A big and interesting day today.
We booked two tours yesterday for the Wieliczka salt mine and Auschwitz-Birkenau. The bus picked us up at 8am then we were dropped at the main bus terminal for all tours to board another bus, unfortunately there were too many people for the salt mine so we got our own private minivan. Oh dear :)
380 steps(backless stairs) and over 135 metres underground we explored the 3.5km of tunnels and caves that make up the first 3 levels of the mines. In all there are over 7 levels and it would take an entire 2 months to be able to see them all. Deep in the depths are statues and sculptures sculpted by the miners themselves. The mine is over 700 years old and although is not a working mine today, was the main source of income for many people in the area until 1996. We learnt that the word salary came from a Latin word meaning 'salt', the workers were paid in salt 'white gold' in those days so hence the term. Linda, our tour guide, kept referring to us as the salary or 'gold' now that the mine is no longer mining salt. It was amazing to be so far underground and have wifi reception. Heheh couldn't help but update Facebook. How many people can say they have been 130m underground and updated their status?
A quick and scary lift ride to the top in a space no bigger than a toilet cubicle occupied by 7 people and we saw daylight again. Bright, bright daylight. Back on the bus and back to our meeting point for the afternoon tour.
Time for some lunch. The few shops around only had menus in Polish and we weren't game to play, let see what we get for 20zt. So we headed to the local supermarket. Now guessing items in a supermarket is fun! We found hotdog rolls, cheese and what we thought looked the most like ham. I'm very thankful to whoever came up with the idea of photographs of the produce and clear packaging. With our picnic lunch we headed to the park. The hotdog rolls smelt great! Ok now to give you a better idea of our happiness, when every piece of bread we were given in china is sweet, bread in Paris equals a croissant, and the same in Italy, it was like Christmas to smell proper bread. We added our ham and cheese and enjoyed a piece of normality. Don't get me wrong the food has been great, but it's been 3 weeks so at this point some normality is refreshing.
People watching in the park resulted in some very funny observations. First there was the couple who were either saying their fond farewells and never to see each again, to the beer mascots. Yes, there were people dresses as steins of beer wondering around handing out coupons. One in particular had a case of the trudge. This poor soul either hated his job or was trying to text in a giant beer costume. We have video. It was the best half hour watching him trudge his way from one end of the park to the other.
After getting a good laugh at the mascot it was time to get on the bus for Auschwitz-Birkenau. 1h 15m bus ride and a documentary along the way, we got in the mindset for what we were about to experience and see at Auschwitz. First we met our tour guide, and followed her through the main gate to the first of the barrack buildings. All up we went to three barrack buildings, the first showed the trip the captives took to get to Auschwitz, the second the living conditions and the third was a prison and torture building. We went inside the gas chamber memorial and it was sad to see what the victims went through and to learn just how many people were killed within hours of arriving. There were piles of suitcases, glasses, hair and belongings from the victims and it showed just how cruel the Germans were.
Onto Birkenau, the biggest camp, and we got to see the living conditions and the wash/toilet house. It was terrible. Rows of beds with 15 people to a bunk, and rows of troughs which were toilets. We viewed the camp from the watchtower which really showed the vast enormity of the camp. Looking in from the outside you don't get a sense of what it would be like, but once inside, the fences looked even more menacing and the understanding of the idea that death was the only escape, was harrowing.
Back onto the bus and back to Krakow. Tomorrow we head to Warsaw again, then on to Munich.

Goodnight.