Day 18 - Flying home

It's snowing in Warsaw this morning for the first time this Fall.  Time to go home. We're in the airport waiting for the flight, which is delayed about 30 minutes as of now, probably because of the weather.  It's been snowing since 7am and its now 11am, and there's no sign it will let up any time soon.  It doesn't matter when the plane leaves to us, as we're going home and we get there when we get there. 

When I get home, I'll check my posts for spelling errors and clarification when needed. I would like to encourage anyone interested in visiting Poland to do so.  We've had a wonderful vacation and look forward to returning. I'm making a list of sights to see next time. 

Do zobaczenia!

Day 17 - Last day in Warsaw

We made the most of our last day in Warsaw!   The Warsaw Uprising Museum has been open since 2004, but it's about 3 kilometers from the Old Town (Stary Miasto), so always from most of the other sites.  We were going to take a bus, but were told that because of the construction for the new subway line, the bus could take up to two hours.  It was a chilly morning, but sunny, so we decided to walk there and then work our way back. 

The Warsaw Uprising Museum tells the story of the 1944 uprising that was the combined effort of Poles and remaining Jews, as well as a handful of people from other countries, to throw off the Nazis just before the Russian Red Army advanced on Warsaw.  The idea was to be in control of Warsaw when the Red Army arrived rather than in enemy hands. 

It took about 45 minutes to walk to the Warsaw Uprising Museum.  It opens at 8 am, so there were already some school groups there. Unlike the Copernicus Museum which was full of grade school aged children, these were high school aged students as this is a much more serious place.  While not as interactive as more recently opened museums, the WUM was still full of video screens and a few interactive displays.  At the beginning is a wall resembling the Jewish Ghetto riddled with bullet holes, and you place your ear up to the bullet holes to listen to the various sounds from the uprising.   

It's hard to follow the specific way one is supposed to see the various displays which are spread out over three floors, but it didn't matter. If you're familiar with the story of the Warsaw Uprising, then the order in which you see the exhibits and films isn't that important.  The exhibits are numbered, there are occasional signs that direct you one way or another, and there are also calendars with dates during the Uprising that can help keep you on track. 

After about two hours in the Warsaw Uprising Museum, we walked  over to a small Fotoplastikon Museum on Jerozlimieskie street near the Central Railway station.  These were popular throughout Europe in the early years of the 20th century, and there are still a handful in Poland.  I don't think I've ever seen one in the US. In the center of the room is a large round barrel with several binoculars around the outside of the barrel and stools under each pair of binoculars to sit in. The barrel goes around automatically and you look through the binoculars to see 3-D pictures of Warsaw in the first decade of the century.  It only takes a few minutes to see all of them, and you'll want to watch the show once or twice. For 4 zloty per person, it's worth a stop. 

It's mid-afternoon, the perfect time to stop at the famous original Wedel chocolate shop on Szpitala street.  A hot chocolate (made with real chocolate and not chocolate milk), a slice of Polish cheesecake with cherry sauce and a slice of warm apple cake with vanilla ice cream should be enough to get us through the rest of the afternoon.  And of course, a couple of dark chocolate bars for souvenirs. 

Next stop is the National Museum, the main art museum in Warsaw.  It closes at 6pm on Friday,  but is open later on other days.  This means we have only a couple of hours to hit the highlights.  Rick Steve's guide is useful for this museum.  For the second time this trip, we've closed a museum!

 Short walk back to Zgoda street, near Wedel, for dinner at a restaurant of the same name, Zgoda.  A short walk takes us back to our favorite place in Warsaw, Blikle, for a paczki dessert.  A last walk down the very trendy Nowy Swiat street, which turns into Krakowskie street, which takes us to our hotel for our last night in Poland. 

Do zobaczenia!

Day 16 - Warsaw

We had a full day in Warsaw.  Dariusz, who we met at our cousin in Karchowice, met us in the morning to take us to some museums we wanted to see. He has a car, which helped cut down on the walking.  

We first went to the Warsaw University Library. It's well known because of its interesting architecture. It's made of copper, with large walls representing books of languages of the world, including mathematics and music. We also went to the garden on top of the museum which provides awesome views of Warsaw.  

Just across the street is the new Copernicus Science Center.  While aimed at children, and full of kids on trips from school, it is a wonderland of hands on science demonstrations.   Your ticket is a plastic card that is used to activate various displays. There's also a planetarium accessed through the museum but requires an additional fee.  Check before you go for the schedule of shows to time your visit to one of interest to you.  We spent about an hour wandering the museum, but if you're taking kids, it would be easy to spend the day here.  Or if you're a big kid yourself!

