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round-the-world in 2005

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Poland

Sept 9 - Sept 12, 2005

We are having a great time in Eastern Europe, things are much cheaper and it is deep with history.

Building through the arch

09 Sep 2005 Krakow, Poland

Broken Trolley
We had a very early start with an eight hour train to Krakow. When arriving we got another lesson in why we should book accommodation in advance! You never know how busy a place will be. After more than two hours of walking the streets, and after our little grandma trolley broke down, we finally found a nice apartment, at a reasonable price. Clare’s back will be damaged soon after having to carry both bags. Later in the day we took a walk into the town centre, which has the largest town square in all of Europe, and it is very big. There is a large market building in the centre of it, with an antiques market next to it. There is a clock tower, and a double spired church. It has a nice feel, with not too many tourists, and some of the oldest buildings in Europe. It is one of the only towns not to get destroyed in WW II. For dinner, we found a great restaurant serving some delicious traditional food.

Kracow Castle

10 Sep 2005 Krakow, Poland

Karol
Rob rested again in the morning, while Clare headed back to the main square to visit St Mary’s Cathedral, with its unusual matt painted interior and glorious wood carved alter. There are so many churches in this small town centre, I had to visit a couple more. Heading back home to get Rob, we went to explore the Wawel Castle. Thankfully it is on a not-so-big hill. There are some museums to visit, and the Cathedral where Pope John Paul II served most of his time, and many royals are buried. It reminded us a little of Westminster Abbey in London, with the many tombs and chapels dedicated to certain royals. Then we ventured to the Jewish quarter, where we went to a museum of Jewish history in Krakow.

Bread rolls

11 Sep 2005 Krakow, Poland

Poles apart
Rob had to have some more rest this morning, while Clare did some internet, and organised an extra night at our cozy little apartment. We need to stay an extra night as Rob is still not better, and needs more time for repair. After lunch we organised our train for the next leg of our journey, and the transport for our day trip to Auschwitz. Rob also was able to get out and see the Cathedral and market square in town. We enjoyed a home cooked meal for dinner.

Railway tracks

12 Sep 2005 Auschwitz, Poland

Work sets you free
We took a bus to Auschwitz today. The whole concentration camp is a museum now, where we did a tour, of the first camp plus the second purpose built enormous camp, Birkenau. What a moving day. The sheer enormity of these camps is amazing. The living conditions must have been atrocious, and the gas chambers were very scary. The museum contains piles of hair, shoes, brushes, and other items belonging to the 1.4 million exterminated Jews. We caught a bus back and had dinner at our favourite restaurant from a few nights ago. We filled our time with internet while waiting for our overnight train to Prague. A very squashy six bed sleeper cabin, but comfortable enough for us to get a good sleep.

 

next we move on to the Czech Republic.

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