Today was the last day before we head to Auschwitz/Birkenau so it was our last day where we could breathe lightly. There are many hard parts of history we talked about, but not so heavy as a death camp.
Today, we went to the Jewish Quarter of Krakow; It was one of the oldest parts of Krakow.
This building was the oldest synagogue in Krakow. Women and men had two separate places of worship as women couldn't be trusted to not distract men from their prayers with their smells and dress. So, like today when I distract my husband in church by asking questions. This tradition was borrowed by Jews from Catholics at the time.
The green house above is the home of the woman below Helena Rubenstein. She was a Polish Jew, oldest of her family who had to get married first two for any of her younger sisters to be able to get married. Unfortunately for her parents, she was very stubborn and picky and uninterested in any of the matchmaker's matches for her and getting old- 18. Her parents sent her to Australia to live with a relative- out of sight out of mind. And there she noticed a lot of the women had problems with their complexion, so she wrote home to her mother to get her face cream recipe. From that point she started learning about skincare and opened her own business and became one of the first worldwide leaders in make-up. She eventually settled in NYC.
This entrance leads to a Jewish cemetery created by a man in the 16th century in honor of his wife and daughter in law.
Notice the beautiful details in this fence... The menorah.
This is me hanging out with one of the newest statues in Krakow, which is of Jan Karski. Karski traveled and helped the Polish government-in-exile in Great Britain, but more, he travel to the United States, meeting with FDR and other dignitaries trying to convince them that the horror of the Holocaust was worthy of intervening in. Unfortunately, he was met with a lot of resistance, but continued to travel from East to West in the USA, writing the book, The History of the Secret State. He was recognized as Righteous Among the Nations, a distinction for those who risked their lives to save Jews from extinction during WWII.
This area was the market place, very hopping before WWII, but after the war, this area was feared. The Soviet Union had control of Poland from 1945-1989, and they did not keep this area up, thus causing a decline. Now, it is the area all of the university students love to come to, with a thriving nightlife and the second most expensive neighborhood in Krakow.
This is an area which was used in the filming of Schindler's List by Stephen Spielberg to depict the liquidation of the ghetto.
This is the other side of that same courtyard. It was hard for the movie to be filmed in many of the authentic places because the area where the Jewish ghetto was at the time of filming was too modern, so in a few instances they returned to the original Jewish quarter which Jews had been removed from during the war.
The high synagogue, three floors with the synagogue on top, but now a bookstore and community area. There were eight original synagogues in the Jewish quarter, seven survived the war. We saw almost all of them.
The branch of the University which does Jewish studies. The majority of students in these classes are not Jewish.
The largest synagogue, still an active synagogue.
The Pauper's Synagogue.
Soon, it was time for lunch.
It's starting to get hot folks, so I had a delicious, refreshing drink.
By the end of this trip, I'm going to be a Polish pierogi connoisseur. #noshameinmygame These were delish- 6 spinach and Cheese and 6 meat.
We then had the option of going back to the hotel or going to the Schindler factory museum. So, many of us headed to the museum. The museum is not just about Oscar Schindler, but also about the period of time 1939 through 1945 in Nazi-occupied Poland.
I can't say enough how well done this museum was. They thought extremely carefully about how to present information, and all of the exhibits were in both Polish and English. It was a lot to take in, and very overwhelming, but it was very well done. The museum is also relatively new having only just opened in 2005 in the old administration building of the Schindler factory.
Those two columns rotated. And check out the floor. This area emphasized the overwhelming nature of when the Nazis took control of Poland.
SS guns.
Poland is famous for its pottery, but this is the dinnerware they never wanted. This dish was specific to Krakow.
An example of one of the posters the SS would post on buildings with the names of Jewish people who needed to present themselves the next day. These people were then executed publicly. There were many images of these executions.
A German map of Nazi occupied Poland. They used Krakow as the capital. It's location was close to the German border, and posed little risk to lose.
Examples of the many things which were stolen from the Jews of Poland by the Nazis.
They had an incredible section which was created to look like you're walking inside of the Krakow ghetto. You'll see how much it looks like the actual ghetto walls toward the end of this post.
Me, seated at one of the desks of Oscar Schindler's secretaries.
Oscar Schindler's desk and map.
An example of the production of Oscar Schindler's factory. It should be said that the work was very dangerous and hazardous. But the people were protected, fed well during lunch, and paid. He then protected them after the ghetto closed by fighting to keep his laborers.
An example of what the streets looked like after the liquidation of the Krakow ghetto.
A recreation of the Plaszow Concentration Camp.
A guard's uniform from the Plaszow camp. I think the eeriest part is the skull and crossbones on the hat.
After, we navigated our way to the Pharmacy which we had seen on our tours Sunday.
It's now a museum which you can go inside and find out about the incredible pharmacist and his workers who went into the ghetto every day and helped the Jews who lived there.
I am of the firm belief that every museum should have drawers to pull and things to try and feel. It's not just for children's museums.
Sarah and Emily checking out part of the exhibit.
A lovely room which showed the results of one man's efforts.
Tadeusz Pankiewicz, the Roman Catholic pharmacist, also received the commendation of Righteous Among the Nations.
I don't think I have a future in pharmacy.
Next, we trekked back to Old Town, but stopped at a recommended ice cream parlor. Mine was coffee flavored and it was phenomenal! It's lighter and airier than US ice cream and so flavorful.
A merry band are we!
We also popped into a pottery shop to check out some of the gorgeous Polish pottery.
Before long, it was dinner time. We ate at a restaurant on the square in Old Town, which is the largest square in Europe. This restaurant has been open for a long time...
And has survived many things.
At dinner, some friends told us about an experience they had. So. We went outside. Hired a cabbie (re:golf cart that's street legal). And went adventuring to find it.
This ain't no camp cart. We in city traffic. But, it's ok because in many areas of Krakow, cars HAVE to yield to pedestrians. You'll be standing at the edge of a Street, waiting to cross like in America, and a car will stop so that you can. Not mad about it.
And we found it: one of the last remaining sections of the Krakow Ghetto wall.
It's kind of amazing to me that the Nazis put so much effort into its design; I would've thought that they would've just thrown it together, not caring about the people who lived inside of it.
The last thing we did tonight was special. Another participant of our tour is Jeannie Smith, who is the daughter of Polish rescuer Irene Gut Opdyke. She told us her mother's story. I had heard of her mother before because there was a Broadway show from a few years ago called Irena's Vow which was based on her experiences during the war.
Her mother was 19 when the war broke out. She was separated from her family choosing to be a pedestrian fighter. After participating in anti-Nazi activities, she was spotted and badly injured by Nazis. She went into a hospital, but when she was released, she was sent to a prisoner of war camp. Nazi Major Eduard Rügemer hired her to keep his house, and after vowing to do all she could to help when seeing cruelty to a small child, she hid 12 Jews in the basement of the Nazi'shouse for more than two years undetected. One day she did not hear him come in and he saw several of the Jews. He then forced her to be his mistress to keep the secret. All of them survived the war due to her aid and protection. She came to the United States and was married, and eventually began telling her story because of an interaction with a Holocaust denier. Now her daughter tells it beautiful to captive audiences like ours.
Tomorrow starts the reason we all came. We go to Birkenau first. The weather looks hot in the morning and iffy in the afternoon, so I am hopeful it will hold out for us.
Lots of love, Mel
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