A lovely tour of Poland followed with a sad tour of Auschwitz

Right now I am on a long bus ride on the way to Prague. The past few days have been so hectic and busy that I have not had a chance to reflect on my adventures in Krakow, Poland. Basically, the trip to Poland consisted of walking tours. Two days ago we went to Auschwitz, where the Jews were stationed at the concentration camps. It was probably the most depressing place I had ever been to. After touring the camps, I was extremely emotional and without words. Its one thing learning about the mass killings of the Jews during the Holocaust in school, but it is nothing in comparison to actually being inside the gas chambers and seeing the barbed wire fences that encompassed thousands of prisoners.

On a more positive note, the morning before the journey to Auschwitz, we went on a walking tour and visited a few beautiful churches, and a small museum that showed the history of the Krakow University. Downtown Krakow is adorable! It is very cute and artsy. I loved all the colors on the buildings. One thing that was weird is that the cars actually park on the sidewalk, because the streets are SO narrow! It was challenging for our big bus to fit on some of these side streets. Any who, during the walking tour, I took tons of pictures, so for those who are interested feel free to view my albums on face book. We had a really friendly and informative tour guide this time, so that was nice.

Everyone on our trip has been complaining about how much our feet hurt though. I am experiencing tendonitis in my left foot, which is extremely painful. I have never gotten it before, and it is a real pain in the butt. My mom told me it could last for awhile, and to maybe get some heel inserts for more support in my shoes. I have myself to blame though; I thought we were taking a small walking tour in Berlin a few days ago, and it turned out to be a whopping four hour tour that was very exhausting and boring. I wore my “comfortable” sandals, but I failed to realize that even though they were comfy on my feet, they have no support structure, so the part on my foot where I flex my big toe just kills. Needless to say, I am sticking with sneakers for the rest of the trip.

What else has gone on these past few days? So much… I have really been enjoying the night life in Europe so far. There are an abundance of clubs (dancing anyone?!) and bars for the young and old. I think we are all so excited to be able to actually go to these bars without even getting carded!

Yesterday we went on a tour to the Salt Mines. That ended up being really fun, and nothing like I expected. For some reason, when I heard “salt mine,” I thought we were actually going to a rustic salt mine that was still in existence and functioning. It turned out to be more of a museum of an actual salt mine that once was in use. We had to walk down so many stairs to get down to the actual mine! It was crazy; and at the end of the tour we had to take this really creepy elevator that did not seem stable at all. It was pretty rickety, and it was super fast. I am just glad we got off safely!

It is important to add that me and my peers have already been experiencing quite severe culture shock. I am trying to stay positive and be open to all these new changes, but sometimes its hard when things are just so comfortable in the U.S. For one, I absolutely hate having to pay to use the restroom. I mean, I understand that those who are just walking off the street and go into a restaurant or bar should have to pay to use the facilities, but if I order a drink or buy something from a vendor, why should I have to pay?! It’s ridiculous… Also, it’s hard getting used to all the new food. It hasn’t been horrible, but like in Poland for instance, EVERY thing is fried. Don’t get me wrong, I like fried food now and then, but the whole meal? Literally for one meal I had chicken-fried chicken, fried potatoes and fried pierogies. It does not sit well in your stomach after having it over and over. I am trying to be open to the new culture food, but that is a big struggle for me being a picky eater. Luckily, I have found a new good friend who is the same way. She doesn’t eat much beef, pork, or seafood. I thought I was the only one! Ha ha. Also, it is annoying to have to pay for water at dinner. Its water for crying out loud! One last observation is reading labels; yesterday it was definitely a struggle to find conditioner. I saw the label “Pantene pro-v” but the rest of the label was completely in Polish. I had to relie on my other observations to realize the difference between the shampoo and the conditioner. My friend pointed out that the shampoo bottles usually open at the top, whereas conditioner is at the bottom. I was like, “oh yeah!” that makes sense… this is definitely a period of adjustment but I’m willing and able to embrace it!

Well that pretty much wraps up the past couple days in a nutshell. Feel free to call my skype or shoot me an email if you have other questions or just want to talk. I really miss everyone, but I’m making so many new friends it helps distract me from becoming too home sick!

I will post this entry once I get internet in Prague. We will be there until Tuesday and then I will be heading to Milan with 18 other students and then taking a bus to our pensiones in Florence! Woo hoo!

Arrivederci!