After the iron curtain.

Pipe organs are cool no matter what anybody says.
see more photos »

After a quick stay in London it was time to head out to Europe and get on with the trip.  Unfortunately I had figured on activating my train pass in Poland but as it turns out Poland hasn't jumped on the bandwagon yet.  Oh well, I still have until the 17th... in the meantime I'll make the best of it.

Krakow is a great city, as it was virtually untouched during the war the historic buildings are still standing and look fantastic!  There is no shortage of ancient cathedrals and a few basilicas (I'm not sure on the difference between the two) not to mention the massive castle in the heart of town.  Most sights worth seeing are located in the Old Town as well as most of the hostels...makes sense.

the visit to the camp left me suitably depressed

The gas chamber/ crematorium in Auschewitz, you can still see the marks on the walls from peoples fingernails.
see more photos »

Of course while spending time in Krakow it is almost nessesary to make a visit to Auschwitz/Birkenau Concentration Camp museum.  I opted out of booking a tour through one of the two companies in favor of going solo, mostly to save some cash.  The tours run about 80zl but its entirely possible and quite easy to book a one way bus ticket to the museum from the bus station for 10zl and catch a return bus back for 2zl! The savings speak for themselves, and the museum is free.  Instead of booking a guide for 26zl the museum recommends that soloists tag along with another group, of which there is no shortage.  The museum is essentially the concentration camp which has been restored to near original condition, and includes a short video of the history and propose of the camp as well as a description of the goings on there.

The main cathedral in the mine, it had many reliefs carved into the walls, including the last supper and several stautes of Mary.
see more photos »

Suffice to say that the visit to the camp left me suitably depressed about the depths that people will reach if they allowed.  But the blame can't laid on any one person either... sure the soldiers were only following orders, but they still followed them.  The people in the nearby towns knew what was happening when ashes would rain down on the towns, and trains loaded with Jews and political prisoners would stop at various stations throughout the country, and still nothing was done.  Its too easy to pin the blame on a select few individuals but really there are many who were responsible either through action or inaction.

Gates to Auschewitz... they read "Work brings freedom"
see more photos »

After I had recovered from my funk with the help of the staff at the hostel and the other travellers there (travellers are really the best people!)  I booked a tour through the nearby salt mine, which had been a source of highly valuable salt for nearly 1000 years.  As tourists we were limited to about 1% of the actual mine but it was still impressive.  Most impressive of all was the various carvings done by miners in the walls and caverns.  The compound includes an underground concert hall, restaurant, souvenir shop, and meeting hall... plus gnomes!

see more photos »

Also there is a very impressive cathedral with numerous carvings and reliefs, each done with a tremendous amount of skill.  Some sculptures are done in pieces of pure salt that when lit up from behind become luminescent and really add to the effect.

Some people come to the caves for medical reasons too.  The damp, salty air does wonders for the lungs and sinuses in the rooms with lakes.  I noticed the effects as soon as we entered the rooms, I had caught a small cold since coming to Poland, it was only 8C at Auschwitz and that was cold enough for me since only three days before I was sweltering in Bangkok at a steamy 31C! 

Sculpture in the museum entrance
see more photos »

 After much deliberation and indecision I decided to head to Budapest since there was convenient bus that went nonstop through Slovakia (another non train pass country for me) and was reasonably priced.  The scenery through the Tatras mountains was stunning and the towns along the way were idyllic mountain towns.  We even passed a ski hill or two though no snow yet.  With two border stops and two new stamps in my passport I was in Budapest, Hungary and looking for a place to stay.  Long story short Brandon ( a NZ dude from the bus) and myself found a place around 130AM and crashed hard.