We found ourselves in Warsaw airport with recycling bins and a blurry sign in English with a clearer one in Polish though the agent would tell us there was a delay but wouldn't tell us why or when though we eventually made it onto the plane and got our edible bar before getting to the other side and watching our baggage roll down the conveyor so that we could catch the taxi to our hotel and pass this large hotel before we arrived and found our way to the room where the beds were typical but the room was vase and the walls were covered with artwork and the bathroom looked good (and more so in the morning when we realized how wonderful the shower was).

We walked out to the horoscope restaurant down the street and ordered beer some of which was served with a straw because of the added raspberry juice and noted the beer coasters as a pate came to welcome us and was illuminated before Suzanne's potato pancakes and my pierogies arrived accompanied by this spinach dish for Suzanne. The waitress talked us into this dessert where the bird's nest was actually narrow strands of caramel and then the bill came and I took a picture of the waitress with Suzanne before we took the obligatory phone booth photo and called it a night.

The next morning I had a chance to observe the various views from our room before we went down for breakfast and I filled my plate as Suzanne filled hers and she and I posed for portraits before I explored and found signs for the hotel on their patio. We greeted Mitch, Kathleen and Liam before being introduced to the group and walking through our neighborhood until we arrived at the gift shop outside the Remuh Synagogue and we made our way past the memorials into the sanctuary with the bemah in the middle and the ark with Torah scrolls and a poster above the bemah giving the words to the aliyah as we left the bemah and headed to the cemetery where we saw the grave stone of the famous Rebe complete with notes left and stones of visitors and then explored the tombstones as as our guide focused on our tombstone and explained the significance of what was written on it and we then made our way through the cemetery

to the wall that was constructed of pieces of gravestones that had been broken by the Nazis. Note that the Nazis made no attempt to destroy the cemetery; instead they used it as a garbage dump because they knew this would be more insulting to the Jews.

At the wall, I took some broad photos of the whole cemetery and then saw some pieces of stones corresponding to Kahanim (and hence the hands). on the way out, I recorded this sad memorial and we headed to the town's memorial to the Jews who had perished and the square (which is now filled with shops and restaurants largely owned by non-Jews) and the synagogue before capturing a final shot of the memorial and heading across the river to this plaza where the chairs had a special significance as I was to learn but first I noted this street scene which was the location of the resistance as our group came onto the square which was at the heart of the ghetto as we left this structure which had served as the police station for the Nazis who oversaw the ghetto and it was here that I learned that the chairs were an art installation dedicated to those who had been killed by the Nazis and we then walked down the street and took the obligatory phone booth picture before we came to this sign defining the ghetto wall which had been made to look like tombstones to signify tot he Jews that this was their end. We were also shown windows that were bricked over as they were on buildings that were part of the ghetto and so could not have views to the outside and as we walked this sign seemed like an odd juxtaposition of the past and the present (or future) and so we made our way to Oskar Schindler's factory and saw the names of those he had saved before entering the museum noting the price guide and having some water, it being a hot day, and seeing the kosher statement (which had just expired) for the coffee.

The museum traced the history of Poland and Krakow through the war beginning in 1939 as our tour guide explained the premise which we didn't grasp for a few rooms. We began with war gear and uniforms and then observed the German occupation which caused Nazi flags to be hung everywhere and statues to be destroyed, though part of this one was hidden as this poster explained the situation and we saw the first sign of Jewish rights being taken away as we observed the trolley car and heard about the professors at the local university being removed from their positions in an anti-intellectual campaign as the Nazis took control as we noted by the floor and wall decorations as Mitch and Alice stood on the frightening floor and we saw newsreels of the Nazis in power and as we passed this sign we read about the Jews being displaced with sentences being carried out and arm patched being worn with the wall being constructed even as Passover was being celebrated and visions of those who had faded from sight.

Next we saw the pots that Schindler's factory had made with the names of those he had saved and the map over his desk but the war effort was not going well for the Nazis and these were the gifts possible for the last Christmas of the occupation but then Stalin took over and things didn't improve enough.

We were then escorted to a room that talked about choices and another that defined various attributes before leaving the museum. On the way back to town, we crossed this bridge that gave both air and road surface temperatures before we headed to the zapiekanka stand where we saw pigeons before approaching the stand and choosing from a menu first a vegetarian and then a standard which I recorded as I ate and after noting the the Gallerie d' Art Naif was closed we purchased some liquids and came home.

After a rest, we went out for the group dinner with special menu and before we ate, Tess sang opera for us and then steak tartare arrived with bread salad and salmon. Next came the soup followed by the main courses of duck sole and pancakes with beets and followed by a dessert of raspberry cake.

After saying hello to Barry the videographer, we decided to call it a night.