We then drove to the newly renovated Chopin Museum.  Once again, an interactive badge is used to view videos and listen to music.  The exhibits are spread out over several floors based on the periods of his life, from childhood to his death.  If you love Chopin, you could spend hours listening and watching every exhibit. 

The grey skies turned to a slight drizzle, and Dariusz had work to do, so he dropped us back at the hotel.  After a short rest in the room, we repaired to the Cafe Bristol for a cappuccino to plan the rest of the day and tomorrow.  

We didn't want to go far as it was late afternoon and uncertain of the weather.  So we walked to the Old Town (Stare Miasto) and St. John's cathedral only to find that like much of Poland, it was being renovated.  We were able to visit the tomb of the late Cardinal Wisynski.  We wandered to the square with the statue of Syrenka, the symbol of Warsaw, and the memorial to the children who fought in the underground during the war. We stopped at a couple of the many amber stores, as I was looking for earrings to match a necklace our Mom bought in Poland some 30 years ago. We also scoped out some ice cream shops in anticipation of dessert.  Warsaw's ice cream is every bit as good as Italy's gelato.  Finally, we decided on Pod Samsonem, just past the Barbakan, for dinner.  On the way there, we saw a lady making nalasniki (crepes) in the window of a nearby ice cream shop. So that's where we had dessert - ice cream for Robert and a sweet nalasniki for me.  On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at one last amber shop and I found just the style of earrings I was looking for.  

For a grey, damp day, it turned out to be a wonderful day in Warsaw. 

Do zobaczenia!

Day 15 - Another breakthrough

Today we 're saying goodbye to our family in Turek and leaving for a couple of days in Warsaw and then home.  And our family is going back to work and school.  But you never know when you're going to make another discovery about family history. 

My cousin married a fellow named Waldemar Pilarczyk, one of the family names I'm researching.  For years, even when Mom was alive and could speak with them in perfect Polish, I've been trying to find out how he is related to us as anyone whose name is Pilarczyk from the small town of Tuliszkow has to be related. But we couldn't get him to talk about his family, his father, grandfather, etc.  

I told Helen that Zbigniew Pilarczyk of Karchowice knows Helen's sister, Zosia.  Helen called Zosia, and Zosia said that Zbigniew isn't related to her (he is and I have the documents to prove it) but that Zbigniew is related to Waldemar.  Aha!  If Zbigniew is related to Waldemar, then Waldemar is related to us.  Probably five generations back, but still related.  This could help fill in information about the family.  But Waldemar isn't talking.  Helen explained that he doesn't talk about his ancestors because his father was his mother's first husband.  His mother married a Pilarczyk who then adopted Waldemar.  But now Helen understands what I'm looking for, and she said that she would find out the names of his grandfather and great-grandfather, which should be enough to connect him to the family tree.  You never know when you're going to break down another brick wall!

The weather was beautiful all day, and the new autostrada got us to Warsaw in just over two hours, even driving much slower than the 149 kilometers per hour speed limit.  The EU money is building beautiful new roads all over Poland.  I remember driving between Turek and Warsaw on a two-lane road crowded with trucks and cars and the little Fiats actually driving on the side of the road as if it were a second lane!  It used to take 4 hours of nerve wracking driving and now it's 2 hours of easy driving.  Poland is a totally new country. 

We had plenty of time to walk around the Old Town (Stare Miasto) and New Town.  We even headed in the other direction and picked up treats at Blikle, Poland's most famous bakery whose specialty is the traditional rosé jam filled paczki.  We bought paczki and I couldn't resist the plum tarts.  I've eaten my share of paczki, but I've never ever had anything this delicious.  I think it's worth a trip to Warsaw just to visit Blikle.  We decided to eat at Polka, one of Gessler's many restaurants in Warsaw.  It's right on the Old Town square, and has delicious food at really reasonable prices. 

Warsaw is changing, at it is all for the good.  It is starting to feel like a very modern cosmopolitan city.  Given it's location between Western and Eastern Europe, I think the future is going to be awesome for Warsaw. 

Do zobaczenia!

Day 14 - the Archives in Konin

This is the kind of day every genealogist loves - a day in an archive.  To make sure we didn't get lost in Konin, our cousin Artur came with us.  It was also helpful to have him to translate with the archive staff.  At first, it was clear that the staff didn't grasp that I've been doing research for 15 years.  I understood the Director well enough to know that he thought we were newbies.  No matter. Within a short time I was able to get across that I knew which records I wanted to look at and wasn't looking for someone to teach me how to do research. 

