Kraków and Auschwitz-Birkenau
After my half-day adventure in Brno, I headed to Kraków via Flixbus (which was absolutely packed to the brim). I arrived late Monday night at the main station. I exchanged some currency to the local Zloty, grabbed a crunchwrap-type of thing at the station’s Burger King, and Ubered to my hostel.
The hostel cost me 9€ a night (!), so I wasn’t too surprised when the building was super shady and the check-in process was weird. Eventually, I realized I just had to pick up my key because the hostel was just 8 beds in the spare room of someone’s apartment. Later that night, I ate my crunch wrap (which was surprisingly delicious—I wholeheartedly recommend), did some homework, and planned my day trip to Auschwitz-Birkenau. After realizing the official tours are only available in Polish and Russian (and transportation was a little tedious to plan), I bought a guided tour ticket from Viator for the next morning. I’m not too sure what I was thinking, since it was 1AM and I bought a ticket for 6AM the following day.
The company immediately messaged me on WhatsApp saying there were no slots left on such short notice and to file a refund, but after telling them that I was only there for 1 day and really wanted to visit, they told me they’ll set something up the next morning. I soon went to bed with a Plan A (if I can end up visiting the camp) or Plan B (if plans fall through and I just explore the city).
I awoke incredibly early the next morning, and the lack of sleep was making me feel tired and a bit sick. I powered through as I quickly packed up, checked out, and walked through the Old City to Rynek Główny. The square was gorgeous and I tried to visit St. Mary’s Basilica, but a steep entry fee dissuaded me and I got coffee at Costa Coffee instead. I thought it was a local brand, but turns out it’s a chain that’s expanded even into the US. The coffee and banana bread (for SUPER cheap) makes me feel better, and I head out toward Wawel Royal Castle. On the way, I grab a donut at Pączkarnia Manufaktura, and it was one of the best donuts of my life! Super warm, fluffy, and filled with delicious jam, all for an unbelievable price. I had a huge smile on my face as I finished up and arrived at the castle. The outside was beautiful, but walking around the courtyard provided me with some once-in-a-lifetime views of cathedrals with gold-plated domes. I also had a great vantage point of the city and Vistula River.
By this point, I had a tour of Auschwitz set up to pick me up outside of a hotel at 11 AM, so I had about 90 minutes to explore the city. I meandered around the river and turned back into the Old City, walked into a random cool cathedral (and promptly left when I realized it was confessions time), and entered the Jewish Quarter. Lots of the buildings were incredibly well-preserved, especially the synagogues. I even went inside one that had history on the wall dating back to the 16th century, complete with an equally old cemetery adjacent to it (I paid a voluntary donation both out of generosity and fear of being haunted). Everything felt so historic and I could truly imagine what living here must have been like the in 19th and early 20th centuries.
It was time to meet up with my tour, so I headed to the address 15 minutes early to meet up with Royal Tours. It must be the default meeting place, because there were tons of tourists there waiting to see the camps. The guides would come up and say the names of the registrants, and as the number of tourists around me slowly dwindled, I worried that my shady setup wouldn’t work. There was also a Spanish couple with the same company and concern, so when they called up their contact, I also explained my case. They soon connected me with a driver, and all’s well that ends well! I eventually made it onto a car and on the way to the camps.
As we started our tour, I was glad I booked a private tour and didn’t rely on a Polish/Russian tour because hearing the speaker talk about the camps was really powerful. We first passed through the famous “Arbeit Macht Frei” gate and ventured into Auschwitz I. I knew that lots of people passed through the camp, but I had no clue about the magnitude of the situation. Over 1.3 million people passed through the camp, with 1.1 million people dying in the span of just a couple of years. It was sobering to stand in their rooms, and their living areas, and pass by areas where the prisoners were tortured and shot at. We also toured a gas chamber, and it was incredibly sobering to stand right where thousands of innocent people had gas cylinders dropped in on them.
After a short break, we drove to Auschwitz II-Birkenau nearby. This was the iconic picture that’s in all the textbooks, with the infamous railroad tracks leading into the camp. We learned that people were chosen to either live (about 10% of the fittest population) or die (90% of all arrivals) in a 5-second evaluation from a Nazi doctor. Thinking they were going to shower, the ones chosen to die were led to a chamber and told to strip. It must have been so dehumanizing and it’s impossible to even try to understand the atrocities they suffered. We saw the children’s quarters, the memorial at the end of the tracks, and the ruins where Nazi soldiers destroyed one of the chambers and rebels destroyed another. Those who led the resistance in the face of such grim violence are truly the bravest the world has ever had.
The whole experience was emotionally heavy and easily one of the most transformative experiences of my life. The craziest part was all of this happened just one lifetime ago.
We got back on our vans and headed back into Kraków. Ideally, I’d visit the nearby salt mines, but I was out of time. Our driver was really quiet but he was super nice and very helpful. I thanked my original WhatsApp contact and she was very glad everything worked out. By this point, I was exhausted and it was almost time to go. So, I walked to Wisnowy Sad to grab some takeaway pierogis (traditional Polish dumplings). I cannot compliment this place enough. They had inexpensive and delicious pierogis, amazing service, and even let me use a charger and use a table to sit during their dinner rush.
I realized I was in a part of the city that Uber could not access, so I walked to the pickup point and passed by Pączkarnia Manufaktura. Obviously, I had to grab another donut, this time cream filled, and headed to the Uber. I got to the airport and thoroughly enjoyed my pierogis with sour cream and my delicious donut.
Even though I had spent under 24 hours in the country, I was treated to transformative emotional experiences, delicious food, incredibly nice people, and gorgeous views.
Takeaways
- Poland has gorgeous historical architecture, from castles to synagogues to churches
- The BEST donuts you’ll ever have in your life can be found at Pączkarnia Manufaktura and it’ll only cost you a dime
- Touring Auschwitz is an absolute must-do. There is nothing quite like it in the entire world and everyone should feel the emotional response it illicits
- While people in Eastern Europe may have a reputation for not being the nicest (e.g. Brno), the people I met in Poland were some of the kindest. most wholesome people I’ve ever met
Rose-Bud-Thorn
Rose (what went well): The food, history, and sights of the city and region were absolutely stunning. However, the highlight has to be the people. From tour guides to restaurant staff to the hotel to random people on the street, I had positive interactions in every avenue.
Bud (what was good but could be improved on): By the grace of God, I was able to see Auschwitz. Because I put in zero planning, it was very hectic and a little stressful (when the driver was late), so I should have planned this better to avoid this last-minute mess. Everyone was so so nice and super considerate, though!
Thorn (what did not go well): Exploring the city on limited sleep and being a little sick wasn’t the greatest. After my adventure in Bratislava and Brno the previous day, I should have allotted a rest day instead of jumping into another speedrun of Kraków. This city was too beautiful to daytrip!
Rohan Chhaya 