Today started with a fairly short drive to Oswiecim (Auschwitz) to see the Museum of the old concentration camp. Having done part of my dissertation on Schindler’s List a trip to one of the main locations of the movie and to a site of extreme historical importance was a great opportunity.

I was totally expecting it to be a downbeat affair, but I don’t think I was quite prepared for how eerie and haunting the place was. It was a horrible experience in my opinion, but one I am glad to have experienced. It brought home just how easy we have it nowadays. Especially in the West. It made any problems we go through look pathetic.

The museum itself was very interesting, and very informative. It was free to walk around, or you could pay for a guide. We decided to walk around on our own, and take it at our own pace. There were signs around everywhere explaining everything anyway! I learned alot of things I didn’t know, and a lot of things I maybe would prefer not to know. But it was an eye opening experience that made me very apprechiative of my privalaged life.

After Auschwitz we headed for Krakow, it took us ages. What was meant to be a 1 hour drive turned into a 3 hour trek! To be fair we stopped for a while so Dave could post something, and promptly ran into the biggest language barrier we have encountered so far. It was a stand off between us and the Polish post office workers. We didn’t speak a word of Polish, they didn’t speak a word of English. Luckily there was a young Polish chap who spoke a little English and managed to help us out.

We finally arived in Krakow around 6pm and camped at a site recommended by the Aussies, Camping Smok. We got sorted and decided to head out for a lavish meal after having a restaurant recommended to us by, you guessed it, the Aussies. We didn’t find the restaurant they recommended, but we found a nice one all the same and had a big arse meal and desert. If I had been in a less classy joint I would have unbuckled my belt and my top button to give my overfull stomach some breathing room.

We retired to the tent, to prepare for a full assault on the unknown quantity that is Krakow, tomorrow.