Poland

Poland is cold. With layers I am fine, but it is definitely the coldest part of our trip so far. We have seen 2 quite different cities here. Krakow (w pronounced v) is a cultural center that the Germans deemed "German built" because they had minor contributions in its construction a long time ago, so it was not attacked in WWII. It was the home of the Pope John Paul II before he was Pope, and Poles still think of him as "the Pope." He had a large influence in their faith--the Poles are very religious, attending Mass on Sunday at one of dozens of churches within blocks of our hostel I saw people coming to the service on time and having to stand because the seats were full. People came in and knelt and crossed themselves and the 8 year old boy in front of me was singing along by memory (in Polish, of course). It was a great display of genuine participation that was great to see after many Catholic churches seem "dead," especially in the states. I could write more, but people are waiting.
I am now in Warsaw but am taking an overnight train to Berlin tonight. Warsaw had 80-90% of its urban center destroyed in WWII, so it is very much a rebuilt city. When Poles rebelled against the Germans in the Warsaw Uprising in the summer of 1944, Germany replied by decimating the city. We saw a few of the buildings that survived, and many of them have obvious holes repaired with brick when it was a concrete building. Crazy to see.
We also vistied Auschwitz-Birkenau, about which there are no words but I could write volumes. I will be glad to share once home. I am learning a lot here and am also having a great time. It is great to soak in history and culture and then to be with a group of friends and having a lot of fun at the same time.
Our guide here in Poland, Gabrielle, is AMAZING. He is very intelligent and witty about his history telling and has been amazing. He has done a superb job in picking our restaurants for group meals, and even when I go out on my own or with friends Polish food has been very good, and pretty well priced, although we're told that the urban areas are much more expensive than rural areas.
Well I need to go, but I hope all is well at home and I will write more or call when I can. My new Skype name is joefoster86, and if you don't have skype you should really consider it. Free international calls as long as both people are on the internet. Quite a deal.
Peace be with you all,
Joe