Krakow, Poland

After a much needed recharging of the batteries in Slovakia it was time to start the final push towards the finish line of this amazing trip.  Initially we had some more downtime planned after Krakow but our plans changed due to some friends coming to join us for a week in Czechia.  This change led to an all out sprint through November and December.  Exciting but taxing!

Our stop in Krakow was our first trip to the country of Poland.  We weren’t sure what to expect but much like Budapest we were pleasantly surprised with how wonderful the city was.  Our stay in Krakow was in the Hyatt Place Krakow which is a newer hotel that is a bit outside of the center of the city.  It was about a half hour walk into the old town from the hotel.   Not a problem at all as long as the weather cooperates.  Parking was easy and I paid cash for the hotel because it was less than $100 USD per night.  The hotel was gracious enough to waive both the pet and parking fees despite not technically having to do either.  Breakfast was also much better than at your typical Hyatt Place in the US.  Not a luxury stay, but definitely still a good place to make our home base.

Krakow Old Town

The highlight of Krakow old town is Rynek Główny, the central medieval town square dating back to the 13th century.  Day or night it is everything you might want from a European town square.  The square is quite large and surrounded by beautiful buildings including the towering St. Mary’s Basilica in one corner.  Even on a cold rainy November evening many of the cafes and restaurants that surround the square were serving at heated outdoor tables.  At the center sits the MNK Sukiennice, a renaissance-style market arcade full of vendors selling their wares. 

Many of the surrounding streets are packed with shops, bars, cafes and restaurants.  There is no shortage of places to shop, drink or dine in this part of the city.  Some of the places we stopped at during our time here included Dobra Pączkarnia where we tried Pączki (a polish donut), C.K. Browar | Bar & Restaurant | Est. 1996 where we had a nice Polish meal and beer, and Multi Qlti Tap Bar | Craft Beer where we sampled a few different Polish craft beers.  All of these places were dog friendly and Maverick got to try his first pierogi.  

Pics from our time around the old town in Krakow

Our stay also coincided with Polish Independence Day which like most holidays during travel is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand things can be either overly crowded with locals or closed depending on the holiday. On the other hand you get to experience something unique and different than the normal day to day. In the central part of the city most things seemed to be opened and things were quite crowded, but it was fun to see the Poles out in force showing their national pride.

The Kazimierz District

We also made a point to visit the historic Kazimierz district, the old jewish quarter that was devastated during WWII when Nazi Germany moved all of the Polish Jews into ghettos and eventually concentration and death camps.  This neighborhood is chock full of history as well as old synagogues and plenty of eateries.  During our time in this district we ate a fine meal with Maverick at Stara Zajezdnia Kraków by DeSilva and met my Dad at BeerStreet who just happened to be in town on his own trip for a few Polish craft beers.  Small world!

Impromptu family reunion, Mavi was excited to see his grampy!

Just South of the district we also made a point to visit Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory.  You’ll probably recognize this place if you saw Steve Spielberg’s 1993 film Schindler’s List.  Oskar Schindler was a German industrialist and member of the Nazi Party who is credited with saving the lives of 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust by employing them in his factories including this one.  The former factory now serves as a museum of Jewish history in Krakow during the Nazi regime.  Afterwards we visited the nearby Jewish Ghetto Memorial.

Front of Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory (left) and some of the pictures of the people he saved that adorn the front of the building (right)

Jewish Ghetto Memorial

In retrospect we did not dedicate enough time to Krakow.  We didn’t even get a chance to see the popular Wawel Royal Castle.  In recent years I have shifted my mind set from “I may never be back to this place so I must try to see everything” to “I will be back here again one day.”  I find this approach makes my travels less rushed and more intentional.  I WILL be back to Krakow and I will see more of what I missed when I go back!

Wawel castle and Wawel dragon lit up at night

Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp

A big reason I did not have time to see everything in Krakow that I wanted was because of the entire day we spent visiting the Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camps.  As daunting as it is, this was a must visit for me during our time in Krakow.  The horrors of the Holocaust are something that should never be forgotten.  It is not the type of history we want to repeat.

