This past weekend I spent quite a bit of time digging deep into my Jewish roots and the history of the Holocaust that we will NEVER FORGET. Although my main purpose of going to Poland was to visit Aushwitz and learn more about the Holocaust, I soon discovered that Krakow has a lot to offer.
Thursday May 3rd: Steph and I left our apartment quite early to catch a bus, a bus and a plane from the ghetto budget airport of Ciampino in Rome. I obviously got frisked through security and then the four of us (Hannah and Taryn-class friends, Steph and I) boarded the plane to Krakow. We landed in Krakow around 5:30pm and soon found directions to our hostel. We walked down a main road filled with animals and broken down houses to the train station near the airport. We boarded the train which then took us to the train station in town. We arrived and soon discovered that everything was closed, I mean everything. Following directions to our hostel we took a nice 15 minute stroll with our suitcases and arrived at Mundo Hostel. First walking down an alley and seeing a sign that said “Hostel in annex” sketchy. But, our hostel was fabulous. Beautifully decorated with a great receptionist named Anita who was extremely kind and pointed out great restaurants to go to for dinner. She also informed us that it was a national holiday in Poland and that is why everything was closed, of course. Steph and I went upstairs to our two person single room named Hawaii. Equipped with beads, a palm tree sticker mural on the wall and bamboo, exciting. We all decided we were hungry and then walked towards Wawel castle to one of Anita’s recommendations, Pod Wawelem where we got pickles and sauerkraut instead of the bread, like Italy and perogis as an appetizer to share. We all ordered the same meal of grilled chicken, potatoes, rice and cabbage, so Polish of us. Cherry vodka shots were complementary after-dinner drinks, a nice shot of Robitussin? No thank you. We soon found out that the Polish currency (zlotkys) are dirt cheap. Our dinner cost less than 10 dollars a person, wooo. So we decided to treat ourselves to some dessert and walked into Old Town Square which was bumping. Fire dancers were performing, little stands were set up and there was a delicious ice cream stand open (also known as Lody) calling my name. Lody, is a very popular treat in Poland and there are Lody stands everywhere. My cone of chocolate chip was less than one dollar, 68 cents to be exact. After dessert and our lovely stroll we headed back to the hostel to get a good night shlufy.
Friday May 4th: We woke up early due to lovely construction outside and Steph and I walked to Starbucks in the train station. What a treat. We then had a delicious breakfast downstairs in the hostel made by Anita and the other hostel workers. Crepes, cheese and toast sandwiches, cereal, fresh veggies and bread, what a spread. Also complimentary coffee and tea all day in the hostel, score! We had a family style breakfast at the table with a Chinese family and then walked towards the Jewish Ghetto to go to the Schindler’s factory Museum exhibit. We first saw the Jewish memorial of chairs to symbolize the Jewish community that was once in Krakow which was very moving. When we ended up at the museum the exhibit was focused on Krakow under Nazi Occupation, a very intense and well-made exhibit that was just made in 2010. The museum took us through the history and showed many details of the war. The museum also is located in Schindler’s factory so the gates and Schindler’s office are actually original which was very neat to see as well. We then made our way to the Jewish quarter which we walked through before Steph and I went to Speedy Edy’s pancakes in Old town Square for lunch. I had crepes with peaches, cottage cheese and whipped cream, yummy. It soon started to downpour and since at this point Steph and I were walking around the area we scurried into a coffee shop to dry off with some hot drinks. We each ordered the Red Sympathy, made from Roobios tea from an espresso machine, white chocolate and whipped cream. Once the rain died down we returned to the hostel to relax and eat some potato latkes made by the hostel staff for dinner. Dinner was very nice and we met a nice English man with a very thick accent. After dinner, Steph and I took a 20 minute walk to the local movie theatre to see a foreign film, aka American Pie Reunion (in english..) It was so nice to see a movie, especially for a 4.50 USD movie ticket, insane. After our lovely movie date we walked back to the hostel and called it an early night.
Saturday May 5th: Today was devoted to our trip to Aushwitz. After Starbucks and breakfast we were picked up by the tour, See Krakow and taken with a group of others to Aushwitz and Birkenau. Upon arrival we were greeted by our tour guide and we started our guided tour of the Aushwitz Museum first. Although we spent hours at Aushwitz and Birkenau, I am going to give a quick description of my experience and believe that everyone should visit Aushwitz one day. Aushwitz was nothing like what I expected, although we arrived on the nicest day in Poland, I still was not expecting what I saw. Bright red brick buildings made Aushwitz look like a community center opposed to a Concentration camp. There were “swimming pools” for the purpose of water reserves although used as a way to disguise the horror that Aushwitz was and is today. Disturbing living habits, countless men and women piled into rooms, disgusting sanitary conditions and a gas chamber and crematorium that is hard to imagine actually in use. Aushwitz is exactly how it was when the war ended. Although turned into a museum the hanging post still stands where the first “owner” of Aushwitz was hung facing the camp that he ran. The exhibit shows piles upon piles of baby shoes that were found as well as suitcases, cosmetics, clothing, tallit and worst of all, hair. An entire room filled with dead hair of woman and children that was cut off after being cycloned to death in the gas chambers. The reality was there, the people and their belongings were visible to the public eye and the truth of Aushwitz was even clearer. After the museum exhibit we went on the bus to Birkenau or Aushwitz II. Birkenau is mostly destroyed since the Nazis attempted to hide any evidence. The crematoriums and Gas chambers are in ruins and a memorial stands in between two of them. Birkenau is 3 times the size of Aushwitz with many more barracks and a ton more land. A double wire fence surrounds the land (as does it in Aushwitz I) and guard towers are placed throughout. Although the horror of the Holocaust was right in front of me as I walked through the camp with vivid images of the past, as I stood by the ruins of the gas chamber a baby deer frolicked by. I’d like to think that this baby deer running through Birkenau, symbolizes the Jewish religion living on today. Although this has happened to us, we are still standing and have come so far. Although my mom would like to think that Bubie was coming to say “Hi”, I know she would never want to return or see a place like Aushwitz, but that she was watching over me and was with me every step I took through the camps.
After our time at Aushwitz and Birkenau we returned to the hostel to relax and go out to dinner. A nice dinner concluded our evening and we had a nice talk with others at the hostel from Australia about their travels and lives.
Sunday May 6th: Waking up for Starbucks and breakfast again, we headed to the Jewish museum in Krakow. An exhibit showing pictures of Poland throughout the years and the Jewish religion. There were tons of pictures explaining Jewish life and it was very educational and interesting. There is so much more to learn about Judaism and the Holocaust and I hope one day I will have the opportunity to continue learning. After the museum we met a man that owned the Bagel shop next door. He told us that he had the only bagel shop in all of Poland (a restaurant solely dedicated to bagels) although the bagel was founded in Krakow. We didn’t eat lunch there and instead went to the Hard Rock Cafe for some good ol’ nachos and sandwiches before heading to the airport. We walked around the market in Old town square and picked up some fun souveniers for real cheap. We then returned to the hostel to head to the airport and head back to Rome!
Arrivederci!
Ilana
ilanalerman 