We had a great trip to Krakow - an old city in Poland, famous for many reasons, including being the home of Pope John Paul II, the tragedy of World War II Nazi concentration camps (where Poles and Jews were persecuted, amongst others), as well as for its rich, long and colorful history.
It ended up being one of our favorite European cities. See for yourself ...
The huge (largest in Europe) medieval market square - the Cloth Market Hall in the foreground, and St Mary's Basilica in the background. Every hour, on the hour, a bugler plays half a song from the top of the other - only half of the song to commemorate the bugler who was shot in the throat while raising the alarm by an invader's arrow centuries ago.
Pope John Paul's home when he was the archbishop of Poland - he would return when he was Pope and sit at the upper window talking with the locals - a large photo of him is there now ...
Inside the walls of the fabulous (and very busy) of Wawel Castle. Tourists everywhere - never felt claustrophobic in a cathedral before ...
We were surprised by the emphasis on culture in Krakow - one evening we stumbled across a fantastic, free open air opera event complete with huge mechanical contraptions, fireworks and people swinging from cranes sprinkling glitter over the crowds. A full moon rose over the buildings and we had a most memorable and magical evening.
Krakow is also close to the Auschwitz complex - and we felt it important to visit and experience this side of Poland's history. When Germany declared war, it quickly invaded Poland. The Polish people fought back, but were severely outnumbered and without international help, within weeks, the country had fallen. The Polish people were targeted, alongside Jews, gypsies, homosexuals, etc.. Auschwitz was the first camp (a converted prison), but it soon couldn't handle the deportations coming from all over Europe, so more camps were built. We visited the original Auschwitz plus Birkenau,another huge camp in the area.
The entrance to the camp - the sign above the gate means "Work sets you free" - a terrible joke to the majority of people entering here that were either killed immediately or worked to death.
Empty gas canisters used in the gas chambers.
The piles of possessions was terrible sad - many people were tricked into believing they were simply being relocated and so brought supplies to start a new life - this was, of course, an evil lie that was used to help calm the deportees until they could be dealt with
One of the 'shower' rooms = gas chambers. People were given hooks to put their clothes on, and sometimes bars of soap and towels, to trick them into thinking they were taking a shower. It took about twenty minutes to die from gas suffocation. Fellow inmates then had to remove the bodies, remove valuables, and cremate the bodies.
The crematorium
One of the cattle trucks used to transport deportees - 70 - 100 people per car.
Overall, we were really glad to have experienced and witnessed this. Very difficult, but so important to remember and respect.
OK, on a brighter note, evening in Krakow was fantastic - we loved grabbing a beer and watching the world go by at one of the outdoor bars
Krakow is also home of Oscar Schindler, of Schindler's List fame. So, another important place to visit. Again, not so easy.
This is Ghetto Square to commemorate the sight of the Jewish ghetto established the Nazis.
The factory.
So there are some of the highlights from our trip to Krakow, Poland - definitely worth visiting.
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