Thursday, August 6 - Krakow and Częstochowa Poland

This morning I was up early to go with Eve and Nancy to Częstochowa on our own little pilgramage to the Shrine of the Black Madonna. It was an amazing experience: there were so many people, all there for the same reason. It was a beautiful church and I was able to see the Black Madonna painting unveiled (despite throngs of people). We had a nice little train ride through the countryside there and black; altogether the day was very nice.

I returned to our hotel and then went to dinner with the remaining few girls, before doing a bit of souvenir shopping. I really love this city at night: it is very beautiful.

I cannot believe tomorrow is my last day here! Off to bed so I can have an early start and the full day to explore.

Wednesday August 6th - Krakow, Poland

Today was the beginning of my three lovely days in the beautiful city of Krakow. I got a chance to sleep in a bit this morning which was really nice. After enjoying a nice breakfast in the beautiful restaurant of our hotel we wandered down to the market area and shopped our hearts out for a bit. I had alot of fun picking up souvenirs for friends as well as a few for myself too of course.

We then enjoyed a nice lunch at a restaurant before returning to the hotel for a well needed nap. Before meeting some others of the group who have not left yet we wandered in and out of a few shops and grabbed a coffee and people watched for a bit.

I had my first Indian food this evening and really liked it. It was nice to try something new! We just finished a good Polish beer and now I am off to bed. I have the opportunity to go to Częstochowa tomorrow to see the Black Madonna. I am really looking forward to it.

Started saying goodbye to the rest of the group today. I was not nearly as bothered by it this time though. I think I have realized that all good things must come to an end and that is what makes them so good. These friendships have been all good and they will end good and with the end will come the memory of this entire trip and the joys and the tears and the amazing learning experience this has been for me. I cannot wait to experience this again sometime soon!

Tuesday August 5 - R and R day

Today was our day of rest and relaxation. We packed up early in the morning to leave Gliwice and then travelled to the Wieliczka Salt mines. It was really amazing to see, especially the large underground church.

Afterwards we returned to Krakow and checked into our hotel. I was pretty emotional for the rest of the evening, after having to say goodbye to my new Polish (and American) friends. It is a hard thing to reconcile, making these new friendships in so short of time and then saying goodbye knowning it is unlikely you will ever see each other again.

We all went out together as a group for dinner at a very nice authentic Polish restaurant - the food was very good, as was the company. We said goodbye to a few group members last night but others are staying here in Krakow for a few more days so we will have the opportunity to still hang out.

Monday August 3 - Build Day 7

Today we spent finishing up some of the walls we have been working on all week. I wasn't able to do much as I had a bit of an incident this morning: I got something in my eye and after ignoring it and blinking alot for an hour or so I finally started washing it out. We tried for over an hour but I continued to be in more and more pain so we made a quick trip to an eye doctor. He was able to remove the piece that was in it and it feels much better now though quite irritated. I got to wear a patch for the day and have drops and things to put in it for a couple days. I was dissapointed that it happened but it wasn't that big of a deal. The doctor's didn't take too long and I got to see a Polish hospital (that makes a count of hospitals in two countries now haha).

It was really nice cause the woman who'd hosted us for dinner last night was a nurse so she tried to get it out for awhile and then came with me to the doctor. And even though we couldn't understand each other she was a comfort when the doctor was sticking things in my eye. Anyways, nothing seriosu but a no-fun end to the trip.

The group made a trip for pizza and to a silver mine this afternoon. I wasn't allowed to go though, instead I got a bit of rest and let my eye heal up some. This evening though, we went out to a local bar and sat and had a few drinks. It was a great time. We went out with Bobby, Sam and Michal and a few of us girls; we had many laughs and a really good time.

Today was our last day of building. I can't believe it's come to an end already. Time has passed much too quickly. I am so happy I made this trip though: I have made wonderful friends both Polish and Canadian and am very sad to have to say goodbye to them tomorrow. Tomorrow we are off to the Salt Mines and then to Krakow where I'll be spending the next 4 days before flying home on the morning of the 8th.

*The walls we finished in the upstairs flats!

Sunday August 2 - R&R Day

This morning we went to Auschwitz. I'm not sure I can properly put into words what the experience was like but it was a very emotional morning. I know about the Holocaust, I know the numbers of people killed, the methods and possible reasons for the actions of the Nazis; but seeing piles and piles of human hair, hairbrushes, shoes and clothing hit me in a way I did not expect. The experience is one I will not forget and I will forever be changed because of it. We had the opportunity to see the vastness of the Birkenau camp, as well as the conditions of life for prisoners. We stood where mass numbers of people were murdered and you couldn't help but cry for the cruelty these people endured.

