This is a photo I took in Krakow.I arrived here by bus. The scenery on the way was gorgeous. I thought about how blessed I was to have traveled here, that this was my time of peace of mind.... away from my family, I had to cherish it. At some point on the bus trip, we had crossed the border. I found this out when we stopped at a coffee shop and they wouldn't take some of my left over change from Hungary.... we were now in Poland. They accepted euros and of course polish currency. For some reason, I found this shocking... because I was so CLOSE to Hungary, they could have easily accepted any currency on a road like this one, n'est-ce pas?
I booked a single room, not a hostel like in Sighisoara and Budapest. I wanted the comforts of having my own bathroom. It overflowed at times, but it was mine. I remember getting out of the bus station. There wasn't a ramp for those who had luggage. Though I had dumped a lot of my stuff in Sighisoara and Budapest, I still had a heavy load. I walked to the taxi cabs waiting right outside, put my bags in the trunk of one of them, and gave the driver the address. He told me that I was already at the address. Apparently, my "hotel" was right there across the street. Hardy, harr harr, very funny.
I checked in and went up five flights of stairs to my teeny tiny room with all my luggage. I pictured sailors renting a room like this one in the 1800s. It was definetly not designed for comfort. There was also a cat walk right outside my window so I could not open my curtains without awkwardly avoiding any contact with some passerby. Believe me, you don't know whether to smile or look away like you're furiously focused on your work.
When I tried the internet, I had no connection. I came back down to reception in the morning and complained. They told me they shared a network with the restaurant next door and sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. Some rooms used the hotels network, some rooms used the shared network. There seemed to be a new receptionist every time I went to them... like they were doing some internship for hotel management. They said I could use their office computer to check my emails, but if I needed it for work, they would give me another room.... a bigger room. I accepted it... for the same price of course!!! Again I couldn't open the curtains because now the cab drivers were able to look in instead of some guest at the hotel.
I went on a tour given by a great Polish guide. I was with a family, and the mom talked to me a bit. It reminded me of my own family trips when I was young. The Polish guide, let's call him Harry for now, must have been a great Historian of some sort. He had such in-depth knowledge about his city, the people who built it, the state of politics. He told me a few stories I'll never forget. First, apparently there are some energy rocks that have been scattered in far corners of the earth. A buddist monk, maybe the Dalai Lama himself, came to Krakow and announced to the world that one of those rocks was in the church of their city castle. Our guide went on to tell us that this may be true since Krakow somehow miraculously survived every bombardment during the Wars, demolitions by different rulers.... So, when the world is ending, fly to Krakow my friends. Just kidding, or am I?
He told us another thing - that Polish people were not stupid. He was right up and front about it. I had forgotten my father's Polish jokes (probably the ones he learned while living in Brooklyn with Italian Americans). Apparently, the Russians got the Polish people to obey them during the Communism Era by introducing them to the joy of drinking. The Polish were naive, and drank a lot... so much that they got a bad reputation. Okay, I'll bite. He also told us that when he visited Germany, he had went around with a tour guide who told everyone that Germans were the ones responsible for the Holocaust. He tried to correct her in saying that the Polish had had a hand in it, as well as some other countries. She was adamant that her people were responsible for it.... which he found rather strange... which I find rather strange as well.
So, I want to skip talking about the place I visited near Krakow. But I'll add some important travel events that occured afterwards. I met some Jewish guys after and they told me about how they felt about visiting this place. They were in their 40s, from Florida I think. I couldn't believe they walked up to me and started giving me their first hand impressions. I felt as if I was getting the interview of a lifetime. Was it God who sent down to angels to console me? They told me they were okay with it, but they didn't know if they could ever step into Germany. They told me that they had a friend back home who said that she would never spend a penny in any of "those" countries. All I have to say is, I threw away the shirt I wore to that camp. I never kept in touch with the person I met on the bus ride... as if we both wanted to forget this day happened.
