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.
|
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
