I have to apologize because once I got back into the states things got really crazy, and I just didn’t have time to get these last few travel posts in right away. But, I’m finally starting to get into somewhat of a regular routine so I promise this week, I WILL finish up my travel posts. Also, this post was supposed to go up yesterday but since the storms were so bad our internet was out. 
So then, my last ‘big’ trip of the semester was to Poland and Budapest. Poland was first up and we conveniently left for our flight the morning after my flat mate’s 21st birthday celebrations…lol I didn’t keep my eyes open for more than 5 minutes during the entire flight. All of us were beat, but we made it.
In Krakow we decided to go with an Airbnb instead of a hostel and boy was it nice. We had this studio apartment all to ourselves, it was great…I kind of really wished we had did the whole Airbnb sooner but…oh well.
I won’t lie but after we had some pierogis for lunch we spent much of the afternoon and early evening napping as we hadn’t fully recovered from the lack of sleep the night before. So basically we got there, ate, napped, ate again and when back to bed.
It’s really fine because the next day we saw it all. The first half of the day was spent at Auschwitz, which was the number 1 on my bucket list for study abroad (I didn’t think I was going to get the chance to go on this trip so I was glad to be able to make it work).
It’s really interesting because people ask me how it was and, for me to say it was incredible seems weird because I don’t associate the word incredible with something that is so somber. It’s extremely difficult to put into words what the experience was like. The piles of hair, of luggage, of shoes both of children and adults it’s just…writing this even now I can’t seem to find the right words.
In the simplest terms,…It made me sick, it made me scared and it made me sad. But it was worth it. I don’t really want to go into it that much more because everyone has their own individual experience and it’s something I want to keep to myself.
But, anyways we got back into Krakow and decided to do a free afternoon walking tour because we hadn’t really seen anything the day before. And let me just say here that Krakow is stunning. It is so beautiful and so so so clean, like we talked about how clean it was multiple times. And I was really surprised by this; I didn’t expect Poland to be as beautiful as it was.
The city center is surrounded by pedestrian streets making it easy to leisurely walk around. And as per usual the tour offered us good insight into the city’s history. Although, our tour guide talked a little too much I can’t complain because it was free and I learned a thing or two.
I’d have to say Poland is up there on my list of favorites. If you ever get the chance, go, not only to visit Auschwitz but to appreciate the beauty and rich history of its cities.
Cheers.
~meesh
just meesh 