December 21, 2011
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Poland.
Back in the Netherlands! Last weekend, Jamie and I went to Krakow, Poland for a short weekend trip. First, let me say, next to Western European prices, Poland is CHEAP! OMG…so cheap!!! I wanted to cry, it was that cheap. Like…American prices cheap. Sigh…God Bless you, Poland…God bless you.
Krakow was amazing! A mixture of beautiful architecture from Austria-Hungarian rule, combined with Soviet Communist regime architecture. Definitely full of diachotamies, but absolutely gorgeous (especially the churches and synagogues).
We got in late Friday from our flight, and basically just checked into our apartment (we nearly always rent an appartment rather than a hotel, because we like to make some of our own meals, and it’s usually cheaper). After checking in and getting unpacked, we headed off to find some dinner. Found a fabulous restaurant a few doors down from the apartment and had a great dinner of pierogis and goose. To die for…absolutely amazing country, down-home food. Bliss.
Saturday morning, we headed off to our city tour with a local guide. This was the first time we’ve ever done a guided tour of a place we’ve visited, but I really enjoyed it! It was only a half day, but VERY informative. We saw Schindler’s factory, Kazimierz (the Jewish section, pre-holocaust), and then the Jewish Ghetto where all the Jews were forced to live prior to being moved to the concentration camps. We also saw the royal palace, and the local cathedral where Pope John Paul II would give sermons when he was the Bishop of Krakow. Overall, it was a great way to see the city with a local, and our guide had a PhD in Polish history, so she was super informed and a great speaker/storyteller. At the end, our guide took us to one of her favorite restaurants, and Jamie and I indulged in more fabulous Polish food…again, super cheap.
After the city tour, we headed back to the apartment, and I promptly took a nap. This past week with work has been madness leading up to winter shutdown, so I was seriously tired. After my nap, we went to the grocery store to get some munchies for dinner, since we had a huge lunch. We went back to the apartment, ate a sandwich or so for dinner, and just hung out for the rest of the evening. Very chilled and relaxed, which was a nice balance.
Sunday, we hopped on a local bus to go to Auschwitz and Birkenau (Auschwitz II). I had built myself up for this, because I’m known to get weepy and highly emotional, and I knew this place would be depressing. I was surprised that it was AS bad as I had anticipated. It still depressed the hell out of me, don’t get me wrong, but it wasn’t as gut wrenching as I imagined. I was completely fine, until we got to one of the barracks that had been converted into a permanent memorial with articles from the Holocaust victims. Even that wasn’t too horrible…hundreds of pairs of glasses in piles, hundreds of pieces of luggage tossed away. And then…the shoes. The damn shoes got me. Piles, and piles of tiny baby shoes. And…at that point, I nearly lost it. Seeing all those little tiny shoes was just horrifying for me. I can’t even fathom how someone could do that to anyone, let alone a child. And yet…right there in front of me, was proof. Hundreds of pieces of proof. So incredibly sad. Birkenau wasn’t much better…just hundreds of barracks where the Jews slept on straw because being gassed or worked to death. Yeah…basically, Sunday was a big emotional suck.
After the emotional suck, we went back to Krakow and feasted on more amazing Polish food. Are you sensing a theme here? Yeah…I ate some serious amounts of food in that city. Each and every piece more delectable than the last.
Monday, we woke late, packed up, and checked out. We strolled the city some more, went to a big mall to look around for an hour or so, ate some lunch (Italian this time…had to mix it up) and then headed to the airport to fly back to Eindhoven. Overall, Krakow was a great city to visit! I would highly recommend it for anyone wanting to see a bit of Eastern Europe…very affordable, easy to get around, beautiful and haunting.
So…that’s my recap for Poland! Hope you all enjoyed! Feel free to ask any questions if you’re interested!
XOXOXO,
K.
Comments (2)
Never been to Poland myself. And it’s not even very far from here.
that was very interesting but the stories of the shoes was very sad. I would love to go there sometime, although I don’t think I would get an apartment, after all I don’t cook and when away from home I always like to try the local food.