A truly shocking announcement...

We've had so much fun with this one...

that we decided to have two more!

TWINS coming March (or February?) 2014.  

[Anyone want to come hold a baby?  We'll have 3 to choose from.]  

Poland Day 4: Auschwitz

I already wrote about the second half of day four back here.

We spent the morning walking around Auschwitz, which is made up of two separate camps located a few kilometers apart: Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau.  It was nice arriving right as they opened because there were hardly any people there yet and we could enjoy it at our own pace without the distraction of tour groups.

Entrance sign "Arbeit Macht Frei" - Work Makes you Free.  Ironic.

I'm not sure how to describe our visit to Auschwitz.  It wasn't the first camp we've seen--both Dachau and  Flossenburg are within a few hours of our house--but it was filled with so much more sadness.  Other words that come to mind are haunting.  Horrifying.  Depressing.  Real.  Hopeless.  I wouldn't recommend anyone visit here with kids because blatant reminders of death are everywhere.  It wasn't a work camp; it was a death camp.  The only way out was through the chimneys.

All of the buildings at Auschwitz I are still standing, so it's not hard to envision life there 75 years ago.  The rows of barracks have been turned into museums highlighting different aspects of the Holocaust and life within Auschwitz.  

Lining the hallways of these buildings are photographs of prisoners in the camp.  For the first few years of the war individual photos were taken.  When that became too time-consuming, they just started tattooing numbers on prisoners who were deemed fit to work so their bodies would be more easily identified later on.  (The rest weren't even registered before being taken to the gas chambers.)  I didn't previously realize this was the only camp to use tattoos.    

Rooms were filled with the personal items of prisoners, making the faces on the wall into real people who used these actual things:  suitcases, since they were advised to pack well for their trip; pots and pans; shaving equipment; combs; eye glasses; crutches and prosthetics.  These belongings didn't just fill tables, they filled multiple rooms, wall to wall.       

Another disturbing building showed where the torture took place, like small cells where prisoners had to stand for days in darkness.  It was located right next to the firing squad for easy access.

(L) Roll Call area.  There was a tower for the guard in case of rain.

Barbed wire fences and guard towers surround the camp.

There is a gas chamber at the main camp that you can walk through.  Jews were assigned to work in the chambers moving bodies over to the crematorium.  Many people committed suicide because seeing familiar faces was more than they could take.  Who could blame them.

When the ovens couldn't keep up with demand, more crematoriums were built at Auschwitz II-Birkenau.  In three years, about a million people were killed there.

Entrance at Birkenau.

Train tracks run right through the main gate and to the dividing platform.  As people got off the train, they were sent left or right, not even knowing what was coming.  After just seeing the atrocities at the main camp, Hyrum and I both kept thinking it would have been better to ignorantly go straight to the gas chambers than face the starvation, disease, and punishment endured by those whose death was postponed.  

Only a few of the barracks have been reconstructed.  The first living quarters in the camp were brick;  later as they were expanding they put up wooden stable-type barracks because they could be built at a low cost.  Each building was intended to hold 52 horses, yet was given a capacity of 400 prisoners.

Before the camp was liberated, the gas chambers and crematoriums at the end of the train tracks were destroyed.  A memorial stands between all the rubble.

Looking back to the main gate. 

Needless to say, it was a depressing morning that gave us a lot to think about.  It's hard to imagine such atrocities taking place.  So many people playing a role in the murder of over a million people in one place.  Did the guards at these camps just stop having feelings?  No conscience?  I wonder how the few prisoners who were liberated at Auschwitz moved on with life.  How do you interact normally with humanity once you've seen its awful potential?  How do you build loving relationships when everyone you've ever loved is gone?  Is life all darkness or can they regain any hope?

Anne Frank's father was a survivor of Auschwitz.  I don't know much about him, except he settled in Switzerland and married another survivor of Auschwitz.  I was thinking about that while we walked around; there must have been comfort in mutual understanding, because so few can actually understand.

I don't want to go back, or probably visit any more concentration camps, but I'm glad we saw it.  It's good to remember.

Poland Day 3: Krakow

We woke up Sunday morning with three goals in mind.  First, find a delicious breakfast.  Second, make it to church.  Third, explore the Jewish Quarter.  The day was a success across the board.

It was tricky since most restaurants didn't open until mid-morning, but I was determined to find a delicious meal that wasn't a quick stop at a bakery.  The food in Poland is cheap and good, and I wanted to take advantage of the fact that we were up so early (thanks Tiago!) and get a decent meal.  We found this place about 15 minutes before it opened, so we waited around and weren't disappointed.  Hyrum was great at entertaining Tiago while we waited for our food (at this point he was perfecting his clap).  I got a sun-dried tomato and goat cheese omelette that I really wish I could recreate.