It is a government archive, so there were several bureaucratic hurdles to jump over, including several documents to sign to say what research we were doing, that we had to complete with a list of records we wanted to make photos of (which needed the directors approval signature), and a separate form for each year of the fond that I wanted to look at.  I limited the number of books to what I hoped was manageable in a couple of hours. 

They only pull books twice each morning, and we missed the first call.  So we waited for about 45 minutes before the books arrived.  The room held 8 desks, one had a microfilm reader on it, which meant only 7 were suitable for metrical books, and all 7 desks were taken.  One lady was already working on books.  Two others managed to get their request in early and were also occupied.  There were 4 of us sitting watching a broken clock waiting for our books for 45 minutes.  Everyone except the first lady were gone by the time we finished. 

We found a total of 17 documents related to our family.  One of the staff stood guard while we made our photos (without a flash, which is fine since flash doesn't make a good photo of a document).  And we were done.  It was a good day. 

Day 13 - On the road again!

Renting a car in Poland can sometimes be an interesting experience.  It seems each time, something goes wrong.  Last year, instead of an automatic transmission, they. Gave me a semi-automatic transmission, which is something I had never heard of.  Then, just before we were going to return to Warsaw, the GPS died.  So we had to figure out how to drive in Warsaw the old- fashioned way, with a map we bought in a gas station. 

This year, the car we rented in Krakow and the GPS both worked fine.  I decided to take trains between Krakow and Poznan, and on to Wroclaw, just to eliminate the hassle of renting a car and driving in Poland.  However, I needed a car to get from Poznan to the archives in Konin and our family in Turek.  Which meant that we would also have to drive to Warsaw.  The car we were given was fine, except for the fact that the tank was only one-quarter full.  Yes, I understand that we only had to return the car in the same state, but I wouldn't drive in Chicago with less than a quarter of a tank of gas, let alone drive around Poland with one.  So we lost time stopping to fill the tank. 

Then, less than a mile from the hotel, the GPS stopped working.  This meant that although we managed to figure out how to get to Konin, I couldn't find the way to the archive.  I was able to find the road to Turek, so at least we were headed to someplace we knew.  The company later said that the GPS wasn't broken, it just wasn't charged.  What kind of rental company gives a customer a car with a quarter tank of gas and an uncharged GPS?  This is still the problem with Poland.  As long as you're in Warsaw or Krakow, they know how to conduct business.  In other smaller cities, it's hit or miss. 

Our family hosted a wonderful family dinner for us with homemade golabki and pierogi, chicken, cakes, and a round of citrus flavored vodka. It's nice to know we're welcome here and we can get help talking in Polish to the car rental companies!

Day 12 - More Poznan

The fog was so thick this morning that I could barely see the other side of the street.  This wasn't predicted, but all we can do is hope that it will burn off.  regardless of the weather, our cousin Wieslaw met us at out hotel for a planned excursion to Ostrow Tumski - Cathedral Island. 

Since it's early and there will be masses still going on, we decide to visit the Poznan Ethnographic Museum, which is on the way to Ostrow Tumski.  Ethnographic Museums are usually my favorite because they show how people lived in a particular region.  There are displays of costumes, tools and equipment used in every day life.  Of course, if you live in Poznan or Krakow or Warsaw, you'll want to see displays of regions other than your own.  So there is usually a special exhibit, and in the Poznan Museum there was an exhibit of Kosovo on the first two floors.  The third floor had an exhibit that had artifacts from all over the world, in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the museum, reflecting the many different exhibits they've had over these years.  Many of these were from regions in Poland, so it made the visit worthwhile. 

When we were leaving the museum, Wieslaw mentioned we were going to Ostrow Tumski and the museum staff recommended a new museum there which just opened in June.  They even called the museum for us to make sure that it was open today, a Sunday. 

To reach Ostrow Tumski, we walked over the bridge crossing the Warta River and noted the incredibly long fishing poles the fisherman were using to reach the deepest water in the center of the river.  

