Well, I am going to try something a little different today. Here is the thing. We went to Schindler's Factory this morning. In fact, I just got back from there, and I am now sitting down and eating a quick lunch. We don't leave for Auschwitz until 1:30, so I have a little bit of time to waste. In light of this, and the fact that I, probably, won't be getting back to Olomouc until about 11:00 tonight, I will break up my blog into two different posts. I will post this one now, and I will, hopefully, post the second one later tonight over my excursion in Auschwitz. I am hoping it all works out, but, I might be too exhausted to post tonight, so, if that is the case, I will post it tomorrow. Whether I can post pictures on this blog, or if I have to post them all on my second blog, rest assured that they will be posted, nonetheless. I apologize for the rushed nature of this post; I have some time, but not a lot, you see. We took quite the walk again this morning to get to the factory. We had to weave in and out of sub-streets and cross the river all over again, as we did Saturday. We saw the gates again, we saw the pictures again, and we saw the hope that so many Jews saw during that time. At first, the tour wasn't what I expected. The building was more of a dedication to the war's influence upon Krakow and Poland, in general. Many of the rooms were covered with pictures and texts of prisoners, Jews, and, at times, Germans, during that time. They gave their testaments of what had happened, and their images, plastered on the wall, conveyed both sadness, and yet, somehow, hope. There were, also, projections and short clips. These contained actual footage, pulled fresh from the archives (no pun intended). I could only stop to watch a few seconds of a couple, for the group was moving forward, and the guy in front of me seemed to know his stuff. I was quite interested in listening to his lecture throughout the tour. There were lists posted on the walls. I think it was something along the lines of a head count in certain areas, as the Germans preferred to do things via paperwork. Also, that building had no shortage of weapons upon display. There were machine guns, hand pistols, swords, knives, tanks, helmets, binoculars, and a few German uniforms. Interestingly, I crossed paths with a certain mailbox. The name, imprinted upon it, read, "I. Stern." For those of you who have seen the movie/know your history, Itzhak Stern was the Jew who helped Schindler run the factory/save the thousand Jewish lives. In the next room, there were Crimson red Swastika flags. The Germans were very proud of themselves during this time. They made everyone wear special uniforms, and this included the civilians. The floor was even made of tiles with the Swastika imprinted upon each tile. Talk about dedication and devotion to a crazy notion! On and on, we saw more pictures of people, their accounts of what had happened--their fears, the atrocities of what they saw, what their expectation of the future would be, etc. More weapons manifested around each corner. In one glass box, I saw some Reichmarks, the form of currency that was used during the 3rd Reich in Germany, perhaps even longer, I do not know. In the next room, in the corner, behind a glass wall, there were assortments of Jewish valuables, such as gold, silver, and glass treasures, the Hanuka candle holder thing, and many other ancient, valuable artifacts. More than likely, these were just some of the treasures that the Nazis had confiscated from the Jews when transporting them to camps, ghettos, etc. Thankfully, somewhere along the line, the good guys managed to get those items back. Up the stairs and to the left, we finally came to a room dedicated to Schindler. It had a desk with his picture, some writing tools, a stamp box, and several other miscellaneous items. Along the walls was the story of Oskar Schindler and his crusade to save the Jews. In the next room, there was a glass hut, and the glass walls contained the pots, pans, and enamelware products that the factory made. Inside the hut were the names of the Jews, I presume. May I just say that trying to navigate through that room was difficult, not just because of the sadness imprinted within the walls, but because of the creek in the floorboards. I couldn't hear anyone speaking while I walked. There was, also, another big desk with a map behind it, as one would find in the office of the Commandant of a camp. I proceeded down the hall and into the next room, where I found the wall to be lined with what appeared to be tombstones. When the Jews/prisoners were forced to build the wall around the ghetto, they built the wall in the form of tombstones, to embody their dwindling hope and fear. I left while running my hand along the wall. In the next room was a wired fence, what was left of one, anyway, and rocks with Jewish items embedded within. I found a pair of glasses, some silk, a key, and some other items, forever separated from their rightful owners. I went around the corner and up the stairs to the barber shop. There were chairs, sinks, and a wash-basin in the corner. There were, also, what appeared to be hairdryers. For the beauticians out there, you would not have wanted to see that, if you truly know the stories behind it. I went down two sets of stairs to find more weapons, more guns, more tanks, and more pieces of the uniforms. I saw a room with a bunk-bed, and, I assume, it was displayed as it would have looked with 8+occupants, as it was, back in the day. As I came around the last corner, the last stretch that would lead me out, I found a giant portrait of Stalin, embodying the man that directed the Red Army to liberate the camps. Admiration was not found in my eye, but skepticism as to his motives. We went out the door to find ourselves on the other side of the gate, the gate that let in so many Jews to work. I tried to imagine what it looked life with people walking back and forth, going to and from, one job to the next. However, it had been modernized to such a degree that I had a hard time imagining anything aside from what it really was. I could see the towering buildings across the street, there was, what appeared to be, a cafe on the corner, and the buildings looked as if they had been renovated recently. Whether they had actually been, I do not know, but I just was a bit disappointed that I didn't see what I thought I came here to see. I was expecting to be in the factory, able to look up at Schindler's office, etc. However, the factory had been transformed into, more or less, a museum, a memorial for history. While that is fine and dandy, I still think it would have been cool to preserve it the way it was, to see it for what it was, and to experience the haven that it, really, was. After that, we came back to the hostel, and here I wait for the bus that will take me to Auschwitz. I am running out of time here, so I will try and post a few pictures quickly. Have a good day, and "May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favor!"
                                                                                           -Anthony-

Nazi Flag

Jewish arm-band

Desk in the room that is dedicated to Schindler

Glass hut that had the enamelware

What I found on the other side of the gate