Saturday takes us to Auschwitz.

We boarded the bus at our hotel at 8:45 after eating a hearty breakfast, and making sandwiches to take with us. There are no restaurants in Auschwitz so we are going prepared. We drove about an hour on back roads to get to the first camp. A video was shown during the bus trip to provide us with background information on the Holocaust, World War II and Auschwitz itself.

We received headphones with a receiver so we could listen to the Polish guide (speaking English). The place was very crowded so we had to be very careful to stick together and stay with our group. Last night at dinner we met a couple from Norway and they were also with our group. We enjoyed interacting with them. The tour lasted about 4 hours and there was a lot of walking between camps.

As for comments about the day, I am not able to do that for you tonight. It is going to take me a little time to process the day. It was very moving, sad and most informative. I had dreaded going but am glad I did. This is something Mary has wanted to do for a long time so for her sake I am glad we were able to work it in. As most of you know 1.1 million people were killed of which 91% were Jews.

When we returned to Krakow and Mary treated us to a horse and buggy ride through the city. This lifted our spirits some so we did a little shopping and found the perfect Polish restaurant for dinner…that is after much discussion as to why we should not eat pizza!

Home to pack for Sloyakian castle tours tomorrow and hopefully send you this email with a few pictures from Auschwitz.