closing in on the camps to destroy the evidence. It was eerie to be in the very room where a thousand people died together, naked and unsuspecting.

After a short lunch break, we headed over to Auschwitz II-Birkenau, which was built to ease congestion at the main camp. The second camp was much, much bigger (300 wooden housing buildings), and was built from scratch by the prisoners, so it lacked the brick building infrastructure of Auschwitz I (Auschwitz I was originally a military base). It could accommodate many more prisoners, and was built as one of the main steps toward the Final Solution, the extermination of all Jews. The Nazi plans to extend the camp was cut short by the Soviet liberation.

We left the camps feeling exhausted, both physically and emotionally, and headed back on the bus towards Krakow. We had about 6 hours to kill before our train home, so headed out to explore. On our way to the Wawel Castle, we stumbled across a memorial for the Katyn massacre just outside the entrance, which has now become a memorial for the President and his wife. It was an emotional place, and many Poles had brought candles and flowers to pay their respects for their deceased leader. The castle itself was beautiful, and was fun to walk around. The president is planned to be buried in the Wawel Castle after his funeral tomorrow, which is controversial because historically only monarchs have been bestowed this honor.

After grabbing dinner (obviously, pierogies- baked Polish dumplings!), we checked out the Jewish Ghetto, which was where the Jews were originally sent as a “safe zone,” but then were deported to the camps. Before our train home, we went back to the Main Market square for some ice cream and wine to use up the rest of our Polish money, and then jumped back on the sleeper train (the same one as the night before!) to Prague. After getting in at 7 am this morning, we all promptly went back to sleep. It was a long day and a lot of traveling, but it was definitely a worth while experience and educational, and Krakow was a very cool city.

Today was our first really sunny day in Prague, so we have been taking advantage of it by going on long runs, doing laundry, and napping! Tomorrow we head on a three day excursion to South Bohemia and over to Moravia. We have heard tales of a wine cellar, but we will see!

Love and miss to my family and friends! Wish you all could be here on this adventure with me..