You are currently browsing the monthly archive for May 2008.
5/27: After having our last day of class, we left for Prague on the 10:30 train. It was a long, long, long train ride that lasted about 9 hours. It wasn’t a pleasant experience, and I would urge all travelers to avoid this experience at all costs. There had been a lot of reports of people robbing people on these trains and I was extremely concerned with this on the train, as well as in Prague itself. Our group sat down in two booths next to each other. It seems no matter where you travel on public transit they always give you the most uncomfortable seats. This was definitely the case for the train! If you want more of an accurate depiction of what these train carts were like, think about the James Bond movies when he’s in Europe on the train system. I can’t remember the specific movie, but I’m pretty sure there was a movie at some point involving this. Remembering which one of the billion bond movies is too difficult.
5/28: after traveling for over 9 hours and everyone sleeping terribly on the train, we were in Prague. The train would stop many, many times during the night and it made it hard for anyone to get any deep sleep on these systems. However, I managed to maybe get 4-5 hours in an empty cart elsewhere on the bus. We met our guide “Jana” or pronounced “yana” in english. She helped us get on the metro and buses to our location.
At last, we arrived at our Irish motel. For how old it looks, their rooms were quite nice. However, we did not get the fancy rooms like the girls did with ovens, stoves, and a fridge. In fact, me and Chris had to sleep in one bed together. Oh well…
During our stay the first night we re-met our friend David from Dartmoth University in Illinois (I apologize if i didn’t spell that right). Once we met up with him with Jana and the rest of the group, we traveled to the main square where an asian tour guide showed us around the city. Most of us were running on fumes, and after not too long we told her we had to get some food and sleep. It was a long bus ride and most of us wanted this break to be a vacation in preparation for our 2 and half week long journey to the end.
After sleeping, we decided to get some food later that night at a spaghetti shop, this was excellent spaghetti and everyone enjoyed it. After this quick eat, we tried to meet up with the Illinois students here we met, they were all studying art. Believe me, they picked the right city to do so at. However, it was quite hit and miss with them. We tried to get to see them, but a lack of cell phone or dependable way of getting ahold of us hindered our journey. No worries though. I was able to see the USA vs. England game towards the end. They lost 2-0, but still was fun to watch. David Beckham got his 100th cap, good for him.
5/29: Most people took this day easy, and I ended up just hanging around the motel calling: Monika, my mom, and Cora all through skype. All were enjoyable conversations which made me miss them all that much more. I have become so globalized with friendships now, that no matter where I feel I am, I have a friend I will be leaving. However, maybe this is a good thing though. I mean, to be so connected all around you, and you really never know what will happen because of this either.
I also read the Prague times early in the day and found out that stalking people here isn’t a crime! Apparently 8% of men stalk someone and 3% of women stalk someone in a European survey. This was the front cover topic, along with issues with a radar base being built within the Czech Republic. The newspaper was a great informational source and wish more journalism had the substance this newspaper did.
Later that night, David took us out to some pubs and we had a few brews. He’s a fun guy to hang out with and we were able to share stories of sports back and forth between us. Not only this, but we were able to see more of Prague, and everyone also congratulated Brandi and I on having birthdays on the same day! Quite ironic, I know. Our day ended after this pub crawl, and we had to wake up early the next day for Karli vi Vali (if that’s correct spelling).
Today was a day in which the sun FINALLY decided to peek its head out from the clouds. After a ton of rain and dreary days, it was refreshing to see the radiance all around the town. We started the day like a normal day here in Poland:
1) woke up
2) got ready
3) ate a little breakfast at the cafeteria (this day in my room because I slept in)
4) had class for about 2 hours
5) ate lunch in the cafeteria
However, we were going to see the sites of: the Krakow ghetto, Schindler’s Factory, and Plaszow. 2 of the 3 happened. Unfortunately, Schindler’s factory was closed and so that was off limits. It was under some kind of construction, and so watching the movie not too long ago didn’t really redeem the fact we were unable to see it with our own eyes. While we were traveling, we got to see sites of the ghetto that was constructed during the occupation of Poland because some of the wall was still intact. However, we were later able to see the house in which Amon Göth used to run Plaszow. This could be seen in Schindler’s list with him being the primary dealer later in the movie Schindler works with to bribe for workers. He also used this house in the movie to shoot off innocent jewish people who slaved away if they weren’t working hard enough. He was a sick and twisted individual, who I will discuss later, who enjoyed killing Jews as a morning routine.