Ostrow Tumski was the area where Poznan started in the 10th century.   Three centuries later, the island was given to the church and a new city built on the other side of the Warta.  The new museum, Genius Loci Archeological Park, explains this and much more with a 3- D movie and multi-media kiosks. The movie has English subtitles, and an English audio guide is available for the rest of the museum. These explain what Poznan looked like during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.   Besides the movie theater, the museum consists of two large rooms, one which has excavations of walls of the original fortress wall, and the second has actual archeological excavations that show how the fortress walls were built with timbers, rocks and sand.  Usually there is a small admission fee, but the museum is free on Sunday. The audio guide was 2 zloty (about 60 cents).  It's only 2 blocks from the cathedral, and worth seeing as it provides good background for our visit to the Cathedral. 

By then masses were over so we entered Peter and Paul Cathedral, the oldest site on Ostrow Tumski.  The original building was constructed in 968, but due to many conflicts has been reconstructed several times, most recently after WWII. There are 12 chapels around the perimeter.  The most notable is the Golden Chapel, the brilliantly gilded mausoleum for the former rulers Mieszko I and Boleslaw Chrobry. The high altar was created by 14th and 15th century Silesian artists depicting Out Lady surrounded by 14 female saints. 

We took a leisurely walk back to the Rynek and stopped at Cukernia Gruszecki for a regional specialty, Rogale Swieto Marcinski, that is qualified by the EU Protected Designation of Origin, just like Parma ham and champagne. These buns are traditionally eaten on St. Martin's Day (Nov 11) but are available all year.  The rogale we had was as big as my outstretched hand, but Wieslaw explained that the buns sold on the holiday are 2 or 3 times that size.  The Rogale is a crescent shaped sweet bread with a white poppy seed and dried fruit filling and a nut glazed topping.  It was delicious, and we washed it down with a hot chocolate to warm us up.  Of course, it wasn't until then, late afternoon, that the sun made a vain attempt to come out. 

After three days of touring Poznan, we were ready for a rest and needed to get ready to leave in the morning, so we went back to the hotel.  Later, we decided to get some dinner, so walked back to the Rynek where most of the recommended restaurants are located.  We chose Ratuszowa because it had czernina (duck blood soup). It's hard to find a restaurant in Poland that makes it. In fact, this was the first time we saw it on a menu.  Not only was the czernina excellent, the entire meal was awesome and one of the best we've ever had in Poland.  Even better, it was very reasonable compared to other places. And to top it off, the waiter said he had Pilarczyk in his heritage.  Maybe he was angling for a bigger tip, but we really did enjoy the evening. 

By evening the fog had settled back in and we couldn't see more than a block ahead.  Given the surroundings, we felt like we were in a 1940's movie. Fortunately, after three days touring Poznan we felt like natives and knew where we were going.  We had an awesome time in Poznan, and I have a list of places yet to see.  So we'll definitely be back someday. 

Do zobaczenia, Poznan!

Day 11 - Rogalin and Kornik

Today was a road trip to Rogalin and Kornik, both locations of palaces about 12 miles from Poznan. 

The Rogalin Palace built in the 18th century is the home of the Raczynski family. They still retain 4 rooms of the palace. The rest of the palace was recently renovated, so was empty although they expect to have it painted and re-furnished within a few months.  There is also a small museum of horse drawn carriages, and a small museum of Raczynski portraits.  In the nearby park are three beloved ancient oaks named for the founders of Poland, the Czech Republic and Russia - Lech, Czech and Rus.  

 Kornik built in the 14th century really looks like a castle because it still has its moat.  The rooms contain many historical items including a displays of armor, furniture, and unattributed paintings, and a family tree of the various well-known families associated with the castle. 

The weather continues to be absolutely beautiful for this time of the year.  It has been perfect for all of the outdoor touring we've been doing.  After the castles, we went to Wieslaw's home for dinner, to meet his 99 year old mother-in-law, and a tour of his village of Slupia Wielki, then on to Piotr's new home for dessert and samples of homemade liqueurs.  We should sleep well tonight!

Day 10 - Poznan

Ania, the wife of our cousin Piotr, and her 4 (almost 5) month old Czeslaw, arrived at our hotel at 10:30 am and we didn't return until 6 pm. It was a wonderful day do walking up and down the streets of Poznan, visiting several small museums and immense churches, many monuments, a few squares, and one very large park. 