I found I reacted very differently than the others after the tour. At first I was quiet, I just wanted to be left alone and feel sorry for myself and the world but soon after I was craving human contact, craving connection with others and feeling the need to reconcile my views of the world, my perception of life and the ability of people to act in the evilest of ways.

I found that reconciliation and that contact and the feeling of love and kindness in our visit to our family this evening. Our group was split up and I and two other girls (and our wonderful translator Sam) went to dinner with a family who will be moving into one of the flats in our building. They have 6 children (all born within a 9 year span): 5 girls and 1 boy. We didn't get much of a chance to see the boy (he's been working on the site alot though so we've met him before). We did however have a wonderful time with the girls. They ranged in age between 17-8 and they were such beautiful girls. Their mother (a nurse who works full time and is still on the build site most days) was talking about how hard money is and their living situation but we reassured her that she had done a wonderful job of raising her children as they were so beautiful. They all have a wonderful relationship with each other (I never saw them fight once) and they love and respect their mother emensely. One of the girls is in the process of having surgery to fix some hip problems so she uses crutches to walk but nonetheless was more than happy to accompany us on a walk around the neighborhood and a nearby park. Their father unfortunately appears to be an alcoholic and we didn't see much of him. Their home, despite it's size for 8 people and it's run down condition was so beautifully well kept and well decorated that their positive attitude for life was very obvious.

We brought the children small gifts (bubbles, markers, Canada stuff, skipping ropes etc) and they very much enjoyed them. In turn they gave us beautiful necklaces made of stones you can only find in the sea off the coast. We went to the park and played with the bubbles; I soon found myself skipping and playing tag with the children. I was exhausted and hot afterwards but reassured that good still exists in this world. I had daisies and little flowers coming at me all the time from the little girls and even some rocks. We threw berries at each other and laughed and smiled despite not knowning what each other was saying. We counted in English and then Polish each impressed at the other's unknown knowledge.

I have never felt the way I did this morning and this afternoon. I have never before really confronted the evil and the horror of the Holocaust and the suffering of the Jews, Russians, Polish and gypsy people in the prison camps. Taking a class and then seeing the piles of shoes belonging to now murdered people... hearing the stories of the massacre of children and then standing where those very children had been murdered... are very different things. I have never felt that level of sorrow, or that deepness of regret for someone else decisions in my life.

On the completely other end of the spectrum, I have never experienced what I did when we met the family. I've done this building thing a few times now and never before have I been so impacted by the lives of these people. We've never before had the chance to meet them as we did today. I know that what I'm doing here isn't for my own glory and that's its not to make myself feel good but I couldn't help but feel a sense of happiness and pride that someone was doing something about this situation. I was so inspired about the outlook that this family had about life and their new beginning in their new home. They've all been working so hard on the build site and are all so excited. They were so excited by the simplest of gifts we gave them and I felt emotions I can't even describe to see them gesturing for me to come skip with them or play with them.

Today, I experienced some of the highest emotions I ever have: the deepest of sorrow and the highest of joys and I am confident that I come out of today with a completely different outlook on life, and as a very changed person with an appreciation for the sanctity of life and the simple joys with which we're blessed.

*Us (Suzanne, Lesley, Sam and Melody and the Family: Mother and girls (Olga, Claudia, Agata, Natasha and Dominika)

Saturday, August 1 - Build Day 6

Today I got to do something different - staining big pieces of wood for the roof. Pretty sure I got more green stain on myself than I did on the wood and I'll be scrubbing it off for a while.

We had a little bbq this afternoon with the group and our construction workers buddies. It was a lot of fun and a chance to say goodbye to some of them who won't be around on Monday. We enjoyed hearing one of the homeowners in building 1 play his flute for us (he's a professional muscian in the Polish orchestra). We also had the opportunity to see one of the finished flats and what our walls would look like when they were done - very nice little flats!

We enjoyed some more jazz music this evening, it was good fun. We ended off our evening by watching the beginning of Shindler's list. We all started to fall asleep by the end of the first half so we called it a night.

Tomorrow we are visiting Aushwitz and spending the evening with a family who'll be moving into the building we are helping with.

*Picture of the group, plus Sam, Bobby, Adam, and a few other construction workers.