It was interesting to see how Poland has engulfed all the ghetto and used parts of it like barbed wire and walls to connect in between buildings. No one really pays much attention to these physical characteristics, but it is obvious that they exist within their own society as much as remnants may exist within our own like abandoned internment camps we had used to house many Japanese-Americans. It was all viewed on our way to Plaszow. Firstly, we had to stop at a site in which depicted the Krakow ghetto.
This site was one in which there was numerous chairs laid out to commemorate the victimization of people who lived in the Krakow ghetto. It was made to represent the relocation process of many jews while they had no choice but to move. During this move, people had to use a bridge called on Starowislna St. Depicted below is a picture of the many chairs in this commemorating spot:
It didn’t come as obvious to me, until later, that some people here have engulfed the event and swallowed it whole. They appear to be digesting the history without tasting it first. A much Maybe it’s because most people here probably haven’t even been to as many sites as myself, but I can’t help but see some forms of ignorance take place. Especially when we traveled to places like Plaszow. 2 kids were in the burial grounds where many massacred from the SS men had taken place. In this place who had as many as 150,000 people in it during the period of Poland occupation in late ‘39-January ‘45. The Soviets were responsible for the liberation of these camps. However, only 20,000 were typically seen there at one time. This hilly countryside spot was responsible for forced labor, and served as a transit camp to other concentration camps like Auschwitz. In fact, the road in which we walked upon to get there was mostly made from grave tombstones which were all uprooted from the nearby grave sight to construct it.
(uprooted grace from which the tombstone was used to build the road)
During March 13, 1943 a man named Amon Göth was responsible for overseeing the liquidation of the Krakow ghetto and into Plaszow. However, those like the sick, disabled, mentally incapable, etc. were shot and killed instead of being used for labor. Therefore, this site houses specific sites that were used primarily for genocide. As I saw in one spot on top of the hill near a forested area, there was no doubt in my mind that genocide had hollowed the ground. For the first time, I could see the people all around, I could hear them. I felt the forsaken nature of all those killed so many years ago. A site so still, so remote, you could hear their voices all around you. All of them crying for the mercy of their own religious masters, and with sudden blows of a pistol, all silenced at once.
The holocaust remains a bottom-less pit into which sorrow, pity, grief has no ending. The more you learn, the more repulsed you become towards the event. However, it is essential that this learning take place to prevent further discourse in the future.
In other news, I will be heading to Praugue tomorrow at 10:30 here which is 3:30for all my midwestern friends back in the states. I hope to have a wonderful time living it up there. I’m still undecided if I will attend Terezenstadt or not there. Something I could probably go either way on right now.
Here comes my first Eurail experience!
In order to differentiate between this post and my previous post titled “Polski” I will say that “polski” is the Polish word for “polish,” whereas “Polska” is the polish word for “Poland.” Well now that that’s out of the way I’ll continue on and divulge a bit of info.
Poland it nice. I would highly recommend it to anyone considering a venture out into the European area. Unfortunately, our time here has, so far, been focused on the Shoah. “The Shoah” is the term preferred by scholars who study the systematic concentration and execution of the European Jew, gypsies, homosexuals, and political offenders; otherwise known as the Holocaust. The visits to the concentration camps have been quite moving. The thoughts that come along with the visits have been quite frustrating. In his book titled “Fathoming the Holocaust” Ronald Berger makes mention of what he calls “the banality of evil.” After touring the gas chambers and crematoriums it is sad to note that the effectiveness with which the Nazi SS solders executed and disposed of more than six million individuals was very impressive from a bureaucratic viewpoint, which is exactly the viewpoint the Nazi Party had. It’s important to note that the common phrase of explanation from the Nazi solders that were put on trial was nothing more than “I was just following orders.” It’s also important to note that the mass execution required mass transportation, mass quantities of materials, mass quantities of food, and mass quantities of money; none of which would have been possible without a large number of behind-the-scenes paper pushers who were just working to please their superiors and move up the chain. The people being put into those gas chambers and crematoriums were nothing but numbers to the designers and implementers of what was dubbed :the Final Solution.” The society distanced itself from the tragedy that was occurring around them and they kept their eyes forward with blank indifference and that is a dangerous point for a society to being, yet the same seems to be happening within the United States. To me it seems impossible for a person to dehumanize a person or group of people into nothing more than a vast negative vocalized as “Jew” or “terrorist” without dehumanizing themselves. These mass stereotypes, these over-simplifications; they are a thing to watch out for. But Polska is nice and the weather is fair. I would recommend it.
