Krakow Trip #2...and a visit to Auschwitz

Mark needed to travel to Krakow for an all day meeting so...I tagged along too. We left Wed. night arriving to a cold Krakow...much different then when we were there 6 weeks ago.

Here is my favorite traveling companion...actually my only traveling companion! Mark had hoped to get on a train car with seats similar to an airline...and lucky us...we did! The ride was 3 hours and mostly in the dark as it gets dark here about 5:30pm... the journey by train was really quite relaxing.

While Mark was in meetings all day...I decided to take a tour and travel by bus to the town of Oswiecim (German equivalent...Auschwitz..and about 90 min. from Krakow) to see the concentrations camps of Auschwitz and Birkenau.

Above is the entry gate into the camp at Auschwitz...the words say "Work makes you free".

The camp has been preserved as a memorial and the blocks that we were able to see and go into are like a museum showing what happened here, what the people experienced and what was happening in a part of Poland during the early 1940's.

I took just a few pictures...mostly I listened to our excellent tour guide (a Polish young adult) share about the history and the people who came here who did not have a voice.

People were deported to the camps for many reasons...here is a picture of women and children in 1944....they were told they were going to be relocated but that did not occur.

On display are a number of areas showing personal items families brought with them when they were told they would be relocated. These items were collected and piled up. Here is a huge pile of kitchen and cooking equipment.

There are over 40,000 pairs of shoes here...and these are only a small fraction of the shoes collected.

Upon arrival men and women were immediately separated from each other...the first of many dehumanizing events.

Even though Auschwitz was itself a prison, there was a prison inside the camp. Internees were sent there for minor infractions such as not working fast enough or smoking. This is known as "the wall of death"...where prisoners were tortured and killed.

This is the area where all prisoners came after a full day of work for roll call. This would often be the hardest part of the day, especially during the winter because they often had to stand for long periods before the guards finished.

The worst times were when someone was discovered missing because they had escaped, or attempted to do so. On those occasions, 10 prisoners were randomly selected to be executed as punishment for the escape attempt.

The guards stayed in these small booths during the roll call so they were protected from the cold - unlike the prisoners who had no protection.

The barbed wire fences surround the compound...I was in a touring group (about 20 people)...since I had no friend or family with me...I had much time for reflection and learning.

After 2 hours at Auschwitz, we traveled 3K (about 2 miles) to the largest concentration camp... at Birkenau.

Here is a train car that would hold well over 50 people in each car. People were deported here, got off the train and then pass by inspectors and within 15-20 seconds a decision was made if they would labor here or not. This camp eventually became the largest extermination camp.

There are plaques in many languages similar to this one in English....

Ruins of one of the gas chambers and crematoriums...most were destroyed by Nazis.

Inside one of the women's blocks...sleeping quarters for camp members.

This was a very somber field trip/excursion, but I am grateful for the time I had to visit and learn about the place I have only read about. I left feeling very humbled and had a greater understanding and respect for this part of Poland's tragic history.

After returning...I walked up to Old Town and happened upon a very small Polish pottery shop. I wanted to end my day thinking of something cheerful....so I purchased a few very simple but beautiful pieces of pottery...reminding me of the great beauty there is to be found in this country!

We stayed at the Sheraton Inn...and had a short but lovely stay in this hotel situated across from the Vistula River and the Wawel Castle.

I loved traveling with Mark, learning and experiencing places I had only read about before.

We returned home Friday morning and Mark went straight to work. I attended a Polish cooking class (helped to make pierogis) and while walking back to Mark's office .... I saw blue sky and the familiar Cultural Palace...I knew I was home!

Our fall days are quite crisp...but the falling leaves, changing colors and golden trees are quite beautiful! We continue to dress in layers but try to appreciate the beauty that surrounds us and try not to think how really cold it is, and how much colder it is going to be!