Friday began with breakfast including scrambled eggs for Suzanne before we said good-bye (and actually hello and good bye in my case) to Ben Ravid who is an expert on the Venice ghetto and had joined the group there and then continued on to Poland on his own. We also saw Ben's wife but I forget her name. We went off on a walking tour through town starting at the place where the students take their Polish lessons and then capturing views of the Wawel Castle as Suzanne posed with Mikhail, our guide. After this church (of which there are many famous ones in Krakow) Mikhail pointed out these symbols which were used instead of street addresses in early Krakow so that e.g. Ara would be described as being at the elephant. After one more animal address, we saw replicas of the stained glass windows that make St. Francis' Church so famous and then we continued on to the main square and cloth hall where we noticed the water pump the 10th century church the curious sculpture and the tower before heading to the Collegium Maius -- the oldest part of the Jagiellonskie University and we observed from the outside before making our way into the courtyard where we admired the gutters the architecture and saw the face that tells if you've told a lie and, if so, eats your hand which fortunately did not happen to Suzanne as we went through the green door to an amazing painting and an impressive ceiling as we looked ahead to the busts and back to the famous professors who would perform when the clock struck 11 (we unfortunately were not around to see their performance) and then made our way in and admired some famous attendees including Copernicus and as we passed through we entered the cabinet room which is still used for gatherings and saw this status of Kazmierz as we moved and saw a model of male anatomy (missing a few pieces) as well as a pocket watch (for large pockets) and we then saw a professor's quarters though they were designed in a different era when professors were celibate and lived a monk like existence, we then made our way past portraits of some of the notables to the globe of 1510 (or a replica thereof) which had North America at the south pole. We were shown proof that Copernicus had attended the University though there is no record of him having graduated and shown a copy of his original manuscript and his tools before being led into the faculty room with the portraits of all the faculty on the wall and amazing workmanship. Next we saw a portrait of the most famous Pole who received his degree here (and an honorary degree to boot) and made our way through this remarkable door into the green room with the impressive ceiling and artwork a player piano gifted by Chopin and an impressive floor before Suzanne and I posed with our tour guide as did Mikhail and we thanked the guard who had opened doors for us before we ventured out again and saw the administration building here the horrible meeting was held at which the faculty were led off to the death camp and then made our way past the historical markers and the status to the window where the pope looked out on the citizens when he visited his town and we ran into Mitch and Alice as we made our way back to the bus to begin our journey through the pleasant countryside to a most unpleasant site. Barry took much video as I noted this road sign (whose meaning Google interprets ''second strong transition road'') and missed when first I tried to get the sign showing the way to Oswiecim, the Polish town by Auschwitz. I changed my battery for the anticipated Muzeum at Auschwitz but first we stopped in the town and made our way to the Jewish Museum where we saw images and read stories before entering the room that was the sanctuary though none of the original pieces survived the Nazi occupation and though the town was 50% Jewish (7000 of 14,000), there are no Jews there now and so they can only raise a minyan when visitors come.

Next we stopped at a hotel where Catholics often stay when visiting Auschwitz. It is intended to establish a dialog among religions particularly Catholics and Jews given the demographics of Poland, then and now and we ate soup without broth and with and had vegetables with fish (without for some) and potatoes before making our way to Auschwitz and through the visitors center past the Arbeit Macht Frei gate and onto the actual grounds of the camp

where we first visited this building intended to give us the background of where people came from to Auschwitz and their numbers along with some of the horrible rationale that was used to justify the place. We watched people arrive saw this memorial and read some of the history and saw the Jews leaving various transit camps and ghettos

and then observed their arrival where it was decided if they would live under horrible conditions of be killed within 20 minutes as we revisited the state borders at the time watched families arrive and heard the tale people were told on arrival to get them into the gas chambers and observed a model of an actual crematorium. These were the canisters that he;d the poisonous gas this was the scale of the operation and these were individual pellets that killed. Personal affects were gathered as were these eye glasses these tallises these prosthetics these pots and pans (since people thought they were being relocated) the luggage they brought toys for the children and shoes as the rain fell outside and the day was dark as was appropriate for our tour. Next we were shown barracks that housed up to 1000 people with photos of those interred until the cost of photography became too great and so numbers were tattooed on arms to track prisoners and initial sleeping conditions which was hay on floors with this row of sinks which could be used for few minutes per day per person and this describes the later (more improved) sleeping arrangements. Needless to say the living conditions were horrible as were these structures onto which prisoners crowded. Next we made our way and saw the guards' box where the SS officer in charge would stand if it was raining and there were escapees and so the prisoners had to stand outside for as long as 21 hours until the escapees returned (or were killed) and we saw the gallows where those involved in escapes (including this group) were hung and we made our way past the barbed wire fences to the place where the first commandant was hung after the war. Next we made our way into the actual gas chambers. At this spot you removed your clothes. and went into what you thought was a shower room but many were killed there and must be respected for a guard dropped pellets through holes like this in the roof which killed everyone in the room and then the bodies were placed in ovens such as these to be reduced to ashes which were used to fertilize the soil. We walked away from the train tracks at Auschwitz 1 and went to Auschwitz 2 -- Birkenau which was designed to kill many more people as the grounds were enormous and more primitive as you can see from the beds on which people slept in a massive room that had previously been a barn which housed 52 horses and now was housing 400 prisoners. Next we saw the bathroom facilities where the toilet were unsanitary, not private and of use for very limited time. Finally we climbed up into the tower so that we could see just how massive the camp was.

and then I noted the barbed wire keeping prisoners in and that this has been named a world heritage site so that all will know what happened here. After a few more photos from outside noting the vastness we headed back to Krakow where I said good bye (though this would happen again) to Barry and his wife and we got some food for a snack before dinner. Then we went out to dinner and had borscht and hummus (along with pierogies) and the borscht was too pretty to not record.

