Lviv

After a horrible night bus from Krakow with 4 hours of waiting at the boarder. I arrived at a place that was far from being a city. First I got barked at by a vicious looking street dog. Then I found out that nobody speaks English. Everything is written in Cyrillic, so I also couldn't read anything. Eventually I found a bus that supposed to go the center. After walking from the center to the real center I found an ATM and a hostel. Then I slept a few hours and took a look at the city. Even though the western part of the Ukraine is very much in favour of Western European culture, the city looks Russian. There are some tourists, but they are on the sidelines. No EU money has not flown in yet and this is visible. The city it self is far from being a bijou with a few exceptions.
The part I liked the most was the cemetery. Overgrown by the forest lie countless gravestones from the past centuries. Some gravestones are very elaborate while others are wooden. Ukrainian nationalists got furious, when the government decided to start repairing works on the cemetery, because many supposedly Soviet heros are buried here.

Also just a few days before I arrived, the pro Russian government celebrated Victory Day. A holiday in honor of the Nazi defeat at the hand of the Soviets. But Ukrainian Nationalists complain that at that point in history the misery didn't stop. There were clashes and the Russian consul was not able to reach the monument. It was in the international newspapers.
I met very cool people in the hostel and went out every night. A delicious pizza costs 1.5 USD and a beer 0,5 USD. The national dish is Borscht. The main ingredient is beetroot and a oily bouillon. Some varieties are very good.
The clubs are cool a mostly full. We had a lot of fun and ordered vodka by the bottle.
I also visited my first opera in my life - Verdi. It was all subtitled in Ukrainian, so I couldn't follow, but it was still a cool experience.
After several really happy days I took the night bus to Kiev.

Zakopane

2 hours south of Krakow lies the skiing area of Poland. Apparently it would be very cheap to spend a winter holiday there. I arrived in mid summer. Hiking was the objective. There are very green, hilly fields and dense forests. Bears still roam the area. The Carpathian mountains are part of the Alps and reach all the way to Romania.

There were a respectable amount of tourists, but mostly of the older breed. I met up with the owner (Slavek) of the hostel (Ars hostel) in Krakow and some guests I met the previous night. We took a bus close to the Slovak boarder and hiked up along a river to see some lakes at the top. Snowy mountains made me feel nostalgic about the Swiss mountains. We got drunk at the top and hiked back down. In the evening I was very exhausted.

But the next day I did a hike by myself. I took a cable car to a ridge, where many schoolchildren were enjoying some sort of entertainment park. After I got out of the mess and found a beautiful landscape with views of the valley and the mountains. The houses are usually new and kept in the traditional chalet style of the alps. In the evening I went back to Krakow to catch my night bus to the Ukraine.

Krakow

Krakow was the center of Polish academic, cultural and artistic life. Today it is an economic center and a major tourist hub throughout Europe. It once hosted a significant Jewish population, that was more or less protected by the rulers of Krakow over the centuries. Of course WWII changed everything. The Nazi took over and built walls around the Jewish district. They were forced to work in German ammunition factories and were living under miserable, overcrowded conditions. They starved to death or died of diseases. The lucky ones that survived ended up in the infamous concentration camp Auschwitz.

Auschwitz was the biggest death camp during the 2nd World War. I toured the remaining compound and got a good impression about how things must have been like. The most surprising part for me was the immoral efficiency how the camp was run. The whole place had the character of a factory. New arrivals that were not considered fit for working went straight away to the gas chambers. They were let in the believe that they were about to get a shower. Everybody had to strip naked. Afterwards they were let into the gas chamber. Gas containers were dropped from the ceiling and 20 minutes later everyone was dead. The panic must have been horrific. One gas chamber had the capacity for 2000 people. The bodies were burned nearby in cremation compound. The ashes were used as fertilizer. The Nazis had big plans about expanding the ever growing camp shortly before the Soviets arrived.

The people that were seen fit to work lived in small barracks. They were overcrowded and had no heating during the winter. Diseases were rampant. The workers hardly ever got food and usually only lasted 3 months under the harsh conditions. Their hair was cut at the beginning and waved into clothes. All personal belongings were collected and donated to German citizens. Gold teeth were extracted and melted.

The most pervert thing was that the camp, was insured by the Allianz Bank.

In Krakow I visited the Schindler Factory. The good face of the German occupation. He protected his workers from exploitation, put his own life into danger to help the needy. He saved many people from the concentration camp.

Krakow city is a beautiful, relaxed urban sprawl. The main attraction is the Wawel castle, which overlooks the river Vistula. It is home to many sarcophagus of past rulers. Definitely one of the best castles in Europe.

I went out every night and enjoyed some good and surprisingly cheap parties.

Wroclaw

Also known as Breslau, Wroclaw is the 4th largest city in Poland and has the typical history of Eastern European countries: Middle Ages, Renaissance, Reformation, counter Reformation, Napoleonic Wars, WWI, WWII, Communism, Liberation and EU/NATO.

The old city is elliptical shaped and has walls or the river Oder around it. Some small river islands in the north are home to various churches, cathedrals and monasteries. The city is pretty vibrant and is never really sleeping. I went out with some Spanish Erasmus student who I met at the hostel. They were getting drunk on the cheap liqueur they bought at the shop. They had no money in their wallet while leaving - only a condom and a lot of hopes. All Erasmus students have no money, but the Spanish are the worst. Even though they get 300 euro each month from their government.

