Kirsten's Here!

Some of you might know that my sister, Kirsten, is over here visiting me at the moment. Of course she knew she wouldn’t find me entertaining enough so she planned a little trip for us. A day after her arrival in surprisingly warm and sunny London we took off for Krakow, Poland. It was cold and raining when we arrived which would prove to be something of a meteorological constant for the balance of our time on the Continent. Our first full day in Poland was occupied by a trip out to Oswiecim (Auschwitz) where we visited the famous concentration/extermination camp. Aside from getting a glimpse of Eastern Europe, this was the real reason for going so far afield. The weather was fittingly dreary and it was hard to imagine what it must have been like to work in pyjama-like uniforms while emaciated from a starvation diet. The living conditions were atrocious and much of what our guide said was poignant. It is frightening to think that many of the guards working at these camps were ordinary people with families and children of their own. How anyone thought it acceptable to send hundreds of thousands (well, millions actually) callously to their deaths is beyond me. I think what struck me most about the place was the efficiency of the entire “Final Solution”. This was not an act of passion, it was not a crime of war in the traditional sense of the word (in fact the establishment of the legal crime of ‘genocide’ came about as a direct result of the Holocaust) rather it was clinical and systematic. Jews and other ‘Undesirables’ were processed, passed from hometown, to centralized ghettos, then on to transit camps and then finally to their final destinations. Once there they were either killed immediately or given a reprieve and used as free labour until they died of starvation or disease. Their belongings were confiscated and redistributed to Germans, their hair was shorn and woven into fabric, their gold teeth were extracted after their deaths, and so on. Such premeditated and wholesale slaughter boggles the mind.

Krakow itself has a charming Old Town which we explored but the rain and cold made things a little tricky. There’s certainly some interesting architecture and a definite shift between the Old and new(er) town. Honestly, Kirst and I spent most of our time trying to stay dry and warm. We took a rather uncomfortable night train to Prague which is a beautiful city. It is delightful and oh so photogenic. It was still cold and we were even surprised by a short snowstorm. We managed to have a good time and despite Kirst getting sick and injuring her knee, we saw most of what we had hoped to.

Krakow Castle (Wawel)

Prague

Charles Bridge, Prague

Prague

A night train and a (COLD!) day in Krakow later we were on a plane for Edinburgh. After a short night we boarded a micro bus for a tour of the Highlands and the Isle of Skye (should you ever decide to do the same we recommend Rabbie’s Tours…great value for money, excellent guides, etc.). It was nice to just sit and be taken care of. I think I know understand the appeal of cruises and all-inclusive resorts…though I must admit I still turn my nose up at them. The first day was a drive north-west through the Highlands, stopping to see Hamish, the odd loch, passing by Ben Nevis (Britain’s highest mountain), some castles, and lots and lots of sheep. It rained (SURPRISE!) most of the day but we were safely tucked away in a warm bus getting a running commentary on the scenery, landmarks, and associated history/geography/geology/etc. That night we made it to Portree (the capital of Skye) and stayed in a nice little hostel with a view of the bay and of the mountains in the distance. The next day we drove around Skye and were blessed with awesome weather and clear views. The pace of life on Skye is what you might expect out of a rural area (which was refreshing after having been in London for the last few months) and driving around in the sunshine, taking pictures of stunning cliffs and snow-capped mountains was really very pleasant. We spent the night in Portree again before heading back to Edinburgh via Loch Ness (no sight of Nessie).

Neist Point, the Westernmost part of Skye. The lighthouse is now a B&B. The parking lot's near where I took the picture...

The view from our hostel in Skye

Eilean Donan Castle

Scottish Shortbread (and me looking like an idiot)

We spent a couple of days poking around Edinburgh before heading back to London and I must say I love the place. The architecture is rather cold and imposing (which I liked) and the people are warm. The historic bits are relatively small which made for some nice walking along the Royal Mile and surrounding areas. The castle is impressive, perched on its volcanic plug and the steep streets make for a nice amount of variety and for great vistas out over the city and to the Firth of Forth.

The view from the front door of our Hostel in Edinburgh...(it's Edinburgh Castle in case you were wondering)

On our way down from Edinburgh we stopped to visit some family friends we met in Strasbourg when we were young and had a few lovely hours with them.

Now we’re back in the centre of the universe planning out the next leg of our travels (a quick dash over to Strasbourg and maybe to Geneva for Kirst). After that I’m on my way back to Canada for a few days (the opportunity arose in the form of cheap flights as did the motive in the form of…well, I’ll save that for later.) =)