From there we went running--literally--to church and walked in a few minutes late after figuring out the right doors and elevators to take.  Everyone turned around to look at us; all 15 of them.  The branch was tiny.  There were three sets of missionaries included in that 15.  Although it was so small, it was neat to see a recent convert give a talk, and another man being confirmed.  You can tell that when people are really needed, they are strengthened and able to do great things.

We spent the afternoon wandering around Kazimierz (the Jewish Quarter).  We took 4 or 5 different trams to get there because we didn't have a good map, and the lines that I wanted to take were all closed.

First we walked to the New Cemetery where Jews were buried in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  During the time of WWII many of the headstones were destroyed, so it has been pieced back together.  The wall going around the cemetery is made up of headstone fragments.

These two pictures are a bit dramatic!  I don't recall being mad, so we must have been going for somber. 

We crossed over the river to get to Schindler's factory, which has been turned into a museum.  Hyrum was excited that Krakow was hosting the Volleyball Mens World Championship, and we were both excited that Tiago finally fell asleep.

This is the actual building where Schindler's factory helped save over 1000 Jews during the war.  Only Oskar Schindler's office has been kept intact; the rest is a museum covering the whole war period.  Hyrum loves history, war history, and museums, making this one of his favorite parts of Krakow.

Before heading home we stopped at one of the hundreds of cafes lining the streets.  More delicious food for a fraction of what we would have paid in Germany.  Yes, I'll have soup and dessert with that!

We were back at the hotel with plenty of time to play in the kids area.  Tiago loved it. I wish all hotels had something like this.

Poland Day 2: Krakow

Time to wrap up the last few days of Poland.  Here we go...

Saturday we drove to Krakow and spent the afternoon walking through the Old Town, mostly along the Royal Road.  This is the path the royalty would have followed as they entered the town and made their way to the castle.  We started on the north end at St. Florian's Gate.  Our timing was great--as soon as we arrived, there were a bunch of people dressed in midieval clothing who had a little sword fight.  

the gate from the inside of the city walls

This is the view as you walk towards the Market Square.  I've read in several places that Krakow is similar to Prague, although not quite as great as Prague.  I'd agree.  It has a lot of the same colorful, charming buildings, but not on the same level.

St Mary's Basilica is the central attraction in the square.  It's a gothic church that was rebuilt in the 14th century, and Hyrum wanted to climb up the tower but it was closed.  While many churches around Europe start to look the same, the ones we saw in Krakow reminded me more of Turkey than mainland Europe. They had bright blue ceilings and color all over the walls.  

Next stop in the square was the Cloth Hall, which--again--was reminiscent of the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul (except only one of the hundreds of hallways).  It was neat to see, but not that impressive.  (Unless of course you're looking for something to buy.)

 We passed by the church (St. Francis Basilica) and residence that Pope John Paul II used when he was Bishop and Cardinal in Krakow, just prior to becoming pope.  He would speak to the people regularly from the window above the door, where his picture now hangs.  We had a hard time finding the entrance to the church, and realized there was a wedding going on.  We managed to sneak inside and see it in between ceremonies.

 On our way to the palace we passed the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, a Baroque Jesuit church, which had statues of all the apostles along the gate.  As we continued to wind through the streets we saw a lot of interesting architecture and bright colored buildings.

Eventually we made it to Wawel Castle, which was built in the 14th century.  Although Warsaw is now the capitol, this castle is where Polish royalty lived for centuries.

Our good luck for the day ran out, and they'd closed the cathedral randomly just minutes before we got there.  We had to enjoy it from the outside only.  It was the coronation site for the monarchy.  What's standing today was started in the 14th century, after being destroyed twice.  Our guide book (which I've since returned to the library...) was explaining that different pieces of the cathedral were added over several hundred years, which is why it's hodge-podge looking--one domed section crammed right against another.  

We found a great spot to sit and eat dessert--a followup to a delicious lunch we ate earlier but didn't take any pictures of because Tiago was being soo difficult in the restaurant.  The castle grounds are spread out and you can wander around to see the city, as well as the river that flows to the South of it.

Wawel Hill is behind me

We made it back to the hotel in time for some swimming.  Tiago always enjoys that, and it seemed like a good way to let him get out energy from being stuck in the stroller all day.