Invading Poland

Polska: Country of central Europe situated on the
Baltic Sea. Population:38,544,000.
* land of vodka
* originator of bagels
* previously the location for some pretty shocking camp sites

My first target was the capital Warsaw, a city completely destroyed in WW2 & clearly suffering aesthetically because of it. Nonetheless the old town has been faithfully restored to its former beauty (see photo right), has a fascinating political history, and the best shots of vodka I’ve ever had.


The next landing point was Krakow, an awesome city with a magnificent castle situated along the main river, where nearby, groups of old men would play rowdy games of chess (see photo below left). There was also another brilliantly restored old town, a 15th century salt mine and plenty of other things to see and do.

From Krakow I went on a deeply moving day trip to Oswiecim, better known by its German name Auschwitz. Split up into 3 separate camps, Auschwitz 1 (the first and smallest camp - bottom photo) displayed a number of relics that were not destroyed by the fleeing Nazis, including a couple of tones of human hair, various clothing items, photographs by German soldiers, and the very first gas chamber used. It is not until you arrive at Auschwitz Birkenau (camp 2) however, that you begin to realise the immense scale of the horrific crime, with housing blocks for as far as the eye can see, and being the graveyard of over 1.5 million people. A very solemn yet memorable day.