Monday, April 11th 2016

Following Two Trails of History

Took a taxi to the Krakow airport to find Alamo/Enterprise. A challenge but efficient once found. GPS pre-loaded the night before, waited for the satellites to find us and were on our way driving Northwest.

The Eagles' Nest Trail winds its way through rolling countryside dotted with outcropping of weathered limestone. Perched on top are castle ruins. 

The castles are from the 14th/15th/16th centuries. Destroyed when the Teutonic Knights invaded Poland from Sweden and the Tartars swept across from Russia. 

Roads are good and without horse drawn carts, sheep or cows. Haven't seen a single animal but encountered slow farm equipment - just like home. 

The other trail is visiting the hometowns of Paula and Jacob. Sandy met Jacob as a Mercy Hospice volunteer.

Jacob asked Sandy to look after Paula.

Paula and Jacob were Jewish holocaust survivors. 

Arrived in Paula's hometown of Olkusz, we found a GPS listing for a "regional museum" but found the tourism office first. 

Nice guy gave us maps and directed us to the "museum" (a second floor office inhabited by two women speaking no English). 

Sandy had the address for Paula's family  but it was German and the street names returned to Polish after WWII. 

The "museum" had a map from 1941 with the German names. The tourist information guy joined us as interpreter and Paul's childhood home was located. 

We learned Olkusz (population 30,000) had 15,000 inhabitants in 1940, 4,000 of which were Jewish.  90% of them died at Auschwitz.  Today there are no Jewish people left.

The Jews lived in a section of town that became a ghetto after German occupation. They were  taken away and exterminated, except for the able-bodied. Paula was sent to a work camp near Wroclaw, where we go tomorrow. 

Olkusz map: Upper right quadrant (OS Skanska) was the Jewish Ghetto. Paula's family lived on the circled street (far right). 

Drove there and it's all newer housing as expected. 

Olkusz is an old town. Had coffee/hot chocolate on the square and a great apple pastry. 

Continued on to Wolbrom, Jacob's family home town but nothing there significant to his prior life. . 

More castle ruins appearing unexpectedly and glorious despite their condition. 

My pics don't capture their surviving stature and elegance. 

Arrived in Czestochowa late afternoon. Tomorrow morning we'll visit the huge basilica complex - home of the Black Madonna. Sandy will definitely get his quota of "church."