The next morning, we ran into Mitch, Barry and Gregory after breakfast as Mitch was preparing to do one final interview and I recorded a page of the menu at the Alef Restaurant at the hotel where we are staying before we recorded our distances to many points on the globe and took a quick look at the Wawel Castle and Cathedral that we'd be seeing later as we made our way down what is thought to be the oldest street in Krakow (though by day's end we had heard about Prince Krak who killed the dragon and I doubt that it was on this street) and noticed that because the pope had lived on this street, there were various markers of this along with the interesting facades we saw and I was able to get an excellent of the church of St. Peter and Paul to which I was too close yesterday and the fountain there before we made our way to the Main Square and noted the Cloth Hall and this model of the town hall tower with explanation before I recorded the tower itself (by walking back quite a distance) and a side view of the cloth hall and then we took on the sculpture by the local sculptor and then considered the sculpture as it related to the town hall and as Suzanne read about the sculpture this man offered to give us a tour of the town. We got directions from him and then focused on artistic shots into and through the sculpture (note Suzanne in the background) before recording St. Mary's church across the square amid the flower markets and began what would amount to a few pictures of alkohole stores (because the concept seemed so odd to us) but we were looking for the Barbican and so this sign was quite helpful but not as amusing as this bike's owner who had left it in bubble blowing mode as we passed another alkohole and found our way to the Barbican which was worth a picture and we took another of the Black Mariah as we headed back to purchase a singing bird from this gentleman but chose not to eat fresh because we knew that after passing the hip-hop stuff we'd want one of the street bagel-like objects which we got and devoured leaving virtually nothing for the pigeons though Suzanne did use the occasion to shop in the Cloth Hall while I watched the crowds and took the obligatory phone booth picture before we marched on to my new found friend and then on to Wawel castle where we followed the ramp up the hill noting the Poles who had contributed and then made our way through the gate into the outer courtyard for views of the cathedral and then of this statue and the broad area as we made our way through the passage to the inner courtyard where I stood in the place of the chakras but did not transcend and next we studies the model of the entire castle area while going off to view the Vistula below and catching the smallest view of the dragon slain by Prince Krak who founded the city. Next we walked down the path to the shops by the river and found the dragon who breathed fire for us. On our way away from the dragon we walked the path of fame and noted that Michael Jackson is important here as well and we admired the river setting not to mention another alkohole as we made our way to the painted car in the outsider art district and took pictures of the shop owner from whom we purchased. Next we made our way to the square with the round building where the zapiekanka's are sold and joined the line so that I could order mine with corn and Suzanne could order hers with salami and cheese. All of this activity made us thirsty and so we stopped at a cafe and had some beer where I decided to start collecting the license plates of the world starting with Poland. as we walked away, I noted this Jewish style restaurant this poster for the Jewish festival and this hotel offering a unique array of services all the while capturing license plates of the Netherlands and Germany.

For dinner, we went to the very elegant Pod Aniotami restaurant where this was the place setting as Suzanne was illuminated by candle as we studied the menu and note the mosaic fountain where one can make a wish to return (we didn't feel so inspired) and I ordered this glass of sweet vodka as Suzanne had her glass of wine and lard was brought as a treat as we dined on pickles a shared salad bass for Suzanne and a tasty mixture of chantrelle mushrooms and gnocchi for me. To end the evening, we stopped at a cafe by the main square and Suzanne had her tea while I had my ice cream dessert.

It was our last day in Krakow and so we took a walk to Kazmierz and noted an Alkohole (they all seem to be open 24/7) and what they sell and then we headed to the flea market which was massive and impressive but we were not in the market for used clothing and its utility was limited. I found some license plates for that collection and then we came to an intersection with an alkohole in each direction which was followed by the obligatory phone booth picture and then we headed back to the Hotel Alef which we loved and noted their rationale and took a last walk in the planty and captured this sign. We thought that leaving Krakow would be easy but the taxi driver left us off at the international terminal and we were flying to Warsaw and so we had to walk 10 minutes to get to the right terminal but when we arrived we found a license plate for my new found collection. Unfortunately, our flight from Warsaw to Budapest had been canceled and so we were routed through Vienna which meant we had to do the 10 minutes walk next in reverse. Because the new flight left later (and arrived earlier) we had time for a last lunch in Poland