After parting from Belzec, we journeyed into a place for which I will probably remember a long time from now: Krosno. We met students from a university here and were able to form many friendships which transcended nationalities. Most of the time, my friends from my college and Texas A&M were busy forming new friendships and trying to find places to stay. However, fate seemed to grip me like a glove. I met two maggies, a Monika, and a Molly (I believe that was her name). Not only this, but I was able to later meet Peter and a guy who gave me a hard time that starts with a B, but I can’t think of it for the life of me. They all were wonderful people that seemed to be as excited to see us as we were excited to see them eventhough we were too shy to show it at first. Most of my time was spent with Monica.
Monika was a girl who shared in very similar interests as me: Lost, Soccer (Football, whatever you want to call it), Prison Break, and good conversation. She even discussed politics, which to my understanding, everyone hates here in Poland. However, maybe people say something similar to this in America, I’m just too ignorant being a political science major to notice. I think I’m probably correct in that assumption. However, whatever the case, she indulged me in everything anyone could ever want to know or care about. We had so much in common, I had completely forgotten to even talk to anyone else. She offered to put me up for the night in her families house for a place to stay, and I naturally accepted. It was much better than the market square! However, taking a shower in the fountain could have been fun…
Monika, who may be reading this as we speak, made my night probably one of the best I will ever have. Not only was she a great host, but she was a great friend and person to know in all sense of the word. We both enjoyed each other’s company, and wish we could have spent more time together than just one night eating, clubbing, and talking. She danced with me a ton on the dance floor, talked with me, and always wanted to make sure I was okay with everything. For that, I can’t thank her enough. After miscellaneous hand stands and my weird soccer dancing (which she still makes fun of me for), we journeyed back to her home. It was amazing house that I really can’t describe for lack of exterior design terms. Forgetting to take a picture, I will allow my mind to save the image for me.
She was, however, able to tell me about her. More specifically, about how she had gotten into a car accident on the way back to her home, as me and my friend Katie both were uncertain at that point of her driving confidence. Obviously, she wasn’t a bad driver, having driven with her for awhile. Sometimes accidents just do happen, and well, I give her crap for it nonetheless. =) She quickly caught on to my sarcasm, and knew there were some things I wouldn’t let her live down. She only later would dish this back to me, and they often were quite deserving remarks sometimes. All was in good nature, however.
We ended up staying up late that night discussing issues like Visas and work permits for the USA and how she wants a working permit for the country. She had previously been in Des Moines and the Chicago area (a town with polish heritage) before . So, she is really trying hard to get back to the states to be able to work there and not as a person without a working permit. That would negate all purpose of the trip, and I totally understood her point of view on the issue. She told me how hard her exams coming up were and I can’t even fathom how hard it would have been for me to take those. They are so comprehensive, they make my finals look like a walk in the park. This is due to their college being free, so they are held to extraordinarily high standards. As it approached 4 o’clock and there was obvious signs we were tired, she told us to go to bed.
I awoke in the morning to a very similar breakfast to that of the cafetria’s at Krakow. It was almost astonishing how close it was. However, she begged me to eat more and I couldn’t refuse. Her mother didn’t speak any english, but I hope she does know how much it meant to most of us to be able to stay there with them. We did say thank you in Polish, which I cannot spell out literally due to the phonetics I can’t seem to grasp. As we approached our meet up location, we met up with UNI students and waited for people who were late. When they arrived, I was able to stay with Monika and travel to the castle. The castle which we visited wasn’t far from her house, and she was going to show the bus driver where it was located. Actually, she tried to show me on the way, but trees got the best of us.
After going through a long tour of the castle, I had to part with Monika. Something I wish I would have had more preparation to do because I parted badly due to the A&M professor ordering me to sit down in the bus. This gave me no chance to say good bye with a hug nor warm smile. Nonetheless I waved, and wrote her kind notes the night before, so she could read it today. The notes which only she will know all the material to. As irony has it, she will be in Krakow, but I will miss her when I leave for Praugue. She’s going to the consulate to work on her Visa for the U.S. and other stuff. I already miss her, and hope that somehow, through this last 3 weeks we can somehow meet up again.
