South Bound

Today is our last day on the Polish coast. The last few days have been increasingly hot and we (especially Nick) have the farmer tans to prove it. Tonight we take a train to Wroclaw, but this time we have a couchette so we should sleep well. Tomorrow we're meeting up with Family which will be nice after staying in various unfamiliar places for the two weeks.

Hel And Back

It was hot in Hel today. But I wouldn't want to be there when it freezes over. Fortunately for the residents those puns only work in English. Hel was an old fishing town before reinventing itself as a quaint little beach town looking out into the Baltic sea. It's a really nice place that we'd definitely stay in longer next time. The water's extremely cold, but not cold enough to keep two Canadians out of it.

Ground Zero

Westerplatte is where the first shots of WW2 were fired. It was on September 1rst 1939 and the resistance lasted seven days.

Malbork Castle

Today we went to Malbork to see a castle constructed by the Teutonic Knights in the thirteen hundreds. It was amazing to see how they lived, and what Poland was like during those times.

The Sea Side

Yesterday we arrived in Sopot, a kind of Malibu Beach style resort town. Today we took a quick train ride to Gdansk, the location in which the first attack of WW2 occurred as well as where the start of solidarity movement began.

Good Bye, Good Bye Lenin

Yesterday we left Krakow, and our hostel called "Good Bye Lenin". Our 13 hour train ride was also noteworthy... The compartment we occupied was quiet until we were joined by a pack of young drunk/high hooligans. But all is well that ends well. Krakow was action packed. Each day we left the city for sites in the surrounding area so it's definitely somewhere we need to go back to.

Oswiecim

Auschwitz, the German name that we're more familiar with, is a horrifying place. Being there all day has left an immense impression on us. We're still trying to make sense of what we saw, but I'm not sure we ever will. This was a deeply moving experience for us and we're glad for the education that we've gained.