Wawel Hill, Krakow -13 April 2009

On the last morning we had time to squeeze in a visit to the State Rooms in the Castle on Wawel Hill. Because it was a national holiday most of the visitor areas in the Castle were closed but fortunately the State Rooms were open and free of charge. The only complication was a limited supply of tickets as the number of visitors per day is strictly limited. The later, holiday, opening and our need to be at the airport to catch our return flight meant that we really had to be in the first group through. There were two ticket office locations and so we stationed ourselves at one each to ensure the bases were covered. Getting four tickets for the two of us was not a problem as we knew that one of the Kiwi couples we met on the Auschwitz trip was also going to arrive seeking tickets so that they could make the same flight.

After joining them for the tour we went our separate ways for our last look at Krakow before heading to the airport and what must have been one of the smoothest and quickest departures we have enjoyed. From the centre of Krakow till we were in the air was less than 90 minutes.

Krackow Old Town - 12 April 2009

Last night's restaurant was very near the starting point for the Jewish Quarter walk that took us past a number of Synagogues, not all in current use, a couple of Jewish cemeteries and then over the river to the area where the Jews were forced into a ghetto in WWII and then cleared out and deported to death camps. Two short sections of the ghetto wall remain.

A short walk from the ghetto is the factory of Oskar Schindler, immortalized in the book and film Schindler's List. Currently, the factory is being converted into a museum to commemorate the life and times of the Jews in that period.

Our afternoon walk followed the Royal Route from the Barbican, at one end of the old city, down to the river by way of the Market Square, the largest square in Europe, and the castle on Wawel Hill overlooking the river Wista.

On the way we popped into a number of churches, all richly embellished as is typical of many European Catholic churches.

Auschwitz - 11 April 2009

What can one write about Auschwitz that has not already been said? It seemed incongruous to be visiting this scene of unspeakable horror and death on a beautiful spring day with the fresh new spring growth, the symbol of life and a future, budding all around us.

It is a full day excursion so we were up and on our way to the bus station early to catch the express bus from Krakow, only to find a long queue at the only open ticket office and then find all the seats sold. The next bus was 50 minutes later so we spent the time nattering to two other Kiwi couples before setting off for the 90-minute journey. We were still in time for the 11 a.m. English tour with Berta, a wonderful guide.

Auschwitz-I was a men only camp using an existing army barracks so was relatively palatial compared to the rigours of Auschwitz-II or Birkenau. How anyone survived winter in that bleak place in those camp buildings is a mystery. Prefabricated stables not holding the 52 horses they were designed for but rather 400+ prisoners, three levels deep, in incomprehensible conditions is just too hard for us to imagine or identify with.

The dehumanising processes, controls and conditions, graphically recounted by the guide and the display boards, are simply too much to absorb and while the information is processed by the brain the horror cannot really be understood. There were no trees breaking the view then, there was no grass underfoot, there was only death for the majority and a 10km walk each way to the work sites for the 'healthy' ones.

The strength of the human instinct to survive is evidenced in so many ways: whether in the pile of bodies under the air vents as they clambered on the bodies of others for the last gasps of fresh air in the gas chambers; or in the motivation of the capos who would treat their fellows more harshly than the SS in the hope of buying a few more days; or those who felt themselves fortunate to have the task of cleaning the latrines and so on. With the certain knowledge of the finality of the solution waiting for them in the gas chambers at the far side of the camp there were those who hoped with a hope so far beyond hope that the new day might bring life instead of death and so endured for one more day and one more day. Why they simply did not give up is truly something that we, in our cushy western world, cannot begin to understand.

The mentality of the Germans captors is also hard to comprehend. Apart from the obvious question as to how any rational person could be part of such barbarity, the fact that they would photograph and record the name, date of birth, date of arrival at the camp and date of death of a prisoner that was to be killed that same day is mind-boggling. Later the numbers murdered precluded any such record keeping but did not stop them collecting the toothbrushes, hair brushes, shaving brushes and so on.

But soon it was time to return and the bus timetable was not running the full service so it was a toss-up which bus to try for. We got back to Auschwitz-I in time for the 16:20 but it was full so we decided not to stand for 90 minutes. We had another look around the camp and then set off for the 17:30 bus. Before long there was at least two bus loads of people standing around and certainly not in a orderly British queue. I had stationed myself at the kerbside where I estimated the bus door would be and we stood and waited. Sure enough the door was directly in front of me when the bus arrived and we smuggly took our seats while the melee outside the door attempted to board the bus.

Eventually we left, but less than five minutes later the bus died and we had to wait for a replacement. Now those standing in the aisle had a distinct advantage over those of us in the seats as we scrambled from one bus to the next. Fortunately we secured seats again, just.

Dinner that evening continued the Jewish theme as we ate in the old Jewish quarter at a restaurant called “Once Upon A Time in Kazimierz”. Walls have been removed to amalgamate four old Jewish establishments: The General Store; a Tailors workroom and shop; a carpentry workshop and a Grocery store. Each section is furnished and decorated to reflect its original use giving the restaurant a wonderful atmosphere; complimented by the delicious food.

Wieliczka Salt Mine - 10 April 2009

A new country beckoned so we set off for our first visit to Poland, flying in to Krakow. With the Easter weekend meaning most attractions would be shut for one or two days we had to plan carefully to be sure we could see all we wanted to see.

Arriving in the centre of town in the middle of the day we had time to drop our bags at the hotel and wander through the main square before setting off to our first destination.

Fortunately the Wieliczka Salt Mine opens until 19:30 and has the last English tour at 17:00. The train service is only once an hour and not quite coordinated with the tour times. Nevertheless we managed to get a ticket, find the train and get to the mine well in time for the tour.

Along with the old centre of Krakow, the Salt Mine was on the list of places that comprised the original 12 UNESCO World Heritage sites. The rationale for this original list would make interesting reading.

The mine is no longer mining salt but it is certainly mining money as the different language guided tour groups were packed through with only minutes between each group. Although the total length of galleries in the mine is 300km (the distance from Krakow to Warsaw) the tourist route is only 2km and descends to 135m below the surface. The tour begins with a 380 step descent to Level 1, 64m below the surface.

The tour visits a number of rooms and chapels, the most magnificent being St Kinga's Chapel, a labour of love for three miners who, bewteen them, carved every relief over a period of 70 years.

Although not mentioned as a feature of the mine, the amount of wood used as supports throughout the rooms and galleries is staggering. One wonders at the number of forests that have been felled to support the mine.