Krakow - Schindler's Factory and Jewish Ghetto Walk

A sad start to my day as I sat and thought about my mum while having breakfast. She would have been 73 today. She would have loved reading about this adventure. ❤️

This morning we set off on a big walk to the other side of the river and a couple of blocks beyond. Our main targets were a church square and a set of rainbow-coloured steps. The square was worth the visit, though photos didn’t really do it justice since we were looking into the morning sun, despite the day starting out overcast.

The colourful steps, however, were a bit overrated—they clearly hadn’t been repainted in quite some time. Oh well, you never know until you go and see for yourself.

From there, we continued on to the Jewish Ghetto area. Between 1941 and 1943, 16,000 people were forced to live there, compared with just 3,000 before it became a ghetto. A prison-like wall once surrounded the entire district, and we were able to see some of the remnants still standing today. In the main square there are also 33 empty chair sculptures—one for every 1,000 people killed—serving as a haunting memorial. The square itself was the place where it was decided which concentration camps people would be sent to.

Next, we made our way toward Schindler’s Enamel Factory, the setting and inspiration for the movie Schindler’s List. I have to admit I’ve never actually seen the film, though I knew the story behind it. We took a wrong turn on the way, which added an extra kilometre to an already long walk.

I also forgot to mention yesterday that we’ve been reading more about Kraków’s grim wartime history. Beside the Harry Potter–like building at the University is a garden dedicated to professors and other intellectuals who were among the first rounded up and sent to concentration camps when the Germans occupied Poland. In 1939, 186 professors were arrested, including 36 Jews who were later killed. Many of the others eventually returned to Kraków a year later, but they were never the same after their ordeal. Overall, around 6 million Polish citizens, including approximately 3 million Jews, perished during World War II—about one-fifth of Poland’s pre-war population.

We decided not to do the full museum tour at the Enamel Factory and instead headed back to the apartment. By the time we got back we had completed a 9.5 km circuit, though it certainly felt longer, and our feet were very sore. Needless to say, after lunch we stayed put and avoided any more walking.

Later in the afternoon we did venture out briefly to pick up pasta for dinner. Spaghetti Bolognese tonight—simple but very yummy.