If only food everywhere was as cheap as Poland's...

Cursing the cold weather

Anyone who has flown discount airlines such as RyanAir, Vueling, or EasyJet knows the drill. One small suitcase, less than 10 kilos. If you're a daredevil, you'll put your purse on underneath your jacket and hope that no one takes note of the unsightly lump at your hip. You wear your biggest sweater and heaviest shoes and 2 pairs of leggings under a pair of jeans so as to take away from the weight of the suitcase.  What's that? You're flying to a blazing-hot beachy destination? Doesn't matter. You wear those layers all the same otherwise you may be screwed into paying an ungodly amount of money before boarding the plane.

I followed the drill to a T during this trip with Sofia. I went so far as to having a designated travel outfit: my winter coat, two scarves, a shirt with an oversized sweater over it and another button up sweater over that, jeans, tights, socks, and my heavy leather boots. Upon arrival in Rome, I quickly peeled every extra article off because it was so nice out!! However, when we got to Poland, I found myself actually reaching into my suitcase and trying to find more articles of clothing to put on: another scarf, gloves, and a hat. I laughed a bit a myself, remembering that as I was packing for this trip I had genuinely considered bringing a lighter jacket. What an absolute fool. I'm lucky my flat mate Anna had insisted that I bring the winter coat. Thanks, Mom :)

So Poland. Poland was...freezing. Not only was it cold, but it was uncomfortably windy. If I recall correctly, the temperature ranged from about -7 to 3 degrees Celsius the entire time we were there, so 19 to 37 degrees Fahrenheit. I know, I know, being an individual who has lived through countless Chicago winters, this should have been a walk in a park for me. But, I have been living in Spain, where, although rainy, it doesn't seem to ever get below 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, rare is the day that we experience wind in Ourense. And Poland was nothing BUT wind! I longed for sunlight and underarmour and blankets and heat pads and hand warmers and hot chocolate the whole time we were in Poland. We often sought shelter by running into whatever store was nearby, feigning interest in antiques or other thrift store items just to take advantage of the indoor heating. We also ended up visiting TWO shopping malls, and trying to see if the cheap prices of food translated into retail...it did not. But I did get to eat a Cinnabun, which I had been craving for a long time :)

Spinach perogies

Despite my avid weather complaints, I promise you that I enjoyed Poland! The biggest perk about Poland: it is CHEAP. Sofia and I went to have lunch at a nice restaurant which was listed in the Michelin guide. We had an appetizer, alcohol, nice meat dishes and dessert. We each paid what was the equivalent to 15 US Dollars. And that's for a nice meal--when we went and had an average hearty meal it was about 3-5 US Dollars. Needless to say, Sofia and I took advantage...buying pastries and (pseudo) bagels galore! One of our first meals was a plateful for perogi's which was absolutely delicious.

The first night in Katowice we went on our first shopping excursion, but went to bed fairly early. The next day we had big plans: a visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. I wish I could say that the cold weather didn't put a damper on the visit... but that's completely untrue. Along with the weather, Katowice did not seem to be very tourist friendly. First, finding the bus that went to the concentration camp was just short of exhausting. No one spoke English. The one bus attendant who did, gave us completely inaccurate information. The one who didn't speak English was the one who ended up giving us correct information... but that put us on a bus whose driver didn't speak any English, and seemed to be mocking us. Thanks, guys. Well, eventually we got to the town of Oświęcim, where the concentration camp is located, and the bus driver all but tossed us off the bus, pointed in a direction, made some gestures, laughed, and sped away. We were overjoyed with gratitude when the driver of the next bus spoke English and was actually nice to us and helpful. And we made it to Auschwitz! Just 15 minutes before the final English tour, too :)

Barbed wire fences at Auschwitz

What can I say about the camp... it's just as somber, if not more, than what you would expect it to be. The exhibits are powerful; you can read hours and hours of Holocaust history but until you've been to the camp you don't truly process the reality of it all. It was also a bit haunting for all of us on the tour group to be bundled up in our puffy coats and scarves and boots, and to still be complaining about the cold, and then you realize that the people who lived in these camps 70 years ago were dressed in nothing but pajamas and shoes. Really puts things into perspective! Also, it was interesting to see the vast difference between the Auschwitz camp and the Birkenau one. Auschwitz was originally intended for Polish soldiers, so the barracks are substantially more solid, but once you get to see Birkenau you see that most of the barracks haven't even stood the test of time and have already collapsed from the harsh weather. Overall it was a super rewarding experience, and despite feeling like my toes and fingers had fallen off, I'm glad we got the chance to visit both camps. We took a train back to Katowice, picked up our suitcases, ate some delicious kepabs, and took a bus to Krakow.

Watch tower at Birkenau

Krakow's main square

Krakow was super pretty and lively, which made for a nice breath of (very) fresh air in our Polish experience. There was a  cute trolley type thing that ran through a track in the city. There was a shopping mall with an abundance of stores, as well. Despite all its cuteness... Krakow was still FREEZING. Our hostel was heated, but I still slept in some of my airport attire: sweatpants, leggings, various shirts, and a sweater. I'm relieved to say that the worst weather of the trip was already over once we left Katowice! But it wasn't exactly the Mojave desert warm, either :)

Snowfall

The next morning we woke up to a gentle snowfall...which, looked very precious in the courtyard of the hostel, but otherwise was just unwelcomed. We caught a free tour of Krakow in the city center, with one of the tallest, gangliest, goofiest tour guides I've had to date. We saw all the main sites of Krakow, but in the end the site that left me with the greatest impression was that of the main square. While most of Poland is gloomy, snow-covered farmland and bare trees, this city center is full of colorful and intricately designed buildings. It was gorgeous. 

YUM

After the free tour Sofia and I wandered around, buying souvenirs, stopping into every 5 stores we passed in order to take advantage of the heating, and also making a brilliant stop for dessert. Despite the weather, I somehow craved a Pinocchio-shaped ice cream creation...and it was delicious! We wandered around a bit more for the rest of the night, but eventually the frigid air got the better of us and we made our way back to our relatively warm hostel. The next morning our plane would be taking off for heaven!!!...er...I mean....Paris!!!!


:D