We saw:

- the university building where Piotr teaches law

- the philharmonic and the music school

- a theater built by Polish residents for themselves when the area was German

- the opera house

- the palace of Kaiser Wilhelm II which today houses a cultural center

- St. Francis church (Ania's favorite)

- the magnificent town hall and the historical museum of Poznan inside

- St. Stanislaw Church, commonly known as Fara, the parish church of Poznan

- a former Catholic Church now used by Greek Catholics

- St. Wojciecha, the oldest church in Poland and reported to be where St. Wojciech (Adalbert) first brought the Catholic faith to Poland

- the Church of the Carmelites

- Adam Miczkiewicz monument

- Plac Wolnisci

- Monument to the victims of Katyn

- Monument to the June 1956 uprising

- a musical instruments museum, although unusual it was very interesting

- the Bamber girl statue

- the remnants of the Poznan defense walls

- Makiety Poznan (Model of Poznan) , a narrated diorama of the history of Poznan

- the Citadel Park, including the Polish, British and Russian cemeteries, the Army Museum, and Abakanowicz sculpture of headless people (very much like the one in Chicago but larger), and the Peace Bell

I've probably left out a monument or church from our whirlwind tour.  We had a lovely lunch of pumpkin soup and pierogi in the garden area of a restaurant on a side street that I couldn't find again if my life depended on it. We were so "walked-out" that we had dinner in the hotel restaurant. But we decided to try the traditional duck of Wielkopolska, a Polish dish we haven't had yet on our travels in Poland. 

Our hotel room is supposed to have WiFi, but it hasn't worked since we've been here. Fortunately, it does work in the restaurants so we can catch up during breakfast. When the hotel couldn't get it working, they gave us a complimentary bottle of wine.  

Day 8 - Wroclaw

Babcia was correct!  We cleaned out plates last night and today we have beautiful sunny weather.  Perfect for sightseeing.  I think it's interesting that although its about 65F, all the women are wearing boots. Granted some are very fashionable and couldn't be worn in snow, it just seems a bit warm yet for boots. Polish women do like to be fashionable, been those in smaller towns.  

Panorama of the Battle of Raclawice

Our first stop was the Panorama Raclawice- Panorama of the Battle of Raclawice.  I think it's worth a trip to Wroclaw just to see this.  The panorama memorializes Tadeusz Kosciusko's victory over the Russians in a battle at Raclawice on April 4, 1794.  At the time, Poland was fighting against occupation on three sides, Austria, Prussia and Russia.  The victory at Raclawice gave the nation hope that it would survive.  Although we know in the end Poland was partitioned, the victory remains important in the hearts of Poles that in the end, Poland lives. The panorama was actually created in the late 19th century, when Poland only existed in the hearts of its people.  After World War II, the painting and other works of art that were in Lwow were repatriated to Poland, and the Panorama Raclawice brought to Wroclaw.  However, the painting was hidden in fear of offending the Soviets.  After the success of the independence movement, a new building was constructed for the panorama, and the painting itself restored and opened to the public in 1985. 

Go early in the morning to get a ticket for a specific entrance time.  It seemed they allowed about 50 people into the Panorama at one time.  There is a waiting area with a few benches and screens with  videos in Polish (although the sound was turned down), and of course a souvenir shop.  At the appointed time, we line up to walk up a winding walk to the panorama.  An audio guide with an English translation of the narration is included in the price of the ticket.  Be prepared to be awed!

National Museum of Art

A ticket for Raclawice will also give you entry to the Muzeum Naradowe - the National Museum, and  vice versa.  It holds art from both Lwow and Wroclaw and covers several centuries.  It has a particularly large collection of religious art, including altarpieces and statues, as well as paintings.  The next largest collections is historic portraits.  There are also temporary exhibits of 20th century art.  It's easy to view all three stories in about an hour or so, so it's worth seeing it if you're in the area. 

Dinner at Pawel's home

After  walking from the hotel, through the Panorama Raclawice and the National Museum, we were done for the day. We hopped a tram and headed to Pawel's apartment. Before the feasting began, Pawel and I compared genealogical notes. Pawel is one of the few Polish cousins who's interested in genealogy and I take advantage of his help.  Pawel's wife is an excellent cook, and the table was covered with dishes of potatoes sprinkled with dill, a pork roast stuffed with prunes, and at least a half dozen salads. Without asking, a plate with both homemade cheese cake and tiramisu were put in out places.  Lots of tea, wine,  beer and vodka all evening.  Good thing we talked genealogy first!  Joining the feast were Pawel's brother, Zbyszek, and his wife, Krystyna, and our cousin from 

Turek, Marcin.  Marcin attends the university in Wroclaw and I put him in touch with Pawel so he would know some adults he could turn to if needed.  It was wonderful to see how they treated him like a son. 

Do zobaczenia!