I was not aware of how popular it was to visit the Auschwitz-Birkenau camps.  Normally I plan my trips far ahead and purchase tickets quite early.  In this case I was looking for tickets no more than a week before we arrived.  Considering it was not anywhere near peak tourist season I was surprised to find nothing available on the dates we would be in Krakow.  I was also not aware that the site was only accessible via guided tour.  We had been to the Dachau camp in Munich Germany several years earlier and this was not the case there.  Because of my lack of planning I was forced to buy a tour through a 3rd party tour company whom I think really only provided the tickets and transportation.  I believe the guides are all employed by the museum.  We had the means to drive ourselves there, but no tickets.  If you decide to go here, don’t make my mistake.  Make sure you buy your tickets well in advance, especially if you don’t need transportation.

Our day started bright and early with an 8am pickup from the hotel (and we were the last pickup!).  The drive took a little over an hour from Krakow and we arrived at Auschwitz with a whole lot of other tour vans and buses of varying sizes.  The entrance was crowded with large groups of people.  Once again I was surprised by the sheer size of the crowds.  This really wasn’t what I was expecting, especially in November.  They have airport level security to enter the main camp and the crowds were large and loud.  I was actually beginning to dread the visit in a different way.  I knew it would be a haunting experience, but it seemed so much worse if I had to deal with a bunch of loud and dare I say disrespectful tourists.  Luckily my fears were unfounded because once we got past security and inside the camp things got much better.

The mayhem outside the entrance (left), passing through the infamous gates engraved with the phrase “Arbeit macht frei” or in English, “Work sets you free” (right)

Inside the entrance area of the museum we met our guide and our group started heading into the main camp.  The groups were well spaced for the most part so we were not packed together in a herd like we were in the security area and outside.  Our guide was a Polish woman who had been doing tours for 40 years.  She had personal ties to the camp as she lost two uncles here.  We both thought she was excellent.  It definitely adds another dimension to hear personal family stories during the tour.

The first part of the tour took us through the main camp, also known as Auschwitz I.  This part of the camp existed prior to German occupation, most recently as a Polish army barracks.  For this reason the buildings are solid brick and built to last.  These are not the shabby wooden structures you might think of when thinking of concentration camp barracks.  Our guide took us through several of the buildings showing us different rooms that showed how the prisoners lived here.  

Left to right from the top row 1) the electrified barb wire fence surrounding the camp, 2) rows of typical camp buildings, 3) original unrestored floor in one of the barrack buildings, 4) stairs in a barracks building worn down by wooden clogs, 5) shoes of prisoners collected on arrival, 6) suitcases of prisoners with family names written on them by their owners, 7) “death wall” used for firing squad executions, 8) camp gallows used for hangings, 9) gallows where former camp commandant Rudolf Höss was executed by hanging in 1947, 10) gas chamber and crematorium.

Some of the more interesting things we saw included the way the stone steps had large indentations worn in them from the millions of times the prisoners walked them with the heavy wooden clogs they wore.  There were also haunting displays showing actual human hair harvested from prisoners and left behind at the camp as well as personal effects such as suitcases and shoes, so many shoes.  We also saw areas where prisoners were executed and the only intact gas chamber and crematorium at the camp.

After our time at Auschwitz I we got back in our van and made the short drive to Auschwitz II-Birkenau where we were reunited with our tour guide.  When you see pictures of Auschwitz this is the place you usually see.  The large gate with the single line of railroad tracks running through it.  The rows and rows of the remains of what served as barracks for the prisoners.  It’s a haunting image that gave me a chill when I saw it in person for the first time.  I’ve read multiple books about this place and the Holocaust in general, but nothing really prepares you for being at one of these places in the flesh.  This is the notorious death camp where millions of innocent lives were extinguished for no real reason.

Main gate at Auschwitz II-Birkenau with railroad tracks entering the camp.

Seeing the tracks and thinking about all the people that stepped off those trains to their death.  Gazing upon the remains of the barracks and thinking of the suffering of the living.  All that remains is the outline of the foundations and the chimneys for the tiny stoves that provided inadequate heat during the harsh Polish winters.  The Germans took all the wood that made up the barrack structures when they left because all resources were scarce and precious at that point in the war.

From top left clockwise, 1) remains of one of the gas chambers and crematoriums destroyed by the retreating Germans, 2) remains of the barracks, just a foundation and the stove/chimneys, 3) the sleeping acomodations for the prisoners, 4) view of the main gate and tracks from the inside.

After walking around Auschwitz II-Birkenau for a bit we parted ways with our guide and once again boarded our van for the return trip to Krakow.  The day was long and emotional.  It may not be the most fun thing to do, but if you are ever in this part of the world I think it is an important experience no matter who you are.  

That sums our time in Krakow.  From here things start to get a lot more festive as we head to Prague to meet up with some of our best friends!