Layover in the Land of my Father


 
After I got back from Paris, I stumbled across this in Frankfurt! I love street art. 

I knew already before I left for my trip that I had booked myself a 17 hour layover in Warsaw. Thankfully, I was able to meet the friend of a friend and have a place to stay overnight. 

After being picked up at the airport, my lovely host drove me and some other guests around the city for a hour or so. It was surreal to fly by historical sites that I'd only heard about.  It was special, too, as Poland is where my great-grandparents are from.

This is a memorial outside of the in-progress Jewish museum.



 
This memorial marks the location of the train station where Jews were sent to concentraiton camps.

A stone marking the last stronghold/bunker in the Ghetto

After driving around the city for a bit, I got to accompany my new friends to an bonfire. We drove down to the bank of a river, overlooking the old town. It was very cold, but also surreal to be in such a beautiful place, roasting meat, and meeting new people.
Unfortunately, my camera couldn't capture the moment well enough, but here's the best I got:

 

After being thoroughly frozen and covered in fire smoke, we left and drove around the city a bit more.

 
A beautiful church complete with Christmas tree and full moon.

 
Nativity scene

I made it back to the airport with no troubles the next morning and headed home! After countless plane flights in and out of this city, I FINALLY got the money shot:

Ariel view of the big cathedral 

I had a crazy but wonderful break and I'm enjoying being back at school this morning. I would love to visit Poland again someday, for longer than 17 hours!







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