Day - 9 Halfway through the trip

We're halfway through our trip today.  We spent the morning in Wroclaw walking over to Ostrow Tumski, Cathedral Island. It's not really an island, just on the other side of the Odra from Wroclaw proper.  Besides, Wroclaw had the third largest number of bridges of all the cities in Europe, so you can't visit Wroclaw and not cross at least a couple of bridges!

This is where Wroclaw started about a thousand years ago.  Besides the beautiful cathedral which was carefully reconstructed after heavy damage in World War II, there is a single church that has two separate parishes - one that worships upstairs and the other downstairs.  There is a chapel from the 13th century, as well as a Greek Orthodox Church. 

From Ostrow Tumski we walked back for one more trip around the Rynek, and pictures of the town hall, a modern glass fountain, and a small square with several flower stalls that is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  So there's no excuse to show up for dinner empty-handed!

Next stop, Poznan.  We took a train from Wroclaw to Poznan and were met at the station by Piotr.  It was a short walk to the hotel.  It was already time for dinner, and armed with directions fora 15 minute walk, we headed to a restaurant in the Rynek.  Thirty minutes later, we found it!  We went right when we should have gone left, and since it was dark, it was hard to see where we were going. No matter, a delicious dinner and piwo at Gospodar Pod Koziolkami and we were ready for a good night's rest. 

Day 7 - from Krakow to Wroclaw

Day 7 was a good day to take the train from Krakow to Wroclaw.  The temperature in Krakow was comfortable, but it was cloudy.  In fact, about an hour outside of Krakow it started to drizzle and by the time we got to Wroclaw it was raining. 

Last year, I drove to Wroclaw.  It was a 3 hour drive, but mostly on a major highway, so wasn't that difficult. The problem was Wroclaw!  The streets were narrow and went every which way. The GPS helped, but it was still a bit scary. They drive differently in Wroclaw; they drive on the lane with the tram tracks, which I've never seen anywhere else.  So even though it is a 5 hour ride, it is just more relaxing to take the train and watch the towns and countryside roll past. 

Plus this gives me time to plan our upcoming excursions in Wroclaw, Poznan and Warsaw.  Doing this makes me forget that I'm a bit tired because I can get excited about what's coming up. 

It was a 15 minute taxi ride from the hotel to e main railway station in Krakow. I had purchased tickets at home, but was told that I needed to take them to a cashier to get the boarding pass for a particular car and seat. I could have made a reservation for a car and seats, but it was going to cost $88, so i decided to wait until now to do that. The taxi dropped us off at a platform that the driver said was to Wroclaw, and we took an elevator down to Platform 4.  I had to ask someone where to find the cashier, which was down the stairs and to the right.  So I left Robert with the luggage on the platform, and hoped we were really at the correct platform. The first cashier was a small kiosk, and she directed me to go up the stairs to the main station building. The cashier in the main building said that I needed to pay 10 zloty more to reserve seats, and she confirmed that Robert was waiting on the correct platform.   The next time (which is a phrase I often use when traveling), I'm going to try to make my own train reservations online. Last year, my cousin needed a reservation to get home to Krakow from Warsaw.  I found the web site of the national railroad and managed to get her a first class ticket, with an assigned seat, and print it out for her - just like a plan e-ticket.  I think I'll be able to figure it out again and save the hassle and extra cost of doing it myself. 

The hotel in Wroclaw was a short taxi ride from the train station, and a 5 minute walk from the Rynek, a perfect location.  Dinner was at Piwnica Swidnicka, which met the tour guide description of a beer garden, but it was quite an elegant beer garden, in the basement of the historic town hall. We had the local specialty, beef roulade served with beets purée. And of course, piwo (beer).   This was a new brand to us, Piast beer.  Smaczne!

As instructed by babcia, we ate everything for good weather tomorrow!

Do zobaczenia!

Day 6 - Kazimierz and Podgorze

While I'd seen the neighborhood, Kazimierz, on a prior trip to Poland, it was part of a bus tour of Krakow.  Kazimierz, and the neighboring area of Podgorze, deserve more time than that.  Kazimierz is the area known as the Jewish Quarter because this was where the majority of Jewish citizens of Krakow lived, and Podgorze is where the Germans created the Jewish ghetto and the concentration camp, Plaszow, when they occupied Krakow.   Before WWII, twenty-five percent of the citizens of Krakow were Jewish, making them an integral part of life in Krakow. 