Polish discotheques have two faces. The girls look very nice and feel like on a catwalk while dancing. The men are either getting drunk or are already passed out. It must be hard for Polish girls. I was dancing until the early morning.

The true jewel of Wroclaw is the main square. The Town Hall is among the best in Europe. The city was badly damaged during WWII, but they have really recovered well. The EU is poring in a lot of money and is trying to turn the student city into a industrial hub.

Poznan

Poznan, a city in western Poland is the place where I heard first about Osama bin Ladens death, while eating cornflakes. The main square was to big for the developers of the past, so they built the Town Hall (Renaissance style with baroque tower) and several other buildings into the middle of the square. Not very odd for Poland, but it seems wrong. While I was there the Polish People celebrated there Independence day. There was a small fair on the main square and a military parade with old uniforms. All the schoolchildren were forced to take part and were visibly bored.

I walked around till exhaustion. I visited an old wooden church, the cemetery, monuments about past wars, Lake Malta and Ostrow Tumski. A small island considered the birth place of the Polish culture. The cathedral dates back to the 10th century. Pope John Paul is celebrated everywhere and by anyone. The Polish people think of him as the new face of Poland after the dark years of Communism.

Further more also the Champions League final and the Polish cup final took place during my time there. I missed the first half of Barcelona against Manchester because Warsaw and Poznan went into overtime.

Gdansk

The principal port city of Poland is on the Baltic Sea and is the biggest city of the broader Tricity area including Sopot and Gdynia. Gdansk has a very rich history and it shows when you walk the streets. Sadly during WWII almost everything was destroyed, but the Poles have put good effort into making the city look authentic.

In 1308 the small village was in rebellion and the Polish king asked the Teutonic Knights to take care of the problem. The knights killed many and replaced the remaining ones with German settlers. They built a castle, fortified the town and changed the name to Danzig. 1361 it became part of the Hanseatic League. In 1440 the city participated in the foundation of the Prussian Confederation - an organization opposed to the Teutonic Knights. This resulted in a 13 year war and the Prussians came out on top. Danzig became part of the Polish kingdom, but was automomous and prospered. In 1577 the new king of Prussia and Poland sieged Danzig for 6 months and eventually killed all the mercenaries fighting for Danzig. But since he couldnt enter the city by force a compromise was made. Danzig had to pay their king and enemy the enormous sum of 200000 gulden as a payoff.

In the centuries to come Danzig or Gdansk belonged to the Polish-Lithauanian Commonwealth, Prussia, sometimes independent, Imperial Germany, Nazi Germany, Soviet controlled Polish People's Republic of Poland and finally to the Republic of Poland.

I got there late in the evening after a half a day at the bus station in Warsaw and and a half a day in the bus. Oil reffineries outside of the city point out the importance the port of Gdansk has these days. The old town is very nice with plenty of tourists strolling around or following somebody with a flag.
Buildings that stand out are the Mideivial crane that used to be used to put the masts into the newly built ships or load cargo. The biggest crane (30m) of it's time was propelled by men in a big wheel. Just like mice in a pet zoo.

During the communist period the Gdansk shipyard was the birthplace of the Solidarnosk movement. The first Workers Union east of the iron curtain. The shipyard lost some of its importance since the fall of the wall, but is still being used. A big monument and a decent museum tell the story.

In the torture house all the methods of torture during the Dark Age are well illustrated. There are some really cruel fantasies, that have been put into place.

I spent my time sightseeing, hanging with the people of the hostel and going out in the evenings. One side trip to the carneval of Sopot finished it of.

Warsaw

Polish capitol, sight of the Warsaw uprising, capitol of a country that ceased to exist for 120 years, birthplace of the Warsaw pact, center of the once biggest empire in Europe, empire that prevented the Ottoman empire to sack Vienna and Timmys first stop in Poland. A huge sprawl awaited me after taking a truly horrible night bus from Riga. Slept only one hour. The hostel I checked into is run by friendly Anarchists.

During the WW II 80% of all buildings were destroyed. Everything basically had to be rebuilt.

The Warsaw uprising happened during the period the Nazi were retreading and the red army advancing. The Polish resistance wanted to be in charge before the Soviets arrived, so the Soviets wouldn't be able to claim that they liberated Warsaw. Controversially the Soviet waited outside of Warsaw for 63 days and let the remaining German forces crush the uprising. After the Soviets were sure that any spirit of resistance was broken they marched in, claiming liberation and staring foreign rule for the next 45 years.

The Warsaw Ghetto uprising is another unique story from this turbulent time. Like in many other cities throughout Eastern Europe the Nazis built walls around the Jewish district and herded all the Jews inside. They basically let them starve or die of vicious diseases. Then the plan was to bring the survivors to extermination camps. In 1943 the biggest Jewish revolt during the Holocaust took place. They tried to fight back. But they were poorly armed and outgunned by the well equipped Nazis. They were slaughtered.

These days Warsaw is much friendlier. Skyscrapers are next to seemingly historic buildings. The old town is rather small, but neat. I went to the zoo and saw many animals familiar from Africa, but a bit more close up. Poland is going to host the European Championship in 2012 and the first game is going to be played in the stadium they are building at the moment. I went to the dentist the first time since I left Switzerland and found out that I have no issues. The woman didn't speak English, but gave me a thumps up. The equipment they used was old and they put cotton with liquid fluor into my mouth at the end of the procedure. But hey, it was cheap.