DAY 35

Monday 15 August 2011

Photo session for a wedding

After a night of rain, we got ready for our first foray into Krakow. We met our neighbors who also had a VW Westfalia and Ravi and Ina turned out to be our mates for the rest of the day. The expertise Ravi had as the one who fixed their van over many years was very helpful and gave us a newer sense of trust and pride in our vehicle. (Nevertheless we arranged a tune-up for it.) We returned the book to Norma and Howard that gave information about ACSI campsites and told them we might make some music later in the evening. 
We caught the bus with the help of Ina (who grew up in Krakow) and noted that bus drivers in Poland are famous for being grumpy. Luckily we had the correct change, in coins, because that is the only way one can ride, and not even our Polish friend could loosen up the stare-straight- ahead monosyllabic driver.

In town we saw a huge hot air balloon that rose up on a tether for a panoramic view of the city then was pulled down. It was situated on the Vistula River – the largest in Poland. We met up with Ina’s daughter, Nikki and her friend Lizzie, who were both visiting Krakow as well. They asked if we would like to join them for a visit to the oldest cemetery in Krakow, in the area named for King Kazimierz. 

We had an extraordinary experience there. The relatives of Ina were buried in the second oldest cemetery in the Jewish quarter and thanks to Nikki’s diligence with offices of records etc, the coordinates of the site were found and she had been there several times. It was a rare privilege. We sat at the foot of the graves as Ina read the Polish words naming her aunts and uncles, only two of whom escaped extermination at Auschwitz. This, as her family lore tells, was because one sister was very beautiful and was about to be let free by a German guard, when she bravely demanded, "Only if my sister can go too." The gamble paid off and those were the two names that showed death as sometime in the 1980s. Nicole and Dian sang (with their permission) a Hebrew song about brotherhood. After that we walked to the Pierogi Festival in the town square. There were lots of people, stands, beer and live music, and of course the best pierogis.

We tried a riddle that only Lizzie figured out, so her old buddy from grade school days bought her a whipped cream and chocolate waffle as a prize. When 3:00 PM arrived, a trumpeter appeared in the cathedral tower and played an aborted melody, reminding all that once when a trumpeter blew a warning Huns were approaching, an arrow stopped him mid-song.  He waved  to all from his perch, we presume as a sign that he was all right, ending mid-song voluntarily. 

Left: The riddle winner! Right: Ravi and Ina

We walked a bit more and then split off to have a bus ride around the city. Twice. After dinner the new friends including a few new ones gathered at the outdoor kitchen area for a song fest. Ina, Dian and Nicole were the Polish version of The Goils (or the Andrews Sisters). What a wonderful evening of wine and music.

Howard, Lizzie, and Norma

From left to right: Dian, Ina, Nikki, Howard