Carol's Travels

This morning the sky looked ominous, and it was a bit breezy. I brought my rain jacket and dry sac for my camera just in case it rained. Linda brought her rain jacket too. Our city guide met us in the Polonia Palace Hotel lobby, then we boarded our mid-sized bus to begin our Warsaw city tour. Much of the city had been destroyed during World War II, but it was rebuilt almost exactly how it had looked before the war. It has received UNESCO World Heritage status because of this massive project.

Old Warsaw Rebuilt

We got off the bus and walked past the Chopin Monument. Then we walked past some beautiful buildings used for official meetings and events. They were built in the Roman style with statues outside. One looked similar in style to the White House. The landscaping included trees, flower gardens, ponds, and beautiful gardens. The weather was warm, and sunny. We again boarded the bus and rode to the old town. When we got off the bus, several people thought it odd that I would take my rain jacket. Linda left hers on the bus. We then walked through the old town. At the end of the walking tour, we could go anywhere we wanted to go. Linda and I went with Miina to get delicious scoops of the local ice cream on waffle cones. I got scoops of chestnut and pistachio. Yum!

Chopin statue

Government Building in the Park

Before we left the city square, Miina thought it would be interesting for us to see a short movie showing what Warsaw looked like before World War ll, then the rebuilding process after the war. She bought us all tickets.

Since Sunday is free museum day, Miina, Linda, and I wanted to check out the palace where they have many gorgeous paintings. Some were so large that they covered a whole palace wall. Two Rembrandt paintings were on display at the end of the last gallery: “GIrl in a Picture Frame” and “Scholar at his Writing Table.” The girl’s eyes seemed to follow me wherever I walked.

Chopin’s heart is in a pillar inside a church in the old part of the city. When we walked inside the church, beautiful Chopin music was being played by an excellent local pianist. Three other members of our group were sitting in pews listening to the music. We all enjoyed the music for a while, found the Chopin pillar, then walked outside. It was pouring rain! Roberta graciously shared her umbrella with Linda. The rest of us had some type of rain gear. We went inside McDonald’s until it abated a little.  

Resting Place for Chopin’s Heart

Then we quickly walked to the Chopin museum on the next block. We were relieved to arrive. We picked up the free cards that would turn on each display at the front desk. It is definitely a museum that a serious musician or a Chopin fan would enjoy. There were copies of his manuscripts behind glass cases. By swiping my entry card at each display, Chopin music would play or a narrator would read something about Chopin in Polish and the English translation would appear on the TV-like screen in front of me. In one section there were drawers where sheets of music would be under glass inside the drawer and the piano music would play! Many hours could be spent inside the museum, but even Linda and I didn’t want to spend the hours it would take to completely see everything. We left while we were still enjoying it.

We joined the rest of the group in the Chopin souvenir shop. Neither Linda nor I bought anything. Three of the group called a cab, but it was just sprinkling when Miina, Linda, and I left the museum. It was just a few blocks to the hotel. Linda and I looked at restaurants on the way back, and we found one very close to the hotel called Yugo. We decided to be adventurous and try it. The proportions were HUGE, so we split a dinner and each had a glass of red wine. We had hot pita bread, very lean ground beef steaks, salad, and a couple of sauces. What a delicious way to end the day. Even the dinner music was typical of the region.

Dinner at Yugo’s

After breakfast we checked out of Hotel Kossak and drove to Auschwitz. After the tour of Auschwitz, we went to Birkenau which is nearby. I had done a lot of research through books and videos, so I knew the history. It was really helpful to know what I was getting into, so I wasn’t caught off guard like I had been at the Killing Fields in Cambodia. It was sobering to see the buildings and displays. It is beyond my comprehension that the Nazis killed so many innocent people. Our site guide, Magdelina, has been hand picked by Miina for all of her visits here. She calmly gave the very detailed tour which I know helped us.

Straw mattresses the prisoners slept on

Three of four prisoners slept on each mattress!

Then we got back on the bus and began the long drive to Warsaw. Miina played a beautiful Chopin piano CD through the bus audio system. The music was very calming. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant that served us traditional Polish food. I particularly liked the soup! For dessert we each had a scooped out baked apple with raisins inside and chocolate sauce drizzled over it.

When we got back on the bus, Miina played the movie, Shindler’s List, during the long drive to Warsaw. The movie had quite an impact after seeing Auschwitz earlier today and Shindler’s Factory Museum yesterday in Kraków.

The Polonia Palace Hotel is a plush hotel with large rooms. I should sleep well tonight. We ate dinner at Smaki Warszawy near the hotel.

This morning our city guide took us to some World War ll sites. She took us to three spots in Krakow where the Jewish people were persecuted. First we walked onto a square where individual chairs were lined up apart from other chairs. Jews had been rounded up and forced to sit on those chairs. Their fate was decided by some of the invading Germans. The book called PHARMACY IN THE KRAKÓW GHETTO was recommended highly by our city guide. She was a walking encyclopedia with impeccable English. We were lucky to have her.

Empty Chairs in the Square

Our City Guide, Didi

On September 1, 1939 the German Army invaded Krakow without a fight. The city was used as a supply center for the Germans. On September 17, 1945 the Russians invaded Krakow after the German Army had retreated without trying to defend Krakow. That is the reason that the buildings are still standing.

We went through the Kraków ghetto, then Schindler’s Factory which has been made into a museum. We had a delicious lunch nearby. The salad was wonderful, and the salmon was cooked to perfection.

Schindler’s List

Jewish Graveyard

Then all but three of us went on the optional tour of the Wielizka Salt Mine. None of us was impressed. They had messed up on the time of our small private tour, so we became part of a group of forty! The exhibits need a complete overhaul. I didn’t take one picture inside. The mines were a waste of money, but we had a lot of laughs toward the end of the tour and on the bus going to the restaurant. We were late to dinner afterward.  

At dinner the waitress brought out three tossed salads for the six of us, so we were told to share. The penne dish was covered with very little tasteless sauce, undercooked bacon, and slimy mushrooms. None of us would recommend having penne there. At least the wine and ice cream tasted good. Miina arranged for us to taste Polish vodka….very strong! I didn’t look at the name of either restaurant today.

Miina suggested that we end the evening on a positive note. We hired a carriage pulled by two horses to take us around the square and back to our hotel.

Buggy Ride pulled by White a Horses

Finally, we went to our rooms to hopefully sleep well tonight!