We spent all day in those two areas, and there is so much more that I haven't seen that I know I'll be back again.  We decided to go to Podgorze by tram.  I love trying out public transportation in foreign cities.  It makes me feel like an experienced traveler and part of the community, even if I'm not. Besides, the worst that can happen is that I get lost and have to find a taxi.  Kazimierz is easy to walk to from anywhere near Krakow's Rynek.  Podgorze is just on the other side of the Wisla (Vistula) across from Kazimierz. 

The tram dropped us off just two blocks from the Under the Eagle (Pod Orlem) Pharmacy museum.  This was a pharmacy owned by a Polish Catholic during the time the Germans turned Podgorze into the Jewish ghetto.  He used the pharmacy to help the Jews by giving them medicine, acting as a courier to the outside, hiding Jews, and helping some escape from the ghetto.  The museum is only three small rooms, but tells the story of what the Germans did to the Jews remarkably well.  There are many photos, artifacts and videos that are heartbreaking to see.  There is an audio guide for 10 zloty, which was a bit more informative than just the signs, but one can easily do this museum with just the signs. 

Just across the street from Pod Orlem Pharmacy is the Plac Bohater Getta, the center of the ghetto.  Today, a display of empty chairs scattered across the square are a reminder that the Jews had to carry their belongings, including furniture, when forced to move to the ghetto. 

From Pod Orlem Pharmacy, we got directions to walk to the Oscar Schindler Factory Museum.  It's only a ten-minute walk from Pod Orlem to Schindler's Factory , but it's not well marked, and the museum is in a predominantly industrial area - after all, it was a factory.  That's something Krakow needs to work on.  Krakow is a very walkable city, but it needs a few more direction signs to make it easier to find some of the sites.  But after asking a native Krakowian if we were headed in the right direction, it was easy to find. 

The Schindler Museum only recently re-opened after a major renovation.  If you're not that much interested in either Jewish history or World War II, then you can cruise through the museum in an hour or so.  But if these areas are of interest, you can easily spend hours here.  We spent 3 hours, and were literally the last ones out of the building. There is a 30 minute movie to give an overview of the history of the factory.  The rest of the museum is on multiple levels. I'm not sure what facilities have been provided for people who can't do stairs, but I think that behind some curtains that I noticed near staircases one will find elevators.  Like most modern museums, this one has many interactive kiosks where one can read or listen to historical information and interviews. There are countless displays of what life was like in the ghetto and what was done to the Jews. As I said, we spent 3 hours, and towards the end we started to skip some kiosks simply because we were getting worn out. 

We walked over the Wisla to Kazimierz, talking with a young lady from Australia who was on. 50 day tour of Europe. Tired and hungry, we headed straight to the tiny restaurant, Pierozki U Vincenta. "Vincenta" is Vincent Van Gogh, and this place is worth a visit just to see the "starry sky" ceiling. But it's also worth a trip because of the extensive menu of pierogis.  We had pierogi Vincenta, the house specialty, which was stuffed with minced meat and kielbasa, pierogi Gorale which was stuffed with the Highlander smoked sheep cheese and potato, pierogi with cabbage and mushrooms, and for dessert apple pierogi dusted with powder sugar and cinnamon.  Oh, and Zywiec!

Do zobaczenia!

Day 5 - Karchowice

Today we went to Karchowice to visit with another cousin, Zbigniew Pilarczyk and his family.  Karchowice is about 120 kilometers from Krakow.  It had been 7 years since I last visited them.  Fortunately, in those 7 years a majore tollroad was constructed, cutting the trip from 3 hours of backroad driving to an hour and a half of easy driving on a really nice highway.  Also during zthose years, one of his daughters married and he has an adorable grandson. Last time, I didn't know much Polish at all and he seemed interested in that I was some kind of American cousin, but not so much in his genealogy.  So, I actually wondered whether it was worth the time and effort to visit him again.  Am I glad we went!

This time was very different.  He explained how he was related to people in the family tree, he had available copies of various vital records which he allowed me to photograph, and said he knew several people from Krepa, our family village, from weddings and funerals he has attended.  His daughter said that weddings are quite the affairs, lasting several days and lots of drinking. His uncle lives in Krepa, so I hope to have a chance to meet him when we're there in about a week.  

His son-in-law recently graduated with a degree in architecture and is a Frank Lloyd Wright fan.  They hope to visit Chicago to see the wonderful buildings we have. 

This just goes to show that we should never give up searching.  You never know when people will open up and help put some leaves on the family tree. 

