July 20, 2010

Today we had a local guide who took us on a tour of Krakow from a Jewish perspective. She pointed out the walls of the old town as we drove over the Vistula River to the industrial area. Here we found Shindler's factory - though it had been renovated, it was made to look the same. Here workers from Krakow Ghetto A walked to work. Though the factory is now a museum to the Holocaust, we viewed it from the outside and saw the original gates. We understood that Steven Spielberg had the help of the city of Krakow when he made Schindler's List, and was able to use many of the original sites. We then drove to the main part of the Krakow Ghetto to see part of the ghetto walls there - erected by the Germans, they looked like large Jewish Headstones. In the center of the square was a memorial called "Heroes of the Ghetto Square" which was the site of the Krakow deportations. Here there were large chairs spaced unevenly and facing in different directions to signify the fact that Jews from that area were sent in all directions. The chairs brought back the memory of people carrying their wordly belongings, such as chairs. The Jews had 800 years of history in Krakow before the Holocaust and it is important to remember that they were a large part of both Krakow's and Poland's history.
We then toured the Galicia Museum which was filled with beautiful photographs from the past and present looking at that part of Poland's cultural history. Many of us took the bus back to our hotel, had lunch in a nearby food court, and then headed into the Main Square of the city to search for the perfect souvenir or bargain. Most of us came back with sore feet and a few packages. Amber was the thing to get and we compared our finds.
I was very lucky today - I had set up a meeting with some of my Polish relatives - I had never met or talked with any of them, as they don't speak English. I set it up through a relative in the US, and she helped me organize it with an aunt here in Krakow. My roommate, Debi, and I walked to the restaurant and were met by eleven smiling faces. They had flowers and gifts for both of us. My cousin, Josefa, was there with several of her children and a few of their children. We had a delightful meal at Polska Smackie (The Taste of Poland) and though we sometimes struggled with communication, it was a wonderful meeting. I am so glad that we were able to connect and hope that we will keep in touch in the future. It was a great connection for me - I was able to speak to them about their grandparents plight during WWII. It turns out that their grandfather was in the Polish police and fought with the Germans. Though I did not find out much more, it was interesting learning about their view on things. We walked them back to their cars through the old town and gave lots of hugs and kisses to my "new" relatives.