As a thrifty traveler, I made sure to get my fair share of “free” activities while in Krakow. On Monday morning, I showed up the moment the museum opened to make sure I got my complementary visit to Schindler’s Factory. I expected the museum to be mostly about Schindler, his life, and his contributions to (or against) the war. The museum, however, tells more of the narrative of what was happening in Krakow at this time and what life was like for everyone there.
The visit to Krakow was almost at an end, but not before a visit to the Wieliczka Salt Mine. Nearly a century old, this mine really is for salt! I learned about the history of the mine and of salt while passing through many large and small caverns and passageways, a couple of which were chapels. One chapel was very large and elaborate. Descending the salt carved stairs on to the salt carved tiles, I was surrounded by salt reliefs on the walls and religious salt statues. Some statues were even aglow, demonstrating that the purer the salt, the more translucent it is. I have visited various types of caves and mines before, but this was my first trip to a salt mine and it was a unique experience.
The next morning, I took a train to Warsaw, checked into the Oki Doki Hostel. This hostel is rated as one of Europe’s best, and it certainly is quite interesting with each room decorated in its own theme, but I think that the large size and party-like atmosphere wasn’t really what I was looking for. After settling in I went directly to the Warsaw Uprising Museum.
The museum has excellently-made exhibits and is very interesting, but I really lacked a lot of historical background knowledge in understanding this event to be able to really connect with the museum. When I returned to Berlin, a colleague lent me a book called Mila 18 by Leon Uris, which I would highly recommend reading regardless of whether or not you plan on visiting Poland. This historical fiction narrates the stories of several people in- and outside the Warsaw ghetto during the Nazi occupation up through the Warsaw Uprising. This page-turner of a book was so good I could not put it down until it was finished. I think having read the book beforehand (or being better informed) would have made quite a difference in what I got out of the museum.
Later that evening, I met up with a student from my last school and her family. Their grandmother had made a Polish feast from scratch for my visit! We had pierogis and beet soup while catching up about their new school and activities. One of my favorite parts of traveling is getting to meet locals and learning about a place through them. It’s even nicer when someone you know can share with you what they love about their home.
Unfortunately, I had the shortest amount of time in Warsaw and was torn between seeing the Curie Museum, the Museum of the History of Polish Jews, and the Chopin Museum. The family suggested the Museum of the History of Polish Jews, so that’s where I headed the following morning. This museum is HUGE and I felt like I really rushed through the history of the 20th century to the present. The museum is well laid out and has a variety of artifacts and displays. I could have easily spent 3-4 hours there, but I had to catch my bus to Gdansk, my final destination on this journey through Poland. (Upon recommendations from other travelers, it was suggested that I spend the shortest amount of time in Warsaw, but after visiting there I really wish I had more time because there were so many museums and parks I wanted to explore!)
I arrived in Gdansk in the pouring rain, but luck was with me. On the bus I had met a Polish woman who had been living in America for over 20 years and was in Poland to visit her family and grandchildren. She didn’t speak any English, but managed to communicate to me that her grandson was coming to pick her up and they would take me to my hostel. The grandson spoke wonderful English and we had a nice conversation about traveling on the way to Grand Hostel – an adorable little place in an old building in the heart of the old town with a fantastic view of the river.
The next morning, I took a train to the little town of Malbork. I had a recommendation from my friend’s aunt to go there because there is a fantastic castle and because she is from there. On the train I was wondering why I was so set on visiting when I already had such little time to visit Gdansk, but I would soon forget this second-guessing. The castle was AMAZING.
At the ticket office you get an audio guide, which was more sophisticated than any I had used before. The narrator guides you through each exhibit and tells you where to go next, as the castle complex is…complex. The neat part is, you can take as long as you want to look around each room or skip ahead, as soon as you enter the next place, the audio guide automatically begins speaking again. The information is very interesting and the tour can range from 1.5 hours up to 3 hours depending on how many of the extra exhibits you look at and how much of each narration you choose to listen to. I was really happy I took the time to visit this castle and would highly recommend it to anyone who is visiting Gdansk.
The train coming back was slightly delayed, so I rushed off to the free walking tour as soon as I got back into Gdansk. Going into the tour, I did not know anything about the Polish worker’s union, Solidarity, but after over two hours I was sufficiently intrigued by the topic, enough so that I did more research on it while relaxing during Christmas break. This movement was the forefront of workers’ rights and began to push back Soviet control of Poland, influencing many other eastern European countries.
On my final day in Poland I met up with the traveler I had met on the free walking tour in Krakow (http://www.followtheunknown.com/) and did the free walking tour in Gdansk of the old town. The entire city was completely destroyed in World War II and there are pictures of the wreckage inside the Golden Gate to prove it. Fortunately, the city reconstructed the old town perfectly again, if only the facades. Afterwards, we went to the National Maritime Museum and then just wandered the beautiful streets of the old town. Gdansk was the most picturesque city I visited on this trip, so I didn’t mind whiling my remaining few hours away wandering the old town and by the river. For an active traveler, Gdansk had the least activities of the cities on this trip, but it was so lovely that I would like to visit again.
Of course, every place has a history. But Poland surprised me in how much and how diverse a history such a tiny place can have. As an American, we go through school learning mostly US history and history as it pertains to America, and maybe since Poland does not fit much into those categories that’s why I had been clueless for so long. It certainly has piqued my interest enough now that I would like to go again and visit more cities like Poznan and Wroclaw. If you don’t know anything about Poland, I’d say it’s time to go there and find out!
If you need more reason to check out Poland, read up on Adventurous Kate’s how to fall in love with Krakow in 30 steps: http://www.adventurouskate.com/how-to-fall-in-love-with-krakow-in-30-steps/