Day 4 - Dobczyce

My father's cousin, Helena, and her family, live on the farm my grandfather grew up on.   We found them 8 years ago by just driving to Dobczyce and asking around for the family. I've returned to visit each time I'm in Poland.  They are a very welcoming family, and Helena is so warm and caring. She is now 86 years old, and both she and I are afraid that each time we meet, it will be the last time we see each other on earth.  Last year, a few days after our visit, her husband passed away. 

It was late afternoon when we arrived because the family members work on Saturday, but I didn't want to miss this chance.  Dobczyce is only about an hour from Krakow.  This time, I wanted to film her as I asked questions about how life was when she was young.  Frankly, life was then much as it is now for her, except for things like television and cars.  People worked hard, there wasn't much free time, WigIlia was celebrated then the way it is now.  They rode to church with the neighbors because they had a horse to draw a wagon.  Everything was done by hand.  But she lived on the farm in the house she lives in now, surrounded by family her whole life. 

The big surprise was that Helena presented me with a wedding picture that included about 40 people, including several babies in their mother's arms.  She thought it was my grandparent's wedding picture.  She pointed out her father, who was in America for a few years before returning to Poland.  I was a bit confused, but recognized my grandmother's brother, Stanley Badowski, so knew it was a family picture.  Later this evening, looking at the photo in my room without the chatter and excitement of our visit, I realized that it was not my grandparent's wedding picture, but my grandparents were in the photo.  If her father Jan, and my grandfather Franciszek are in the picture, the photo must be of my great-uncle Jakob Piech's wedding.  I'll be able to confirm this when I get home and check with other family members and look at other photos. 

Even though it isn't my grandparents, it is a precious photo to me.  Now I have a photo of my great-uncle Jan Piech, my great-uncle Jakob, and who knows what other family members might be in the picture.  I feel so lucky and blessed tonight!

Unfortunately, I also learned of a grand-uncle who died in Auschwitz.  That makes two family members who died in concentration camps.  We have to take the bad with the good. 

Day 3 - Borzecin

A rental car was dropped off at the hotel today. We'll have it for the weekend, and we took the first out-of-town excursion for this trip today. We went to the small town of Borzecin, a little over an hour from Krakow.  It might have been less than an hour if we had taken the major highway, but we took a more scenic back road.  I was amazed to see the many wooden low-slung homes with undulating roofs and chimneys that look as if they will collapse in the next strong wind. In some areas of Poland these are all gone. 

Borzecin stretches out along a river, but as usual, the church is easy to find as the steeples rise over the fields and small houses.   Robert remarked that in every town, no matter how small, the parish church is elaborately decorated and painted, and is spotless.  Clearly the church is still the heart of the towns in Poland.  The architecture starts to reflect that we are going east in Poland, with the steeples being moderated onion domes. 

I was hoping to make a family connection in Borzecin.  Before the trip, I printed a list of people with the last name of Badowski from an online Polish white pages web site. Unfortunately, there were only phone numbers - no addresses. I don't trust my meager Polish to carry on a complicated conversation.  So I waited until we got to Poland and then asked my cousin to call the only Badowski listed as living in Borzecin. He graciously agreed to meet with us. 

We first stopped at the church for photos. Pan Badowski's home was just a few doors down a street that traced the curve of the river. We compared notes, but he could really only recall his ancestry back to his grandmother, and had no knowledge of any of her siblings.  I have a feeling that when I get serious about doing the Badowski branch of my tree I will find that we are distant cousins. 

Although we returned to Krakow with just pictures of the church, it made me determined to spend more of my research time on my other families.  We stopped to take our cousin Krystyna home, but she invited us in for tea, and we ended up spending a couple of hours looking at each others photographs and showing Krystyna our house on Google maps.  That put us returning to the hotel in the middle of rush hour - and it is every bit as bad as downtown Chicago.  I'm glad I've driven in Poland several times before, so just relaxed as we inched our way back to the hotel. 

For dinner we decided to try Wesele, a newer and well rated restaurant on the Rynek. In other words, a little more expensive than an average place, but still inexpensive compared to Chicago or other major cities. Wesele is the Polish word for a wedding reception, and is reflected in the  colorful floral decorations hung in a replica of a wooden cottage.  It is a very pretty restaurant, and the food was worth every penny.  Robert had red borscht and bigos. I had golabki and a beet salad. We shared a traditional Krakow cheesecake that was embellished with a warm bitter chocolate sauce. Yumm!

Do zobaczenia!