Krakow, Poland–an amazingly educational trip

Our latest adventure was a trip to Krakow, Poland.  It seems random, but we found a great deal online and had a bit of time, so off we went!

The gate at Auschwitz which means "Work Results in Freedom"

Our first day there, we signed up to take a tour of Auschwitz and Birkenau–concentration camps just an hour’s drive from Krakow.  In fact, most of Krakow’s Jewish population ended up there.  The bus ride to the camps included a documentary on the liberation of the camps, so it really helped set the scene for what we were about to see.

Guard House

We stepped off the bus and there it was:  Auschwitz.  I read Night by Eli Weisel a couple of times when I was in school.  It was humbling to be visiting the same place where he suffered so much.  The craziest part was knowing that literally a million other Jews suffered in a very similar way, but didn’t live to tell their stories.

Auschwitz is now a museum dedicated to telling the stories of the victims.  We saw suitcases marked with names, eye glasses, shoes, human hair that was shaved from the victims.  We even saw a piece of cloth made from the hair.

Suitcases...

After chemical tests were run on the cloth, they found traces of the gases used to kill the women.  What was most striking was how much the Jews believed they were being relocated for jobs–not to a death camp.  This was evident in what they brought:  shoe polish, combs, suits, etc.  The people marched into the gas chambers believing they would come out.  We saw the death wall, where more than 10,000 people were shot execution style.  There was also a small jail within the camp, which included standing cells (up to 10 people would be kept in a tiny room, with no way to sit down) and a cell with no ventilation where people would suffocate to death.

Gas Chamber

The most eerie part of our tour of Auschwitz was actually walking through a gas chamber.  Knowing we were standing in a place where tens of thousands of people died was very powerful.  Looking up, I saw the openings in the ceiling where the gas was administered.   On the way out of the “crematorium,” we passed by the ovens where the bodies would have been burned.  Our tour guide told us that her grandparents lived about 30 km away from Auschwitz during the war and on windy days, they could smell the flesh burning in the fires at the camps.  Horrible.

Tracks leading into Birkenau

Our second stop on this tour was Birkenau a much larger camp.  Birkenau had 4 crematoriums (gas chambers) all of which were destroyed around the time of the liberation.  The train tracks still run through the camp, complete with an original cattle car that was used to transport the victims to the camp.  We took a quick lap around this large camp, saw a memorial, and then headed back to the bus.  It was quite a sobering day, so we grabbed a late lunch, and wandered about the city square, which has been around since the 13th century and houses a beautiful market full of all kinds of local crafts.

Main Square

The next day, we were off to explore the city of Krakow.  In the morning, we took a free city tour (highly recommend if you go to Krakow) where the tour guides make their living off of tips.  The city tour lasted 2.5 hours and included everything from the main market square, to the medieval city walls, and even the Wawel Castle where the Wawel dragon once lived.  The tour was a lovely overview of the history of Poland and of Krakow.

In the Jewish Quarter, in an area used to film Schindler's List

We grabbed a local lunch (delicious) then headed back to the meeting point for another free tour:  their Jewish tour.  This tour took us to the Jewish quarter of town, which was full of synagogues, cemeteries, and traditional Jewish restaurants.  Then, we made the walk over the bridge (just like the Jews did in the 1940’s) to the Jewish ghetto.  It’s worth mentioning at this point that Schindler’s factory from the famous movie Schindler’s list was located in Krakow.  As a result, most of the movie was filmed in the city.  We walked over the bridge the Jews walked over when they were made to move to the ghetto and saw where many of the horrific scenes were shot.  Some of the wall around the ghetto still remain.  Although Schindler’s factory is no longer standing, we went to the sight where there is now a museum.

At "Singer"

After that tour, we had a drink at a bar where all of the tables are Singer sewing machines, then had some local “Jewish fare” at one of the local restaurants then went to listen to some jazz.

The next morning, we were off to Wawel Castle!  This is where the elected Polish king reigned and it is home to one of the most outstanding collection of tapestries in the world!  We toured the State rooms, the royal private apartments, and even had a peak in the chapel.

John with St. Mary's in the background

Then, we were off to St. Mary’s–the flagship church of the main square.  You can also see the inside of the church in Schindler’s List.  It was beautiful–and it imagine it was built in the 1200’s–amazing!!

After some Polish tapas including some amazing pierogi, we were on the way to the airport to head back to London.

Thanks for reading everyone!!