Night my friends. Miss all of you in the states, as well as the ones I met last night in Krosno.
From left to right: Me, Monika, and Katie
I’m finally back in my second home. Krakow, Poland. It was an amazing week, I really couldn’t even explain it all to you in any other words than amazing. It’s hard to fathom going to concentration camps, but having an awesome time in the mean time, but it was true.
As we began our journey, we left a little late, it was my fault. I thought I was ready, but ended up delaying the leaving by a few minutes. It really upsets our teachers and I try not to do it, unfortunately, it happened. Everyone was waiting for me, and it was extremely embarrassing. However, that wasn’t the main disappointment of the trip. We ended up visiting a castle on the way to Lublin, and we were going to visit a Jewish synagogue. However, in the last couple days, the synagogue changed ownership so it wasn’t available to the public. An unforeseen consequence no one was prepared for. However, we moved on touring the castle with our guide “Kasha.” I apologize to her, even if she can’t read this, I might be mispelling her name. She was interesting lady with many quirky qualities that made her a down to earth fun-loving person to talk to. After we finished touring the castle, we hopped back onto our bus and headed towards our final destination of Lublin. Along, the way we visited another synagogue though in Zamosc.
Zamosc was a city that contained 12,500 Jews at the start of World War II. This accounted for almost 45% of the total population. They controlled 80% of the local trade. They were concentrated mainly in the Old or New town districts. Once the war was declared on Poland and Germany and the USSR invaded, it took only 2 weeks for them to capture this city. First it was occupied by the Germans, but later it was then occupied by Soviets. They, later, left the city and 5,000 jews would leave with them. Later on in May, 1941, Jews were forced from the Old Town and into the New Town. Jews were told to relocate when there was 10,000 currently in it. The New Town synagogue became the center for the Jewish Council. This town, later became a transportation spot for Jews to places like Belzec. Later, this would become a place for other Jews to be transported to places like Sobibor and Majdanek in May and in August 1942. This town was a site of an entire way of life being whiped out from the map. It whiped away the Jewish culture due to the Holocaust from the Nazis.
Lublin had an amazing motel we stayed in. We were able to easily access a gas station close by or walk to the market square. However, the natives were a little bit more hostile, atleast the kids were. Chris, Bree, Megan, Jenn, and I were walking around trying to find a place to eat when kids yelled at us to stay away from their car. They then proceeded to curse at us every curse they knew. It was obvious they were Polish and just trying to look tough as a teenager, however it was a problem hard to ignore. I only later learned this hostility was directed at Britain travelers who had exploited the Polish law enforcement system. Unfortunately, we were guilty by association of either t-shirts with english or our spoken language. I’m not sure how they couldn’t differentiate our language dialects. Who knows. Anywho, we were able to escape into a nearby restaurant and enjoy a few brews and forget about what we had saw. However, upon returning, a brick next to a shattered hatchback car window only reminded us of the hostility. The night ended after we toured the city and we woke up the next morning.
This day was devoted toward seeing the Majdanek concentration camp. This camp was a forced labor camp which many of the Jews constructed roads to other parts of the camp. Like other memorial sites, there was the mention of: hair shaving, gold teeth pulling, and body dissection in order to exploit the opressed for all they were worth. In this site, we saw the ovens that were used to cremate the bodies. I believe only 200 could be burned a day, and so with 78,000 people were murdered in the camp, 59,000 of them Jews. It would be going constantly. During this time, the city could smell ashes brush into their city and they knew what was happening. Due to the times though, they ignored it by using anti-semitism as a reason for dehumanization and exploitation. This town was completely devastated by the holocaust.
Moving on, I did not attend a tour which extended from the concentration camp to examine the city of Lublin. Since, I was experiencing a major headache. I decided to sit this one out. This constituted most of the day, and we would wake tomorrow to leave for Belzec.
Belzec was purely a death center. It promoted the mass murders of anywhere from 500-600 million jews. They would simply take jews off of cattle cars and murder them in cold blood into ditches. These ditches would try to be hidden later by covering it with farm land and burning down all the instruments of distruction of this death center. The site encapsulated the grave nature of genocide with its eerie, dead silent scenary. As if, this place had been immortalized within the ground. The letters of the signs bleed red rust only reinforced what was a grim scene.
